Sourdough-making process seems like a time-consuming operation at first glance. It typically involves good deal of time from getting starter ready, applying autolyse, mixing, resting to folding, let alone bulk ferment and final proofing stage. In fact, thanks to those long period of phases, we are able to split the process into segments and squeeze them in our daily life.
How can I modify my sourdough-making process?
When trying to fit sourdough bread-making routine into our life, generally we manipulate the length of sourdough starter getting ready for the dough (after feeding), bulk fermentation and final proof to meet our need.
– apply different feeding ratio
Before using starter in the dough, it needs to be fed first to ensure the starter is in an active state. The most common ratio for starter feeding is 1 : 1 : 1 (= Starter : flour : water), that is we feed starter with same amount of flour and water. For me, when using 1 : 1 : 1 ratio, my starter takes about 4 hours to double the size in summer and about 6-8 hours in winter.
What happen if we adjust the feeding ratio? With additional food (flour and water), the wild yeast and bacteria in starter require greater time to digest the nutrients in order to multiply and thus extend the period to get twice the volume. Remember, the higher the ratio is, the slower the starter doubles. The feeding ratio can be anything between 1 : 1 : 1 to 1 : 10 : 10. There is no point to go beyond that because it will take forever for wild yeast and bateria to get twice the size.
Another benefit of feeding higher ratio is that you no longer need to keep large amount of starter. For instance, the fomula calls for 150g starter and I am going to apply 1 : 5 : 5 ratio, which means I only need to have 15g starter to begin with. With ratio of 1 : 5 : 5 , 15g starter will mix with 75g flour and 75g water, ending up with 165g of starter in final weight (150g for the dough and the rest for backup).
– temperature
Temperature affects the productiveness of the yeast. The higher the temperature is, the faster the enzymes, wild yeast and bacteria work, and vice versa.
I normally aim for 24-26 degree for the final dough temperature. During summer, I use cold water to mix the dough. This way, even though I mix the dough for a little too long, the dough temperature is yet under control. Similarly, use luke warm water in winter instead.
As for room temperature, use help from fridge, oven or even microwave. For example, when it’s getting too hot in the kitchen, leave the dough in the fridge during ferment or even autolyse stage. In colder days, I leave my dough in the oven (sometimes microwave) with a bowl of boiling water to get some humidity and warmth. If you have a bread proofer, by all means use it.
– quantity of sourdough starter
This one is straight forward – with more starter, the sourdough bread will go through shorter fermentation and proofing phase. Depending on the types of sourdough bread, the percentage of the starter can vary from 15% to 60%. Most online recipes call for about 20% starter in the recipe. Personally I prefer 30% starter and 70%-75% hydration. (What do those percentages mean? Check what is baker’s percentage? post)
– dough hydration
Water plays a crucial role in bread making process. It contributes not only to the gluten structure but also the activity of yeast fermentation. The quantity of water determines the rate of fermentation – highly hydrated dough will ferment faster and less hydrated dough ferments slower.
How I manage to make sourdough bread at least once a week with two jobs going on
A months ago, I started another casual job. On top of my regular full time job (45hrs per week), I basically work every single day. Some days I have 3 to 4 hours avalaible in the morning before work and some days I have the whole evening free. I’m going to share some tips on how I manage to make bread with limited time.
Determine how much starter to use before begin
Exam my schedule and determine how many days the sourdough making process will possibly involves.
- if I have time to make the dough today and bake it tomorrow, then I’ll use 25-30% starter in the recipe.
- if I have time to make the dough today but won’t be able to bake it within 2 days, I will adjust starter quantity to 15-20% in the recipe so the dough can go through a long period of cold ferment without the risk of overproofing
Feed my starter with higher ratio : 10 minutes for feeding starter
- if I’m working in the morning and I plan to make bread in the afternoon : I’ll feed my starter in the morning before going to work and use feeding ratio between 1 : 4 : 4 and 1 : 6 : 6
- if I have work until late and I plan to make the dough the next morning : I’ll feed the starter before I go to bed, with higher ratio as above
After dough is mixed and ready for bulk ferment : 30 minutes mix dough + 2 hours for performing folds
Try to perform at least 3 coil folds after the dough is under bulk ferment (with 30-45 minutes intervals) in room temperature. Let the dough go through primary rise in room temp for the first 1.5 hours before transferring to the fridge. Wild yeast needs some time to start the fermentation process.
- if I run out of time and I have to go to work/ I’m tired and I want to go to bed : leave the dough covered stored in the fridge. Check it when you have time. If the dough is still not ready, take it out from fridge and let it resume bulk ferment in room temperature
Cold environment slows down fermentation yet the fermentation continues. Instead of fermentation in room temperature for 1 to 3 hours, leaving the dough in domestic fridge would take approximately 8 to 12 hours. (also depends on the quantity of starter in the dough)
Dividing and shaping : 40-60 minutes including rest time in between
I usually do two times shapings at shaping stage to ensure the dough has strong structure to go through the long cold proofing and also contributes to good oven spring.
- depending on the fermentation, I sometimes shorten the resting period between two shaping(somewhere between 20-30 minutes) and the bench rest time after fianl shape. i.e. if the dough seems at the edge of overproofing, I will transfer the dough to the fridge immediately. On the contrary, if the dough seems a bit tight, leave it on the counter for longer bench rest before moving to fridge.
Final proof in room temperature : 2-3 hours
After shaping, you can either go for the final prrof in room temperature or in the fidge. If choosing to proof in room temp, it would probably take about 2 to 3 hours. Do a poke test to see if the dough is ready to go into oven. (not sure how to do a poke test? See when does bulk ferment complete)
Fianl proof in fridge (cold proofing) : 12-36 hours
Cold proofing can last from 12 hours to up to 3 days. During longer proof in low temperature environment, the wild yeast and bacteria produce acids which assists in strengthening the dough and leading to sour flavor.
- after shaping, I’ll leave the dough in the fridge until I have enough time to bake the bread. I try not to leave the dough in the fridge for more than 2 days otherwise the dough would compromise in volume, in other words, reducing its leavening ability.
- I don’t normally cover the dough during final proof in the fridge as the dry skin aids in easily handling the dough as well as smooth scoring.
Baking : 45 minutes for preheating oven, 45-50 minutes for baking
At the end
Check the different phases above stating each period of time required, you would be surprised that it can actually be managable. Providing there’s 2 to 3 hour window, you can squueze some steps in your day with ease. Play around with recipe and make good use of your fridge. You will find fitting sourdough-making routine to your daily life is highly possible. May all the good bread be with you.
