Country Wheat Sourdough

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large mixing bowl
• •Proofing basket or bowl with kitchen towel
• •Dutch oven with lid (4-quart or larger)
• •Sharp knife or bread lame for scoring
• •Wire cooling rack

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the dough

   Combine both flours in a large bowl. Add the water and mix with your hands until no dry spots remain. The dough will look shaggy and rough. That is exactly right. Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for thirty minutes to one hour. This rest, called autolyse, allows the flour to hydrate fully and the gluten to begin developing on its own.

   Use your hands for mixing. You learn dough by feel, not by watching a machine do the work.
2. 2

   Add starter and salt

   Spread the sourdough starter over the surface of the dough. Sprinkle the salt on top. Use wet hands to pinch and fold the dough, incorporating the starter and salt until evenly distributed. This takes two to three minutes. The dough will feel sticky and alive. Squeeze it through your fingers, fold it over itself, squeeze again. When you no longer see streaks of starter, you are done.

3. 3

   Bulk fermentation with folds

   Cover the bowl and let the dough rise at room temperature for four to five hours. During the first two hours, perform a series of stretch and folds every thirty minutes. Wet your hand, slide it under the dough, stretch it up, and fold it over the center. Rotate the bowl ninety degrees and repeat. Four folds per session builds strength without kneading. After the folds are complete, leave the dough undisturbed for the remaining time.

   Watch the dough, not the clock. In a warm kitchen, fermentation happens faster. In winter, it slows. The dough should increase by about fifty percent and show bubbles on the surface and sides.
4. 4

   Shape the loaf

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Handle it gently to preserve the gas you have built. Pull the edges toward the center, then flip the dough over so the seams face down. Cup your hands around the dough and drag it toward you, using the friction of the counter to create surface tension. The dough should hold its shape, smooth and taut on top.

5. 5

   Cold proof overnight

   Dust a proofing basket or bowl lined with a clean kitchen towel generously with flour. Place the shaped dough seam side up in the basket. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and refrigerate for eight to sixteen hours. The cold slows fermentation and develops flavor. The dough can wait for you.

   Rice flour in your proofing basket prevents sticking better than wheat flour. If you do not have rice flour, use a generous hand with what you have.
6. 6

   Prepare the oven

   Place a Dutch oven with its lid inside your oven and preheat to 500°F for at least forty-five minutes. The pot must be screaming hot. This trapped heat mimics a professional steam-injected oven and gives you that shattering crust.

7. 7

   Score and bake

   Carefully remove the hot Dutch oven. Turn the chilled dough out onto a piece of parchment paper, seam side down now. Use a sharp knife or razor blade held at a shallow angle to score the surface with one confident slash about a quarter inch deep. Lower the dough, parchment and all, into the pot. Cover with the lid and return to the oven. Bake covered for twenty minutes.

   A cold, taut dough scores more cleanly than room temperature dough. Work quickly and with confidence. Hesitation makes ragged cuts.
8. 8

   Finish with high heat

   Remove the lid and reduce oven temperature to 450°F. Continue baking for twenty-five to thirty minutes until the crust is deeply bronzed and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. The internal temperature should read 205°F to 210°F if you are using a thermometer.

9. 9

   Cool completely

   Transfer the bread to a wire rack. Listen to it crackle and pop as it cools. This is the bread singing. Wait at least one hour before slicing, though two hours is better. The crumb is still setting inside, still releasing steam. Cutting too early makes the interior gummy. Patience brought you this far. Let it carry you to the finish.

Chef Tips

• •Find a local mill if you can. Stone-ground flour from a mill you trust changes everything. The wheat still tastes like wheat. Ask at your farmers market or search for heritage grain producers in your region.
• •Your starter should be active and bubbly, having doubled within four to six hours of its last feeding. Weak starter makes dense bread. Feed it the night before you plan to bake.
• •If your kitchen is cold, find a warm spot for bulk fermentation. Near a pilot light, on top of the refrigerator, inside an oven with just the light on. Yeast needs warmth to do its work.
• •Do not fear the crust. A deep brown crust is not burnt. It is where the flavor lives. The Maillard reaction creates hundreds of flavor compounds. Trust the color.

Advance Preparation

• •Sourdough starter should be fed and active 4-8 hours before you begin mixing the dough.
• •The shaped loaf can cold-proof in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Longer proofing develops more complex, sour flavors.
• •Baked bread keeps at room temperature for 3-4 days, cut side down on a board. Do not store in plastic; the crust will soften. After day two, slice and toast it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 71g)