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I have been baking sourdough for 2+ years and I don't think people should take the timing too seriously. Yes it's good to loosely follow a schedule but if you d

I have been baking sourdough for 2+ years and I don't think people should take the timing too seriously. Yes it's good to loosely follow a schedule but if you don't the bread will still turn out fine. I don't think I've ever followed the exact same schedule twice. A few times I flat out forgot about the dough and shaped it hours after I was supposed to, and it still came out amazing. Sourdough is very forgiving. The most important thing in my opinion is mix it thoroughly in the beginning and to do the stretch and folds properly so the dough has strength and can hold it's shape for the later bulk rising.

atomi 7y ago
Yes! I think it's also important to remember that you're cultivating a living organism. It's an art, and you should adjust your schedule based on what the dough is doing.
- nimrody 7y ago
  That's the most difficult part for me. We need more than a schedule - we need instructions how to modify the schedule and perhaps ingredients based on what we get. The "Quarantine bread" receipt was wonderful last week. This week, for some reason it turns out terrible (dough very sticky, bread burnt on the outside, etc.) No idea what went wrong and what I should have done to fix this.
  - joshuaduffy 7y ago
    Water temperature is best around body temperature, any higher or lower and you'll have issues as you described. Leaving it for ten minutes/waiting for the flour to hydrate then mixing again can help out when the temperature is off.
  - i_am_proteus 7y ago
    As someone who's been baking for a while (both sourdoughs and breads made with commercial yeast), there's a lot of learning to be done through trial and error, and it's difficult to communicate the nuances of how the dough feels or looks via instruction. Temperature and humidity can change day-to-day (and certainly week-to-week) in a residence. Same with the temperature of "cold" water coming out of your tap. A thermometer and a kitchen scale go a long way towards consistently implementing recipes (and therefore getting consistent results). Some general tips: - If the dough is too sticky, add flour! Check the stickiness before bulk fermentation. - Check the dough during the rise. If it has risen a lot and "domed" early, punch it down or give it a fold. If it's time for a fold but it hasn't risen much yet, let it rise longer! - If you find your rise times are shorter than the recipe, use cooler water. If your rise times are too long, use warmer water. - If you don't have a baking stone, baking steel, or dutch oven, you can use an inverted cast iron pan as a baking steel. - Preheat your oven for an hour or more. Residential ovens often have substantial internal temperature variations. I use dutch ovens to bake bread, but also keep a baking stone on the lowest oven rack as a way to regulate the oven's temperature.
    - nimrody 7y ago
      Thanks for the tips!
etrautmann 7y ago
As a beginner, I find a tool like this useful for understanding the general schedule and a visual depiction of the steps required, without taking the precise timing too seriously
- juanbyrge 7y ago
  Definitely as a beginner it helps to follow a schedule and start to notice some patterns. As you make bread more and more you start to rely on more visual and tactile signals. For instance, I know that the levain is ready when it appears 'bubbly' enough, and the stretching and folding is done when the dough is 'tough' enough, and that the bulk fermentation is complete when the dough has approximately doubled in size. This is a great beginner's guide that I have shared with many folks: https://www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/ https://www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/. After some time I have settled on theperfectloaf's 'best sourdough' recipe, which has a higher hydration.
  - etrautmann 7y ago
    Thanks! I'll give this one a shot too.
melenaos 7y ago
I am just trying to create my first loaf using sourdough so I have no experience on this (I will bake tomorrow) and I have read a book that says that the more you leave the dough the taster it becomes. The normal recipe is to leave 24 hours the dough in fridge and it says that you can leave it for 48 or even 96 hours :)
- vkou 7y ago
  Leaving dough out too long will overproof it. Leaving it out not long enough will not rise enough, or, in the case of sourdough, not develop that sour taste people are looking for. Your first loaf is unlikely to come out great, if your starter is not matured yet - because the yeast/bacteria ratio in it is unlikely to be optimal.
  - melenaos 7y ago
    It's very lively, when i feed it it rises and then it drop a bit but maintains it's bubbles. Hopefully it will be better that the breads with commercial yeast.

atomi 7y ago

Yes! I think it's also important to remember that you're cultivating a living organism. It's an art, and you should adjust your schedule based on what the dough is doing.

nimrody 7y ago
That's the most difficult part for me. We need more than a schedule - we need instructions how to modify the schedule and perhaps ingredients based on what we get. The "Quarantine bread" receipt was wonderful last week. This week, for some reason it turns out terrible (dough very sticky, bread burnt on the outside, etc.) No idea what went wrong and what I should have done to fix this.
- joshuaduffy 7y ago
  Water temperature is best around body temperature, any higher or lower and you'll have issues as you described. Leaving it for ten minutes/waiting for the flour to hydrate then mixing again can help out when the temperature is off.
- i_am_proteus 7y ago
  As someone who's been baking for a while (both sourdoughs and breads made with commercial yeast), there's a lot of learning to be done through trial and error, and it's difficult to communicate the nuances of how the dough feels or looks via instruction. Temperature and humidity can change day-to-day (and certainly week-to-week) in a residence. Same with the temperature of "cold" water coming out of your tap. A thermometer and a kitchen scale go a long way towards consistently implementing recipes (and therefore getting consistent results). Some general tips: - If the dough is too sticky, add flour! Check the stickiness before bulk fermentation. - Check the dough during the rise. If it has risen a lot and "domed" early, punch it down or give it a fold. If it's time for a fold but it hasn't risen much yet, let it rise longer! - If you find your rise times are shorter than the recipe, use cooler water. If your rise times are too long, use warmer water. - If you don't have a baking stone, baking steel, or dutch oven, you can use an inverted cast iron pan as a baking steel. - Preheat your oven for an hour or more. Residential ovens often have substantial internal temperature variations. I use dutch ovens to bake bread, but also keep a baking stone on the lowest oven rack as a way to regulate the oven's temperature.
  - nimrody 7y ago
    Thanks for the tips!

etrautmann 7y ago

As a beginner, I find a tool like this useful for understanding the general schedule and a visual depiction of the steps required, without taking the precise timing too seriously

juanbyrge 7y ago
Definitely as a beginner it helps to follow a schedule and start to notice some patterns. As you make bread more and more you start to rely on more visual and tactile signals. For instance, I know that the levain is ready when it appears 'bubbly' enough, and the stretching and folding is done when the dough is 'tough' enough, and that the bulk fermentation is complete when the dough has approximately doubled in size. This is a great beginner's guide that I have shared with many folks: https://www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/ https://www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/. After some time I have settled on theperfectloaf's 'best sourdough' recipe, which has a higher hydration.
- etrautmann 7y ago
  Thanks! I'll give this one a shot too.

melenaos 7y ago

I am just trying to create my first loaf using sourdough so I have no experience on this (I will bake tomorrow) and I have read a book that says that the more you leave the dough the taster it becomes. The normal recipe is to leave 24 hours the dough in fridge and it says that you can leave it for 48 or even 96 hours :)

vkou 7y ago
Leaving dough out too long will overproof it. Leaving it out not long enough will not rise enough, or, in the case of sourdough, not develop that sour taste people are looking for. Your first loaf is unlikely to come out great, if your starter is not matured yet - because the yeast/bacteria ratio in it is unlikely to be optimal.
- melenaos 7y ago
  It's very lively, when i feed it it rises and then it drop a bit but maintains it's bubbles. Hopefully it will be better that the breads with commercial yeast.