Sourdough Bread Masterclass with Patrick Ryan

Recipe:

Add the flour to a clean mixing bowl. Mix the salt through the flour. Add the water and sourdough starter to the flour. Combine all the ingredients together to form a rough dough.

Turn the dough out on to a clean surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes or until the windowpane effect has been achieved. The dough should be smooth, soft and elastic.

When kneading, do not worry if the dough is slightly wet or sticky. Resist the temptation to add any extra flour.

Return the dough to the mixing bowl, cover with cling film and allow the dough to prove for 4 hours at room temperature.

After 4 hours turn the dough onto a clean work surface and knock the dough back. Knocking back the dough simple involves knocking the air from the dough which helps to equalise the temperature within the dough.

Form the dough into a tight round ball.

To prove & bake using a proving basket:

Prepare a proving basket by lightly dusting with flour. Place the dough, seamed side facing up, into the proving basket. Loosely cover the proving basket with a clean tea towel and leave to prove for another 3 – 3½ hours.

Alternatively, to prove overnight for baking first thing in the morning, place into a fridge and leave overnight.

Using a fridge reduces the temperature of the dough allowing it to prove slower and longer which allows for a greater development of flavour within the dough but also increasing its digestibility. As dough ferments or proves the gluten within the dough breaks down. The longer a dough is allowed to prove the more flavour it will contain and the easier it is for your body to digest.

To bake, preheat your oven to 230°C / 210°C fan assisted (445°F / Gas 8). Place a shallow baking tray into the bottom of the oven to preheat with the oven.

Carefully turn your dough out from the proving basket onto a baking tray dusted with flour (the domed side with the indentations from the proving basket should now be facing up and the seamed side on the baking tray).

Using a sharp knife cut the surface of the dough, this is what is known as the baker’s signature. The dough can be cut up to ½ cm deep. (This isn’t just for aesthetics, scoring the bread also helps control where and how it rises while baking)

Boil a kettle of water then pour the boiled water into the dish that was preheated in the bottom of the oven, this will create steam in the oven while baking.

Place the baking tray with the sourdough into the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a good crust has formed and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the base.

Alternatively, if you do not have a proving basket, you can use a large glass casserole dish to prove and bake your sourdough.

To prove & bake using a Pyrex dish:

Line a 2.5l round Pyrex dish with a clean tea towel and dust with flour. Place the formed ball of dough into the Pyrex dish lined with the floured tea towel then place the lid (the inside of the lid lightly greased and floured) on the Pyrex dish. Leave to prove for another 3 – 3½ hours.

Alternatively, to prove overnight for baking first thing in the morning, place into a fridge and leave overnight.

The reason for using a Pyrex dish is that it acts like a proving basket. The dish acts as a support to your dough. It encourages the dough the take on the shape of the dish and to prove up and not just to spread out flat. The dough will also be baked in the Pyrex dish.

To bake, preheat your oven to 230°C / 210°C fan assisted (445°F / Gas 8).

Flip the Pyrex dish over so the bowl of the Pyrex dish now becomes the lid. Carefully remove the tea towel.

Using a sharp knife cut the surface of the dough, this is what is known as the baker’s signature. The dough can be cut up to ½ cm deep. (This isn’t just for aesthetics, scoring the bread also helps control where and how it rises while baking)

Cover the dough with the bowl of the Pyrex dish and place the Pyrex dish into the preheated oven.

By baking the dough in the Pyrex dish there is no need to steam the oven. Baking with a lid on the Pyrex dish creates its own steam which will allow the dough to rise and open up while baking. The Pyrex is very similar to the old style of Dutch oven baking.

Bake for 25 minutes then remove the lid from the Pyrex dish and continue to bake, uncovered, for a further 25 minutes until a good crust has formed and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the base.

Once baked remove the bread from the Pyrex dish and allow to cool.

Maintaining your sourdough starter:

Hi, I am your sourdough starter. If you look after me I will give you an endless supply of wholesome, tasty sourdough breads. I am pretty easy going and don’t require anything too fancy. A regular diet of flour and water will keep me strong and healthy. You can use me every day if you wish but I understand that you’re pretty busy and you may only get to hang out with me once a week. I get very hungry when left at room temperature so just pop me into the fridge where I can chill out until you need me. I can’t wait for us to bake breads together.

Your sourdough starter/culture is a bubbling living collection of friendly bacteria that will be used to make your dough rise. It is the natural yeast that will be used to make your sourdough bread.

Sourdough starter is best stored in a bowl or plastic container, something that can be covered. Make sure to allow room within the container for the sourdough starter to grow and rise.

To refresh or feed the sourdough starter:

Whatever weight of sourdough starter you have add the same weight of flour and the same weight of water.

For example, to 200g of sourdough starter add 200g of flour and 200g water. Stir everything together.

If you have too much starter discard the excess and keep back what you need.

If the sourdough starter is stored at room temperature it will require to be refreshed/fed every day.

For the home baker where you might only bake once a week, having to feed/refresh your sourdough starter every day can become quite expensive.

Therefore, your starter can be stored in the fridge for up to 10 days and taken out when needed.

If using the starter from the fridge

Take the starter out of the fridge the day before you plan to bake. This will allow the starter to come to room temperature. The night before you plan to bake, refresh/feed your starter as per the instructions above. Leave the sourdough starter at room temperature overnight. The next morning the starter should be active and full of bubbles and ready to bake with.

Take what you need to make your dough. Feed the remaining starter and return it to the fridge.