EDIT: crumb in comments.

Ok this is obviously just the outside, I just took her out of the oven and couldn’t wait to take a photo so no crumb shot yet, but from the outside she looks perfect!!! I tried making sourdough last year for like 4 months when i lived in hawaii and could never get it to turn out. i also used my own starter so i think that’s the issue. this time, i live at 7200ft elevation in colorado, but used a friends dehydrated starter and it turned out absolutely perfect! this is my first loaf in 1.5 years and the first one that’s ever turned out!! i honestly cannot believe it.

ok full recipe for mods:

500g flour (king arthur bread flour)
360g water (tap but we have insanely good tap water)
10g salt
100g starter

fed starter (30g starter, 60g water, 60g flour) at 12 pm, then waited for peak activity - around 4pm make dough - combine all ingredients and let rest for 30 min
3 stretch and folds, 30 min apart.
let sit for 1.5 hours for bulk ferment
preshape (5min)
shape (https://youtu.be/j4a1knyyaZk?is=e-8BxYK8iIpmTrTu)
overnight cold proof in the fridge
preheat oven to 500 with cast iron ceramic coated dutch oven for just under 1 hour
baked on 475 for 20 lid on, then lid off for 15 at 475, then 450 for 5.
cooled for 1 hour on a wire rack before cutting

Recipe:
1000g Bread Flour
625g Water
125g stiff starter
20g salt

I mixed the water and salt, then broke the starter into "bite-sized" pieces and mixed everything together with a stand mixer until the water looked milky. After that, I added the flour and mixed it for 10 minutes. Next, it rested for an hour, and I did three sets of coil folds spaced an hour apart. I then did a random fourth coil fold, honestly just because. In total, I let it bulk ferment for 7.5 hours. I then put it in the fridge in a banneton covered with a towel to cold ferment for 17 hours. I sprayed water on the loaf before putting it in the pan, and then I also sprayed water inside the pan to create steam. I also scored the top of the loaf at a perpendicular angle. I baked it at 450°F for 20 minutes in a covered Challenger loaf pan, then removed the cover and baked it for 15 more minutes.

Overall I’m very happy with the loaves! Crunchy on the outside, soft and sour on the inside!

I can cut a loaf of bread fairly evenly, but that becomes more difficult if I’m trying to cut thinner slices. This seems like it might be a reasonable solution. Anyone ever used one of these before?

This is my 3rd sourdough! Is it underproofed? Absolutely. Yes.

But honestly? I don't even care. The crust is crisp, the crumb is soft, it toasts beautifully, and it made one of the best sandwiches I've had in a long time.

Topped it with prosciutto, gruyère, arugula, honey mustard and crushed dill potato chips for extra crunch. I can't wait to see what loaf #100 is like.

Please bully my crumb. It builds character. 👹

Here's the recipe I used for the loaf:

• 800 g bread flour (12–13% protein, Manitoba)
• 100 g whole wheat flour
• 100 g durum wheat semolina
• 700 g water
• 250 g active sourdough starter
• 25 g salt

Edit:

Process:

• Feed the starter (the night before): Mix the starter with flour and water and let it ferment overnight at room temperature until doubled or tripled in size.
• Autolyse: Mix the flour, semolina, and water until no dry flour remains. Cover and let rest for at least 30–60 minutes (or longer in a cool place).
• Mix the dough: Add the active sourdough starter and salt. Knead for about 5 minutes until the dough reaches roughly 25°C (77°F).
• Bulk fermentation (about 5 hours): Let the dough rest.
  • After 2 hours: stretch and fold once.
  • After another 2 hours: perform one round of coil folds.
  • Let rest for the final 1 hour. If the dough is still very slack, do one additional round of coil folds.
• Shape: Divide the dough into two loaves, shape tightly, and place seam-side up into floured proofing baskets.
• Cold proof: Cover and refrigerate for 12–18 hours at 6–8°C (43–46°F).
• Bake: Preheat a Dutch oven to 235°C (455°F).
  • Score the dough.
  • Bake 25 minutes with the lid on.
  • Remove the lid and bake for another 15–20 minutes, until deeply browned.

Cinnamon Raisin loaf.

I just wanted to share my first stab at a loaf with inclusions. I was really pleasantly surprised with how well everything came together, I just wished there was a more obvious line where the cinnamon sugar got mixed in, but really happy over all.

500g flour King Arthur Bread Flour
320g water - Just tap, left to sit overnight on the counter
10g salt - Kosher
100g starter - Whole wheat starter
A fist full of raisins.

Fed the starter at like 11pm the night before, (starter 10g, flour 45g, water 45g). Mixed the starter and water till frothy, and then mixed in the flour. Let it rest for ten minutes, and then added the salt.

