This basic Sourdough Bread Recipe produces an artisan loaf with a crisp crust and chewy crumb. It is best baked in a Dutch oven, but the recipe is very flexible and adaptable.
I think that this recipe for crusty sourdough bread is reason enough for making a sourdough starter.
Because the bread freezes really well, I make a loaf of this artisan Sourdough Bread each time I need to feed my sourdough starter.
How to make Artisan Sourdough Bread at home:
Any bread that you make with a sourdough starter is a “sourdough” bread. But there are a few key steps that will produce a light, crusty and chewy bread that is the quintessential loaf we all imagine when we hear “artisan sourdough bread ” .
To make a light and moist bread, you’ll need to make a fairly wet dough with well-developed gluten.
A wet dough is a sticky dough and can be a bit fussy to handle. But because this bread has a long, slow fermentation, the bread has time to develop plenty of gluten without lots of kneading.
I made the dough once completely by hand using the “no knead” method where you just mix the ingredients until combined. I made it another time letting the dough knead for 5 minutes on the mixer. The two loaves were very similar.
So I adopted a process to use the mixer to make the dough, but I don’t continue kneading the dough after it’s mixed. If you don’t have a stand mixer the dough can be mixed by hand for a truly “no knead” dough.
I also give the dough a couple of quick kneads before the final shaping.
If the holes in the baked bread are very large I think it’s harder to eat with a filling or spread. A few quick kneads will knock out some of the larger air bubbles. You can skip this step if you like an irregular crumb.
The other key to making an “artisan” loaf is baking the bread in a Dutch oven. This process was created by Chad Robertson of Tartine fame, and it has transformed home bread baking.
The Dutch oven creates a moist environment that develops that thick, crispy crust on the bread. Any oven-safe, heavy pot with a lid will work if you don’t have a Dutch oven.
Timeline for making basic sourdough bread:
- If your starter needs feeding, do that the night before or early in the morning of the day you want to make the dough.
- Mix the dough in the afternoon. Allow it to ferment at room temperature all day and refrigerate the dough in the evening before going to bed.
- The dough can stay in the refrigerator for 2-3 days at this point.
- Take the dough out first thing in the morning and shape the loaf.
- Leave the loaf at room temperature to rise for 1 1/2- 2 hours.
- You should have fresh bread by lunch time.
Scroll through the step by step process photos to see exactly how to make Sourdough Bread:
FAQs for making sourdough bread at home:
Yes, start the dough early in the morning and skip the refrigeration step.
You can proof the dough right on the parchment paper that will go into the Dutch Oven.
Use any heavy, oven-safe pot with a lid, or slide the parchment onto a sheet pan to bake. The crust might not be quite as crisp as it is when baked in a Dutch oven.
You could try and shape this dough into a baguette. But I suggest you try this recipe for Sourdough Baguettes instead.
The bread keeps for 2-3 days at room temperature.
Yes! Store the loaf or slices in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Since you’ve got your starter fed, peruse the entire list of My Best Sourdough Recipes. Have fun!
I know you hate to throw away that sourdough discard. Check out these recipes that use sourdough discard.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.
Basic Sourdough Bread
This basic Sourdough Bread Recipe produces an artisan loaf with a crisp crust and chewy crumb. It is best baked in a Dutch oven, but the recipe is very flexible and adaptable.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 oz, 224) active sourdough starter (100% hydration)
- 1 cup (8 oz, 240ml) warm water
- 2 1/2 cups (12.5 oz, 336g) unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
- Rice flour for proofing basket
Instructions
- Combine the starter, water and 1 1/2 cups of the flour. Mix with the paddle on low speed until it forms a thick batter. Cover the bowl and set aside for 30-60 minutes.
- If using a stand mixer, change to the dough hook. Add the salt and the rest of the flour and mix until the dough begins to form a ball around the hook. If mixing by hand add the flour using a wooden spoon and/or a plastic bowl scraper. This dough is quite sticky.
- Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, turn once to coat the dough. Cover the bowl and set it aside at room temperature.
- After 30 minutes uncover the bowl, lift one side of the dough and fold it into the middle of the dough. Repeat with the other three sides of the dough then flip the dough over. You're basically turning the dough inside-out to redistribute the yeast. Cover the bowl and after 30 minutes repeat the procedure. Cover the bowl and after 60 minutes repeat the procedure again.
- Cover the bowl and after 60 minutes turn the dough one more time. By now the dough should be lively, elastic and airy. If the dough is still sluggish give it another hour or two at room temperature. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and dump it onto floured surface. Without kneading, use your cupped hands to form the dough into a smooth ball. Cover lightly with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rest for 20-30 minutes. If the ball flattens during the 20 minutes fold it onto itself and form the ball again. This step will help you check if your dough is elastic enough to help it's shape during the final rise and baking.
- Uncover the dough and knead 1-2 times. Reshape the dough into a smooth ball and place the dough into a well-floured proofing basket (I use a mix of 1/2 rice flour and 1/2 all purpose flour in the basket) or directly onto a sheet of parchment paper.
- Cover the dough and leave in a warm place until it's almost doubled in size and it springs back slowly when poked, about 1 1/2-2 hours depending on the room temperature and dough temperature. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F. Place a Dutch oven with a lid into the oven to preheat.
- If the loaf is in a proofing basket, place a sheet of parchment over the dough and gently flip it over. Use a single edge razor or very sharp knife to cut a 1/4" deep X across the top of the loaf. Remove the preheated pan from the oven and remove the lid. Use the parchment to lift the loaf into the Dutch oven.
- Replace the lid on the pot and slide it into the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid from the Dutch oven. The loaf should be well risen and pale in color.
- Continue baking another 20 minutes until the loaf is nicely browned and beginning to crisp. Remove the pan from the oven. Use the parchment to lift the loaf out of the pan. Use the parchment to place the loaf directly onto the rack in the oven. Bake another 5-10 minutes until the loaf is deeply browned and very crisp. Total baking time is about 40-50 minutes.
- Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
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Kenneth Bowman
Can you make this recipe printable
Eileen Gray
Sorry, there is a print button on the recipe card. Some of the color setting got switched and the text was displaying white on white so it wasn’t visible. It’s been fixed. Thanks for the heads-up.
christina poddubiuk
Hello! Not bad for a first try but the dough was limp and didn’t hold an upright shape. What should I change?
And, it burned underneath. was it just that the rack was too low in the oven?
Eileen Gray
If the dough seems limp, make sure you’re using a starter that is at the height of activity. A slightly older starter is more slack than a fresh starter. Also, make sure your starter is 100% hydration and that you are weighing your ingredients. As far as the bottom burning, you could put the pan higher in the oven. Also, I recommend keeping an oven thermometer in the oven to monitor that the temperature is correct.
Kelley Reynolds
Hi Eileen!
I am at step 6 and it is definitely not holding its shape. Now what? Knead and let rise longer?
Thanks.
Eileen Gray
I know it’s been a while so hopefully you worked it out. If it doesn’t initially hold it’s shape you can push the dough back and forth between cupped hands to form a tight ball and give it another few minutes it see if it tightens up.
Martin
Hi there,
If I mix the dough in a dough mixer for a couple minutes/until it forms a ball on the hook, do I also have to do the series of stretch & folds after it?
Or, does the dough mixer step cut out the need to do the stretch & folds?
Eileen Gray
I do both because I like to monitor the dough as it’s fermenting. Will the dough be ok if you skip the folds? Yes, I think so.
Cris
Getting this recipe to work is now my life’s mission! I’ve tried it 4 times now and I have the same issues as Kim who posted in June. I start the recipe when my fed starter looks to be at its height before collapsing, which is about 8 hours in my case (half rye flour half all-purpose flour). The dough seems to be getting more lively and airy in the early steps of the recipe, until the step when I put it in the refrigerator overnight. After coming out of the fridge, it does not hold its shape when I make the ball and wait 20 minutes, even if I do that for an extra 20. And it doesn’t rise in the proofing basket or during baking. Great tasting result. But just very, very dense.
