Classic Sourdough Boule

A well-loved recipe for a classic sourdough boule. This sourdough boule recipe has the perfect combination of crusty exterior and soft, bubbly interior!

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Ingredients

100 g active, bubbly sourdough starter
350 g room temperature or slightly warm water
500 g bread flour
12 g fine sea salt
* see recipe notes below for ingredient details and tips

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine active sourdough starter and warm water, whisk vigorously until bubbly (Danish whisk works great for mixing starter & water).
Add flour and salt, use whisk to combine then switch to using your hands and knead for a minute or so until dough comes together.
The dough will be a little shaggy looking and weak. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 min for the autolyse period so the water has an opportunity to hydrate the dough. This resting period changes the consistency of the dough and makes it much easier to work with!
Next, wet hands with water and perform the first fist series of stretch and folds. I like to perform a minimum of 3 series of stretch and folds 30 min apart before the bulk fermentation where you let the dough do its thing and rise. The stretch and folds are what helps to create those beautiful bubbles in the bread!
For the stretch and folds, picture a compass with the four directions. You will take the dough from each cardinal direction and stretch it upwards as far as it’ll go and punch it back into the middle of the dough. (1 series = 4 stretch and folds - one for each cardinal direction). Perform first series of stretch and folds. Cover the bowl of dough well with wrap or a lid and let rest for 30 minutes.
Perform the second series of stretch and folds, cover and rest for 30 min.
Perform the third series of stretch and folds. Cover the dough and let it bulk ferment for 8-12 hrs at room temperature. If it's a colder season, choose a warm spot in the house.
When the dough has about doubled in size, is domed over with bubbles underneath the surface, the dough is ready to be shaped. To shape, wet your hands and remove dough from bowl onto counter space.
For shaping, I like the envelope and roll-up method. To do this, first, stretch the dough on the counter into rectangle, fold the two shorter sides into the middle like you would a letter for the mail, then roll it up. Push and pull the dough on the counter to form a rounded ball shape.
Let the shaped dough sit on counter uncovered for 30 minutes.
Perform any final shaping needed by pushing and pulling the boule on the counter.
Lightly flour a towel or liner of a banneton basket and plop the dough top side down into the bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 min. This refrigeration time helps firm up the dough for better scoring. You can also leave the dough in the fridge for awhile longer if you would rather bake it later in the day.
Preheat oven to 450°F with Dutch oven inside.
Plop dough onto middle of parchment paper after 30 minutes of resting time in the fridge.
Rub a bit of flour over the top surface of the boule and score (make cuts into the dough using a razor). Make sure you have at least one large, deep score somewhere on the boule to allow steam to escape.
Pick up the boule by the parchment paper and place it into the Dutch oven. Cover with lid. Bake for 30 minutes.
After 30 min, remove lid and bake another 20ish minutes until top is golden brown. You can bake it an additional 5-10 minutes longer if you prefer a darker crust.
Remove the boule from Dutch oven by grabbing edges of parchment paper. Allow the boule to cool on counter or on wire rack for at least 45 minutes before slicing. The bread will continue baking as it cools, so don’t slice into it right away or the inside texture may end up gummy!
Enjoy that beautiful, delicious sourdough bread!!!! I'm proud of you for getting to this point!

Notes

Ingredient details:

You can find links to the exact products I use in the post above in case you need them!

1. The sourdough starter needs to be bubbly and active to get the best rise on the dough. This is typically within 4-8 hours of being fed equal parts flour and water. I like to do the float test to make sure my starter is active and ready to make bread. Float test: scoop a small, almond sized amount of starter out of the jar and drop it into a cup of water. If dollop of starter floats, it's ready to use! If the starter sinks to the bottom, it either needs a bit longer to become more active or is past its peak activity and needs to be fed again before using. Pay attention to the amount of time between feeding the starter and its peak activity (height & bubbles). Record this timing to help you plan for your bread making!

2. For the water, I often heat filtered water briefly in my kettle (30 sec-1 minute) or allow the filtered water from the fridge to come to room temperature. Cold water will work just fine, though the dough may take a bit longer to rise.

3. For the flour, I like using King Arthur’s bread flour or a high protein flour when I’m making a boule. These flours have stronger structure needed for the boule.

4. Salt: For the salt, I love using Maldon Sea Salt flakes. This salt is so light and delicious. It works really well in bread but I also using it as a finishing salt on just about everything, especially with proteins! When I use Maldon salt in bread recipes, I grind the flakes into a finer texture in my mortar and pestle. It’s an extra step but it’s so fun and satisfying to do and it produces the most perfect fine sea salt for sourdough bread! I buy Maldon Salt in bulk on Amazon because it’s better deal and I go through it quickly. I believe they sell the small boxes at Whole Foods as well.

5. Use a big bowl for this to allow plenty of room for it to rise, I like the big ceramic bowls like this one. The bowl needs to be covered well so the dough does not harden. You can use plastic wrap/beeswax wrap or in a pinch, a Dutch oven lid or a cast iron pan works as long as the top is well covered. I do not recommend a using a tea towel for the long bulk rise. In my experience, too much air gets into the bowl, the top hardens, then the dough does not rise properly and also becomes very difficult to work with when shaping. So make sure your dough is covered well!