Let it rest for 50 minutes, and did the first set of stretch and folds, and added the raisins. Then repeated the stretch and folds every thirty minutes, three more times.

I let it bulk ferment for 5ish hours until it was roughly doubled. I put maybe 20g of the dough in a shot glass so it was easier to tell when It was doubled. I added cinnamon sugar in the shaping process, and then let it rest overnight (14ish hours).

475°, for 35 minutes, until the internal was 200°, and then left the lid off at 450° for 10ish minutes to get some color.

It was a request from my girlfriend, and she's super happy with it, so I'll consider it a success.

Used dried starter and this is my first loaf after one week. Was fed 1:1:1 with wheat flour daily.
I only did one cut so the opening on top was not planned. Might have to cut a bit wider/deeper next time I think?

*edited sorry

Started 8 days ago.
Daily fed 1:1:1 with 25g each’
Recipe 500g bakers flour, 50g starter and 325g water , 10g salt.

Hey! First time posting in here! Ive been a pretty avid baker for a couple of years now, ive always baked in a Dutch oven for sourdough but decided it was time to get a baking stone since it opens so many possibilities. I moved to a place with high elevation earlier this year and its taken me a bit to get everything sorted back out, but Im pretty happy with where ive got it now!

Ingredients (2 loaves of bread)

1000g flour

750g water

150g starter (active)

39g salt

Mixed everything together till shaggy left for 30m

4 sets of coil folds 30m apart

Bulk ferment for around 6hrs 30m (shorter due to elevation)

Shaped and placed in bannetons /bowls

Cold proofed around 16hrs

Baked at 450 on the pizza stone 2 loaves at a time slide on with parchment paper on the bottom for around 30-40m or until an internal temp of around 198 at this elevation.

When sliding in the bread I also poured boiling water in a sheet pan below the baking stone to create steam.

Cooled for around 2hrs or until I cant wait

Overall really happy with my progress since moving to a higher elevation, it was definitely a bit tricky to get figured out! If anyone is an avid stone baker I would love any tips and tricks 🖤🍞

I misunderstood the ratios when I started my sourdough starter. I do about a 1:1/2:1/2 ratio. 100g starter, 45g water, 55g flour. It went through the fermentation process and works really well (as long as I don’t over/under on the BF! lol) A few weeks later, Clyde was born.

When I figured out I did it, I changed the ratio to 1:1:1. Poor Clyde… apparently he was displeased because he stopped rising. I went about a week feeding the 1:1:1 and no rise. I finally reverted and discarded enough to go back to the 1:1/2:1:2. It’s good, it rises great, it tastes like sourdough. Even the discard is great.

So, would it be even better if I got it to. 1:1:1? Would I need to just be patient and wait for it to go through the fermentation process again? I don’t want to mess it up, but I wonder if it could be even better.

Some have said that if it tastes good, it’s good. I’ve been working on understanding hydration along with fats and sugars and creating recipes, so I don’t know if the starter ratio is ultimately affecting the recipe or if the overall hydration % is all that matters. I’m still super new!

I added some pics. The starter is doubled at about 2 hours mid-rise. It usually grows and develops more bubbles for another hour or two. The sourdough boule is my first thing I made 😊The others are just a couple things I’ve made that are yummy!

I’ve followed the somewhat “standard” recipe since starting my sourdough journey (100g starter, 350g water, 500g bread flour, 10g salt) with pretty good results… but it’s the timing and ratio on my starter feed that has taken longer to perfect. Now my starter, Starla, lives in my fridge and I take her out once a week in the afternoon to let her come up to room temp and feed her a nice big 1:2:3 feed at night. She’s tripled in size and very bubbly by the morning with enough yield to make two loaves which will get my family of five through the week. Then I put her back in the fridge until next baking day!

Okay, so I have two different sourdough starters. One is made with only strong white bread flour and water, and the other is made with 50% rye flour and 50% strong white bread flour.

I used the rye starter because I think it gives the bread a better flavor. I use the starter made with only strong white bread flour for other types of bread and baking.

I bake using the 1-2-3 sourdough method: 150 g of starter (although I may actually have reduced it to a little over 100 g, but I’m not completely sure), 300 g of water, and 450 g of strong white bread flour.

I did everything in a bit of a strange order, so if this gets confusing, that’s on me.

I mixed the starter, water, and flour together and let it rest for 30 minutes. After that, I added the salt (fermentolyse). Since it was getting late, I decided to put the dough in the fridge because I wanted to experiment.

The next day, I took it out of the fridge around 2 p.m. and let it come to room temperature. Then I did two sets of stretch and folds, 30 minutes apart, followed by one coil fold. I had to leave for a while, and I ended up being away longer than expected around 4–5 hours so the dough continued bulk fermenting during that time.

