How To Bake Sourdough Bread At High Altitude
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Living at high altitudes makes baking a little more difficult, especially when following recipes. I live in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at around 5,000 ft , and I expect to have to modify any recipe I’m looking to bake to adjust oven temperature, moisture content, and in some cases, the leavening agent used. In this post on how to bake sourdough bread at high altitude, I’ll run through the things I typically watch out for and modify to bake bread in my home kitchen successfully.
This guide is most applicable to baking sourdough bread at high altitude.
First, let’s look at the high-level things I always consider when I bake sourdough bread at high altitude.
More Great Sourdough Recipes
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Preheat Your Oven & Your Dutch Oven
I’m also a big advocate for a preheated oven and putting dough into a HOT dutch oven for superior oven spring.
I like the colour that comes from a hot oven too. I’ve tried putting my sourdough into a cold dutch oven and it just doesn’t work for my liking.
If you don’t have a dutch oven, it really is a worthwhile investment – you can cook so many other things in a good dutch oven.
I use mine on a daily basis for all sorts of things including soups, casseroles, roasting meat, reheating leftovers … and of course bread!
There are tonnes of good quality, reasonably priced dutch ovens out there – you don’t have to spend hundreds.
You can read my guide to investing in a Dutch Oven for sourdough baking here.
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How Does Altitude Affect My Sourdough Starter
You might find your sourdough starter has increased fermentation activity at high elevations, but I’ve honestly not found this to be a huge issue. Your daily refreshment cycle for your starter should always be reactive, adjusting to how it’s performing and adjusting your refresh times and ratios as necessary.
For example, if you find your starter is overly acidic , adjust by leaving less starter in your jar. I’m constantly adjusting like this based on the seasons and temperature in my kitchen and I would make this adjustment whether I was baking at sea level or high altitude.
How To Bake Sourdough Without A Dutch Oven
Weve all heard that the key to baking great artisan bread is a Dutch Oven. Dont get me wrong I have a Dutch Oven, and I love it. It helps me turn out beautifully puffy and crusty loaves of bread every single time.
But alas, there are limitations to a Dutch Oven. And Im here to tell you that you do not need a Dutch Oven to make a bangin loaf of sourdough bread.
First, they are pretty freaking expensive, even if you get a low-end model. If you decide to go high-end, a 7 qt Le Creuset can set you back $400.
Second, they can really only bake 1, maybe 2 loaves at a time. Ive spent nearly 3 hours baking 4 loaves of sourdough because I couldnt get them all to fit in my trusty Dutch Oven.
Finally, Dutch Ovens are really not portable. They are incredibly heavy and if you packed one in your carry-on, TSA would think youre trying to smuggle a cast iron bomb on board your flight. Inevitably, you will go in vacation, want to bake a loaf of bread, and be without a Dutch Oven.
A recent, Dutch Oven-less trip let me reconsider the question: how can I bake beautiful, crusty, artisan bread WITHOUT a Dutch Oven?
And this wasnt the first time Id asked the question. Earlier on in my baking career, I was far too cheap to invest in a Dutch Oven and spent 3 hours Googling how to bake crusty bread with only a cookie sheet). I didnt find the answer.
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What Is The Fermentation Process That Happens When Making Sourdough
Fermentation is the process of converting carbohydrates to alcohol and carbon dioxide. In bread baking, fermentation is crucial for creating a light and fluffy loaf. Its what gives sourdough its distinct taste, too and its easy to do at home!
Heres how it works: Yeast cells are added to warm water and flour and left out overnight so they can grow. Then they get mixed into your batter along with other ingredients like sugar or eggs before you bake them in the oven.
The yeast converts those sugars into CO2 gas bubbles that create air pockets in your bread , giving you much more room for expansion as the dough warms up during baking. This means that, in the end, youll have a fluffy, delicious loaf!
When Is My Starter Ready To Use
Your stater is ready to use when it becomes bubbly and doubles in size.
This can take anywhere from 2-12 hours or more depending on temperature and the condition of your starter. Be patient!
Float Test: If youre still unsure whether its ready to use drop a small amount, about 1 tsp, into a glass of water. Do this when the starter is a peak height before it collapses. If it floats to the top its ready to use. If it sinks, your starter should be fed again.
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Extend The Baking Time By 5
Baking with steam
If youre used to baking sourdough bread in a Dutch oven or in something like the Challenger Bread Pan, you might notice that bread baked in a loaf pan takes a little longer to bake.
For example, I usually bake my regular sourdough for 20 minutes with steam and 15 minutes without steam . This usually gets my sourdough bread to an internal temperature of 190dF or higher.
