RULE 1. IMPORTANT!
NEVER LET METAL TOUCH YOUR SOURDOUGH SPONGE, EVER.
It doesn’t matter with the loaves but it will kill your fermenting sponge
Take starter sponge out of the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature.
To the starter sponge
add
1 cup hot water, ~110°F
1 cup flour
stir
Ferment two hours
Halve, return half to the refrigerator.
Halve remaining half into two bowls.
To each bowl add:
6 cups high gluten flour (1 lb, 6 oz.)
1 1/2 cup hot water, ~110°F
1 tbsp salt
Sift in flour and salt, add hot water, stir
The dough should be wet, thick, sticky, almost a batter but not quite. Cover with plastic. Let sit 16 hours. No drafts.
Turn out of the bowl and onto a floured surface. Lightly dust and loosely form loaf.
Lay a piece of parchment in a bowl. Ease the loaf onto the parhment in the bowl. Spray the top of the loaf lightly with oil, cover with plastic.
Let rise 2 more hours
Pre-heat 2 cast iron Dutch ovens (or round covered pots that can go into an oven) in a 450° oven.
After second rise, remove the plastic from the tops, lift loaves up by the corners of the parchment and lower them into the Dutch ovens. Bake covered at 450° for 20 minutes.
Remove the covers and bake for another 20 minutes.
Remove from oven and immediately remove loaves of bread the pots.
Let cool about 10 minutes.
Enjoy.
It's best to get sourdough starter from a baker you know, but you can also get it from King Arthur Flour here. If you are in the area, email us here and we'll share some of ours.
