This recipe makes 2 standard loaves - you can halve all the ingredients and just make one
Day 1 - 8:00PM - refresh starter from fridge
mix 10g of sourdough starter from the fridge with 30g cool water and 30g flour and mix vigorously
Day 2 - 8:00AM - refresh starter again
Take 10g of the sourdough from last night and discard the rest - mix again with 30g water and 30g flour
Day 2 - 8:PM - make the 'leaven' for tomorrow's loaf
Take around 30g of the sourdough from this morning and mix vigorously with 100g water and 100g flour
if you have a white flour starter add a pinch of wholemeal to help the rise
Day 3 - 8.30AM - Autolyze
Mix 800g Strong White Bread Flour, 200g Wholemeal Flour with 650g warm water
9.00AM - Mix in sourdough starter
Make sure the starter is really strong, bubbly and risen loads
add 200-220g of starter into the rested dough and fold a few times to incorporate into the dough
Put the rest of the sourdough back in the fridge to rest until next week
Roughly shape into a round and cover with a plastic bag
9:30AM Add Salt
Mix 18g salt with 18g water
add to the dough, dimple it through the dough and give it a mix and a fold to incorporate
Cover with a plastic bag
9:45AM
10:00AM
10:15AM
10:45AM
11:15AM
11:45AM - Stretch and fold
starting every 15mins and then every 30mins stretch and fold the dough as below - this is to build strength in the dough as an alternative to kneading it thoroughly
cover with a plastic bag in between stretches
After the last stretch and fold leave the dough for a couple of hours
2:45PM - Preshape
Remove the dough from the bowl onto a clean surface (slightly damp helps or a light dusting of flour if necessary)
3:00PM Shape
Shape the dough into a tight ball and put upside down in a bowl to rest
I use a banneton which has been dusted with flour but you can use a bowl lined with a tea towel or some such
Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise.
This is the point you'd put things in the fridge if using that method - although you should adjust the recipe to use less of the sourdough starter to slow things down.
4:00PM - check for rise
You can do a finger test to gauge wether it's ready to go in the oven - this is something that gets easier with practice!
Get your oven nice and hot (230 degrees) for when the dough is ready to bake - you'll need to put it on before it gets to this stage so it can pre-heat and if using a casserole put this in to heat up too.
4:05PM - Score and bake
I swear by baking sourdough in a casserole pot with a lid as it keeps the steam in and gives a great rise - you can bake it on a tray instead
Carefully tip the dough into the pot (or tray) and make a short sharp slash in the dough before placing it in the oven
4:45 - remove the lid
I like to bake for about 40 mins before taking the lid off for a further 15mins
You can bake it for longer if you like a darker loaf - you can easily go up to an hour
Once the lid is off, turn the temperature down to 180 degrees
5:00 - Finished!
Now you can admire your creation (or have a drink to commiserate - the next one WILL be better!)
Leave for at least 2 hours before cutting as the steam continues to cook the inside of the bread.
I usually cover with a tea towel overnight and slice it up for the freezer the following morning - makes excellent toast straight from the freezer.