Easy No-Knead Sourdough Bread Recipe for Beginner's - Idie's Farm (2024)

This easy no-knead sourdough bread recipe is so simple to make you’ll honestly wonder why the bread machine was invented in the first place! The crust has an amazing crunch, aah, yes it’s all about the sound! and the center is so soft with a subtle tangy taste. This loaf will have you coming back for seconds, or if you’re like me, thirds! Looking for how to start a sourdough starter? Check out my How to Make A Sourdough Starter From Scratch.

The first time I made this artisan sourdough bread, Maddie, my youngest son, told me it tasted like a professional bread you’d buy at the store. Of course, he meant bakery–I hope! I have to say, it has gone down as this family’s favorite–for now! It makes me wonder why I ever even had a bread machine to begin with. This is the perfect type of loaf for when you are in a time crunch. You will still get that professional bakery quality without being held hostage over kneading it every 30 minutes, 8 times! I’m exaggerating of course. However, the kneading process for a traditional artisan bread is intense.

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When I was younger, I would always go to my granny’s house to visit and she would always have a fresh baked loaf of bread in the bread machine ready to turn out and serve when I would arrive. “Idie, get us a slice of that bread. The butter is on the counter.” she’d say. Walking into her house filled with that fresh bread aroma, was amazing. I can still smell it. I guess I just figured this was the norm. When I married Theron and we decided to implement “healthy from scratch eating”, it was off to target to buy a $150 bread machine, that honestly, we couldn’t exactly afford at the time! Funny how you are convinced you need something for convenience and then you realize it actually isn’t all that convenient and you never needed it to begin with! Like a dishwasher. Another story for another day! On that note, a dutch oven would’ve been a better investment, to bake that perfect loaf of bread among other amazing dishes.

Once I started realizing how much we were enjoying clean, from scratch eating, I bought Julia Child’s, The Art of French Cooking and started to binge watch her TV shows when they were available on Amazon. This really expanded my knowledge on bread making, and I got rather good at making her version of the french baguettes! But I must say it was rather enduring, constantly having to knead and work the gluten to get a good rise. I built some serious muscle doing that! Gladly, this recipe has put those days to rest! Everyone seems to enjoy this artisan style loaf just the same, maybe a little more!

Between working on the farm, homeschooling, and keeping a house, minding bread is another thing that I really don’t have the time for. When you are out feeding on a cold winter’s night, just before dinner, it’s a real treat to walk into the kitchen from outside and smell the cozy smell of fresh baked bread baking in the oven. It is a luxury that I can’t part with. That’s why this recipe is so valuable to us. We still get that nourishing food along with that warm homey feeling, without all the fuss. I just pop it into the oven before I do my evening chores and it’s about ready to take it out when I come back in.

Why sourdough?

People from the past seemed to understand that the way of fermenting a grain was not only necessary but vital for proper digestion and nutrition, yet it’s not understandable how they could come to this conclusion with the lack of scientific evidence, or just science in general! Was it just a technique that was trusted and handed down generation after generation? Or was it the result of not letting a dough rise for long enough that had families suffering from the grueling effect of not being able to digest unfermented wheat? Which in turn, led them to continuously practicing this tradition?

How did we lose this ancient craft? Our society has become so fast paced that the sense of urgency on everything has crippled our health. It’s time to go back to basics! Why should we choose sourdough over commercial yeast such as Baker’s Yeast?

Let’s take a look at sourdough or wild yeast:

1. It is Lactobacillus, a lactic acid bacteria, which is found on all living things.

2. Lactobacilli convert starches and sugars into lactic acid.

3. Lactic acid is a natural preservative which produces helpful enzymes and substances that are antibiotic and anti carcinogenic.

4. A slower fermentation process allows yeast to break down hard to digest gluten and allows for easy absorption of nutrients.

5. According to Sally Fallen Morell, in her book Nourishing Traditions, “Soaking allows enzymes, lacto-bacilli and other helpful organisms to break down and neutralize phytic acid.”

6. It’s easier to digest if you have a gluten intolerance, with the exception of celiac disease.

7. The bread does not stale as easily.

Now a word on baker’s yeast aka Active Dry Yeast.

1. It produces a quick rise in the bread in a short amount of time, which does not allow enough time for the phytic acid in the grains to be neutralized.

2. Unneutralized (unfermented or unsoaked) phytic acid according to Mrs. Morrell “Phytic acid can combine with calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, and especially zinc in the intestinal tract and block their absorption.” In other words, unfermented grains are robbing us of the minerals and nutrients that we need!

3. Bread will stale easily.

How to make a sourdough starter.

