Bread Manifesto
This is a working recipe for sourdough boules — the kind you actually make on a weeknight, not the kind you read about and never attempt. It covers the ingredients and process, a few hard-won notes on the steps that tend to go wrong, and a handful of bonus sections on topics worth knowing: how to slow the dough down when life gets in the way, how to keep a starter alive without babysitting it, and one or two tricks that make a real difference.
The recipe assumes you have a starter already. After all, that's why you're here, isn't it? Someone gave you a starter and you're trying to figure out what to do next? If not, find someone who bakes and ask for a piece of theirs — starters are meant to be shared.
Ingredients
Makes 1 boule. Double all quantities for two.
| Ingredient | Amount | Baker's % |
|---|---|---|
| Bread flour | 425 g | 85% |
| Whole wheat flour | 50 g | 10% |
| Dark rye flour | 25 g | 5% |
| Water | 350 g | 70% |
| Salt (non-iodized) | 10 g | 2% |
| Active starter | 110 g | 22% |
The whole wheat and dark rye can be substituted with additional bread flour if that's all you have. The specialty flours add depth and complexity, but the bread works fine without them.
Instructions
1. Feed the Starter
Take the starter out of the refrigerator around 2–4 PM and feed with 60 g water and 60 g bread flour (starting from approximately 60 g of initial starter... if there's more than that in the jar when you pull it from the fridge, discard until you have 60 g). It will be ready to add to the dough in about 4–5 hours — it needs to double in size and bubble. This puts you at mixing around 10–11 PM and baking/waking around 8 AM. Adjust accordingly.
2. Autolyse
Mix the flour and water together. The water should be about 100°F when added. Let them rest together for 30–45 minutes. This step seems strange but you will notice a clear change in the dough texture afterward.
3. Add Starter and Salt
Add the starter and salt to the dough — but not right on top of each other. Salt and living organisms don't get along. Knead by hand, stand mixer, or simply mix until incorporated. The kneading matters less than the folding step that follows.
4. Stretch and Fold
This step is not optional. After mixing, stretch and fold the dough by quadrant: grab the dough with your fingertips and pull until you meet resistance, lengthening the gluten strands. Complete all four quadrants, then repeat the full cycle 3 more times at 15-minute intervals. You're looking for the dough to tighten up with each round.
5. Bulk Fermentation
Leave the dough at room temperature overnight — approximately 8 hours. It will more than double in size.
6. Bench Rest
In the morning, extract the dough from the bowl with as little handling as possible — floured hands and a dough knife help. Do a rough fold to give it some shape. If you're making a double recipe, now's the time to divide the dough. Let it bench rest for 15 minutes.
7. Shaping
Place the dough lightly floured-side down and have your floured proofing basket ready. The goal is to develop surface and internal tension without tearing:
- Fold all four corners into the middle.
- Flip it over so the seam side is down.
- Using the blade of your hand, pull and tuck the dough into a ball.
- Shape until you're just at the point of surface tearing — but not beyond.
This is hard to describe in words. Watching a video helps: Sourdough Shaping Reference (the motion is right, though shape more aggressively than demonstrated).
Place the dough seam-side down in the basket and flour the sides.
8. Proofing
This is the hardest step to time, and there are no reliable shortcuts. At room temperature, you have about a 30-minute window to get the dough into the oven once it's ready. Proofing typically takes 1.5–3 hours at room temp, depending on temperature, humidity, starter activity, and bulk fermentation time.
Signs it's ready:
- Dough is rising above the rim of the basket
- Still actively rising
- Has a nice jiggle when moved
Most failed loaves come down to under- or over-proofing. Trial and error is genuinely the only teacher here.
9. Preheat
Place your dutch oven in the oven and preheat as hot as you're comfortable with — 450–550°F is the range. Most dutch ovens start to smell at 500°F+. Note that a hot oven will accelerate proofing, so time the preheat accordingly. The dutch oven should be fully up to temperature before the dough goes in.
10. Transfer and Score
Flour the top of the dough with semolina flour, then flip the basket onto the counter. Tap the far edge as you flip to help break the seal. High-hydration dough tends to stick — you may need to scrape at least one loaf out. Accept it and move on.
Score the top of the dough if desired.
11. Into the Dutch Oven
Using a large dough knife, scoop the dough into the preheated dutch oven in a single, swift motion — lift once, lower as you feel the weight return. Do not hold or carry it longer than necessary. At this stage, even a minute of handling will undo your shaping work.
12. Bake
- 30 minutes with the lid on
- 15–25 minutes with the lid off, until you reach the color you like
There's no real such thing as over-baked sourdough — some people like it quite dark. Baking times can vary with starter activity.
13. Wait (Please)
Do not cut into the loaf for at least one hour. Cutting while hot ruins the crumb texture — call it "mushification." Warm is fine. Hot bread is what toast is for.
14. Enjoy
15. Storage
Store in a zip-lock bag as soon as the loaf fits. The natural fermentation inhibits mold for up to 2 weeks (sometimes longer). The bread is very sensitive to drying out, however — enforce household rules about resealing the bag after every slice.
