Sourdough Bread With Fresh Milled Flour Made EASY
Sourdough Bread With Fresh Milled Flour Made EASY! If I can do it, you can do it. It is ok to fail, as long as you try again!
Ok, I had to do it! I am by no means a professional sourdough baker. I am assuming you have also seen those beautiful crusty sourdough loaves that are scored so perfectly that look like a piece of art that should be in an art gallery! Yes, I have seen those too, and they are gorgeous!
Beginner Sourdough Bakers
But, What About the Rest Of Us?
Right? The rest of us home bakers that just want to put healthy food on the table, and don’t have years to perfect a loaf before we can serve it to our family. I hear you! I am one of you! So, I decided to share my recipe.
You can see where the sourdough loaf decided it wanted to rise more, even where I did not have it scored. I love when a loaf comes alive and makes it’s own decisions, even if this may be considered a flaw to some. Each Sourdough bread loaf is different, and they all have their own character!
My Sourdough Journey
In the beginning, I had a beautiful sourdough journey, But, it did start out with 100% commercial white flour. I was lucky to take a class several years ago back in 2017. And, I soaked in all the info I could! The teacher also shared some of her over 100 year old Authentic San Francisco sourdough starter. I was so grateful for this amazing free gift! I cherished it and cared for it for many years.
How I Killed My Original Sourdough Starter
Then…. I killed it. sad day. That is the day I learned that bleached flour can kill your sourdough starter. I tried to no avail to revive him. But, in the long run, it was ok. Because, this forced me to make my own starter from scratch. Which I did, and did again, and did again. Sigh… You know what I mean right? I tried and failed, tried and failed again, and finally success! It is frustrating to mess up so many times, but WOW the satisfaction you feel when it finally works out, and is bubbly and YOURS!
My Sourdough Starter Made With Fresh Milled Flour
Eventually, I had a 100% fresh milled flour sourdough starter, made from scratch, by me! And, you know what? I take so much better care of something that I put so much time and effort on! “Bubbles,” my sourdough starter, is kind of like a pet in our house. He comes out on the counter and makes delicious food for us, then he gets to go on “vacation” in the fridge for a week or so if we have travel days, or a busy schedule, and I know he will get neglected.
Here is Bubbles, my sourdough starter. He is made with 100% Freshly Milled Flour. I use a mix of different whole wheat flours. Whichever wheat berry I use that day is typically what Bubbles gets fed.
Struggling With Fresh Milled Flour Sourdough
I struggled with making a good sourdough loaf once I switched to fresh milled flour. It was very frustrating to me, and I felt like I was wasting so much! Either the loaf was too dense, or way too sour, just completely inedible. I almost gave up! And, I put my sourdough starter, Bubbles in “time out” in my refrigerator for awhile. Oh, I wanted to just cry! How could I have the most beautiful loaves of sourdough bread with regular flour, but not with fresh milled flour.
Don’t Give Up On Sourdough, Try & Learn Until You Succeed!
But, if you know me at all, you know I just could not give up! Every time I opened my fridge, there was “Bubbles” just looking at me, almost begging to give him another try. Well, I am so glad my determination paid off, and I had to give it another try.
Each time I had a failed loaf, I learned something. Actually, I am still learning things. Every time I bake bread, any kind of bread, I learn!
Tricks To Sourdough Bread With Fresh Milled Flour Making It Easy
There are a couple tricks to know when working with fresh milled flour to make Sourdough Bread. I can tell you there are 2 major things I noticed, and once I switched things up, I started having success! Are my sourdough loaves perfect? No, Are they delicious, and nutritious? YES!
The first thing I realized is that Fresh milled flour (the hard wheat varieties) are so much thirstier! I used to make 75% hydration loaves with white flour with no issues. I found that fresh milled flour needs to be at a minimum 80% hydration. Don’t worry, I will cover what the heck hydration level is, and what I am talking about next.
The second important thing I realized was that fresh milled flour seems to ferment much quicker. So, I realized that overnight fermentation that I always did with white flour sourdough wasn’t working with fresh milled flour, it was ending up WAY to sour, and that is coming from family members who love a sour bread. (Not me, I prefer a mild sourness.)
