Sourdough Bread

In the morning the day before you want bread, remove your sourdough starter from the fridge. In a new jar, add half the starter. Add 10 grams of flour and 15 grams of water, add the lid and write the day of the week with a dry erase marker. Put it back in the fridge. To the remaining starter in the old jar, add 20 grams flour and 30 grams water. Add a lid and let it sit out on the counter for 12 hours. It should double in volume. At the 12 hour mark, proceed with the recipe below:

3 2/3 cups (18 1/3 oz) bread flour (Lehi roller mills Turkey flour is recommended)
1 3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups plus 4 teaspoons (12 2/3 oz) water, room temperature 
70-80 grams mature sourdough starter (this should be the amount you have in your jar that set out for 12 hours)

Whisk flour and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk water and starter together in a large liquid measuring cup. Pour the water mixture into the flour mixture and stir together with a danish dough whisk or wooden spoon until it forms a shaggy dough. Briefly knead by hand in the bowl until no dry flour remains and you have a cohesive ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 12 to 18 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a floured counter and knead 10 to 15 times with floured hands. Dough will be sticky, but try not to work too much flour into it - a wetter dough makes for a better end product. Shape into a ball. Roll on the counter between your cupped hands to make a nice tight skin on the dough. 

Crumple a 12 by 12 sheet of parchment and then un-crumple it and press it into a cast iron dutch oven. Add the ball of dough. Cover and let rise 2 to 4 hours until doubled in size. (It will spread to the sides as well as up.)

Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour and cut a 7 inch long, 1/2 inch deep slit across the center of the dough with an bread lame, or extremely sharp knife or razor blade.

Place the lid on the pot and place in a cold oven on the middle rack. Turn the oven to 425 and set a timer for 30 minutes. (Set the timer as soon as you turn the oven on.) When the timer goes off, remove the lid and bake 20 to 30 minutes longer, until the center registers 205 on a probe thermometer (200 at high altitude). 

Use the parchment to carefully lift it out of the pan onto a wire rack. Cool completely before slicing and serving.


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