Everything I know about sourdough, in the order you actually meet it — from waking a culture up to pulling a loaf out of a cast iron pot, and what to do on the days it goes wrong. Work straight through, or jump to whichever bit is currently defeating you.
You need a live culture first
If you have not got one going, you can buy sourdough starter from us — a San Francisco culture that has been in my family since 1980, active in about two hours. Free UK delivery, shipped worldwide.
1Start a starter
Getting a culture alive, and knowing when it is actually ready to bake with.
- Reviving your starterThe two-hour revival, step by step.
- How the culture worksWhat is in the jar, and why it behaves the way it does.
- Feeding and careHow much, how often, worktop versus fridge.
2Keep it healthy
The maintenance that decides whether your bread is still good six months from now.
- Starter troubleshootingNo rise, grey liquid, odd smells — symptom by symptom.
- Mastering the sourHow to dial the tang up or down deliberately.
- Choosing your flourWhat each flour does to the dough and to the crumb.
3Handle the dough
The handling that separates a flat disc from a loaf with a proper open crumb.
- Stretch and foldWhat the folds do, and how often to do them.
- Reading bulk fermentationThe hardest call in sourdough, made readable.
- ShapingBuilding the tension that holds a loaf up.
- ScoringBlade, angle and depth — and how to get an ear.
4Bake it
Heat, steam, and the last twenty minutes that make or break the crust.
- Baking in cast ironWhy a lidded pot beats a domestic oven on its own.
- How I bakeMy own routine, start to finish.
- Loaf troubleshootingDense, gummy, flat, no spring — what went wrong.
- Freezing and refreshingBack to near fresh-baked in about fifteen minutes.
Ready to bake?
Once the groundwork is in place, the recipes are here — everyday loaves, country and artisan, Italian and flatbreads, enriched and sweet, discard and snacks, pasta and gluten-free.