A sourdough starter is very simple to make. It is the process of mixing equal parts water and flour for several days until the wild natural yeast are captured and your mixture becomes alive and bubbly. It takes about 5 to 6 weeks to truly develop a mature sourdough starter. If you do not have the time to wait for it to develop then you can always try Facebook Marketplace, or as in my case, I am a part of a facebook group for my county’s news and people are always giving away sourdough starters for free!

How to test the sourdough starter.

I have found that the best way to test your sourdough starter is by doing a float test. You simply fill a glass up with water, then drop a bit of your sourdough starter into it and if it rises to the top and floats, then it’s ready. If it hits the bottom and stays put, then it needs a few more days to develop. This is a great trick if you are starting with an immature starter, meaning you have recently started it and are trying to see how active it is. Once your starter has become active and floats in the water, you will no longer need to do this test. Once your starter has matured, then just by feeding it you’ll see it double in size and know when it’s ready to use. You’ll also see large bubbles on the side of the mason jar, and that is a good indication that it is ready to use.

Tips for making the most perfect no knead sourdough loaf:

• When combining the ingredients, I always make sure the water is purified and warm to touch, about 85 degrees. The warming will help activate the yeast and get the dough rising.

• I prefer to use an organic all purpose wheat flour because it is free from harmful herbicides that are sprayed on the wheat, and it is also free from any synthetic additives such as: folic acid among synthetic vitamins.

• Feed your starter! The mature starter will be ready to use once it’s doubled within 4 to 12 hours after being fed.

• Place your dough in a warm place to help it with the rise.

• If your starter is not yet passing the float test, then you can add a 1/4 teaspoon of active starter to help it along. Yes, you will be using a conventional yeast, but you will still get some benefits from the sourdough starter.

• I prefer to use a scale to measure all of my ingredients in grams. I find it to be more accurate and the consistency of each of my loafs are the same. It is also less to clean up, however I have been very successful in using measuring cups in the past.

• If you’ve jumped the gun, on your sourdough starter, and didn’t get a good rise or maybe your dough rose too much, then this “flopped” bread makes great croutons! Bake it the same and then chop it up and toss it in a salad or make bread pudding out of it! This happened to me over the holidays and I used it as stuffing. It was delicious!

• For best results do not skip the folding steps. This will help the gluten develop and form those beautiful air pockets.

• Cover your dough with a damp tea towel, plastic wrap, plastic bag, or shower cap. This will keep your dough from getting a crust on the outer layer.

• Wet your hands a little when stretching and folding. This can help with the stickiness of the dough. You can also lightly flour the dough, but don’t get carried away with it because too much flour can cause too dense of a dough!

What you’ll need:

A large mixing bowl, glass bowl, or a ceramic bowl

A banneton or proofing basket, or glass bowl ((DIY banneton proofing basket found here!)

A wooden spoon or a Danish dough whisk (the one I use is found here)

A tea towel

Kitchen scale

Dutch oven (ceramic or cast iron)

Piece of Parchment paper

Dough scraper (optional)

Razor blade or sharp knife

Ingredients:

475 grams of organic all purpose flour (about 3 1/2 cups)

322 grams of purified water (about 1 1/3 cups)

110 grams of active sourdough starter (about 1/2 a cup)

15 grams of salt (about 2 teaspoons)

Instructions for Easy No-Knead Sourdough Bread Recipe for Beginner’s:

In a large bowl combine the all purpose flour, purified warm water (about 85 degrees), active sourdough starter, and salt. Mix all the ingredients with a wooden spoon. The ingredients do not need to be thoroughly incorporated, just enough to where it is combined pretty well. Cover the bowl, with the dough in it, with a damp kitchen towel. Allow the wet dough to rest at the bottom of the bowl for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough. Using a dough scraper or your clean hands, scrape the sides of the bowl and gather the dough together. Then, gently pull on the opposite ends of your dough, stretching them out and placing them on top of each other. Turn your bowl a quarter turn and stretch your dough out and fold the sides on top of each other again. It should be “square-like”. Place a damp cloth or plastic wrap back on the bowl. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

After the 30 minutes is up, stretch out the two opposite ends and fold them over each other and then turn the bowl, and do the same stretch and fold to the opposite ends. Place a damp towel over the bowl to cover the dough and repeat the same stretch and fold method with 30 minute intervals, two more times. This takes a total of 3 sets of stretch and folds. Once all 3 sets are done, place the dough in the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap to cover the bowl. Place on the counter at room temperature (or somewhere warm for a faster rise) for the first rise.

Once the dough has doubled in size, this can take several hours depending on the temperature of your house (presumably 11-12 hours), lightly dust a clean work space with flour and place your dough on it. Roll the dough to shape it into a ball. Place a tea towel in a proofing basket or bowl. Flour the tea towel so that the dough doesn’t stick to it during the second rise. Place the smooth surface of the bread dough face down into the cloth. The gathered surface of the dough will be facing up. Place plastic wrap or a damp cloth over the proofing basket with the dough in it, and then place it in the fridge for the overnight rise, for at least 12 hours.

