Somewhere along the way, sourdough went from 'flour, water, and patience' to a gear list longer than a camping trip.
Here's a little quiet rebellion for you: you don't need any of it to bake a great loaf. But once you're hooked, and you will be, there are a handful of upgrades genuinely worth the money.
So what do you actually need? What are the splurges that you might want to upgrade to?
Kitchen Scale
- Need: Any will do, just make sure that it can measure in grams.
- Want: We have tried a lot of different kitchen scales, but this one made by OXO is by far our favorite. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079D9B82W/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_PP08JR008DR0XQHH6SFH?linkCode=ml2&tag=mobilea05ed4d-20
Sourdough Starter
- Need: You are going to need an active sourdough starter. If you have a friend that bakes with sourdough, ask them if you can have some. If not, it is possible to make one yourself, but it can take 7-21 days.
- Want: We have our 100+ year old sourdough starter available on our website. If you want to get going quick, and have the health of an established starter behind you, this is the way to go! https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/freeze-dried-sourdough-starter
Two Glass Jars
- Need: Any wide mouth jars will do. Spaghetti jars are a great option.
- Want: I love my Weck Tulip jars. They have an extra wide mouth, making it much easier to manage sourdough starter. https://amzn.to/4ftEONi
Stirring Your Starter
- Need: You can use a butter knife or handle end of a wood cooking spoon to mix your sourdough starter.
- Want: I have 4 spurtles in my kitchen, and at times, I wish I had more. I use them for lots more than just mixing and handling my sourdough starter. It is a long wood spatula that is the perfect size for dealing with that sticky starter. https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/spurtle
Large Bowl
- Need: You just need something large enough to comfortably combine ingredients without making a mess.
- Want: My favorite container for this is made by Cambro. They are square, so they fit in the fridge well, they stack (I often am doing more than one recipe at a time) and they are plastic. As much as I love glass for most things, plastic makes bread clean up so much easier! I mix dough in these, but I also use them for my bulk rise. They are the perfect size for all of my recipes. Container: https://amzn.to/4fs81Z8 Lid: https://amzn.to/4fPQwS7
Rising Baskets
- Need: A medium sized bowl approximately 8-10 inches in diameter, a low pile kitchen towel and a grocery sack. Lay the towel in the bowl, dust the inside with flour, place your dough ball in to rise, and put the whole thing inside of the grocery sack to prevent the dough from drying out.
- Want: Upgrade to a Banneton Basket https://amzn.to/3AH24Zb and a handmade cotton Banneton Cover https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/banneton-cover
Keep Things Damp
- Need: Access to water
- Want: This mist spray bottle is fantastic! https://amzn.to/3CvjFUz
Baking
- Need: Pizza stone or cookie sheet, and a pot or bowl that can be in up to 500 degree oven.
- Want: Upgrade to a dutch oven. Your boules will thank you! https://amzn.to/4hQxJs0
- Want: My favorite sandwich loaf pans are made by Lodge and are cast iron. I have really expensive ceramic loaf pans, but I always grab my cast iron first. They do so much better with not sticking than the ceramic or glass versions! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0971NWGPM/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_KN8T27SEA4GSMQ6PSXG9?linkCode=ml2&tag=mobilea05ed4d-20
Is it done?
- Need: For a long time, we just used how the bread looked on the outside to determine if it was done or not.
- Want: Bread is done when it reaches 190-200 degrees, and having an instant read thermometer to know exactly when your bread is finished baking is so nice! It takes the guess work out of the baking process completely. https://amzn.to/40J3rkJ
Transfer The Dough
- Need: Parchment paper https://amzn.to/48QbspQ
- Want: I was super skeptical at first, but then I finally tried one. Complete game changer! I love not throwing away so much parchment paper, and these dough slings work for my boules as well as my sandwich loaves. https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/dough-sling
Scoring Your Bread
- Need: A really sharp knife, or razor blade
- Want: This is my preferred style of bread lame. It is compact, making it easy to accomplish more intricate designs on my loaf, and the blade stores on the inside, protecting little hands if they happen to find it. https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/bread-lame-scoring-tool
Dough Management & Clean Up
- Need: Washcloth & lots of flour
- Want: When handling higher hydration dough, they get super sticky. A bench scraper is a complete game changer. It lifts those sticky dough balls right off the counter without using a bunch of extra flour to prevent sticking. It also is my favorite tool during clean up! The bench scraper gathers up flour left on the counter and makes it so easy to scoop it right in to the trash, leaving very little on the counter to clean with the washcloth. https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/bench-scraper
Cutting Your Bread
- Need: A long knife with teeth on it.
- Want: This bread knife has my whole heart. It cuts bread like butter. https://amzn.to/3YHHvDK
Bread Storage
- Need: Paper bag (storing your sourdough in plastic will make it mold more quickly) or kitchen towel to wrap the bread in.
- Want: Yes, I am a bit biased, but if you want to stop creating trash, and want your bread to not mold so quickly, our hand made reusable Bees-waxed Bread Bags are what you are looking for. ;-) https://five-oaks-farm.myshopify.com/products/waxed-cotton-bread-bags
