Sourdough Bread Recipe

This sourdough bread recipe turns flour, water, salt and a bubbly starter into a crackly, deep golden loaf with a soft, chewy crumb and a gentle tang.

The flavor comes from slow, natural fermentation. The dough rises for hours on the counter, then rests in the refrigerator overnight, which gives the bread its mild sourness and a crust that sings as it cools. There is no commercial yeast and no kneading machine, only a few simple folds and some patience.

Two details make the biggest difference. A long, cold rest after shaping builds flavor and makes the dough easy to score, and baking in a preheated Dutch oven traps steam, so the loaf rises tall and the crust turns crisp and shiny.

This recipe makes one round loaf with 10 slices. It needs a lot of waiting but very little work, and most of the time is spent doing something else while the dough does its job.

Why You’ll Love This Sourdough Bread Recipe

It uses only four ingredients. Bread flour, water, starter and salt are all you need, with no added yeast, sugar or oil.

The crust is crisp and the crumb is soft. A hot Dutch oven gives you a blistered, crackling crust and a chewy, open crumb inside.

It’s mostly hands-off. The active work adds up to about 30 minutes. The rest is resting, rising and chilling.

It makes great toast and sandwiches. The sturdy slices hold up to butter, spreads and fillings, and they toast beautifully the next day.

Perfect For

This loaf suits weekend baking, when you can be home for the folding and shaping, and anyone who wants to put an active starter to good use. It also makes a generous homemade gift.

Because the final rise happens in the refrigerator, you can mix the dough one day and bake it fresh the next morning, so the house smells like warm bread at breakfast.

Sourdough Bread Recipe at a Glance

Flavor	Mild tang with a wheaty, slightly sweet finish
Texture	Crisp, crackly crust with a soft, chewy, open crumb
Difficulty	Intermediate
Prep Time	30 minutes of hands-on work
Bake Time	45 minutes
Rest and Rise Time	16 hours 30 minutes, including overnight chilling
Total Time	17 hours 45 minutes
Servings	1 round loaf (10 slices)
Method	Naturally leavened, baked in a Dutch oven
Cuisine	Artisan bread
Best For	Toast, sandwiches and serving with soup

Before You Start

Use an active starter. Feed your starter 4 to 8 hours before mixing. It should be bubbly, domed and roughly doubled in size. A sluggish starter gives a dense loaf.

Weigh your ingredients. Baking by weight is far more accurate than cups, and sourdough dough is sensitive to small differences in flour and water.

Plan the timeline. A simple schedule is to mix at about 8 a.m., shape in the early afternoon, chill overnight and bake the next morning. The dough, not the clock, decides when each stage is finished.

Gather your tools. You need a 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven with a lid, a banneton or a bowl lined with a towel, and a sharp knife or razor blade for scoring.

What Makes This Sourdough Bread Recipe Work

The Right Hydration

Together, 350 grams of water and the water in the starter make a dough that is soft and slightly sticky, but still easy to shape. That moisture is what creates the open, tender crumb and the blistered crust.

Autolyse for a Stronger Dough

Letting the flour and water sit alone for 30 minutes before adding the starter and salt gives the flour time to absorb the water. The dough becomes smoother and stretchier, so you need much less kneading.

Stretch and Folds Instead of Kneading

Gentle folds during the first rise build strength by stretching the gluten, without working the dough hard. After a few sets, the dough turns smooth, elastic and airy.

A Cold Proof for Flavor

Chilling the shaped loaf slows the yeast and lets the bacteria keep working, which adds a deeper, tangier flavor. Cold dough is also firmer, so it holds its shape and scores cleanly.

Steam From the Dutch Oven

The covered pot traps the steam that the dough releases as it bakes. That moisture keeps the surface soft for the first 20 minutes, so the loaf can expand fully before the crust sets.

Ingredients for Sourdough Bread

For the Dough

• 500 g (about 4 cups) bread flour
• 350 g (1½ cups) lukewarm water, about 80°F (27°C)
• 100 g (scant ½ cup) active sourdough starter, fed and bubbly
• 10 g (1¾ teaspoons) fine sea salt

For Shaping

• 2 tablespoons rice flour or all-purpose flour, for dusting

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

Bread flour: Its higher protein content gives the best rise and chew. All-purpose flour also works, but the loaf will be a little flatter and softer, and you may need 10 to 20 grams less water.