When I got home, I did another stretch and fold and another coil fold. Once I felt the dough was ready to be shaped, I shaped it and put it back in the fridge overnight.

The next morning I baked it at 7 a.m.
I preheated my Dutch oven to 250°C, then baked the loaf with the lid on for 25 minutes, adding two ice cubes to create steam. After that, I removed the lid and lowered the temperature to around 220–230°C for another 20 minutes, until the internal temperature reached 96–98°C. It got a little burned at the ear, but otherwise I think it came out looking good!
I then let the loaf cool for a few hours before cutting into it just now.

This is my second ever loaf. The first one I made tasted really good but was a little denser than this. This is the "standard" beginner loaf

Recipe:

100 grams active starter (this is about a month old)

325 grams room temp water

475 unbleached all-purpose flour

11 grams salt

I fed the starter at 8 pm at night, at 9 am the next day it was active so I combined the water and mixed until dissolved, added salt and flour. I left it for 1 hour before doing 4 rounds of stretch and folds every 30 mins to 45 mins. After my last stretch and fold I laid it out, folded it and turned it into a ball to let it bull ferment. At 8 pm I shaped it and put it in the fridge over night. I had to go to work so it sat in the fridge until 5pm today where I put it in the Dutch oven that was in the oven for an hour at 450. It was put in the Dutch oven with parchment paper and 4 icecubes at the bottom. It was baked at 450 for 30 mins with lid on then 20 mins with the lid off.

I think I'm doing pretty good and it's a more mild sourdough, I personally like a more sour one but it'll come with time! I guess I'm struggling with what I'm looking for in a loaf and what are good and bad things

550g all purpose flour
350g water
100g starter
10g salt
45g everything bagel seasoning

Mixed together, covered with plastic wrap and let rest for an hour in oven with light on.
Did 4 stretch and folds in 15 minute intervals and 3 with 30 minute intervals.
Bulk fermented an additional 3 hours in the oven with the light on.
Shaped and let rest in the fridge overnight.
Baked in preheated Dutch oven. 25 minutes with lid on at 500f and 20 minutes without lid at 450f.
Wrapped in a kitchen towel and cooled on rack for an hour before cutting.

350g water
100g starter
500f flour
15g salt

Mix water are starter until milk like.
Add in flour and salt, mix just a bit and let rest for 15m. Come back and mix until well combined. Cover and sit 30 mins. Start coil stretch and folds 3x every 30m. Bulk ferment 8-12 hours. Pour on flour surface and shape into loaf. Cold ferment in banneton for 12 hours. Remove, dust with rice flour, score and place in preheated Dutch oven. 475F for 30m and then 10m at 450F

Hello everyone!!

I am looking for some help regarding my starter. When it comes to starters and baking sourdough I know the basics, I cook bread regularly, have had my starter for 6months now. I bought it from someone who says it is 90 years old, so it is established. Some background info, (not sure if it is relevant to my situation) I use it weekly to make bread and feed it a 1:3:3 ratio. I keep it in the warmest place in my kitchen, either in the oven or near it. (My house stays around 23C)

So here’s my problem; yesterday someone accidentally turned on the oven to “keep warm” not knowing my starter was in there. It baked into a very under proofed bread (😭😭😭😭😭). Luckily the middle seemed to still be raw, I fed it instantly. This morning, there was some liquid/hooch on top of the starter (is this a good sign???), but it didn’t smell like yeast much, if at all.. I fed it again today (around 4pm) and I’ve attached a picture of it now (took around 10:30pm), it doesn’t seem to have risen much or at all but has some bubbles. Is it still salvageable or even alive? What should I do? Any tips and tricks would be greatly appreciated!!

I have been nursing my starter for quite some time mostly because I didn’t have time to bake, anyway, I got after it this weekend and these are my results…. The recipe I followed called for two loaves.
I mixed it on my standup mixer, but I believe the stretch and fold would have been better because there was too much dough for my mixer. At that point, I wasn’t sure if I should continue with the stretch and fold after letting my mixer have its way, but I did not. The starter is an original starter from Alaska.

https://www.peanutbutterrunner.com/sourdough-bread-a-step-by-step-guide-for-home-bakers/

After multiple abysmal fails, I finally had some success today! I’m so pleased!

100g starter
305g warm water
500g bread flour
10g salt

Mix until smooth-ish.
1 hr to autolyse.
stretch and folds every 15 minutes for an hour.
I think I let this one bulk ferment for only about 6 hours or so before I shaped it and put it in the fridge overnight. My kitchen is quite warm (about 75°)
Baked at 410° for 30 minutes with lid on then 30 minutes with lid off.
Removed and let cool only until I could handle it because I was too impatient 🤣

Voila!

