10-Minute Sourdough

Set an alarm on your phone to go off every Thursday evening reminding you to refresh your starter. This will ensure you are ready to bake every weekend.

If you have a rye or wholegrain starter, it will not float at all.

This schedule is based around mixing your dough in the evening and baking in the morning, but you can adjust it to suit your lifestyle.

Garlic & rosemary sourdough bundt focaccia A stunning centrepiece loaf that will fill the kitchen with a delightful aromatic smell.

When handling the dough, I use oil or water on my hands rather than flour, as it’s a cleaner way of working. I also use a plastic scraper. If you’re shaping dough for recipes like focaccia, pizza or fougasse, gently stretch out the dough until you meet a little resistance, then stop. Wait for 10–20 seconds to allow the dough to relax, then stretch

I know many people feel uncomfortable about discarding surplus starter each time they refresh, but it’s a process that is often misunderstood. In my experience, keeping slightly more starter in your jar (about 200g) cultivates a more active starter. However, the conundrum is that this means you will have surplus, and you will need to discard some s

Most domestic bakers store their starter in the fridge between bakes to slow it down and reduce the need for daily refreshments. If you do this, you will need to build up your starter’s microbial activity again before you can bake with it. The best way to revive your starter is to use a double refreshment, which we also call a second build.

Basic sourdough 50:50 tin loaf A versatile, open-textured golden tin loaf, this is an everyday, entry-level sourdough. By making this, you will become familiar with the rhythm of making sourdough. Get this one right and you have got the foundational skills for all other sourdough bakes.

You can safely leave your starter for a couple of weeks in the fridge as long as the microbes are in the best of health before you do so. Refresh your starter twice a day for two days before you leave it, then put it in the fridge and enjoy your holiday. When you return, feed your starter twice a day for two days before baking with it. Alternativel