Sourdough starter: Use a starter that is fed with equal weights of flour and water, known as a 100% hydration starter. It should double within 4 to 8 hours of feeding and smell pleasantly tangy and yeasty.

Water: Lukewarm water helps the dough start fermenting. If your tap water is heavily chlorinated, use filtered or bottled water so the starter stays happy.

Salt: Fine sea salt dissolves evenly into the dough. Table salt works in the same weight, but coarse salt does not mix in as well.

Rice flour: It keeps the dough from sticking to the basket without getting absorbed. If you do not have any, dust with plain flour.

Kitchen Equipment Needed

• Kitchen scale
• Large mixing bowl and a damp towel or lid
• Bench scraper
• Banneton, or a bowl lined with a clean kitchen towel
• 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven with a lid
• Parchment paper
• Sharp knife, razor blade or bread lame – for scoring
• Instant-read thermometer
• Wire rack

How to Make Sourdough Bread

Step 1: Mix and Rest the Dough

In a large bowl, stir the flour and water together until no dry flour remains. Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Step 2: Add the Starter and Salt

Spread the starter and the salt over the dough. With wet hands, squeeze and fold the dough for 2 to 3 minutes, until everything is evenly mixed and the dough feels slightly sticky. Cover the bowl.

Step 3: Bulk Rise With Stretch and Folds

Let the dough rise at room temperature, about 75°F (24°C). During the first 2 hours, do a set of stretch and folds every 30 minutes: wet your hand, grab one edge of the dough, stretch it up and fold it over the middle, then turn the bowl and repeat all around. After the last set, leave the dough alone until it has grown by about 50% and looks airy, with bubbles on the surface. This takes 4 to 6 hours in total.

Step 4: Pre-Shape and Rest

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Fold the edges into the center to form a loose round, flip it seam-side down and let it rest, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Step 5: Shape the Loaf

Flour the top of the dough lightly and flip it over. Fold the bottom up and the sides in, roll it toward you and drag it gently across the counter to tighten the surface. Dust a banneton or towel-lined bowl with rice flour, and place the dough in it seam-side up.

Step 6: Chill Overnight

Cover the dough and refrigerate it for 8 to 12 hours. If you are short on time, you can let it rise at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours instead, but the flavor will be milder.

Step 7: Preheat the Dutch Oven

Place the Dutch oven with its lid in the oven and heat it to 475°F (245°C) for 30 to 45 minutes, until it is very hot.

Step 8: Score and Bake Covered

Turn the cold dough onto a sheet of parchment paper, seam-side down. Score the top with one confident slash about ½ inch (1 cm) deep. Lift the dough on the parchment into the hot pot, cover it and bake for 20 minutes.

Step 9: Uncover and Finish

Reduce the oven to 450°F (230°C), remove the lid and bake for 20 to 25 minutes more, until the crust is deep golden brown and the center of the loaf reaches 205 to 210°F (96 to 99°C).

Step 10: Cool Completely

Move the loaf to a wire rack and let it cool for at least 1 hour before slicing. The inside is still setting, and cutting too soon makes the crumb gummy.

How to Know Your Sourdough Is Ready

Sourdough runs on dough signs rather than a strict clock, so use these checks at each stage.

What to Check	Ready When
Starter	Doubled, domed and bubbly, 4 to 8 hours after feeding
First rise	Grown by about 50%, airy, with bubbles on the surface
Shaped dough	Smooth and tight, and it springs back slowly when poked
Crust	Deep golden brown and crisp, and it sounds hollow when tapped
Internal temperature	205 to 210°F (96 to 99°C)
Cooling time	At least 1 hour before slicing

If the dough has not grown enough after 6 hours, give it a little more time in a warmer spot, and judge by how the dough looks, not by the hour.

Tips for the Best Sourdough Bread Recipe

Use wet hands. Sourdough dough is sticky. Dampening your hands keeps it from sticking, while extra flour makes the loaf dense.

Judge the dough, not the clock. A warm kitchen speeds fermentation and a cool one slows it, so watch for the 50% rise and the bubbles.

Score the dough cold. Cold dough is firmer, so the blade glides through it and the cut opens neatly in the oven.