This day I was using Spelt. These everyday Grain Storage Bins are Amazing to have on hand! They completely seal for freshness and keep out moisture, and they have a nice wide opening so I can get a large measuring scoop in and out easily. You can grab some HERE
What Is Hydration Level In Sourdough Bread?
Hydration level is the moisture level in the bread dough. Ok, great… what does that mean?
The hydration level in Sourdough Bread (or any bread, really, just more commonly talked about with sourdough) is always based on the weight of the flour, generally in grams. So, for example, if I start with 1000 grams of flour, and I use 800 grams of water, then the bread is 80% hydration. I hope that example makes sense.
Bakers Percentage Made Easy
So, to elaborate more on the hydration level, this also ties into bakers percentages. This will also come up when adding salt. So, let’s take that same 1000 grams of flour, and add 800 grams of water, and 20 grams of salt. These numbers may change with different recipes, but the precents will always go off the weight of the flour. So, with our example loaf, we have 80% hydration, and 2% salt. (this ratio will actually give you 2 nice loafs.)
Why Do I Need To Weigh The Ingredients To Make Sourdough?
Ok, this one can be super controversial (well, sourdough in general seems to be a bit controversial, lol – This is why it took me this long to make a sourdough loaf post, it takes bravery to write a post on sourdough, lol)
Do you need to weigh the ingredients to make sourdough? The answer is yes, and no! How can it be both? Well, if you want a truly successful loaf, that has correct ratios, and the proper procedure, yes. BUT, can you do without measuring in a pinch, sure. (Please sourdough experts, don’t kill me here! lol) I understand not every baker wants to weigh, and was taught to bake exclusively by volume (i.e. cups, etc.) So, for you guys, my recipe has weight and volume.
Measuring your ingredients by weight is still recommended and will give you better results with more accuracy. When measuring by volume, the amounts can vary based on density of flour and how much each persons flour is fluffed, etc.
I try to keep it simple, but when baking, a small kitchen scale gives me more accuracy.
Kitchen Scale
The great thing is kitchen scales are fairly cheap, and you may find yourself happy to have it for other kitchen projects as well. HERE is a link to a fairly inexpensive kitchen scale like the one I have. I have found many uses for mine over the years!
Ingredients For Sourdough Bread Made With Fresh Milled Flour – Easy
- 1 TBSP Sourdough Starter (15-20g) (Active, healthy, and bubbly)
- 550 g of Fresh Milled Hard White Wheat Flour – Divided (I mill by weight, but it should be about 3 cups of wheat berries milled into about 4&2/3 cups of total milled flour)
- 10 g sea salt (1&3/4tsp)
- 475 g room temperature filtered water – Divided (about 2 cups)
- Dusting of rice flour
Instructions For Easy Sourdough Bread Made With Fresh Milled Flour
I will try to explain this process in the best way possible. It may sound intimidating, but the process is not really as difficult as it may sound. I will put the volume and weight, but I HIGHLY suggest you use a scale and make this by weight! This recipe makes 4 Bread Bowls.
MAKE THE LEAVEN THE NIGHT BEFORE
- To make the leaven the night before, you use 1 TBSP of a hungry starter and mix it with 50g water(1/4cup) and 50g fresh milled hard white wheat flour (1/2cup). Mix to combine, and let sit covered at room temperature overnight.
THE NEXT MORNING
- Firstly, pour 400g of room temperature filtered water into a medium bowl.
- Then, add the leaven you made the night before. (the leaven should appear to lightly float if it is ready) Stir.
- Next, add 500 g of fresh milled hard white wheat flour, mix until no dry flour is left. Cover and let sit for 30- 45 minutes. This is called the Autolyse.
- In a separate small bowl, add 25g room temperature filtered water(1/8cup) and 10g of sea salt(1&3/4 tsp), stir to start dissolving the salt.
- Then, after it had a chance to absorb the water, now add the salt & water mixture. and mix it in with your hands. You should see that the dough already is softer and not so shaggy. Cover, and let sit for 30-60 minutes. This is the beginning of the Bulk Ferment.
- Pull & fold dough in the bowl, turning the bowl a few times, Then cover.