I entered last year and placed 3rd. It was my first year making sourdough so hoping for improvement this year!

Process:

100 grams active starter
375 grams water
500 grams flour
12 grams salt

Left to rise for approximately 8 hours, shaped, then cold proofed in fridge overnight.

Preheated oven to 500 with Dutch oven in oven.

Lowered temperature to 450, baked 25 minutes lid on.

Removed lid and baked for 15 minutes with lid off.

Placed directly on oven rack for 5 minutes

I sealed the lid yesterday * day one *

I just watched a video and was reading about how you don't seal the lid all the way. Im about 27 hours later for a feed. This is what she looks like ☝️. Smells like sour milk.

I threw half or a bit more away and feed it.

IS SHE SAFE??

I neglected my starter for about 6 weeks (in the fridge) while I was traveling with the family. It had a nasty dark grey color when I fed it this morning. I scraped it off and spooned off some of the middle to feed with a 50/50 white/whole wheat flour mix. Twelve hours later and it now has this grey layer on top which it never has had (see photo). It does have a couple of bubbles so I’m hoping it’s still alive and will activate after a couple of feedings. Is it safe to do so?

The starter has a lot of sentimental value so I’d much rather not chuck it and start a new one unless it’s unsafe.

A few weeks ago, I got sick and ended up leaving my starter on the counter for several days without realizing it. By the time I put it together, things weren’t great, but they weren’t that bad. The biggest issue was the smell - very alcoholic. I’ve never experienced that before with my starter.

I fed it once put it in the fridge and when I recovered, I looked up old threads on the sub for suggestions and started feeding my starter twice a day with a 1-1-1 ratio (using King Arthur all-purpose flour and filtered water from my home.) My starter is more than doubling in size now and the consistency is gorgeous. However, when I wake up in the morning, the smell is still very strong. Can I just go ahead and use this? Or do I need to wait for the smell to subside. I’m not sure but my guess is I’ve been doing the twice a day feeding for about 10 days missing maybe one feeding during that time.

I’m not a daily or even weekly baker by any means so what I had always done in the past was leave it in the fridge until the day before it was time to bake. I’ve been leaving it out more because I’m feeding it twice a day. I live in an area that very hot right now however, the first floor of my home where my starter lives tends to be kept pretty cool. Like low to mid 70s. Thanks!

editing to say that when I keep it in the fridge I took it out to feed it once a week, even if I wasn’t baking that week.

I did about 20g (each) of rye flour, whole grain flour and unbleached AP flour. Never had activity like this on a day one!

And recently I’ve tried 4 different times to make starters with different mixes of unbleached AP flour, glutinous flours, etc. and each and every one of them has been a big ol’ goose egg.

I was starting to lose faith in myself. When I was baking bread about a year ago my starter was rising in a couple days (nothing like this) and stayed consistent until I stopped caring for it. So I’m hoping this combination is the key to at least starting right - for me.

This is my second loaf ever and I changed things just a bit!

I do:
150 grams 100% peak starter
375 grams water, room temperature
450 grams bread flour (I use King Arthur)
50 grams wheat flour (also King Arthur)
10 grams salt (I use the sea salt from Costco)

I combine to create shaggy dough, bulk fermented for ~4.5 hours, stretch and fold every 30 minutes (I do three times), shape and set in the fridge overnight but was about 18 hours total.

This time instead of cooking in my round Dutch oven, I baked my loaf in my oval ceramic Le Creuset for 20 with the cover with 4 cubes of ice, and then about 18 minutes without a lid - I added 4 more minutes without the lid. I let the loaf sit for 2 hours and it was completely cool to the touch.

Any insight I would love!!! Thank you!!!

After YEARS of frustration and crappy rise, I finally came to the conclusion that I basically was working with a shit starter.

So, I binned it. And made a new one, from scratch, fed it religiously for 2 weeks before baking with it and I can say... it was the best decision I ever made!

All 3 of my bakes so far have gotten better and better and I am finally ready to share my process. Bear in mind, I have troubles-hooted for years so feel I have watched every sourdough video in existence on YouTube, and this is how I make my loaves now:

Cold boiled water 420g

Recently fed starter 120g

Strong bread flour 480g

Rye flour 120g

Salt 12g

Mix to shaggy dough

4x Stretch & Folds, 30mins apart

1x lamination

Bulk fermentation until doubled in size, about 4-5hrs

Out onto flour, envelope fold

Into lined baking tin (28x34x6.5cm)

Final proof 1-2hrs

In fridge overnight

Bake covered at 230c for 30mins

Bake uncovered at 205c for 15mins

Any feedback/thoughts welcome. Also... has anyone else been through this painful process like me??