BOB’S BASIC SOURDOUGH BREAD RECIPE

 

Yield: 3 large loaves or 4 small loaves

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

Sugar - 2/3 cup (144 grams)

Vegetable oil - 1/2 cup (120 grams)

1 teaspoon salt (8 grams)

1 cup active starter (273 grams)

1-1/2 cups warm water (364 grams)

6 cups bread flour (810 grams)

 

I start with 5 cups of bread flour and then add the remaining cup as needed, depending on the humidity.

 

Mix ingredients in a large bowl.

 

Grease or oil a container. (I use a clear, straight-sided plastic container)

 

Put dough in container and flip over to cover top of dough with oil or grease.

 

Cover with a clean, damp cloth.

 

Let stand 6-8 hours or overnight.

 

Punch down and divide into 3 parts. Knead each part 8-10 times on a lightly floured surface.

 

Shape and put into 3 greased (I use a non-stick cooking spray) pans and brush tops with oil (or butter).

 

Cover and let rise 4-5 hours. I put pans in a large plastic bag and tuck the ends under the pans to make it airtight. Make sure you “tent” the bags.

 

Bake at 325F to 350F for 30-35 minutes. I use an instant read thermometer to 205F.

 

After baked, for a softer crust, brush tops with butter and cool on cooling rack.

 

When cool, wrap in plastic cling wrap, then aluminum foil and freeze.

 

Note: This recipe originally called for a potato based starter, but I use all my starters with this basic recipe. It is a slightly sweet bread as I have doubled the amount of sugar used in the original recipe due to demands from my “guinea pigs” at work. 1/3 cup of sugar = 72 grams, if you want to use the original recipe amount.

 

Adapted from a recipe at www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,164,147175-243201,00.html