100% Whole Grain Einkorn Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
- 720 grams whole grain einkorn
- 15 grams salt
- 220 grams active sourdough starter
- 465 grams lukewarm, non-chlorinated water
Instructions
Activate Your Starter
- Make sure your sourdough has been fed and is active, preferably at its peak rise point. I like to do this early in the morning, about 6:00-7:00 a.m. This way it is active and ready for me to mix the dough in the early afternoon.
Making the Dough
- In a large mixing bowl, add all your ingredients and mix them until just combined. It's best to use a dough whisk rather than a mixer, so you can be gentle with the delicate gluten structure of the einkorn. This will be a very shaggy, sticky dough at this point.
- Cover and set aside your dough for at least an hour.
Scrape and Fold Dough
- After an hour, use a rubber dough scraper to begin mixing all the ingredients. Begin by scraping the outsides of the bowl and turning/folding them into the center, working around the entire dough a couple of times. It can help to wet your scraper and your hands to prevent a lot of sticking. Watch the video to see how this is done.
- Let it rest for 15 minutes.
- At the end of the 15 minutes, repeat the folding of the dough with the scraper a couple of more times. At this point, the dough should feel well mixed and starting to look a little less shaggy. It will still be a sticky dough, that is best to avoid using your hands to work with. A wet scraper is generally all you need to work it. Let it rest another 15 minutes.
- Scrape and fold the dough into itself one last time, a couple times around. All the flour and ingredients should be moistened and incorporated sufficiently by this point.
First Bulk Fermentation and Proofing
- Cover your bowl tightly with plastic wrap, press n' seal, a wet towel or reusable bowl covers. Set it aside to rise/proof until about double, which can take 6-8 hours. I like to do this either overnight, or to speed up the process, I will put it inside an oven with just the light on. Watch it carefully to avoid any over-proofing.
Shaping the Loaf
- Prepare your proofing basket (banneton basket or bowl lined with a tea towel) by flouring the surface heavily. It helps to rub the flour into the fibers of the cloth.
- Using your dough scraper, scrape the dough out onto a heavily floured surface. Gently stretch the corners of the dough out so you get a square or rectangle shape. Begin folding the corners into the center and continue to fold until you form a boule (round shape).
- If placing inside a rectangular dutch oven, shape it into a rectangle. Again, you don't need to overwork the dough here, just tuck and fold until you get your desired shape. Pull the bottom of the loaf against the surface of the table a few times to seal the bottom of the dough. Pinch it closed if needed.
Final Fermentation and Proofing
- Pick up your dough and turn it upside down into the prepared basket. Cover to make the dough airtight and set inside the fridge for 12-15 hours.
Prepare the Dough for Baking
- About 45 minutes - 1 hour before baking, place your dutch oven with the lid on, inside the oven to preheat at 500 degrees farheinheight.
- Turn your dough out onto a piece of parchment paper and gently tuck any stray edges under the boule. Working as quickly as possible, take out your dutch oven, score the dough with at least one deep score, and place dough inside the dutch oven by lifting up with the parchment paper. Add a couple of ice cubes under the parchment paper to create some steam to help it rise.
- The dough may collapse while preparing and scoring. If this bothers you, I recommend getting a rectangular dutch oven and banneton basket, which will help it rise up more. Without a strong gluten structure, this is likely to happen a little, but it still yields a beautiful, rustic loaf of bread.
Baking Your Sourdough Bread
- Bake in the oven at 500 degrees for 25 minutes, with the lid on.
- Remove the lid, lower the temperature to 425 degrees, and bake for 15 minutes with the lid off.
- When bake time is finished, remove the bread from the dutch oven and let cool completely on a wire rack before slicing into it. I know, this is the hardest part! If you cut in too soon, it will be gummy. It is actually completing its cook time in this cool down phase.
Storage
- Store sourdough bread in beeswax lined bags, or bread storage bags for up to a week on the counter. You can also slice it and freeze to preserve the bread longer. The great thing about sourdough is that it lasts much longer than store bought bread!