Lift with parchment. A sheet of parchment under the dough makes it easy to lower into the hot pot without burning your hands.

Be patient with cooling. The crust crackles as it cools, and the crumb sets fully in about an hour.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Using a weak starter. A starter that is not bubbly and doubled cannot lift the dough, and the loaf comes out dense. How to fix it: feed the starter and wait until it doubles before you mix.

Cutting the first rise short. Underfermented dough bakes up tight and gummy, with large holes at the top. How to fix it: wait until the dough has grown by about 50% and shows bubbles, even if it takes the full 6 hours.

Adding too much flour while shaping. Extra flour makes the dough stiff and leaves streaks in the crumb. How to fix it: use wet hands, and dust the counter only lightly.

Skipping the preheat. A cold pot gives a pale, flat loaf with little oven spring. How to fix it: heat the Dutch oven with the oven for at least 30 minutes.

Slicing the loaf while it is warm. The crumb is still steaming and sets sticky and damp. How to fix it: cool the bread for at least 1 hour before cutting.

Variations

Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread

Replace 100 grams (about ¾ cup) of the bread flour with whole wheat flour, and add 1 to 2 tablespoons of extra water. The loaf will be a little denser, with a nuttier flavor.

Seeded Sourdough Bread

After shaping, brush the top of the dough lightly with water and roll it in 3 tablespoons of mixed sesame, sunflower and poppy seeds before placing it in the basket.

Rosemary and Garlic Sourdough Bread

Fold 2 teaspoons of finely chopped fresh rosemary and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder into the dough during the last set of stretch and folds.

Cheddar Sourdough Bread

Fold 1 cup (100 g) of shredded sharp cheddar into the dough during the second set of stretch and folds. The cheese crisps on the crust in the oven.

Serving Suggestions

Serve thick slices of warm sourdough with homemade butter and a spoonful of strawberry jam, or toast them and top with avocado and egg.

The sturdy crumb is also ideal for sandwiches, and it makes a deeply flavorful grilled cheese with tomato soup. When the loaf starts to dry out, turn the leftovers into garlic bread or croutons.

Storage and Make Ahead

Room temperature: keep the loaf cut-side down on a cutting board, or in a paper or cloth bread bag, for up to 3 days. Do not store it in the refrigerator, which dries it out.

Make ahead: the shaped dough can stay in the refrigerator for up to 18 hours before baking, so you can choose your baking time.

Freezing: slice the cooled loaf and freeze the slices in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Toast them straight from the freezer, or thaw at room temperature. To refresh a whole loaf, warm it in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 10 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if my starter is ready to use?

It should have doubled in size within 4 to 8 hours of feeding, with a domed top and plenty of bubbles. It should also smell pleasantly tangy and yeasty. If it is flat or watery, feed it again and wait.

Can I use all-purpose flour?

Yes. All-purpose flour has less protein than bread flour, so the dough is a little weaker and the loaf a little flatter. Reduce the water by 10 to 20 grams if the dough feels too loose.

Do I need a Dutch oven?

A Dutch oven gives the best crust because it traps steam. If you do not have one, bake the loaf on a preheated baking sheet or pizza stone, with a pan of hot water on the rack below to create steam.

Can I skip the overnight rest in the refrigerator?

Yes. Let the shaped dough rise at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, until it looks puffy and springs back slowly when poked. The bread will bake fine, but the flavor will be milder and the dough harder to score.

Why is my sourdough bread dense?

The most common causes are a weak starter, a first rise that was too short and too much flour added during shaping. Check that the starter is active, wait for the dough to grow by about 50% and keep your hands wet.

Do I need a banneton?

No. Line a medium bowl with a clean kitchen towel, dust the towel generously with rice flour and place the dough in it seam-side up.

How long does homemade sourdough last?

Up to 3 days at room temperature, stored cut-side down or in a bread bag. For longer storage, slice and freeze it for up to 3 months.

Final Thoughts

Good sourdough comes down to three things: an active starter, patience with the rise and a very hot Dutch oven.

Once you have made the first loaf, you will recognize how the dough should look and feel at each stage, and every bake after that gets easier, whether you stay with the classic or try one of the variations.

Tell me how your first loaf came out, how loud the crust crackled as it cooled and what you spread on the first slice.