Bread

Bread Maker Sourdough (No Yeast) recipe

Name: Bread Maker Sourdough (No Yeast)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 36 h 15 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 80g robust sourdough starter; 250g strong white bread flour (I'm currently using M&S Canadian Very Strong); 150g strong wholemeal bread flour (also M&S Canadian Very Strong); 280ml water; 10g salt (I use kosher); rice flour (or more bread flour, for dusting); a 500g banneton; a Dutch oven

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70% hydration sourdough, made in a bread maker (any brand, not just Panasonic), using a proper starter.

Prep30m
Stand35h
Cook45m
Total36h 15m

bread-maker sourdough

Sourdough made in a bread maker using a proper starter (no yeast)

Watch my current process

This is very much a work in progress, but I’ve been making “proper” sourdough in my bread maker. “Proper” meaning bread made with flour, water, salt and a yeast-free starter.

Is it really sourdough?

No idea but the crust is chewy, the crumb is somewhat open (the holes aren’t huge but they’re not tight either), and the flavour is, well, like sourdough.

I haven’t achieved an ear yet (I may never), and if you’re a sourdough purist, you might not find the taste sour enough.

We love this loaf, though, and more importantly, it's pretty undemanding.

It's not quick but it is easy

The process starts two days before baking (I bake on a Saturday morning). There’s no getting around it — this loaf takes time, but crucially, it’s hands-off. There are precisely zero coil folds.

I’ll update this recipe as I progress but the method below is where I’m at right now. I’m really happy with it.

The dough is sticky due to the hydration

If you don't have a banneton or Dutch oven*, take a look at this recipe by Heart's Content Farmhouse. The hydration is roughly 50% and the dough holds its shape without any assistance.

Further experiments I’ve got lined up:

Remove the autolyse step
Try different oven temperatures (to coax an ear)
Match the starter hydration to the dough hydration (70%)
Try a stiff starter (the hydration is around 50-60%)
Pre-shape the dough before shaping (although I’m trying to reduce steps, not add them)
Try golden wholegrain flour

★ ★ ★

* I bought a Lodge 4.73 litre double Dutch oven (affiliate link) and will write a review soon (spoiler alert: it's great and I didn't have to remortgage my house to buy it *side eyes Le Creuset casserole and Challenger pan*).

Notes

My starter requires two feeds before it can be used. You could skip the first feed if yours is robust.

I switch my bread maker off once the programme has finished but it’s another step that can be skipped.

I always include wholemeal flour because of my fibre enthusiasm. 100% white flour would be fine.

Once the dough programme has finished, consider removing the dough from the bread tin to prove somewhere else. Apparently sourdough can erode a non-stick coating and bread tins are horribly expensive to replace. I’m happy to leave mine in its tin.

Recipe credit

Inspired by Heart's Content Farmhouse's bread maker recipe.

Other useful resources: The Bread Code's Sourdough Framework, Proof Bread's shaping video and, of course, Reddit (r/Sourdough and r/Breadit).

Recipe

Bread Maker Sourdough (No Yeast)

Prep30m
Stand35h
Cook45m
Total36h 15m

Makes: 1 loaf

Ingredients

Bread maker sourdough

80g robust sourdough starter
250g strong white bread flour (I'm currently using M&S Canadian Very Strong)
150g strong wholemeal bread flour (also M&S Canadian Very Strong)
280ml water
10g salt (I use kosher)

You will need

rice flour (or more bread flour, for dusting)
a 500g banneton
a Dutch oven

Method

Thursday PM:

Feed the starter (1:1:1 ratio, 15g each of starter, flour and water).

Friday:

7am: Feed the starter (1:1:1 ratio, 40g each of starter, flour and water).
11am, autolyse: In a medium bowl, combine 80g of starter with 400g of strong bread flour (250g white, 150g wholemeal) and 280ml water. The dough will look shaggy. Cover with a tea towel. Store any leftover starter in the fridge.
- Important: Put your salt canister near the dough (or into the bread tin) so you don't forget it later.
12pm: Tip the dough into the bread tin. Add 10g of salt (I use kosher) and place into the bread maker. Turn on a Basic Dough programme (2 hours 20 mins, menu 19 on the Panasonic SD-ZB2512):
1. Rest: 30-50 mins
2. Knead: 15-30 mins
3. Rise: 1 hour 10 mins-1 hour 30mins
14:30: Turn off the machine. Consider moving the dough to a different bowl to prove (see notes).
7pm-ish: Shape the dough (I use a little rice flour as the dough is sticky). Transfer to a banneton, cover and place into the fridge for up to 16 hours.

Saturday AM:

Preheat a Dutch oven to 240°C / 465°F (fan) for at least 30 mins.
Lower the bread in using a piece of scrunched up (and flattened out) parchment paper. Scrunching prevents the paper from cutting into the dough. Slide some ice cubes down the sides of the Dutch oven.
Bake for 45 minutes. For more colour, remove the lid and bake for a further 3-5 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 3 hours before slicing.