Sourdough Recipe for Beginners

Course: bread

Cuisine: American, Sourdough

Keyword: beginner sourdough recipes, easy sourdough, first sourdough loaf, how to make sourdough bread, simple sourdough recipe, sourdough boule, step by step sourdough guide

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 45

Total Time: 1

Servings: Loaf

This easy beginner sourdough bread recipe walks you through every step to make a beautiful homemade loaf with a crisp crust and soft, fluffy crumb. With simple ingredients and beginner-friendly instructions, it’s the perfect recipe for baking your first sourdough loaf!

Print Recipe

Equipment

1 Kitchen Scale or measuring cups
1 Large bowl
1 Dough Whisk
1 Banneton Basket
1 Damp Towel or plastic bowl cover
1 Dutch Oven or Bread Oven See blog post if you don't have one
1 sheet of parchment paper
1 Bread Lame
1 Oven Gloves
1 Digital thermometer
1 Cooling rack

Ingredients

Sourdough Starter

50g or 1/4 cup Sourdough starter
50g or 1/3 cup Unbleached Bread Flour
50g or 1/4 cup Filtered room temperature water

Sourdough Recipe

100g or 1/2 cup Active Sourdough Starter
350g or 1 & 2/3 cup Filtered warm water about 80 degrees F
500g or 4 cups Unbleached Bread Flour King Arthur bread flour is my favorite
10g or 2 tsp Sea Salt

Instructions

Feed Your Starter

Add 50g sourdough starter, 50g unbleached bread flour, and 50g room-temperature filtered water to a clean jar. Stir until no dry flour remains.
50g or 1/4 cup Sourdough starter , 50g or 1/3 cup Unbleached Bread Flour, 50g or 1/4 cup Filtered room temperature water
Loosely cover and let rise at room temperature for about 4–6 hours, or until doubled in size, bubbly, and active.
You can feed your starter the night before or early in the morning before making your dough.

Mix the Dough

In a large bowl, combine active sourdough starter and warm filtered water. Stir until the starter is mostly dissolved and the water looks milky.
100g or 1/2 cup Active Sourdough Starter, 350g or 1 & 2/3 cup Filtered warm water
Add unbleached bread flour and salt. Mix until a shaggy dough forms and no dry flour remains. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.
500g or 4 cups Unbleached Bread Flour, 10g or 2 tsp Sea Salt

Stretch & Folds

After letting the dough rest for 1 hour, it's time to do a series of stretch and folds.
With wet hands, grab one side of the dough, gently stretch it upward, and fold it over itself. Rotate the bowl and repeat on all four sides. One complete trip around all four sides of the bowl = one set of stretch and folds.
Complete 4 sets of stretch and folds, 30 minutes apart, keeping the dough covered between each set.
Example: Stretch & Fold #1 → rest 30 minutes → Stretch & Fold #2 → rest 30 minutes → Stretch & Fold #3 → rest 30 minutes → Stretch & Fold #4 → continue resting until bulk fermentation is complete.

Bulk Fermentation

After your final stretch and fold, cover the bowl and let the dough continue to rest and rise at room temperature. This stage is called bulk fermentation.
The warmer your dough is, the faster it will ferment. If you have a kitchen thermometer, check the temperature of your dough and use this as a starting guide:
80°F: about 5–6 hours
75°F: about 7–8 hours
70°F: about 12 hours
65°F: about 16 hours
Important: Bulk fermentation actually begins when you first mixed the starter into your dough, not after your stretch and folds. The times below are the total time from when you mixed your dough until you shape it.
Don't worry if your dough doesn't follow these times exactly. Watch your dough more than the clock. Your starter strength, flour, and room temperature can all affect how quickly it ferments.
How do I know when bulk fermentation is done? Your dough should rise significantly (close to doubled for this beginner recipe), look domed on top, has visible bubbles along the top and sides, and jiggle when you gently move the bowl.
If your dough still looks dense and hasn't risen much, give it more time.
Keep an eye on the dough. If you let it ferment too long, it can over-ferment which makes it very sticky, loose, and difficult to shape.
I know it seems like A LOT! But perfecting bulk fermentation will come with practice and is often the most difficult part of sourdough. Keep working at it!

Shape the Dough

Once bulk fermentation is finished, gently turn the dough out onto a clean countertop.
Do not knead it or punch the air out.
Using slightly wet hands and a bench scraper, gently stretch the dough into a rough rectangle.
Take the Right side of the rectangle and fold it into the center.
Take the left side and fold it over the right. Your dough should now look like a long, narrow rectangle.
Starting at the bottom, begin rolling the dough up and away from you. Continue rolling until the dough forms a tight log shape.
Turn the dough so the seam is on the bottom. Cup your hands around the dough and gently push/pull it toward yourself across the counter. Rotate the dough slightly and repeat. This creates surface tension, which tightens the outside of the dough so it becomes smooth and holds its round shape.
Generously flour your banneton or towel lined bowl. Place the shaped loaf into the banneton smooth side down and seam side up. Cover with a bowl cover and move to proofing.
New to shaping? Watch the video in this recipe card to see exactly how I shape my loaf. It's much easier to understand once you see it!

Proofing

Proofing helps develop flavor and allows the dough to become light and airy before baking. This is a step a lot of beginners miss, but it is so important for great bread!
You have two options here:
1. Cold Proof (recommended): Cover and refrigerate the dough for 14–18 hours, or up to 24 hours.
2. Room Temperature Proof: Cover and proof at warm room temperature for about 2 hours, or until the dough has puffed up and filled the banneton. Bake immediately.
For beginners, I always recommend the cold proof.

Bake

Preheat the oven to 450°F with a Dutch oven inside.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and flip it onto parchment paper or bread sling. You do not need to bring the dough to room temperature before baking.
Score the top with a bread lame or sharp knife. You can do shallow decorative scoring but make sure to include a deeper expansion score across the loaf, this gives the bread a controlled place to expand while baking.
Carefully transfer the dough to the hot Dutch oven.
Bake covered for 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the center reaches approximately 205°F

Cool

Transfer the baked loaf to a cooling rack.
Allow the bread to cool for at least 1–2 hours before slicing to prevent a gummy crumb.
Congrats on your beautiful sourdough loaf!

Video

Notes

-Recipe update Sept 2026: I refreshed this beginner sourdough recipe with clearer instructions, more helpful tips, and everything I’ve learned from years of helping beginners make their first loaf!

-Different brands of flour absorb water differently. If your dough feels unusually dry when mixing, add a small amount of water at a time until all of the flour is hydrated.

-If you wish to add inclusions like cheese, herbs, or other ingredients- I like to add them during my 2nd stretch and fold.