Scoring the dough

Dusting the dough with flour before scoring will help your design pop! I like to use a super sharp razor blade to do this. I have found that carefully putting a little oil on the blade can help keep it from tearing the dough. Also, if you are cooking the sourdough straight from the fridge, the cold dough will be more stable and the blade will cut a lot smoother! The razor blade is thin enough that it makes creating a design easy and fun!

In a pinch, a sharpened knife works too. I would just sharpen it well and oil it to make sure it glides across the dough when making your cuts . The technique is a “feel”. The deeper the incision the more of a burst that will take place with the dough. I would start with making only about a 1/4 inch deep cut and then work from there. You CAN go over a line! I also used twine to help me with lines of symmetry. There are so many designs that you can find on the internet. I’ve even found myself watching a couple of hours of Youtube videos on the subject! This may bring out the artist in you!

When your no-knead sourdough is ready to bake:

After the second rise, when you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Place your dutch oven in the heated oven and preheat it for 30 minutes. While the dutch oven is preheating, remove the proofing basket with the dough from the fridge and place it on the counter. Place the dough on a lightly dusted piece of parchment paper and sprinkle the top of dough with flour. Gently rub the flour around the dough with your hands. This will help your pattern stand out more.

Use a razor or knife to score the dough. Carefully remove your preheated dutch oven and place the dough with the parchment paper under it, inside of the dish. Cover the dutch oven with the lid. Place the dutch oven back in the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Once the 45 minutes is up, remove the lid and bake for 10 to 15 minutes longer until the loaf reaches the desired color. Once fully cooked and golden brown, remove the bread from the dutch oven and place it on a rack to cool. Cut and serve with delicious butter! Try my How To Make Easy Homemade Butter From Raw Milk.

How we enjoy our sourdough breads:

Usually we can’t wait for it to cool! Honestly, it doesn’t make it to the cooling rack, it goes straight to the cutting board! The smell alone is so intoxicating, it makes it really hard to resist when it comes out of the oven! I usually will make homemade butter (found here) daily and have it soft and ready to go, especially when I know I’ll be making a loaf that day. The boys, a lot of times, will have it as a dessert with butter and honey on it. Sometimes we will have homemade jam in the fridge and that’s always a nice treat on it too. Usually it doesn’t last but a day, but if for some reason it does, then I use it for sandwiches such as: grilled cheeses, or even sloppy joe’s! It makes a delicious french toast too!

The Boulangerie Schedule:

I want to start by saying that these times are without a doubt adjustable to your schedule. If you are not right on the 30 minute mark, then that’s ok. 5 to 10 minutes earlier or later will not make your bread flop! I have even taken it out of the fridge after a second rise and allowed it to rise for a few more hours, because it didn’t rise as much as I would have liked overnight in the fridge. I will also say, that one time, I had bread on it’s second proof in the fridge ready to bake and we decided that morning that we had to run errands and would not be home to bake it, so I just left it to proof another day. To my surprise it came out wonderful with a perfect soured flavor! My point being, the timing is flexible–within reason!

• At about 9:00pm, the night before I want to make the sourdough bread, I feed my sourdough starter and place it on my kitchen counter in a warm spot.
• 9:00 am the next morning, I make my sourdough and let it rest for 15 minutes.
• Then I move to 3 rounds of my stretching folding process.
• 9:15 I stretch and gather 4 sides of my dough and cover it with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
• 9:45 I again stretch and gather 4 sides of my dough and let it rest another 30 minutes.
• 10:15 I stretch and gather 4 sides of my dough for the final 30 minute rest.

• 10:30am This is the last time that I stretch and gather the four sides of my dough. I then place the damp towel back on the bowl and let it ferment in a warm spot in my kitchen for about 11 to 12 hours. The dough should double in size by this time. Throughout the day I will check on it and make sure that it is rising. If the house feels too cool, under 72 degrees, I will pace it on the stove and turn the oven on low to help it rise.
• At 9:30pm I remove the dough from the bowl and shape it into a ball and place it in a proofing basket that I cover and place it in my fridge and let it rise until the next morning.
• At about 10:00am the next morning, I will remove the dough from the fridge and score it and place it in the oven to bake.
• At 10:45am I place the beautiful sourdough bread on a cutting board, slice it up, place my homemade butter on it, and dive in!

This recipe pairs beautifully with my How To make Raw Homemade Butter Recipe! Looking for a meal to serve this with, then try my Easy Bake Zucchini Parmesan With Garlic Recipe!

To much discard? Try this: Easy Italian Sourdough Flatbread Discard Recipe

Need a sourdough loaf fast? Check out this recipe: Easy Same Day Sourdough Bread (Beginner’s Recipe)