Keep it cut side down on a board for the first day, then in a bread bag, bread box or paper bag. Never in the fridge — it goes stale faster. Freeze what you will not eat in a few days, sliced, and toast it from frozen.
Everyday country loaf: an example at 75°F, sleeping 11:00 pm – 7:00 am
Fri 8:22 am
Feed your starter 1:1:1
Mix 3 tbsp (40 g) starter with ¼ cup + 1 tbsp (40 g) flour and 3 tbsp (40 g) water. It should be bubbly and doubled in 3½–6½ hours.
Fri 1:28 pm
Mix the dough
Your starter should have doubled and be full of bubbles. Mix everything into a shaggy dough — the dough then rises for about 5 hours.
Fri 1:58 pm
Stretch and fold (1 of 4)
With wet hands, lift one side of the dough and fold it over; turn the bowl and repeat four times.
Fri 2:28 pm
Stretch and fold (2 of 4)
With wet hands, lift one side of the dough and fold it over; turn the bowl and repeat four times.
Fri 2:58 pm
Stretch and fold (3 of 4)
With wet hands, lift one side of the dough and fold it over; turn the bowl and repeat four times.
Fri 3:28 pm
Stretch and fold (4 of 4)
With wet hands, lift one side of the dough and fold it over; turn the bowl and repeat four times.
Fri 6:28 pm
Check the rise, then pre-shape
Shape when the dough has grown by about 30–50%, is domed and wobbly, with bubbles on the sides. Watch the dough, not the clock. Round it gently and let it rest 30 minutes.
Fri 7:08 pm
Shape the loaf
Shape it tightly and put it seam-side up in a floured basket or a towel-lined bowl.
Fri 7:18 pm
Into the fridge
Cover it and let it rest in the fridge — about 14 hours here. Anywhere from 12 to 48 hours works, so this is the step that fits your day.
Sat 8:28 am
Heat the oven to 475°F
Put the Dutch oven inside, lid on, and let them heat for 50 minutes.
Sat 9:18 am
Score and bake, lid on
Turn the loaf onto parchment, cut a slash across the top and lower it into the hot pot. Lid on, 20 minutes. Use oven gloves and lift the lid away from you.
Sat 9:38 am
Lid off, 450°F
Take the lid off (gloves!) and bake 20–25 minutes more, until deep brown — 205°F–210°F inside.
Sat 10:00 am
Bread out of the oven
Done when it is deep golden and 205°F–210°F inside.
Sat 10:00 am
Let it cool
At least an hour before you slice it — it is still baking inside.
At least an hour — a warm loaf sweats in a bag and the crust goes soft.
2
Day 1: cut side down
On a wooden board, uncovered: the crust stays crisp and the cut face stays moist.
3
Days 2–4: a bag or a box
A cloth bag, a bread box or a paper bag keeps it from drying out without making the crust soggy.
4
Freeze the rest, sliced
Freeze slices in a sealed bag and toast them straight from the freezer.
5
Crisp it up again
Run a stale loaf under the tap for a second and warm it in a hot oven for 5–10 minutes.
Why
Bread goes stale because the starch recrystallizes — fastest at fridge temperature. Sourdough keeps better than most bread because its acidity slows mold; if a loaf does grow mold, throw it away — don’t cut it off.
Questions
Should I keep sourdough in the fridge?
No — the fridge makes it stale faster. Room temperature or the freezer.
How long does sourdough last?
Usually three to four days on the counter, longer than yeasted bread. Frozen, a couple of months.
Plastic bag or paper?
Plastic keeps it soft but softens the crust; paper or cloth keeps the crust better. A bread box is the best of both.
It remembers your starter, plans every bake around your day and reminds you at each step — no alarms at 3 am. Coming to the iPhone App Store before Christmas.
Get the app the day it launches
One email when the iPhone app is on the App Store, then a short baking tip now and then.
Your email
No spam, and never shared. Every email has a one-click unsubscribe.