Lord, give me the strength to not eat an entire loaf of sourdough bread in one sitting… Thankfully I have a couple of other adults hanging around that can help carry the burden with me.
This recipe BLEW me away! I went into the process with low expectations, but I should know better than that. Kim over at Let Them Eat Gluten Free Cake is always SPOT on with her recipes!
I was thinking ahead and decided to throw together two loaves instead of just one- BEST. DECISION. EVER! This gluten-free sourdough loaf had the classic crunchy crust with a chewy and soft interior. My oh my, do I have some delicious sandwiches in my future!
My biggest beef with gluten-free bread is that it is always gluey. I can never just pull a couple of pieces out and eat them as is, a quick ride in the toaster is usually necessary prior to consumption, but that just won’t be necessary with this homemade loaf of sourdough.
Do yourself a favor and join the sourdough bandwagon- you will not be disappointed!
This recipe calls for a ripe and mature sourdough starter. It took about seven days for my starter to mature, but I think it would have been ready to go by day six.
Good indicators of mature sourdough:
- growth within four hours after feeding.
- “deflation” before second feeding- starter will grow and then fall back down before it needs to be fed again.
- “talking” the starter will begin to sound like a good ole’ fashioned bowl of Rice Krispies.
This recipe is simple but requires a little prep work. It will take a total of three days to go from a starter to a baked loaf of sourdough bread.
The night before you are ready to make your dough, you will need to discard all but 1/3 of your starter. You will then add 100 grams of flour and 100 grams of water- you will be adding a total of 140 grams of starter to your dough.
The next day, you can begin mixing your dough then let it proof for 3-4 hours in a warm draft-free area. After the initial rise, your dough will sit in the fridge overnight so that it can be easily handled the next day.
In the morning, or whenever you get around to it, you will knead the dough on a floured surface just until it forms a smooth ball.
The ball of dough can then be added to a banneton basket or a bowl lined with a floured linen towel. You will begin the second proof by allowing the dough to rise for 2-3 additional hours- you want the dough to rise, but not double in size. With 40 minutes remaining on the rise, preheat your oven to 500° and place your dutch oven with lid inside for 30 minutes- alternative bake methods listed in the recipe.
After the second rise, you will carefully turn the dough onto a piece of parchment paper. Using a serrated knife or lame, score the top of the loaf.
Using the parchment paper, carefully lower the loaf into the dutch oven, place the lid on top, lower the temperature to 450° and bake for 40 minutes.
After the 40 minutes, remove the lid and bake for an additional 20 minutes.
Once the bake time is complete, remove the loaf from the oven and allow it to cool 40-60 minutes before slicing.
The recipe below is from Let Them Eat Gluten Free Cake. The recipe asks for Kim’s Gluten-Free Bread Flour Blend, and I HIGHLY recommend using the blend Kim has created. I have baked several of her bread recipes, and the blend she created specifically for these recipes works amazingly!
I always had good luck with King Arthur for a great all-purpose gluten-free flour blend, but I have had even better luck with Mehl’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour from Mehl’s Gluten-Free Bakery in Fargo, ND. Every few months, I place a 10lb order, and they ship it right to my door.
Kim's Gluten-Free Artisan Sourdough
Equipment
- dutch oven
- kitchen aid mixer
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups Kim's gluten free bread flour blend 350 grams
- 1.5 tsp additional xanath gum
- 1 Tbs psyllium husk powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup water 240 ml
- 2 Tbs olive oil
- 1 Tbs honey
- 140 grams sourdough starter ripe and mature
Instructions
- The night before you are ready to make the dough, dicard all but 1/3 of your mature starter and add an additional 100g flour and 100g water. Let sit overnight.
- The next day, add all the dry ingrediants to a bowl of a stand mixer and mix until combined.
- Add in the water, oil, honey and starter to the bowl and mix on medium high with the bread hook for 5-7 minutes. Be careful, your mixer might start jumping around the counter!
- After mixing, you can keep the dough in the mixing bowl or add it to a new greased bowl. I added my dough to a plastic container so that I could easily store it in the fridge after the intitial rise.
- Set the bowl in a warm draft free area and let rise for 3-4 hours. Once risen, place in fridge overnight. *I like to preheat my oven to 200° before I begin mixing. Once preheated, I shut the oven off. This creates a warm space for my dough to proof in.
- The next day, pull the dough out of the fridge and knead it on a floured surface until it forms a smooth ball (doesn't take long)
- Place kneaded bowl into a floured banetton basket or a bowl lined with a floured tea towel. Place in a warm draft free area for 2-3 hours. Let it rise, but not double in size.
- With about 40 minutes left in the rise, preheat the oven to 500°. Once preheated place your dutch oven with lid into the oven for 30 minutes. Kim says, that you can also use a baking steel or stone and a shallow pan filled with water. The baking steel will still be added to the oven at the same time as the dutch oven, but you will bake for the full 60 minutes undisturbed. One cup of hot water can be added to the shallow dish after the loaf is placed in the oven.
- At the end of the second rise, carefully flip the loaf onto a sheet of parchment paper. Using a serrated knife or lame, score the top of the dough.
- Place the loaf and parchment into the dutch oven and place the lid ontop. Drop the tempature to 450° and bake for 40 minutes. After 40 minutes, remove the lid and bake an additional 20 minutes.
- After baking, place the loaf on a cutting board and allow to cool for 40-60 minutes. Slice and enjoy!
This looks delicious! It certainly takes some time and planning ahead, but the finished product makes it worth the trouble.
Definitely worth the prep!