This is our most basic sourdough that we bake every week. We are by no means experts when it comes to bread baking. These are the techniques we use and what works for us. The key ingredient is an active starter. Make your own from scratch using our simple overnight method or ask someone you know who makes their own sourdough to gift you some.
Ingredients
For the best results you will need some digital scales and a large loaf pan.
100g rye starter
400g unbleached white spelt flour
250g water
1 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
Measure and mix all ingredients in the order above into a large mixing bowl until you have formed a large sticky ball of dough.
Allow the dough to rest for about 30 minutes or longer if needed. This allows time for the flour to absorb the water.
Grease your hands and a bench with lots of oil (we use coconut oil). Air knead the dough for about 5 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
How to air knead - Slap the dough down onto the bench repetitively from around head height. This relaxes the gluten in the dough. Handle the bread lightly and don't be afraid to add more oil to your hands and bench if needed. Don't be tempted to add any flour as this will result in very dense bread. The dough is quite sticky so it may take a few times to get used to this process.
Place the dough into an oiled bowl and rest for another 30 minutes.
Do a windowpane test - stretch the dough with your hands until you can almost see through it. If this works the dough is ready. If the dough tears easily then repeat the kneading process until the windowpane test is successful.
Grease your loaf pan with oil and dust with a little flour. Add the dough to the loaf pan.
Cover with a damp tea towel to prevent the dough from drying out.
Leave in a warm spot or on your bench to rise. This will take anywhere between 6-12 hours depending on the temperature in your house and the time of year. We usually leave it to rise overnight then bake in the morning.
Bake at 230 degrees for 10 minutes then turn down and bake for another 30 minutes (or until bread is hard on top and sounds hollow) at 220 degrees.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.
To keep fresh wrap in an eco wrap or store in a bread bag.
NOTES:
We have an old, non-fan forced oven so adjust the temperature down if needed.
We have always used a rye starter as we found it gives the bread more flavour but feel free to use a plain spelt starter or a mixture of both.
Experiment with the kneading and rising times and do what works best for you.
There are whole books dedicated to the art of bread baking. If you want to take your baking skills to the next level we recommend you seek one out. Our favourite is Local Breads by Daniel Leader.