Any suggestions? I’m wondering if I should try using the starter 2-3 hours after feeding (like was mentioned before), but my starter is not yet fully active by that time.
Eileen Gray
Hi Cris, with this recipe it is all about controlling and starter. Have you tried giving your starter 2 feedings before making the dough? Take the starter out the night before and give it a feeding, then again first thing in the morning, give it a few hours to become active and then make the dough. Double feeding my starter gives me good results. This works really well if you keep a small starter since a small starter requires two feedings before you have enough to bake with. Also, if the point where you loose the dough is the overnight refrigeration, you can bake the bread on the same day you make the dough. Shape it after the fermentation and leave it at room temp to rise. Then bake. Good luck!
Cris
Thanks Eileen! I’ll give it another shot.
Mark
There is nowhere near enough flour in this recipe.
How can you add 140g flour to something described as a ‘batter’ and expect to end up with anything resembling a dough that is foldable within 30 mins???
Chrisitne
How long do you knead the dough in the mixer? I have been kneading for about 15 ins and the dough is still super wet.
Eileen Gray
You don’t need to knead it at all. You can just mix until the dough gathers on the hook a bit. The gluten will continue to develop as the dough ferments. It is a wet dough. That’s the nature of this type of bread. If you want to knead for 4-5 minutes you can. I do it both ways with minor differences. Kneading a couple of minutes changes the texture a bit. Although it’s always hard to say with sourdough since there are always variations. Again, the nature of this type of bread.
Annabel Lloyd
I have tried a couple sourdough recipes and none of them have been inedible but they were dense and didn’t have the perfect airy sourdough texture. So trying this recipe I was sceptical but I read through everyone’s comments and began the two day process. I also sorted my starter out using your recipe increasing its total amount to 12oz and used the discarded starter in your sourdough brownies recipe (Which I would highly recommend they were delicious). Like some of the other comments said I found my dough to be quite wet, but it was still manageable, next time I would definitely add a bit more flour as it did stick to my wooden basket and lost it’s shape a bit when I put it in the Dutch oven. This also meant that I struggled to score it, but I put it the oven and hoped for the best. When it came out it looked a little sad as it had lost its shape on one side from being too wet but when I sliced into it it was my dream sourdough. The crust was crisp and crunchy the air bubbles filled the bread and it had the mist amazing taste. I would never use any other recipe now it was incredible thank you so much. One thing I would like to know is can I add some whole meal flour in to turn it into a brown loaf or what that change the whole texture?
Eileen Gray
You could definitely add some whole grain flour. I would start with 1/4 of the weight with whole grain and see how you like it. You can gradually add more to get to the texture you like. As far as the dough being wet, that is on purpose. A high hydration dough (wet) means the crumb will be moist and airy and the crust will be nice and crisp. It does take some practice to handle a wetter dough. The hours of fermentation and folding help develop the gluten which allow the bread to hold it’s shape. Use a light hand when working with the dough and keep the surface floured. When you’re getting ready to shape the dough make sure to do the step where you shape the dough into a ball and set is aside for 20-30 minutes. This will tell you if your bread has enough elasticity to hold it’s shape. If the ball flattens during the 20 minutes fold it onto itself and form the ball again. See if this helps it keep the shape. You do have to generously flour the basket for the final rise.
Stella
Hi There,
I have a few comments!
1. further to Abby’s comments, I find the same issues. I weigh everything when baking the bread or feeding the starter, so I don’t know if there is half and ounce left on the spoon or in the bowl? I scrape as much as I can but always come up short. When my starter is left with 3.5 oz. (or whatever it is), I just add 3.5 oz of water and flour to ensure the right balance – but then it should be back on track the next day when I weigh out the 4 oz to continue with feeding. It still baffles me.
