This month is Sourdough September, so it’s time to celebrate by enjoying the tasty, tangy fresh-baked bread. Sourdough has seen a rise in popularity over recent years and doesn’t show any signs of slowing. According to Google Trends in September 2024, there has been a 24% increase in searches for “Sourdough” in comparison to September 2023*.
This can be down to the fact that not only is it full of flavour, but it’s also healthier than other breads. Sourdough is easier to digest as it’s a prebiotic, which means the bread fibre helps to process the good bacteria – overall helping the body to maintain a healthy digestive system.
There are many ways to enjoy scrumptious sourdough. Premium outdoor oven brand, Gozney, has compiled its top recipes showcasing just how versatile sourdough is – from loafs to baker and chef, Richard Bertinet’s, crackers. Star of Gozney’s hit How to Pizza YouTube series, ambassador and foodie influencer, Feng Chen (aka @leopardcrust), also shares the ultimate sourdough pizza dough recipe – so you can turn your starter into a delicious masterpiece.
For other sourdough recipes and more, Gozney’s Pizza Volume 01 Cookbook has a range of outstanding pizza combinations and knockout outdoor cooking recipes that are sure to get mouths watering.
Guide to Building Sourdough Starter
Ingredients:
- 1kg of good quality rye flour
- 1kg of all-purpose / plain flower
- Water
Equipment:
- x2 glass jars with loose fitting lids
- Rubber spatula
- Scales
- Rubber band
- Temperature probe
Method:
- Day 1 –
- In one of the clean glass jars weigh out 125g of water at a temperature of 23°C and add 100g of the rye flour.
- Mix well with the rubber spatula until no dry bits remain and push the mix down to the bottom of the jar.
- Cover with the loose-fitting lid and leave on a kitchen side (ideally at around 23°C) for 24 hours.
- Day 2 –
- Spoon 70g of yesterday’s mix into the clean jar (discard the rest and clean out the jar for the following day) and add 110g of water (at 23°C).
- Mix well before adding 50g of rye flour and 50g of all-purpose / plain flour and mixing till there are no dry bits.
- Push the mix down to the bottom of the jar, cover with the loose-fitting lid and leave in the same place as yesterday for another 24 hours.
- Day 3 –
- Perform exactly the same steps as day two.
- Day 4 –
- Spoon 70g of your starter into the clean jar and add 100g of water (at 23°C) mix well before adding 50g rye flour and 50g all-purpose / plain flour.
- Mix again until there are no dry bits and push the mix down to the bottom of the jar, top with the loose-fitting lid and leave in the same spot for 24 hours.
- It’s a good idea to mark the height of the mix with the rubber band at this point – do this every time you feed so you can monitor the progress and development of your starter.
- Day 5 –
- Perform exactly the same steps as day four.
- Day 6 –
- Spoon 50g of your starter mix into the clean jar and add 100g of water (at 24°C) mix well before adding 50g rye flour and 50g all-purpose / plain flour.
- Mix again until there are no dry bits and push the mix down to the bottom of the jar, top with the loose-fitting lid and leave in the same spot for 24 hours.
- Day 7 –
- The feed you perform today can be your daily feed going forward (or you can feel free to play around with other brands and types of flour from this point should you wish!) or if you’re only planning to use your starter intermittently you can feed it once a fortnight rather than daily, and keep it in the fridge instead.
- For this final (and ongoing!) feed, spoon 25g of starter into the clean jar and add 100g of water (at 24°C) mix well before adding 50g rye flour and 50g all-purpose / plain flour.
- Mix again until there are no dry bits and push the mix down to the bottom of the jar, top with the loose-fitting lid and leave in the same spot for 24 hours.
- Day 8 (and beyond) –
- You’ll notice the starter will rise and fall over the 24-hour periods.
- Learn to understand roughly when you can expect to see a rise three times the height of the starter – this is a great indication the starter is good to use!
Sourdough Pizza Recipe
Ingredients:
- 612g flour (400g type 00 pizza flour, 212g bread flour)
- 428g water (70%)
- 30g mature sourdough starter (5%)
- 18g salt (3%)
Equipment:
- Large mixing bowl & cover
- Digital scale
- Small, straight-edged jar
- Rubber band
Method:
- Step 1 –
- Give your starter a 1:1:1 feeding. Weigh out the water in a large mixing bowl, then add the flour to form an autolyse (soaking the flour).
