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Sourdough
Grow a starter, bake a loaf you're proud of.
3levels, ending in a reliable weekly loaf
25 mina Step, on average
$35to start Level 1
FreeLevel 1, always
The path
- 1
Level 1Free Starter to First Loaf
Your first open-crumb loaf
14 Steps, about 24 minutes each. Total beginners. You need a kitchen scale and an oven. No baking experience needed.
- Chapter 1: Grow your starter. A starter you feed every day and know how to read, and your first bake: a tray of crisp discard crackers.
- Chapter 2: Your first loaf. A ready starter, your first real sourdough loaf, and the skill to read its crumb and know what to change.
- Chapter 3: Make it yours. A starter that fits your week, a second loaf with one improvement you chose, and bread you can share.
- 1Show your groupMix your starterA jar of flour and water that will become your starter, marked and in a warm spot.
- 2Feed it for the first timeYou've done your first discard and feed, 1:1:1 by weight.
- 3Learn to read your starterYou fed it again and noted its smell, bubbles and rise.
See all 14 Steps
- 4Keep it warm and steadyYour starter has a consistent feeding time and a spot near 75°F.
- 5Show your groupBake crackers from your discardA tray of crisp crackers made from the discard you saved.
- 6Fix a slow or sleepy starterYou know what your starter needs and you've adjusted today's feed if needed.
- 7Is it ready? The rise testYour starter doubles within 4 to 8 hours of a feed, two days in a row.
- 8Mix, fold and shape loaf oneYour first dough is mixed, folded, risen, shaped and resting in the fridge overnight.
- 9Show your groupBake your first loafA baked loaf with a brown crust and a hollow sound when tapped.
- 10Read your crumbYou've cut your loaf and know whether the dough needed more or less rise.
- 11Store your starter for real lifeYour starter lives in the fridge with a weekly feeding routine.
- 12Plan and mix loaf two yourselfLoaf two is mixed, folded, shaped and in the fridge, from the written steps alone.
- 13Score and bake loaf twoLoaf two is scored with a pattern you chose and baked to a deep brown.
- 14Show your groupSlice, store and shareYour best loaf is photographed, sliced, stored well, and shared with someone.
- 2
Level 2Unlocks after Level 1 Bakery Breads
Batards, bagels, focaccia and your own loaf
20 Steps, about 50 minutes each. Bakers who finished Level 1 or can already bake a decent sourdough boule and want to bake everything else a bakery sells.
- Chapter 1: The bakery batard. A levain built on schedule, a wetter dough handled with coil folds, and a tall batard with an ear.
- Chapter 2: Score, grain and flavor. Decorative scoring, a hearty whole wheat loaf, a cheese and jalapeño loaf, and a bake schedule that fits your week.
- Chapter 3: Beyond the loaf. Focaccia, a soft sandwich loaf, chewy bagels, pizza night and sourdough cinnamon rolls.
- Chapter 4: Your signature loaf. Baguettes, a crumb you can read and fix, your own formula on paper, and a signature loaf shared with friends.
- 1Show your groupBuild a levainA levain mixed from your starter, timed to be ready for tomorrow's dough.
- 2
- 3Coil folds and bulkFour sets of coil folds and a bulk rise judged by the dough, not the clock.
See all 20 Steps
- 4Shape a batardDough pre-shaped, rested and shaped into a tight oval in the banneton, then into the fridge.
- 5Show your groupScore for an earYour batard scored with one long, shallow cut and baked tall with an ear.
- 6Score a patternA loaf scored with a decorative pattern: a wheat stalk, a leaf, or your own design.
- 7
- 8Fold in cheese and heatA cheddar and jalapeño loaf with the fillings spread evenly through the crumb.
- 9Fit it into your weekA bake schedule written for your real week, and a loaf made on it.
- 10Show your groupBake two at onceTwo loaves from one double batch, baked back to back, one to keep and one to give.
- 11
- 12Soft sandwich loafA soft, sliceable sourdough sandwich loaf baked in a pan.
- 13
- 14Pizza nightSourdough pizza dough made ahead and baked into crisp, blistered pizzas.
- 15Show your groupSourdough cinnamon rollsA pan of soft cinnamon rolls made with your starter.
- 16Read your crumbThree of your loaves cut open and diagnosed: underproofed, overproofed or just right.
- 17Shape baguettesTwo or three sourdough baguettes, shaped long and even, scored and baked.
- 18Write your own formulaYour own loaf formula written out in baker's percentages and grams.
- 19
- 20Show your groupShare a bread boardA bread board of your best Level 2 bakes, shared with friends, and a loaf frozen for later.
Level 3Unlocks after Level 2 Rye and Enriched
Rye, brioche and holiday breads
Where it ends: a reliable weekly loaf
Free lessons in Starter to First Loaf come from King Arthur Baking, Matthew James Duffy, The Clever Carrot, moon + magnolia, The Perfect Loaf, Natashas Kitchen, Grant Bakes, Brian Lagerstrom, Challenger Breadware, Sourdough LoafHacker. We link to their work and never copy it.