Same Day Sourdough Bread

This same day sourdough bread recipe is perfect for when you want bread ready for dinner. From feeding your starter in the morning, to finished loaf in one day! This recipe is perfect for a beginner baker.

I love making sourdough bread. I love eating and serving sourdough bread. And I love that it’s gut-friendly, and easy to digest.

But there’s not getting around the fact that it takes time.

My favorite sandwich bread usually takes me 36 hours from start to finish.

But…. it really doesn’t have to. You can make an amazing sourdough boule from start to finish, all in the same day.

Still not as fast as yeast bread, granted, but still fast comparatively.

And you don’t sacrifice flavor or oven spring.

This is a recipe I worked on for several weeks before I got a place where I was happy with the results every time.

It’s honestly very simple. I know you’re thinking that steps must have been cut out in order to eliminate hours from the process time, and you’re partly right.

The fact is, sourdough does its work better in a warm environment, so the step we cut out is the refrigerated bulk ferment.

Instead, we proof at room temperature on the counter, for a shorter period of time. This also take away the need for a proofing basket or banneton basket.

Bread texture – big, airy holes, or tight crumb?

I’ve found that when making sourdough bread, you can have either big, airy holes, as some of these pictures show, or a tighter crumb, in this same-day sourdough recipe,  based on how you handle the dough.

When shaping, if I want big holes (I don’t know why I like them so much, but they’re really fun!), I’ve very careful not to stretch and squish any air out.

It’s all about technique.

In order to make a tighter crumb, more suitable for sandwiches, I shape the bread by stretching from the side, and folding to the center, until the bottom is nice and smooth. Then flip it over so that nice, smooth domed side is now the top.

Ingredients for same-day sourdough bread.

No surprise here, the ingredients are exactly the same as for any other sourdough bread recipe:

• Flour – You can use either bread flour, or all purpose flour
• Water – I use tap water from my well
• Salt – non-iodized salt is best
• Active sourdough starter

What level of Hydration do we use?

As a home baker, I don’t hold myself to exact percentages. It’s important to be able to go by feel, and adapt to humidity, a looser or thicker starter, etc.

Even measuring everything down to the gram, it’s impossible to have an identical dough every time. What if your starter was a little loose when you fed it? Even if you feed it my specific percentage, you’re still starting with a higher hydration, which will affect your dough.

You will also be wetting your hands when you stretch and fold, adding more water to the dough.

For that reason, my recipe will simply call for “fed starter”.

You will add a few drops, or a few grams of flour then, to adjust the texture of your dough as needed.

You will do this by feel, and it will be fine! You know why? Because sourdough is very forgivable. A little bit of difference in hydration will not hurt your dough, and you will eventually decide your preferred dough stiffness.

Same day sourdough bread process

Feed sourdough starter at about 7:00 A.M. so that it reaches its peak at about 11:00 A.M. in order for loaf to be ready at dinner time. (or adjust timeline based on your preference).

1. Weigh water and active starter into your non-reactive large mixing bowl (glass, stainless steel, etc.), and whisk together well
   
2. Add flour and salt
3. Mix together until a dough forms. It will be shaggy, and pretty goopy, but don’t worry, it will smooth out during the process.
4. Cover, and let rest 45 minutes
5. Uncover the bowl, wet your hands, and stretch one side of the dough as far as possible without tearing (it won’t be far on the first stretch), and fold dough toward center.
6. Turn bowl 1/4 turn, re-wet hand, and repeat. (I find it best to do this beside a running faucet so I can rewet my hand between each stretch).
7. Repeat until all four sides have been stretched and folded. This is your first set of stretch and folds.
8. Cover dough, and let rest again.
9. Repeat process for a total of four stretch and fold sessions, with 45 minutes between each, letting dough rest in a warm place between each set.
   

   

10. After the last session, dump dough onto a lightly floured surface, and shape. pulling dough up from the side to the center, to form a tight ball to build surface tension.
11. Turn ball over, so that the smooth side on bottom is now the top, and gently work dough ball into a nice circle. I do this with my hands, tucking a little dough dough underneath the ball as needed to make the top nice and round.
12. Place dough onto a piece of parchment paper, rough or seam side down, and let rest for 45 minutes. You may see the dough rise a bit, but most of your rise will come in the form of oven spring. 
    
13. While dough rests, place bread baker in oven, and preheat to 450º.
14. Pick up dough using the corners of the parchment paper, and put into hot bread baker.
15. Score with a razor blade or sharp knife. I like to do a long score about halfway between the center and edge of the loaf so the oven spring gives it a nice ear.
    
16. Spritz loaf with water, or place an ice cube in bottom of baker, between the pan and the parchment paper, to create steam.
17. Place lid on baker, and place in oven.
18. Bake for 25 minutes.
19. Remove lid, and bake until golden brown (about 20 more minutes)
20. Remove sourdough loaf from oven, and transfer loaf to a wire cooling rack to cool
21. Slice, and serve as desired.

Tips and tricks for making same day sourdough bread

• Use a rimmed pan. Even if you don’t have a bread baker, it’s nice to have a rimed pan like a skillet, or even dutch oven to shape the bread in the even that it wants to spring sideways rather than upwards in the oven.
• If you don’t have a rimmed pan, that’s okay! Ideally, your loaf will be strong enough to hold its shape, and the high heat in the oven will cause the loaf to spring quickly and upward. The rimmed pan is only a safeguard.
• If you don’t have a lid for your pan, preheat the oven with a pan of water on a rack underneath the preheating bread pan. This will create steam in the oven, for a nice, chewy crust.
• One option for a baking pan that works really well is a standard metal loaf pan. Use a second loaf pan to place on top as a lid. These pans won’t hold any heat the way a cast iron baker will, so the baking is not quite as even, but they still work very well, and are a great option if you want sourdough experience before investing in specific tools for it. For this option, you will want to create an oblong loaf as you shape your dough.
• Baking on a cast iron pan will give you a thicker, crunchier bottom crust, whereas a thinner, stainless steel pan will result in a softer, thinner crust. This is because the thick cast iron holds the heat, and begins cooking the moment you put the bread on it.
• Use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature of your bread if you’re not sure whether it’s done. The temperature should be between 200º-210ºF when done.

Add-in ideas

Sourdough bread is a delicious staple food, but you can make it a treat very easily by adding goodies that will mix in during the stretch and fold process.

• Raisins, walnuts, and a hearty sprinkle of cinnamon. I have a specific recipe for this one. The main thing to remember is that your cranberries will absorb some of the moisture, so you need to err on the loose side when you make the dough.
• Cheddar cheese and thyme. This is one of my all-time favorites. It’s herby and cheese, and delicious. I use small cheese cubes that I chop myself, or shredded cheese, with powdered thyme for this one.
• Gouda and jalapeño. Using chopped or shredded gouda, and dried, or partially dried jalapeños, this is another tasty one. I like to top with loaf with coarse salt after shaping.
• Rosemary and garlic. This one is delicious. You can use minced garlic, or roasted garlic, with ground rosemary for this one.
• Caramelized onion with asiago cheese. This one is to die for! You can also use caramelized onion jam rather than making caramelized onion for this.

Really, any kind of cheese or dried fruit/not combo can’t be anything but awesome. Feel free to get creative with it!

Other sourdough recipes for you

• Overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls
• How to make sourdough French toast
• Sourdough chocolate chip cookies
• Flaky sourdough biscuits
• Sourdough pizza crust

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