How to Make a Sourdough Loaf

Written by
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
Learn about our editorial process
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Published on 01/29/20 by Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
Learn about The Spruce Eats's Editorial Process

Updated 01/29/20

Paul Hollywood sourdough loaf recipe

The Spruce / Diana Chistruga
  • Total: 100 mins
  • Prep: 30 mins
  • Cook: 70 mins
  • Proving Time: 14 hrs
  • Yield: 10 servings

Thanks to British celebrity bakers like Paul Hollywood, making sourdough bread has become very popular. Despite a reputation for being difficult to make, sourdough is actually easy once you have the required sourdough starter. In exchange for your starter, and a bit of patience, you will be rewarded with a chewy bread with that distinctive sour sourdough taste.

We are more accustomed to adding cultured, store bought yeasts when making bread, but it was the wild yeasts that helped bakers for centuries make loaves long before commercial yeast was available. The wild yeasts in sourdough are also believed to be healthier for us as well as easier to digest. The natural ferment used for the sourdough bread (the starter) also creates an acidic environment in the loaf which bacteria do not like. So, sourdough lasts much longer than commercial bread, and even when a week old still makes great toast.

Before you begin with this recipe, make sure you have your starter ready and vigorous. This may require feeding for a few days if it has been dormant.

Ingredients

  • 1/3 ounce/9 grams salt
  • 15 ounces/425 grams bread flour
  • 10 ounces/285 grams ​sourdough starter

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for Paul Hollywood sourdough
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  2. Mix the salt and flour together in a large, roomy baking bowl. Make a well in the center and add the starter. Drawing the flour into the center, mix the flour together with the starter to create a loose dough. You can use your hands to do this. If the mixture is too dry add warm water, a little at a time until you produce a soft, slightly sticky dough.

    Mix salt and flour in bowl
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  3. Sprinkle your worktop lightly with a little flour. Tip the dough onto the worktop and knead the dough until it is smooth, silky and elastic. Note: if the dough is very sticky, sprinkle with more flour. Too dry, sprinkle with a few drops of olive oil and continue to knead. You can expect to be kneading for about 12 to 15 minutes.

    Knead dough
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  4. Once the dough is smooth, silky and elastic, lightly oil a roomy mixing bowl with the olive oil. Tip the dough into the bowl and cover the bowl with cling film/saran wrap.

    Oil mixing bowl
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  5. Place the bowl in a cool, not cold, draught-free place and leave for up to 6 hours or until the dough has doubled in size. If you want, leave it overnight but in a colder space; this will allow the bread to rise very slowly.

    Place bowl in cool place
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  6. Once doubled, tip the dough onto a floured surface. Knock out the air from the bread and knead the dough lightly for a few minutes only. Roll the dough into a ball, dust with flour and place into a floured banneton or mixing bowl. Cover the bowl or banneton with a tea cloth. Again place in a cool, not cold place and leave to rise slowly for 8 hours.

    Tip dough onto floured surface
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  7. Heat the oven to 475 F. Place a roasting tin filled with ice cubes on the lowest shelf of the oven. The vapor is given off from the ice cubes as they melt help to "steam" the loaf as it cooks and creates a lovely crust to your loaf.

    Roasting tin with ice cubes
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  8. Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper and grease very lightly with a little olive oil. Lay the risen loaf onto the sheet (do not worry if you lose a little air from the loaf as you do this, it will come back in the oven). Place in the middle of the preheated oven and cook for 30 minutes, then lower the temperature to 400 F and cook for a further 20 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown, the outside crust crisp and the bread sounds hollow when tapped on the base.

    Line a baking sheet
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

  9. Place the loaf on a cooling rack, and leave to cool completely before eating. The sourdough will keep for up to a week. Do not place it in any plastic as this will soften the crust. Instead, place in a paper bag or into a bread bin. Stored this way, the bread keeps well and even after a week is still great when toasted.

    Place loaf on cooling rack
    The Spruce / Diana Chistruga

The Banneton

A banneton is a bowl specifically made for proofing bread. It is usually round and its features determine the finished shape of your loaf. The banneton will often have circles or indentations, which create a decorative effect on the loaf.