It’s a bit like having a pet. 9fl oz water in a bowl. You won’t notice as much of a rise in the dough as you would sourdough without wheat a normal, yeasted bread and it will take a lot longer. Turn out the dough onto a surface and knock back.

Portion the dough into two and shape into two ball-shaped loaves. Put a few ice cubes or cold water into a baking tin and place in the bottom of the oven to create steam. Turn the loaves out onto a baking tray or hot baking stone. Using a thin sharp knife score two or three times on the top of the loaf and place in the oven. 40 minutes or until a good crust has formed and the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the base. Once the dough is rolled, place it in the fridge and leave overnight. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Read about our approach to external linking. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Sourdough or sourdough bread is a bread made by the fermentation of dough using wild lactobacillaceae and yeast. In the Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology, Michael Gaenzle writes: “The origins of bread-making are so ancient that everything said about them must be pure speculation. Sourdough remained the usual form of leavening down into the European Middle Ages until being replaced by barm from the beer brewing process, and after 1871 by purpose-cultured yeast. Europe, is usually leavened with sourdough.