Prep Time: 1 day || Cook Time: 45 min || Makes: 2 loaves
12 hours before you are ready to mix your dough, prepare the levain by mixing 1 tablespoon of mature starter with 100 grams of water and 100 grams of all-purpose flour.
12 hours before you are ready to mix your dough, prepare the levain by mixing 1 tablespoon of mature starter with 100 grams of water and 100 grams of all-purpose flour.
Now it is time to add the salt and extra water to the dough. Pour 50 grams of water and 20 grams of salt on the top of the dough. Use your hands to incorporate the ingredients by pinching and squeezing the dough until it comes together. It will still be a lumpy but the dough will feel a little smoother. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest 1 hour.
During the bulk fermentation phase you will do 3 sets of stretch and folds over the first 1.5 hours (one set every 30 minutes). A stretch and fold is exactly as it sounds. Place your hand underneath one side of the dough, pull it upwards and stretch it over itself to the opposite side. Continue this until you’ve come full circle. Place the cover back on the bowl and perform the next set in 30 minutes.
Once you’ve completed the 3rd set of stretch and folds, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough bulk ferment for 3-5 hours on the counter. The dough should rise about 1.5 times its original size and you should see signs of activity around the edge of the bowl in the form of bubbles. (The amount of time it takes to rise depends on the temperature of your kitchen. Warmer temperatures will cause the dough to rise faster.)
Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and use a bench scraper to cut the dough in half. To pre-shape the dough, take your bench scraper in one hand and push it under one side of the dough. Push the dough forward with the bench scraper while turning it in a circular motion. Repeat this process until you have a tight, round dough ball.
Repeat with the other half of the dough and cover with a towel. Let it rest for 20 minutes.
Lightly flour the surface of the dough and then use your bench scraper to flip it over. Gently pull the dough out from the right side and fold it over to the center of itself. Repeat with the left side. Repeat this shaping process with the top and bottom sides of the dough.
Flip the dough over so that the seam side is down. Cup your hands around the dough and gently pull it towards yourself to help create tension on the outside of the dough. Turn the dough in a circular motion and repeat the pulling and turning motions until the dough has developed a “tight skin”.
Dust the dough ball with flour to prevent it sticking to the towel in the bowl.
Place the dough, seam side up, in a bowl that is lined with a floured tea towel. (You can use a banneton if you have one.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit on the counter for 30 minutes before placing in the refrigerator. Let the dough ferment, up to 12 hours or until the next morning in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees (without the Dutch oven inside).
Remove the sourdough from the fridge, place a piece of parchment paper over the top of the bowl and invert it onto the parchment paper. Use the parchment paper to pick the dough up and place it into the Dutch oven. Score the top of the dough with a sharp knife or a razor.
Score the bread with a razor or sharp knife right before baking. This will help create the “oven-spring”.
Place the cover on the Dutch oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes. The inside of the dough should be somewhere in between 205-210 degrees.
It’s important to let the sourdough bread cool on a cooling rack for at least 2 hours before slicing. (You can cut it earlier, but the crumb is more likely to have a “gummy” texture because it continues to bake after you take it out of the oven.)
