A low-hydration sourdough with a few simple steps and a forgiving, easy-to-manage dough. Perfect as an everyday bread.
Ingredients
150 g active starter (about 1 cup)
250 g warm water (about 1 cup plus 1 Tbsp)
25 g olive oil (about 1½ Tbsp)
500 g flour (about 4 cups)
10 g salt (1¾ tsp)
Instructions
With a fork, whisk together starter, water, and olive oil in a large bowl. Add flour and salt and stir it all together with the fork or squish it together with your hands. (This can also be done in 30 seconds in a mixer with the dough hook.) Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, work the dough into a rough ball with damp hands. Place the ball in a greased bowl, cover and let sit for one hour. After an hour, with damp hands, stretch and pull the dough all around the bowl, lifting it from the bottom and stretching it toward the middle.
Cover the bowl tightly and let rise in a draft-free place until doubled in size (6-12 hours; overnight is great).
Once risen, line a Dutch oven or other oven-safe pan with a tight-fitting lid with parchment paper. With damp hands, squish down the dough to remove air bubbles. Re-dampen your hands, then grab the dough and stretch and pull it into a round loaf shape (I just do this in mid-air, but you can also place the dough on a lightly floured surface and gather the edges into the center.) Place dough seam-side down in prepared pan.
Cover and let rise in the pan for another hour. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 450 degrees and slash the top of the dough in a line or “x” pattern to let steam escape. When oven is hot, REDUCE temperature to 400 degrees and bake bread for 20 minutes with the lid ON. Then, remove the lid and bake for an additional 40 minutes.
Let cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing.
Notes
If you want to add mix-ins, do it in the first step when you squish everything together. My family's favourite is 1 cup grated aged cheddar cheese + 1 tsp Italian seasoning + ½ tsp garlic powder. It really is the perfect bread to add to the dinner table.
A good whole grain or cinnamon raisin loaf makes the best baked French toast! If adding whole grain flour, you can replace up to ⅓ of the all-purpose flour.
Recipe by Hidden Ponies at https://hiddenponies.com/2021/03/easy-everyday-sourdough-bread/