- Repeat this Pull & Fold technique every 30-60 minutes until the dough rises about 20-30%. It should get bubbly, and stretchy over time. This phase should take about 4-6 hours.
Shaping The Loaf
- Then, take it to a clean flat work surface, start to shape the loaf. Use the cup & turn technique to form a round shape.
- Let the dough ball rest for 10-20 minutes. This is called the Bench Rest.
- Repeat shaping 1-2 more times, until the dough ball forms good surface tension. You should notice the dough ball “remembers” better each time you shape it.
- During this time, preheat oven to 480*F with Dutch Oven or a High Heat Proof Baking Vessel With Lid inside. (If you don’t have one, never fear, check the notes for an alternative.)
- Place dough on parchment paper, and coat dough ball with a little rice flour and score the loaf however you desire.
- Place loaf in preheated Dutch oven with lid on.
- Bake bread 30 minutes at the 480*F covered.
- Then, decrease oven to 450*F, remove the lid, and continue baking 20-25 more minutes.
- Check the temperature of the loaf, and bake until the internal temperature of the loaf reaches. 210*F
- Let the loaf cool completely before slicing into it.
What If I Don’t Have A Dutch Oven?
You don’t HAVE to have a Dutch oven to make Sourdough. It does make your loaf a little better, but I have an alternative method that won’t require you to purchase anything new… yet.
Alternate Sourdough Cooking Method Without A Dutch Oven
If you don’t have a Dutch Oven, the alternative method would be to use a heat save bowl, fill it with water, and preheat the oven with that water inside to create steam. Then, place loaf on parchment paper and on a baking sheet, and bake with the water in the oven for the first 20 minutes.
I also LOVE To make Sourdough bread bowls, you can find that recipe HERE
What If I Already Have A Sourdough Starter, But It Is Not Fresh Milled Flour?
Well, I have a whole post on how to transform your sourdough starter into 100% Fresh Milled Flour. HERE is that post. I also have a ton of sourdough Discard Recipes you can find HERE
Make Your Own Sourdough Starter From Scratch With Fresh Milled Flour
If you don’t already have a sourdough starter, but are wanting to make one with 100% fresh milled flour from scratch, I am here for you! I have a video resource that goes over how you can make your very own sourdough starter using only freshly milled flour. I also go over troubleshooting issues to help make this process a little easier for you, and I make a brand new sourdough starter right along side you! You can watch that video HERE.
I also have a written blog post that covers this information, if you would like to print it out and have it handy for when you are just getting started. You can do this, it is not as difficult as some on the internet have made it seem! You can checkout my blog post about it HERE.
Simple Way To Level Up Your Sourdough Bread
I have a great dipping oil recipe that tastes amazing with this sourdough bread. I make it with dried herbs and seasonings if that is what I have on hand, but I love to make it with fresh herbs whenever I have access to them. HERE is that recipe.
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Sourdough Whole Grain Recipe Book
Check Out Some Of My Other Recipes
Sourdough Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes
Chocolate Sourdough Swiss Cake Roll
Pumpkin Roll From Sourdough Discard
Interested In Learning More About Milling Flour At Home?
I have a great beginner post HERE about Fresh Milled Flour : 101. It is a great place to start. I also have a whole video on Fresh Milled Flour 101 – Learn to mill flour at home video – HERE
More Fresh Milled Flour Recipes
Fresh Milled Flour Recipe list
Sourdough Fresh Milled Flour Made EASY Video
This video is showing the process I use for sourdough bread, I am making smaller bread loafs for bread bowls here, however, the recipe and technique remain the same until it comes time to divide the loaf.
Sourdough Bread Made Easy With 100% Fresh Milled Flour Printable Recipe
Sourdough Bread Made With Fresh Milled Flour
Ingredients
- 1 TBSP Sourdough Starter (15-20g) Active, healthy, and bubbly
- 550 g Fresh Milled Hard White Wheat Flour – Divided I mill by weight, but it should be about 3 cups of wheat berries milled into about 4&2/3 cups of total milled flour
- 10 g sea salt 1&3/4tsp
- 475 g room temperature filtered water – Divided about 2 cups
- Dusting of rice flour
Instructions
Note About Weight VS Volume Measuring
- I will try to explain this process in the best way possible. It may sound intimidating, but the process is not really as difficult as it may sound. I will put the volume and weight, but I HIGHLY suggest you use a scale and make this by weight! This recipe makes 1 Sourdough Bread Loaf
MAKE THE LEAVEN THE NIGHT BEFORE
- To make the leaven the night before, you use 1 TBSP of a hungry starter and mix it with 50g water(1/4cup) and 50g fresh milled hard white wheat flour (1/2cup). Mix to combine, and let sit covered at room temperature overnight.
