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Slow Crumb

A small sourdough handbook

Naturally leavened bread needs flour, water, salt and time. These guides cover the fundamentals in the order you need them, with weights in grams and temperatures in both °C and °F.

New to sourdough? Start with making a starter, then bakethe basic loaf.

The guides

  1. Guide 1

    Making and keeping a starter

    How to grow a sourdough starter from flour and water, feed it, store it and tell when it is ready to bake with.

  2. Guide 2

    Baker's percentages and hydration

    The simple arithmetic behind every bread formula, and how to scale a recipe to the loaf size you want.

  3. Guide 3

    A basic sourdough loaf

    One dependable formula and method for a single loaf, from building the levain to slicing the bread.

  4. Guide 4

    Reading bulk fermentation

    How temperature sets the pace of the first rise, and how to tell by look and feel when the dough is ready to shape.

  5. Guide 5

    Shaping and the final proof

    Pre-shaping, building surface tension, and judging the final rise at room temperature or in the fridge.

  6. Guide 6

    Scoring and baking

    Why bread needs steam and a hot start, how to score, and how to tell when the loaf is baked through.

  7. Guide 7

    Troubleshooting

    Common sourdough problems, their most likely causes, and what to change on the next bake.

  8. Guide 8

    Sample schedules

    Two ways to fit a loaf around a normal week, using the fridge to move the long waits to where they suit you.

  9. Guide 9

    Glossary

    Short definitions of the terms used in sourdough recipes and in these guides.