2. This is the third starter recipe I’ve tried, the first two were complete fails. I’ve seen much success with this method (I think weighing the ingredients is a game changer) and have baked a number of lovely loaves and tried the pretzels! Everything has been excellent! Thank you Eileen for taking the time to post and answer everyone’s questions, you have truly made this sourdough bread baking adventure a fun learning experience and I think sourdough will be a staple in my house going forward. It’s so easy to make this bread, and it’s delicious! Thank you!!
Eileen Gray
Yes, I could see how you’re left with 3.5 oz instead of 4. You could certainly loose a bit on the spoon, etc or maybe even the accuracy of the scale. Abby mentioned that once she had just over an ounce left. That is harder to understand how it happened. But, like you, if I’m left with 3.5 instead of 4 oz I don’t sweat it.
Heather
I grew my own starter and have just started making sourdough bread this spring. This is the 4th and best recipe I have tried. It turned out so perfectly! I am going to try your sourdough rye recipe next.
Abby
Great bread, thank you! I am trying to figure out why when I measure out 8 oz of starter for the recipe, I do not have 4 oz left over to put back in the fridge. This has happened to me both times. The first time I had just over an ounce left, and this time I have 3.5 ounces. Does it have to do with when I take the starter? The first time I think I used the starter a bit late, it had gone a little watery. This time I think I got it when it doubled and it was much thicker.
Eileen Gray
As long as you are weighing it shouldn’t matter what the texture of the starter is. That is why weighing is the most accurate way to measure. 8 oz is always 8 oz. I would say it might be the way you are feeding the starter. If you’re not weighing for the feedings the starter will have a different weight to start with.
Abby
Thank you. I always weigh everything at every step – which is why it is so odd. Conservation of mass should apply. I can’t figure it out.
Eileen Gray
Yes, that is very strange. If you start with 4 oz of starter and add 4 oz of water and 4 oz of flour you will have 12 oz total no matter how much the starter rises or falls. When you say you are measuring 8 oz do you mean you are measuring with a scale, not a measuring cup? 8 oz of liquid measure can vary, but 8 oz on a scale is 8 oz.
Abby
Measuring with a scale! It is very odd indeed!
Kim
Hi there. I’ve tried this recipe 2 times now and second time better than the first, however my bread doesnt rise. It’s not rising much during step 8 or in the oven much. It comes out tasting good and sour but its dense and not airy at all. Any thoughts on what I am doing wrong? I have pictures but not sure how to share.
Eileen Gray
Sounds like maybe your starter is not active enough. Do you feed with within a couple of hours of mixing the dough? Is the dough nice and light after the long fermentation?
Abby
I am having a similar issue. My starter rises well, but the dough just isn’t rising after the overnight fermentation or in the oven. Four times I have tried – first was awful, send and third gradually better, and fourth terrible. I have left it out for hours in the morning to try and get it to double in size, but it barely rises at all.
Eileen Gray
How does it do during the fermentation? Is is changing from sticky and slack to bouncy and lively? How long before making the dough are you feeding your starter?
Kerry
Hi Eileen! Thank you so much for sharing! I am in the beginning stages (day 4 and so far so good!) On my starter. But noticed in the recipe it calls for table salt. In your opinion, If I use sea salt or kosher would I use an equivalent weight or same measurement as the table salt?
Eileen Gray
If you use something other than table salt you should weigh the salt. The same volume of larger-grain sea salt or kosher salt will weigh less than table salt. I use table salt for baking because any nuance in flavor from sea salt or other specialty salts would be lost. If you don’t have table salt in the house use what you have, but you’ll need to weigh to account for the size of the salt grain. Here’s a post all about salt which includes a table of different salts and how the weight can vary.
Melissa
Learning how to bake sourdough bread from your website has been so gratifying and fun these past few months..working from home.
I will never enjoy store bought bread again after having mastered (a little) your delicious bread recipes. Thank you.!
