I’ve just recently gotten into baking sourdough and I love it! The process seemed so complicated to me at first so I was hesitant to start, but now that I have, I can’t stop.
I decided to prepare myself before baking my first loaf by watching Youtube videos and reading about folding techniques. This helped me feel more confident and comfortable, but I don’t think it’s necessary.
There are just a few things (in my opinion) that you will need to know in order to have a yummy tasting and beautiful looking sourdough:
- Starter – This is important because this is what gives your bread it’s flavor and provides a leaven. Making the starter is simple and there are tons of recipes online, you can also ask someone you know who has a starter if you could use some of theirs.
- Time – Sourdough is a process. You will need time in order for your loaf to turn out beautiful. My loaf making process usually takes about a day and a half.
- Folding – This is important because it provides the strength that the dough needs. There are so many different ways to fold your dough, my favorite is to just simply stretch a portion of the dough out and fold it over itself.
Some tips I’ve learned that helped me:
- Don’t worry if you don’t have a scale. Yes using a scale is the way to go if you have one, however I have tested out a few recipes using only cup measurements and have found success. I would suggest investing in a scale if you plan to be baking a lot.
- Don’t stress too much about flour. A lot of times when I read recipes (especially baking recipes) I want to follow it perfectly for fear that I’ll ruin my entire bake. With sourdough you should use what flour you have on hand, especially now with everyone staying home. I would stick to flours like all purpose, whole wheat, bread flour or rye. I wouldn’t use flours like almond or tapioca.
- Don’t stop trying. If your first, second or even third attempt didn’t turn out how you wanted, keep trying. This isn’t something you master in one try and there are so many things that you can work on. I am constantly trying to improve my loaves and try new techniques to see what works best.
Jaimes Bakes 