- Mix briefly, just to ensure all the flour has been hydrated.
- Cover autolyse and set aside to wait for your starter to peak (on average this takes 3-4 hours).
- Step 2 –
- Spread starter on the surface of the dough and incorporate by kneading for 10 minutes by hand (for example, using the rubaud method).
- If using a mixer, mix on the lowest speed setting for 7 minutes, then allow to rest for 5 minutes before moving to the next step.
- Step 3 –
- Add salt and fold to incorporate for 3 minutes until the salt has dissolved.
- Step 4 –
- To easily monitor the fermentation, remove a small piece of dough to place in a small jar, marking its current volume using a rubber band.
- Cover dough and leave to rest for 1 hour.
- Step 5 –
- Shape the dough mass into a smooth ball by dragging across the counter surface to form tension on the surface of the dough.
- Allow the dough to continue bulk fermenting until your test dough sample has increased in volume by 10 – 15%.
- The time this takes will vary depending on your starter’s activity and your room temperature, but as a reference, it can take 5 hours at 26°C.
- Once done, divide dough into 270g dough balls, place into an airtight container and store in the fridge for 24-48 hours.
- Step 6 –
- Remove dough from the fridge for 4 hours (6 hours in cold weather) to final proof at room temperature.
- Step 7 –
Sourdough Crackers
Ingredients:
- 200g leftover sourdough ferment
- Sea salt flakes
- Flour
Method:
- Step 1
- Place the ferment in a bowl and mix in enough flour to make a dough stiff enough to roll into a log. Cut into 8 pieces.
- Step 2
- Coat the pieces generously in flour and roll into thin circles with a rolling pin. Sprinkle the circles with a little sea salt and gently roll the salt into the crackers with the rolling pin. Use a 2-3cm cutter to remove the centre of the crackers.
- Step 3
- Your wood-fired oven needs to be at around 210°C with a little flame presence before you can carefully transfer the crackers to a floured peel and slide onto the deck of the oven.
- Step 4
- Bake the crackers for around 2 minutes or until just starting to colour on the edges.
No Knead Sourdough Loaf
Ingredients:
- 375g strong white bread flour
- 245g water
- 125g active sourdough starter
- 12g salt
Method:
- Step 1
- Mix the flour and salt in a bowl and dissolve the starter in the water in a separate bowl with your hand.
- Step 2
- Gradually add the flour and salt mix to the water continuously mixing together with your hand until a rough shaggy dough is formed and there are no dry bits on the side of the bowl. Remember, you’re not kneading the dough, just bringing together.
- Step 3
- Cover with a plastic bag and leave at room temperature for 2 hours.
- Step 4
- Gently turn the dough out onto an unfloured, clean surface and carefully pull into a rough rectangle.
- Step 5
- Pull the four sides into the middle and flip the dough over so you have a rough loaf shape and use the sides of your hands to apply pressure so the dough is tight on top.
- Step 6
- Pop the dough into a bowl, cover with a plastic bag and leave to bulk ferment for 5-6 hours.
- Step 7
- Gently turn the dough onto a clean, unfloured surface and carefully shape into a rough rectangle again. Repeat the process of pulling the four sides into the middle and flipping the dough over so you have a rough loaf shape and use the sides of your hands to apply pressure so the dough is tight on top. Leave to rest on the side whilst you prep your dough basket.
- Step 8
- Dust a banneton or bowl with a tea towel generously with rice flour before shaking out the excess.
- Step 9
- Carefully flip the dough into the basket (so the top becomes the bottom) and dust with rice flour again. Cover with the plastic bag and leave at room temperature for 2-3 hours.
- Step 10
- Ensure the Dome is heated up to 400°C with a good bed of embers and place the door onto the oven with the vents closed.
- Step 11
- Let the temp drop to around 320°C and slide the loaf directly onto the oven floor on the opposite side to the fire.
- Step 12
- Place the door back on the oven (vents closed) and use the water hopper beaker to add 110ml of water to the steam injector and cover with the cork lid.
- Step 13
- Bake for 20-30 minutes. Enjoy!