But, for my loaf pan sourdough breads, I usually need to let them bake for an additional 5-10 minutes at the end of the bake time to reach the same internal temperature. Part of this is due to baking at a lower temperature, but its also because the dough is somewhat blocked from the heat by the pan. So, dont be surprised if youre bread needs a few extra minutes to be fully baked.
What Makes Sourdough Bread Sour
Sourdough bread is made entirely using wild yeast with a strong, active sourdough culture of wild yeast, you wont need any commercial yeast at all. Wild yeast need a little more coaxing and works a little more slowly than commercial yeast, so sourdough breads are normally mixed, shaped, and baked over the course of a day, or even multiple days. Besides giving the wild yeast time to do its job, this long, slow development time helps tease out more complex, nuanced flavors in the finished bread far beyond those of your average loaf of sandwich bread.
While the wild yeast is certainly the star of this show, its not actually what makes the bread sour. That distinctive sour flavor comes from two kinds of friendly bacteria Lactobacillus and acetobacillus which grow alongside the wild yeast in the sourdough culture and help ferment the sugars in the dough.
Also, note that sourdough breads dont always necessarily taste sour. Depending on how you develop your starter and make your bread, the sour flavor can be quite pronounced or it can be more subtle. The recipe here strikes a balance its a touch sour, but its balanced by a nice range of sweet, earthy, and yeasty flavors.
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Don’t Have A Dutch Oven
Don’t have a baking pot such as a dutch oven? No problem! You can bake this bread in a lightly greased 9″ x 5″ loaf pan.
After the first rise, shape the dough, place it seam-side down into the loaf pan and allow it to rise.
Bake the loaf in a 375°F oven for 45 minutes or until the internal temperature is 190°F .
How To Feed Your Sourdough Starter For This Recipe
I like to use a small ratio of sourdough starter with water and flour when feeding so that it will rise slowly over several hours.
Feed the starter right before bed and mix the dough first thing in the morning for freshly baked bread that evening. Or, feed the starter in the morning, mix the dough before bed and then bake it in the morning. It’s so easy to fit this recipe into your schedule!
Whichever time you choose, 12 hours before you make the dough, mix 10 grams of unfed starter, 25 grams of flour and 25 grams of water into a clean jar, cover it loosely and let it rise at room temperature.
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Where To Obtain A Sourdough Starter
All sourdough starters are different.
They can be made from scratch, purchased online, or if youre lucky, someone will share a portion of their starter with you.
Starters range from thick to thin in texture and can be made with a variety of flours. I use two different starters one is homemade and the other was a gift from my friend Celia. She dried a portion of her starter and mailed it all the way from Sydney, Australia.
Cover With A Bowl Method
Inverting a metal or glass or metal bowl over your baking sourdough traps the moisture that comes out of the bread, much like how the lid of a Dutch oven does. You can buy specialised bowls to cover sourdough, or just use any ovenproof bowl thats big enough. Its ideal to be able to see the bread however, not essential.
To use the cover with bowl method
Slip the bread on a hot baking stone or large tray and use the bowl to cover it. Bake for 20-25 minutes before removing the bowl with some decent oven gloves and bake for a further 10-15 minutes.
Tip: You might need to use a palette knife or metal dough scraper to slide underneath the edge of the hot bowl to get it up and over the bread when it's time to remove it.
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What Makes This Sourdough For Beginners
The answer is simple and that I myself am a beginner when it comes to sourdough. Truth be told I have only made a total of 4 loaves in my life . Each time Im improving, and I know I have a huge amount to learn regarding technique, but for right now this is where Im starting.
I built this sourdough recipe from the ground up because I found it really hard to follow the majority of recipes online. Too many steps for my liking as a simple baker. So, I did what I always do with recipes: I stripped away all the fluffy stuff and kept it bare bones. So whether you are a novice , or a frequent bread baker, you will really enjoy this recipe and the results.
Keep Sourdough Starter Mild And Use Before Overly Ripe
In the summer, keeping your sourdough starter mild and in control is of utmost importance. Fermentation is the cornerstone of great sourdough bread, and it all begins with your sourdough starter. In my experience, using a sourdough starter that’s overly acidic means the dough will be extra active and, assuming other factors, can lead to a final loaf that’s extra sour tasting with reduced leavening capacity. The greatest risk here, though, is that the dough will have too active of a fermentation rate and lead to over-proofing.
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How Long Will It Take
To create a sourdough starter from scratch, the overall process should take about 7 days from start to finish- its not instant. First, youll create the starter with whole wheat flour to jumpstart fermentation. Then, youll continue to feed it with regular white flour to cultivate the wild yeasts and friendly bacteria.
