In a large bowl mix together the following and let sit out overnight or ~12 hours
- 15g mature sourdough starter
- 120g water
- 105g whole wheat flour
To the bowl with the pre-ferment add the following, mix together, then let stand for 30min - 1hr
- 375g bread flour
- 12g sea salt
- 240g water
After the initial rest, reach down into the side of the dough bowl, grab some, pull it up and push down onto the top of the dough. Rotate the bowl until you've done the whole dough. Search "stretch and fold" on youtube for examples.
Do this process 4x at ~30min intervals.
After 4x stretch and folds, leave the dough alone until it's doubled in size. ~3hrs at room temp. At this point you can stick it in the fridge for up to a few days if you need to slow things down.
You can shape into a boule and put into a proofing basket or shape into a log and put in a loaf pan. Look at youtube for examples of loaf shaping.
Let it sit until rougly 150% bigger, or overnight in the fridge. My preference is an overnight proof in the fridge for better flavor development.
Preheat oven with pizza stone or baking steel at 500° for at least 45min.
Turn the loaf out onto a sheet of parchment on a pizza peel. Slash the top with a razor blade.
Slide the loaf onto the pizza stone or steel and cover with a metal mixing bowl.
Turn the oven down to 475 and bake for 20min, then remove the bowl and cook for 20-25min more until loaf is dark brown and beautiful.
- Cool Cool on a wire rack for at least 1 hour. The bread is still cooking. Slicing while too warm prevents the starch from setting and results in a gummy interior texture.