How to make a classic no-knead sourdough boule, a crusty bread baked in a Dutch oven. This loaf is made with bread flour, using stretches and folds. It's a great plain weekly recipe using starter or levain and has a thin, crispy crust and nice light interior. If you prefer a recipe that doesn't need stretches and folds (or kneading) try this sourdough bread for beginners. No Dutch oven, but still want to try sourdough? Make sourdough baked in a bread tin.
This is a good starter recipe, a nice plain loaf made with white flour so it's easy to work with. Once you've mastered it you can mix in flavourful additions like a cinnamon raisin sourdough bread, move into harder to work with flours like whole wheat sourdough, or make a soft enriched recipe like these sourdough hot cross buns.
If you're brand new to sourdough baking, see all of our sourdough tutorials.
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Ingredients
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Starter: you'll need active sourdough starter or levain. This should be 100% hydration (equal parts flour and water) but can be made with any type of gluten flour like white, rye, or whole wheat.
- All-purpose flour: if you're in North America, use all-purpose plain white flour. For the UK and European equivalent, choose strong or bread flour for this recipe, as it has about the same protein content as Canadian plain flour.
- Water: you may prefer to use filtered water rather than tap water for baking sourdough bread. It depends on the quality of your local tap water.
- Salt: this should be fine grain salt, and it doesn't matter what type, as long as it's finely ground.
Use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top, or scroll to the bottom of the post to see the printable recipe card with full ingredient measurements and complete instructions.
Method
Step 1: whisk the starter and water together to combine.
Step 2: mix in the flour and salt to form a shaggy dough.
Step 3: start with your stretches and folds.
Step 4: do four rounds of stretches and folds, once every 20 minutes.
Step 5: let the dough rise for four hours before shaping into a boule.
Step 6: place the shaped dough into a banneton and let it rest in the fridge overnight. In the morning, score the loaf.
Step 7: bake the loaf for 25 minutes with the lid on the preheated Dutch oven.
Step 8: bake for another 20 minutes with the lid off and cool before slicing.
Top Tips
- Rest before slicing: while you're surely tempted to cut into your freshly baked, warm sourdough bread, letting it rest for at least a few hours will result in a much better texture. Cutting too soon can cause the bread to pill up and be rather gummy.
- Use a bowl: if you don't have a banneton to let the dough rise in, don't worry, you can use a bowl instead. Be sure to line it with a floured tea towel.
- Don't skip the cold ferment: the minimum time needed for the cold ferment (the time in the fridge) is 8 hours, but you can extend that up to a full 48 hours if needed! If you are keeping it in there for a long time, make sure the fridge is set to a pretty cold temperature.
Recipe Notes
Start before 3 p.m. on the first day to avoid late-night prep work. The preliminary steps before letting the dough rise overnight will take about 5 hours, so it's good to start early.
How to Store
Storage: keep your sourdough boule in a paper bag or wrap the cut end in beeswax wrap. It will keep for about a week but probably need to be toasted after the first couple of days. See Sophie's full post on how to store sourdough bread for more tips.
Freezing: either freeze the full loaf or cut into individual slices and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the boule at room temperature and individual slices directly in the toaster.
Sourdough Essentials
If you're new to sourdough baking, check out these guides before you begin:
How To Make Sourdough Starter From Scratch
Essential Sourdough Tools
How To Stretch And Fold Sourdough
How To Shape Sourdough Boules
Troubleshooting Sourdough Bread
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Sourdough Boule
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- Clean tea towel
- Pot lid to fit mixing bowl optional
- Bench scraper optional
- 6-quart (6 L) cast iron Dutch oven
- Sourdough lame or razor blade for scoring
Ingredients
- 70 grams active sourdough starter, or levain
- 300 grams warm water
- 454 grams all-purpose flour
- 12 grams fine-grain salt
Instructions
First Morning: Make The Dough (35 minutes)
- In a large bowl, whisk the starter and water. Add the flour and salt; mix with a spatula until incorporated, then gather together by hand. Cover the bowl with a clean, damp tea towel and lid. Rest in the oven with the oven light on for 30 minutes.70 grams active sourdough starter, 300 grams warm water, 454 grams all-purpose flour, 12 grams fine-grain salt
Stretches & Folds (10 minutes stretching and folding + 80 minutes dough resting = 90 minutes total)
- Remove the bowl from the oven. Perform a series of four stretches and folds every 20 mins for 80 mins total.
First Bulk Rise (4 hours)
- After the fourth stretch and fold, re-cover the bowl with the tea towel and lid. Return the bowl to the oven with the light on for four hours.
First Evening: Shape The Dough (10 to 15 minutes)
- Generously flour a banneton or bowl lined with a clean tea towel. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Stretch and fold each quadrant of the dough then use your hands or a bench scraper to shape it into a smooth ball.
- Cup your hands behind the dough and gently pull the ball towards you. The dough should stay almost in one place as the overall surface tightens slightly, creating tension over the top and sides of the dough ball. Rotate the dough ball 90º and repeat the tension pull on all four quadrants of the dough. After the last tension pull, use the bench scraper to gently and quickly lift the dough from the work surface. Flip the dough over quickly, and gently place it into the prepared banneton or bowl.
Second Bulk Rise (Cold Ferment, 8+ hours)
- Cover the exposed dough in the banneton with a dampened tea towel and re-cover with the pot lid. Place it in the fridge for the second rise overnight (8 to 12 hours and up to 48 hours). The longer you leave the dough, the more sour flavor will ferment and develop.
Second Morning: Bake The Loaf (1 hour 45 minutes)
- Place a cast iron Dutch oven, with the lid on, inside the oven. Turn the oven to 500ºF (236ºC). Once the oven reaches temperature, heat the pot for 30 minutes.
- Turn the cold dough out onto a large square of parchment paper. Using a lame or razor blade, score the top of the loaf however you like.
- Remove the preheated pot from the oven and carefully remove the lid. Lift the sourdough into the hot pot using the edges of the parchment paper as handles. Quickly and gently place the loaf into the pot and replace the lid. Return the pot to the oven and reduce the heat to 450ºF (230ºC). Bake the loaf for 25 minutes, then remove the lid and bake 20 minutes more.
- Transfer the hot pot to a heatproof surface. Again, using the parchment paper as handles, lift the bread out of the pot. Place the loaf directly on a wire rack and allow it to cool completely before slicing, about 4 to 6 hours.
Notes
- Start before 3 p.m. on the first day to avoid late-night baking.
- Moisture is key: dampen the tea towel covering the dough to retain moisture.
- Use minimal flour on your work surface to create better tension during shaping.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate and is provided as a courtesy. For precise nutritional data, please calculate it independently using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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