Recipe Tips And Suggestions
A round dutch oven will give you the typical round sourdough loaf. But, you can use an oval pot instead for oval-shaped sourdough bread.
Use the same brand of flour for consistent results. I recommend King Arthur All-Purpose flour , Arrowhead Mills Organic All-Purpose Flour, or Wheat Montana Premium All-Purpose Flour .
If you prefer extra tangy sourdough bread, replace 1/4 teaspoon of the salt with citric acid or sour salt for a tangy kick to your sourdough.
A round dutch oven will give you the typical round sourdough loaf. However, you can use a heavy oval pot instead for oval-shaped sourdough bread.
Use a glass bowl to proof the dough. This will let you see the bubbles throughout the dough that let you know the dough is ready.
Keeping the bread warm during the bulk rise is key for proper fermentation. See the tips below for how to keep your sourdough dough warm.
Let the no knead sourdough dough rise longer for the bulk rise if the ambient temperature is less than 75º.
If your dutch oven has a dark bottom, like Lodge or Staub, use an oven-safe trivet or round silpat liner to keep the bottom from darkening.
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Ok So Reduce The Water By How Much
I typically suggest reducing the water by 15-30g to start.
Why the range?
It depends on the recipe, how much starter it calls for, and what brand of flour youre using etc.
Youll have to play around with the texture of the dough, adjusting the flour/water until it feels right, which can be frustrating if you just dont have the experience.
It requires practice, patience and persistence.
So, for now, lets focus on the visual and tactile tools to help guide you instead.
Explore Cold Start Method
Now if you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know I absolutely implore that you need a hot Dutch Oven to bake your sourdough bread – and I absolutely stand by that!
However, as this is a post about baking sourdough on a budget, it would be remiss of me to leave out the issue of energy costs. Preheating your oven and then baking sourdough can mean that your oven is on for up to 2 hours, which is quite a long time, particurlarly if you’re only baking one loaf at a time .
But if you really are struggling with energy costs, you may want to explore using a cold start for your sourdough bread as opposed to a hot oven. I have included this option in the recipe at the end of this post. Alternatively, you could bake sourdough bread in a slow cooker to reduce your energy costs.
Using a cold start method means loading your bread dough into a cold oven and then turning it on rather than using a preheated oven. You can either use a baking stone or a Dutch Oven or even enamel turkey roaster .
There are definitely a few tweaks you will need to make to ensure that you get good results from this method. You don’t want all your hard work to go to waste!
You’ll find some further information on this method in the recipe card at the end of this post.
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Timing Tip For How To Make Sourdough Bread
The timing of sourdough bread was hard for me to figure out in the beginning, since it takes longer to rise than regular yeast breads, so I thought I’d give you a typical timeline to have a loaf for dinner.
To have this sourdough artisan bread ready for an evening dinner:
That said, I have been known to rush it when I’ve forgotten to feed the starter the night before. If you find yourself in that situation, you can feed the starter right when you get up in the morning and let it sit until it is bubbly, about a couple of hours, and then proceed with the recipe.
Made this way, the bread doesn’t have quite the optimum time to cool, so you’ll have a warmer loaf with a bit more squished crumb – but we’ve sure never minded.
Shaping The Dough For Baking
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Easy Sourdough Artisan Bread Recipe Steps
Step 1. Start by mixing all the ingredients in a bowl just until combined. Let sit for 15 minutes
Step 2. If using a mixer and dough hook, knead for 5 minutes. If making by hand, knead for 8 to 10 minutes.
TIP: You may add more flour as needed, a little at a time, to create a dough that’s still clinging to the bottom of the bowl, but also clearing the upper part of the bowl. It should be tacky, but not cling to your finger.
Step 3: Transfer to a medium-sized bowl, lightly coated with oil. Cover with plastic and let rise for 3 hours.
TIP: I use plastic “shower cap” type bowl covers like this which I wash and reuse over and over – I’ve had many of them for years. I’ve found plastic keeps the dough more moist over the long rise than a damp towel.
During the 3 hour rise, turn and fold the dough once or twice by bringing all the edges of the dough to the center.
Step 4: Remove dough, turn and fold again, and place it back in the bowl, seam-side up. Let rise for another 2 hours.
TIP: I do this right over the bowl with my hands oiled from the dough, which is usually enough – add more oil to your hands if needed.
Step 5: After the second rise, place a square of parchment on a cookie sheet or small skillet , sprinkle the dough with flour and gently shape the dough into a ball or oval and set on the parchment.
Shape it in your hands right over the parchment. Make sure there’s a good coating of flour on the top, as this will make slicing the top later easier.
IMPORTANT NOTE: