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Crusty Golden Sourdough Bread with a Soft Chewy Center Recipe

Crusty Golden Sourdough Bread with a Soft Chewy Center Recipe
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★★★★★

4.8 from 9 reviews

This Crusty Golden Sourdough Bread recipe yields a beautifully rustic loaf with a crunchy, golden crust and a soft, chewy interior. Made with simple ingredients and a traditional sourdough starter, it requires minimal hands-on time but delivers maximum flavor and texture through slow fermentation and careful baking in a Dutch oven.

Ingredients

Scale

Dry Ingredients

  • 4 cups (500g) bread flour or all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons (10g) salt

Wet Ingredients

  • 1⅔ cups (375g) warm water
  • 1 cup (200g) active sourdough starter

Instructions

  1. Mix Flour and Water: In a large mixing bowl, combine 4 cups of flour and 1⅔ cups of warm water. Stir until a shaggy dough forms, then let it rest for 30 minutes to allow the flour to fully hydrate.
  2. Add Starter and Salt: After resting, add 1 cup of active sourdough starter and 2 teaspoons of salt to the dough. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are fully incorporated.
  3. Bulk Fermentation and Stretch & Folds: Cover the bowl with a clean towel or plastic wrap and let the dough sit at room temperature. Every 30 minutes for 2 hours, perform a set of stretch and folds by pulling one side of the dough upward and folding it over itself, turning the bowl a quarter turn and repeating three more times. This helps develop gluten strength.
  4. Long Rise: After the final fold, cover the dough again and allow it to rise at room temperature for 6 to 8 hours until it doubles in size and becomes bubbly and puffy.
  5. Shape the Dough: Gently transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Shape it into a round or oval loaf by folding and tucking the edges underneath to create surface tension.
  6. Proofing: Place the shaped dough seam-side up into a floured proofing basket or a towel-lined bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours to develop flavor and improve texture.
  7. Preheat Oven and Dutch Oven: The next day, place a Dutch oven in your oven and preheat to 450°F (232°C) for at least 30 minutes to ensure it’s thoroughly hot.
  8. Prepare for Baking: Remove the dough from the fridge and turn it out onto parchment paper. Score the top of the dough with a sharp knife or razor blade to allow controlled expansion during baking.
  9. Bake Covered: Carefully lower the dough along with the parchment paper into the hot Dutch oven. Cover and bake for 20 minutes to create steam for a crusty exterior.
  10. Bake Uncovered: Remove the lid and bake uncovered for an additional 25 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown and crisp.
  11. Cool: Remove the bread from the Dutch oven and transfer it to a wire rack. Let it cool completely before slicing to finish the cooking process and set the crumb.

Notes

  • Use a kitchen scale for best accuracy with ingredient measurements.
  • The sourdough starter should be active and bubbly for optimal rise.
  • If you don’t have a proofing basket, a bowl lined with a well-floured kitchen towel works well.
  • Allowing the dough to rest overnight in the fridge improves flavor and texture.
  • Use a sharp blade to score the dough to prevent tearing during baking.
  • Letting the bread cool completely before slicing ensures the crumb is set and not gummy.
  • Keep your Dutch oven covered initially to trap steam, which creates a crispy crust.
  • You can store leftover bread in a paper bag to maintain crust crispness the next day.

Nutrition

Keywords: sourdough bread, crusty bread, artisan bread, homemade bread, easy sourdough recipe, chewy bread, Dutch oven bread

Find it online: https://foodbylina.com/crusty-golden-sourdough-bread-with-a-soft-chewy-center-recipe/