Basic Sourdough Bread

There are many different recipes and methods for sourdough bread but let’s start with the basics. This is a simple basic recipe for producing sourdough bread which uses the same process as making bread with commercial yeast and will produce a quite acceptable loaf.  
These quantities will produce a 660g (about a 1½lb) loaf:

Ingredients
Flour   350g strong white bread flour
Water 175ml preferably filtered water at room temperature
Starter 175ml sourdough starter at room temperature
Salt    1 teaspoon preferably sea salt

Put the flour and salt into a mixing bowl and mix them together. 

Put the water and sourdough starter into a measuring jug and mix them together. 

Now make a well in the centre of the mixing bowl and slowly add the water and sourdough starter stirring it until you have added all the liquid and have formed a solid ball of dough.  Add a little more flour if it is too runny or a little more water if it is too dry.  It should end up as a solid but slightly sticky ball of dough.

Once you have produced the dough in the mixing bowl, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. You may find a plastic dough scraper useful for getting all the dough out as some tends to stick to the sides of the bowl.

If the dough is very sticky add a little more flour, if it is too dry add a little more water, but err on the side of stickiness to begin with. As you knead the dough it will become less sticky.

Knead the dough by first stretching it out into a long strand:

Then roll it back into a ball. Continue this process, stretching in a different direction each time.

After around 10 minutes the dough should feel smooth and satiny. 

Form the dough into a ball and put it into a lightly oiled bowl.  Cover the bowl with cling film and leave it to prove in a warm place for two to four hours until roughly doubled in size. If you live in a warm country the kitchen will probably be fine, if not a warm airing cupboard should be fine or put it in the oven with just the oven light on (which is what I do as I was told off for getting flour on the clothes in the airing cupboard).

You won't notice as much of a rise in the dough as you would with a yeasted bread which is why it will take longer. The warmer the temperature the quicker the rise, so the first time check it every hour and once it is roughly doubled in size you are ready for the next step.

Once the dough is roughly doubled in size, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface to knock it back and shape it.  

Knocking back consists of punching the dough gently to get rid of the gas in it and rolling it back into a ball. It should be roughly back to its original size following this.

Shaping the dough consists of rolling it into the required shape for your baking sheet or bread tin. 

Place the shaped dough on the baking sheet or in the bread tin and sprinkle the top with flour. 

Cover with a clean tea towel and leave it to prove in a warm place for a further two to four hours until it is again roughly doubled in size again.

Preheat the oven to 230°C (190°C fan), 450°F or gas mark 8 and put a small amount (about 100ml) of cold water into a baking tin or small oven-proof dish and place in the bottom of the oven to create some steam.

Using a sharp bread knife, score the top of the loaf. This is referred to as the baker’s signature and can be any pattern you like. The purpose is to allow the top of the crust to expand without splitting when it goes into the hot oven (called the oven spring).

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a good golden crust has formed and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the base. 

Note: baking time will vary from oven to oven, so be prepared to shorten or lengthen the baking time as required. When the loaf is perfect, make a note of the time and use that in future.

Turn the oven off and leave the loaf in the cooling oven, with the oven door slightly open (to get rid of any remaining steam), for a further 5 minutes.

Then remove the loaf from the oven and put it on a rack to cool for at least an hour. This is sometimes hard to do as the smell of the fresh baked bread is wonderful but it is better for the bread to let it cool down before cutting it.