Guides
Everyday sourdough bread (no commercial yeast)
The mild wheat loaf you can bake every week: a short preferment, a long cold proof for flavour, and a Dutch-oven bake for crust. No commercial yeast, no fuss.
Build the preferment
Stir the starter, flour and lukewarm water into a thick paste. Cover and leave warm (25 to 30 C) for about 2 hours, until bubbly and risen.
Mix the main dough
Add the flour, water and salt to the preferment and knead about 10 minutes to a smooth, elastic dough. Cover.
Bulk ferment with one fold
Leave warm for 3 hours. Halfway through, do one set of stretch-and-folds: lift one side of the dough, stretch it up and fold it over, turning the bowl a quarter each time.
Cold proof overnight
Refrigerate for 20 to 24 hours. This slow, cold fermentation is where the flavour develops, so don't rush it.
Shape and final proof
Do a final stretch-and-fold, shape into a tight round, and place seam-up in a floured banneton. Let it sit about 1 hour at room temperature while the oven heats.
Bake in a Dutch oven
Preheat to 230 C with the Dutch oven inside. Turn the dough in, score the top, and bake 10 minutes lidded at 230 C. Drop to 190 C and bake 30 minutes more lidded, then 10 to 15 minutes uncovered until deep brown and hollow-sounding.
The loaf you'll actually repeat
This is a mild, open-crumbed wheat sourdough leavened entirely by your starter. It rewards patience rather than skill: most of the work is waiting, and the long cold proof in the fridge is where the flavour and the keeping quality come from. Bake it once and the rhythm becomes second nature.
What you need
Makes one large loaf. Hydration lands around 64%, which is forgiving to shape. Weigh everything; cups hide the flour-to-water ratio the whole thing depends on.
Notes and swaps
Your starter needs to be lively: feed it the day before so it's at peak when you build the preferment. A sluggish starter gives a flat loaf. Whole-grain, spelt or a little rye all work, but they drink more water, so add it a spoon at a time. If you're short on time, skip the separate preferment and mix everything at once (475 g flour total), bulk for 3 hours, then proof 3 to 4 hours warm instead of overnight.
Infographic: scoring your loaf
Here's the whole thing on one page. Tap it to download, or pin it for your next bake.
DownloadFAQ
Frequently asked
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Written by
Julia Yukovich
Co-Founder + CEO
Julia is one of the Co-Founders. She handles design, development, product direction, and most of the support replies that arrive in the morning.
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