4 Ingredient Sourdough Bread Recipe That is Friendly For Beginners

Dearest Reader, I have a sourdough bread recipe I believe you’re going to love just as much as I do! My friend shared with me a great 4 ingredient sourdough bread recipe that has become an absolute favorite for me!

This post is about sourdough bread recipe

Sourdough Bread Recipe Table of Contents

Supplies for Baking Sourdough Bread

• Dutch Oven
• Sourdough starter – If you don’t have one, ask around as there’s almost always someone who is willing to give you a portion of their starter.
• Mixing Bowl
• Bread Lame
• Parchment paper
• Oven Mitts
• Patience! One of the most important tools to have in your arsenal

Ingredients For the Sourdough Bread Recipe

• 4 cups of flour (500 grams)
• 2 tsp salt (11.38 grams) (You can add more if you are a salt lover. I use 1 TBS sometimes)
• 1 1/4 cups water (300 grams)
• 1 cup of recently fed starter (227 grams)

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 1: Feed Your Starter

Before I use a portion of my starter to bake sourdough bread, I always first feed my starter. Food Bod Sourdough recommends you let your starter come up to room temperature about 30 minutes for baking. Later feed the starter with 30 grams of strong white flour + 30 grams of water”. This will activate your starter and prepare it to be used in your sourdough bread recipe.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 2: Combine All Ingredients

Start off by mixing in all of the dry ingredients first into a large mixing bowl. Now slowly add in the wet ingredients such as the recently fed starter and water.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 3: Knead Ingredients

Stir and knead all of the ingredients together until the dough does not stick to your hands. Knead for 10 minutes (on low) in a machine or 20 minutes by hand. A great way to determine if you have finished kneading is if you see what’s known as the ‘window’ when you attempt to lightly stretch the door.

How Do You Know You’ve Finished Kneading the Bread?

You’ll know you’ve kneaded the bread long enough when you get what’s known as a ‘window’. A way to determine if you have a ‘window’ is if you attempt to slightly stretch the dough while holding it up to the light. The dough should remain completely intact while displaying a thin layer that illuminates the light shining through.

In the image above, I held up the dough against the light and gently stretched the dough until I saw the light coming through. If the dough breaks apart, then you do more kneading. However, should your dough hold up like the image above then you’re ready for the next step. Roll the dough into a ball shape and prepare for the next step.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 4: Let the Dough Rise

Once you’re finished kneading the dough, you’ll flour the base of a large mixing bowl and place the dough inside. Sprinkle flour on top and cover the top of the bowl with a towel.
Placing a cover over the bowl will prevent the dough from becoming too cool or developing a dry skin. Place the bowl into a dark space where it won’t be disturbed.

Now it is time to enjoy your favorite TV show or book because your sourdough is ready to rise! I let my sourdough rise anywhere between 6-12 hours.

Break up the rising time by bringing the sourdough out of the bowl to knead it once more halfway into the rising process. Put the dough back in the mixing bowl, sprinkle flour on top, cover the container, and continue to let the dough rise.

How Long Should You Let Your Sourdough Rise?

How long you let your sourdough rise is greatly dependent on the flavor you’re trying to achieve.

You know when you take a bite of sourdough bread, and you feel a ‘zing’ in your jawline? It’s a very distinct taste / feeling and an experience I’ve only had when eating sourdough bread. Some people just LOVE this taste while others avoid sourdough bread altogether because of this reason.

The longer you let your sourdough rise the greater the ‘zing’ you will feel in your jaw. If you want less of a ‘zing’, then simply let the bread rise for 6 hours instead of 12. It’s really quite that simple.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 5: Prepare the Dough to Be Baked

Now your dough is ready to be transformed into bread! Woohoo! Preheat your oven to 475 degrees. Now place the sourdough onto parchment paper and transfer your creation into a Dutch Oven. You will score the bread with a lame. You can make beautiful cuts with your lame or just do a few slashes on the top.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 6: Bake Dough for 30 Minutes

After putting on the lid, place your Dutch oven in the 475-degree oven for about 30 minutes.

How long your actually bake your bread is dependent on your oven. Some people need more than 30 minutes. I find half an hour is a good starting point to start checking in on your bread, but I tend to cook my bread anywhere between 45-50 minutes in my oven.

15 minutes before you feel your bread is ready, take the lid off of the Dutch oven. Wait for the bread to turn golden brown before transferring your masterpiece onto a cooling rack and letting it rise for about 1-2 hours.

Sourdough Bread Recipe Step 7: Give Your Bread Time to Cool Down

Letting your bread cool down for 1-2 hours isn’t just to protect you from burning your mouth, but also the structure of your sourdough bread!

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve cut into my fair share of ‘fresh out of the oven’ bread, but I always get disappointed as this messes with the shape. When you cut into bread too soon then you will squash the bread and make it more condensed.

Just be prepared to fight away friends and family members who attempt to get a slice for themselves. 😉

How Do You Make Designs on Sourdough Bread?

Have you mastered the art of creating tasty bread but want to know how to make beautiful designs like the image above? then check out our blog post on how we made pumpkin shaped sourdough bread!

This post is about a sourdough bread recipe

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