Timeline
Times assume the starter is fed at 2 PM. Shift the whole schedule forward or backward to suit your day.
60g starter + 60g flour + 60g water. Needs to double and bubble.
4–5 hrs to peakMix flour + water (100°F). Rest together.
30–45 minNot on top of each other. Mix or knead until incorporated.
4 rounds at 15-minute intervals. Pull each quadrant until resistance.
~45 min totalLeave at room temperature overnight. Dough will more than double.
~8 hrsExtract dough with minimal handling, rough fold, divide if doubling.
15 minDevelop surface tension, place seam-side down in floured basket.
~10 minWatch for rise above rim, active rise, and a nice jiggle when moved.
1.5–3 hrsDutch oven in oven at 450–550°F. Must be fully up to temp before dough goes in.
~30 minSemolina flour on top, flip basket, score if desired. Single swift motion into dutch oven.
Lid on for 30 min, then lid off until you reach the color you want.
45–55 minDo not cut for at least one hour. Cutting while hot ruins the crumb.
1+ hrSlowing Things Down
Both the bulk fermentation and the proofing can be slowed in the refrigerator if you need to work around your schedule. This is not recommended until you know your dough well, as you'll be working entirely off visual cues — the jiggle won't be present with cold dough, but the size change should still be visible.
A longer, cooler fermentation is also believed by many bakers to develop more flavor. Worth learning once you're comfortable with the basics.
Caring for Your Starter
A sourdough starter is a living culture of wild yeast and bacteria. It is more resilient than people think, and less demanding than people fear.
Storage
The refrigerator is your friend. A starter kept cold can go weeks between feedings without issue and will wake back up reliably. If you keep it at room temperature, plan to feed it at least every other day — the warmth accelerates fermentation and it will exhaust its food supply quickly.
Temperature also affects flavor. The longer the starter sits at room temperature, and the longer you stretch the gaps between feedings, the more acidic and funky it becomes. This is not a flaw — it's a dial. Adjust to taste.
Feeding
When feeding, aim for equal parts starter, flour, and water by weight — a 1:1:1 ratio. For example: 100 g starter, 100 g bread flour, 100 g water. Discard or give away the excess before feeding, or your container will eventually take over your kitchen.
If the starter lives in the fridge, feed it at least once a month even if you're not baking. This keeps the culture healthy and prevents buildup of acids that can weaken it over time.
The Float Test
To check whether your starter is ready to use, drop a small spoonful into a glass of water. If it floats, it's ready. The bubbles produced during fermentation make it buoyant. If it sinks, give it more time.
Hooch
If you open your starter and find a gray or dark liquid pooled on top, that's hooch — alcohol produced when the starter has gone too long without food. It looks alarming and smells sharp. It's fine.
You have two options: mix it back in for a more sour result, or pour it off and replace it gram-for-gram with fresh water if you want a milder flavor. Then feed as normal.
Reviving a Neglected Starter
A starter that has been ignored in the fridge for months is almost certainly still alive. Pull it out, discard all but a small amount, and feed it daily at room temperature. It may take two to four days of regular feeding before it's vigorous again — rising predictably, passing the float test, and smelling yeasty rather than just sour.
When to Throw It Out
Rarely, if ever. The only real reasons to discard a starter are mold — which looks like mold, not hooch — or a complete failure to revive after consistent feeding over several days. A starter that smells bad but shows no mold is almost certainly fine. Feed it and wait.
The Secret Weapon
Congrats on making it this far... I'm going to let you in on my secret weapon: diastatic malt powder. Add 2–3 grams of diastatic malt powder to your flour during the autolyse step. That's it. The difference in chew, crumb structure, and crust is noticeable.
What It Is
Diastatic malt powder is made from sprouted barley that has been dried and ground. Sprouting activates naturally occurring enzymes — primarily amylase — that break down starches into simple sugars. The powder carries those enzymes into your dough in concentrated form.
Once in the dough, the enzymes get to work during fermentation, converting starches into sugars the yeast can feed on. This extends and improves fermentation, producing a more active rise, a chewier and more open crumb, and better browning on the crust.
What It's Used For
Diastatic malt powder is a staple in professional baking, even if home bakers rarely hear about it. Bagels rely on it for their characteristic dense chew. Pizza dough benefits from it for a crispier crust and better bubble structure. Pretzels use it for color and texture. Many commercial bread flours already have a small amount added — this is just doing that intentionally.
How Much to Use
For this recipe, 2–3 grams is the right range. Add it with your flour during autolyse and mix it in thoroughly.
More is not better. Too much diastatic malt over-enzymates the dough — breaking down so much starch that the structure becomes sticky and weak. Treat it like salt: it makes a real difference at the right amount, and causes problems when overdone.
It can be a little hard to find in stores, but it's readily available on Amazon.
Watch This
At some point, words stop being enough. This is that point.
The host is, objectively, very good at bread. He bakes with the serene confidence of a man who has never once had a loaf collapse, stick to the basket, or emerge from the oven looking like a deflated soccer ball. His kitchen is immaculate. His scoring is perfect. He is insufferable in the best possible way, and his technique is worth every minute of your time.