Sourest Sourdough
Submitted by zanne
Extra-tangy sourdough baguettes shaped by hand, cold-fermented in the fridge for up to 24 hours, and baked crusty with water sprays. Bread machine mixes the dough, you shape the flavor.
YIELD
1 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
20 minREADY
40 minIf you like your sourdough with a serious pucker, this recipe delivers.
The bread machine handles the dough cycle, but the real magic happens during a long, cold fermentation in the fridge. Twelve to twenty-four hours in the cold slows the yeast down while the lactic acid bacteria keep working, building that mouth-puckering tang you’re after.
Shape the dough into baguettes on a cornmeal-dusted board, then let time and temperature do the heavy lifting.
Spraying with water during baking creates steam that gives you a crust so crackly it practically sings when you pull it from the oven.
Kitchen Tips
- Feed your starter and let it get active and bubbly before using. Sluggish starter means flat bread.
- Squeeze the gas out of the dough after the machine cycle. This resets the fermentation clock for the long cold rise.
- Spray the loaves with water every five minutes during baking for maximum crust crunch. A spray bottle is your best friend here.
- Every batch will be different. Temperature, humidity, and your starter’s mood all play a role. Embrace the unpredictability.
Variations
- Extra sour: Replace 1 tablespoon of water with white vinegar for an even sharper tang.
- Beer bread version: Use flat beer instead of water for a malty depth. Keep a separate starter batch if you try this so you don’t alter your main culture.
- Sweeter loaf: Increase sugar to 3 tablespoons for a milder, slightly sweet contrast to the sour.
Ingredients
Directions
Set starter out on counter and bring to room temperature.
Feed as you normally do and allow to become foamy and active.
This will take 8 to 12 hours.
Put all ingredients in the Bread Machine and set on the dough cycle.
When the cycle is complete, remove dough and squeeze out gases.
Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 20 or 30 minutes.
(This rest period makes the dough more pliable.)
Sprinkle corn meal on a board and shape dough into two cylindrical loaves.
Place loaves on a cornmeal covered baking sheet or in a special “baguette pan” that can be purchased at a kitchen store.
Cover again with the damp towel and put in the refer for 12 to 24 hours.
Take dough out of the refer, sprinkle with water, and let it sit out until the loaves are fully risen.
(They will usually rise a little in the refer, too.)
Spray again with water then bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until brown and crusty.
If you want a really crusty bread, spray the loaf with water every five minutes while baking.
This harder to describe than it is to do . and the results are worth it! PLEASE NOTE: Depending on the temperature, humidity, and the whim of the starter, the bread will vary from batch to batch.
Sometimes it is very sour and dense while other times it is mildly sour and fluffy inside.
Each batch is unique. but it is always good. Using the special pan helped the baguettes keep their shape.
You can also vary the flavor of the bread by using more or less sugar or by substituting 1 TBL of vinegar for 1 TBL of water.
Another variation is to use flat beer instead of water in either the recipe or when feeding the starter.
(Be sure to separate your starter into two batches first so that you do not contaminate the orignal pot.)
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