Sourdough Tools You Don’t Need!

For those new to sourdough; sourdough is naturally fermented bread that gets leavened from the presence of good bacteria. During covid, sourdough became wildly popular and the market became flooded with unnecessary tools designed to be seen as must-haves! There's also a big presence of folks pushing super specific instructions for their methods, making it seem very daunting to beginners. In the world of online influencers, its hard to know what you really need because nobody is showing it!

In this blog, I'll explain how I started my sourdough starter, my simple breadmaking style and discuss tools you really need and don't actually need for making it! My general thought on the topic? If the pioneers traveling by covered wagon could bake sourdough, you can too and you don't need any special tools or methods to do it!!

I hope this laid-back simple approach to sourdough helps you get started with less stress!

Starting with Starter: the Jar, Water and Flour

'Starter' is the good bacteria you'll need to mix into your dough to make sourdough. It looks like pancake mix in a jar and is a simple flour/water mix. It takes time, a jar, flour and water to make.

If you were to go on amazon right now and search 'sourdough starter jar' you'd be faced with hundreds of different jars with all sort of measurement contraptions along the sides and special caps. This is completely unnecessary. I use a cleaned out old pasta sauce jar with a rubber band on the outside. You don't need to know how much your starter rose in any type of measurement, you'll know your starter is at peak when it's approximately double in size. I leave my rubber band at the middle of the jar and fill to that line when I feed it, by the time the starter reaches the lid at the top, I use the starter and feed again, it really is that simple!

They also sell these skinny spatulas for mixing starter in the jar, you don't need it, I personally just mix with a spoon or butter knife.

To get a starter you could either buy a kit with a bit of dehydrated starter to get yours going or you could make your own from scratch. There's a million conflicting how to's out there for how to make your own. Here's my simple way that works for me every time.

Sourdough Starter Recipe/Instructions:

1. Find a good tall jar like an old sauce jar with the lid. Wash in super hot water to disinfect and then dry it.

2. Add in about 1 heaping tablespoon of flour, it can be any kind just not 'self-rising', needs to be plain flour, and mix with just enough water to create a wet batter consistency similar to pancake batter. The first time I did this I didn't even use a spoon to measure and it still worked, it doesn't need to be measured in grams or anything exact.

   1. Some people say you can't use sink water because the chemicals in city water will prevent fermentation, I live in a small town and I did and do use tap all the time without issue.

3. Put the lid on loosely and leave it somewhere at room temperature.

4. The next day you're going to do the same thing, add another heaping tablespoon of flour and a touch more water. This is feeding it. Do this for 7 days straight, by the end of the week you should see bubbles and it should start doubling in size between feedings, you can start using it! Mine started showing bubbles on day 4. Do not use it before day 7 because you need at least that many days of age for the good bacteria to become strong enough.

   1. Note that the natural good bacteria needed for the flour to start fermenting is coming from the air in your home. So if you're living in a newly built home, it may take longer to see bubbles, and you may even need to buy a dry bit of starter from another baker to get your first one started.

   2. If your starter molds in just a few days, it may be a sign there's bad bacteria in your home! Discard and try again in a different room.

   3. You can leave the starter in the fridge until you want to bake, I usually take mine out Friday morning, let it warm up during the day, feed in the evening, by the next morning on Saturday its ready to bake with, I take what I need, feed it and then put it back in the fridge for the week. Don't leave it in the fridge unfed for more than 3 weeks as it may starve and die.

      1. When left in the fridge the starter can sometimes form a liquid on top, sometimes dark, this is nothing to worry about and can be simply poured away or mixed back in next feeding. Its a sign the starter is hungry!

Mixers, Special Whisks and Spatulas

You'll see online fermentation gurus using all kinds of mixing tools from typical stand mixers to special dough whisks and spatulas. Lately the Danish dough whisk and other circle/hoop style whisks are trendy. I tend to mix my sourdough with my hands but if you are not a fan of this method it can just as easily be mixed with a normal spoon or fork.

On the Rise

Youve mixed your dough and are letting it rest, now what? People will tell you to stretch and fold the dough every 30 minutes, every hour maybe for a whole 8+ hours day! That's nuts! Sourdough was born in a time of rugged survival, trust me, it doesn't need to be babied! I only fold my dough a few times before baking, I don't set a timer, I just do it when I remember it. Here's exactly what that looks like:

It depends a lot on the time of the year and therefore temperature in the house. If its a chilly winter day, the dough may need 16+ hours to be ready for baking. So I'll start my dough in the morning, give it it's first fold in about an hour and then fold it a few times through the day, leave it out overnight, flip it a few times the next morning and by dinner time its ready for the oven. However on a sunny summer day, when the house is warmer, i might mix it in the morning, fold it a few times through the day and by late afternoon it could be ready to bake! So long as the dough has doubled in size over several hours and passes the windowpane test, you should be set! The windowpane test means taking a couple pinches of dough and trying to pull it paper thin, if light can pass through it without it breaking, stretchiness has been achieved! If the dough rips before you can pull it that thin, give it another hour or two and try again.

Bannetons and Tea Towels

A banneton is a special type of bowl to place your dough in after final shaping so that it can proof in a loaf shape, this is because gluten has memory, it'll stay in the shape it rested in so if it was proofed on a flat table, the dough after baking will likely look flatter than one proofed in a bowl. So yes, bowls help, but you dont need a fancy linen-lined bamboo bowl to do it! I use regular ceramic cereal bowls. If my good cotton tea towel is available I lay it under the dough to prevent sticking, or otherwise I just use a square of wax paper or parchment paper. And tea towels can be useful, I have one, they do a great job, but you don't need a million in every color or with special stretchy bands to hold them to the bowl. Pickup just a couple, preferably in 100% cotton material. The one I use can be found here. I like it a lot!

Knife vs Scoring blade

Before or just a few minutes after you begin baking, the dough should be 'scored', this means cutting some slashes to allow the dough to expand without tearing the crust. If you don't score you'll likely have a few odd-looking loaves as the expanding dough will pop through the crust and bake that way. Scores can be as simple as 1 long slash down the middle or as intricate as you like! Google 'sourdough scoring ideas' and get creative! it can be whatever you like! I normally go for a few simple slashes.

What to cut with? Well at first I used just the tip of a sharp knife and that works just fine. I recommend starting with a knife, any kind, and later if you find yourself wanting it, a scoring blade of some kind. Bread lames come in many different styles, from elongated handles to simple small blade holders. After using a knife for a while I picked up this inexpensive small blade holder. When attempting some fun detailed designs I've also seen some folks using both knife scores and kitchen scissor cuts!

Dough Scraper

Dough scrapers can be useful when dividing dough and scraping bowls down or if you happen to be making rolls. If you don't plan on making rolls or double batches of sourdough anytime soon this can certainly wait. A spatula or knife could do the trick too and there's nothing wrong with simply pulling the dough to divide by hand. I personally have this super cheap 2 pack from amazon, while I'm not a big fan of the fact that its plastic, the flexibility does help when cleaning bowls. I would not recommend investing in a snazzy wood or metal kind until seeing if you like the plastic first. You might not use this tool as often as you think.

$100 Dutch Ovens vs $20 Roasting Pans

I have personally baked in both dutch ovens and metal roasting pans. I own an old lodge cast iron Dutch oven, an enamel coated cast iron dutch oven i got for $50 from Target as well as a simple enamel coated metal roasting pan I picked up at the thrift store for a few dollars. More often than not I use the roasting pan, it gets the same results as the Dutch oven, without the weight. And since the bottom has the classic graniteware antler logo, it gets 'printed' to the bottom of the loaf, which is cute! But also the space the logo creates under the loaf helps air circulate and I never get a burnt bottom crust, whereas the Dutch ovens almost always have tougher bottom crusts!

Parchment vs Silpat

Silpat is a non-stick silicone mat that can be used in place of parchment paper. I personally don't have a silpat but if you find yourself baking often and using lots of parchment, it might be worth the investment. They can be found online in oval and circular shapes specifically designed for sourdough!

So what do I really need to make my first loaf?

1. Flour

2. Water

3. Salt

4. A glass or ceramic jar

5. parchment paper

6. A roasting pan

   
   

   And plenty of patience! Happy Baking!