Melissa
Eileen Gray
Thanks so much, Melissa. Once you get the hang of it you realize that baking bread isn’t really that much work. I hope you keep it up when you go back out to work away from home.
Krista
Hello there, I made my starter and the dough but I find the dough to be extremely wet and after the refrigerated proofing my dough more resembles a pancake than a ball on my floured surface. I feel I may have made my error by not weighing the starter going into the recipe, I just measured out one cup. My starter had already fallen at that point as well, it was a bit runny. Is there anything I can do to save my hopeful rustic loaf? Knead more flour into the dough?
I’m enjoying this challenge. I’m a seasoned chef but this is my first time baking sourdough from scratch and I welcome whatever learning curves are coming my way. Thank you for the recipe compilations. I look forward to many sourdough adventures.
Eileen Gray
This is a much wetter dough than a regular yeast-risen dough. The wet dough makes a light and moist crumb that is typical for this style of bread. Did you weigh any of the ingredients? If you used cup measures for the flour you could also be off there. You can certainly knead in more flour to make the dough manageable. Generally, after the fermentation and time in the refrigerator the dough is more cohesive. If you just can’t work the dough I would knead in more flour and give it some time to see how it does.
mark sorg
First attempt at this recipe……it did not raise at all. ??
Eileen Gray
I’ll need more information before I can trouble shoot. At what stage did it not rise? During fermentation, overnight, in the oven?
Mary Kate Long
I have gained a lot of confidence just from using this recipe several times. I upped the salt to 2 1/2 teaspoons just for our personal taste, and tweaked the “twang” factor by feeding my starter with rye flour every other time. Thank you so much for making this recipe available and for providing the pictures of the different steps. Love it!
Eileen Gray
You’re very welcome.
Deb
If I wanted to could I make this into raisin bread?
Eileen Gray
You could knead in some raisins, but for my taste it wouldn’t be the best base for raisin bread. I would use White Sandwich Bread with a soft crumb. But of course that’s a matter of taste.
Rosemary
I’ve been experimenting with sourdough during our lockdown. So far everything has been edible, even if some of it needs work. I hadn’t done a boule. I followed the instructions, easy peasy and straightforward for which I thank you very much, and I got a great result. I used a bit more flour than asked for but it was all-purpose. No bread flour to be found around here, lol, everyone is baking! What difference would that make? Pinterest won’t let me post pictures. I’d love your opinion of the crumb.
Eileen Gray
I use all purpose for this dough so no bread flour is no problem. You can post a photo on either Facebook or Instagram and tag me there. Pinterest should let you post a photo onto my pin for this recipe. Folks do it all the time.
Debbie
Hi Eileen,
If you want to skip the overnight refrigeration, what do you do between steps 4 and 5?
Thank you,
Debbie
Eileen Gray
Do everything exactly as written except once the dough is finished with the long fermentation you go right on to shape the dough for the final rise and bake.
Debbie
Awesome! I kinda figured it out, but wanted confirmation.
Christina
Hi- what if I have a starter that is 2:1 (ex: 1/2 cup flour to 1/4 cup water)? How would I adjust the recipe? Thank you.
Eileen Gray
1/2 cup of flour weighs about 2.5 oz and 1/4 cup of water weighs 2 oz. So you’re not far off 100%. I would think that you’d be ok using with the recipe as written (still use 8 oz of starter). If anything, your starter would be a little thicker and this is a fairly wet dough.
Christina
It worked out great! I left a review – thank you for your help.
Nancy
Would you change any proportions if using bread flour?
Eileen Gray
Bread flour will absorb a bit more of the water than ap flour does. The dough will be a little less wet than it is with ap flour and the final crumb could be a bit tighter. But honestly, you’ll get a great loaf of bread using bread flour.
Norma
Love the instruction and the video! Thanks!
Eileen Gray
Thanks!
Michelle
Was looking for a straightforward recipe, using the dutch oven and this one seems to have worked for me. My second attempt ever turned out great. Thanks.
Eileen Gray
That’s great, Michelle!