The Next Morning
- Firstly, pour 400g of room temperature filtered water into a medium bowl.
- Then, add the leaven you made the night before. (the leaven should appear to lightly float if it is ready) Stir.
- Next, add 500 g of fresh milled hard white wheat flour, mix until no dry flour is left. Cover and let sit for 30- 45 minutes. This is called the Autolyse.
- In a separate small bowl, add 25g room temperature filtered water(1/8cup) and 10g of sea salt(1&3/4 tsp), stir to start dissolving the salt.
- Then, after it had a chance to absorb the water, now add the salt & water mixture. and mix it in with your hands. You should see that the dough already is softer and not so shaggy. Cover, and let sit for 30-60 minutes. This is the beginning of the Bulk Ferment.
- Pull & fold dough in the bowl, turning the bowl a few times, Then cover.
- Repeat this Pull & Fold technique every 30-60 minutes until the dough rises about 20-30%. It should get bubbly, and stretchy over time. This phase should take about 4-6 hours.
Shaping & Baking The Loaf
- Then, take it to a clean flat work surface, start to shape the loaf. Use the cup & turn technique to form a round shape.
- Let the dough ball rest for 10-20 minutes. This is called the Bench Rest.
- Repeat shaping 1-2 more times, until the dough ball forms good surface tension. You should notice the dough ball “remembers” better each time you shape it.
- During this time, preheat oven to 480*F with Dutch Oven or a High Heat Proof Baking Vessel With Lid inside. (If you don't have one, never fear, check the notes for an alternative.)
- Place dough on parchment paper, and coat dough ball with a little rice flour and score the loaf however you desire.
- Place loaf in preheated Dutch oven with lid on.
- Bake bread 30 minutes at the 480*F covered.
- Then, decrease oven to 450*F, remove the lid, and continue baking 20-25 more minutes.
- Check the temperature of the loaf, and bake until the internal temperature of the loaf reaches. 210*F
- Let the loaf cool completely before slicing into it.
Video
Notes
*This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. But I will only suggest items I actually Love and Have Used!
Hello! I am super excited to try this out. Now that fall is on its way, I am itching to get back into sourdough! Do you ever bake this recipe with hard red spring wheat? That’s what we farm so I have a lot on hand to mill. Thanks for all your great tips!
Yes! Typically Hard red works great in place of the hard white. Awesome to hear! My pleasure! Happy Baking! 😊
I’m wanting to incorporate pumpkin and pecans into this bread…would I need to adjust the liquid to offset the addition of about 1 cup of pumpkin puree? If so, how much less water should I use? Also, should I add the pumpkin at the beginning when I’m making the dough? I’m thinking I should laminate the dough after the stretch and folds and before final shaping to add the pumpkin spice and pecans so that wouldn’t interfere with the rising process. Any suggestions?
Yes, you will need to decrease the liquid for the canned pumpkin. I would start with cutting it in half, and see how the dough feels. Look for a texture that it typically is when you make it plain. Then, yes I would laminate the pecans in towards the end like I do for my blueberry sourdough bread. https://grainsinsmallplaces.net/blueberry-sourdough-bread-made-with-fresh-milled-flour/
Let me know how it goes! 😊
I followed your measurements and steps, but my dough just spread out on the pan. It had no rise and was flat. I don’t understand what I might have missed. The dough felt right during the folds. Any guesses? The flavor was good though.
Possibly if your starter was not strong enough yet, or if it was under/overproofed.
Thanks for the super easy to follow instructions! My first loaf came out great, although not super sour. I’ll keep working on that part. I am happy it was edible! Ha!
Awesome! I am so glad to hear that! Nice job! 🙂
Hi Kara,
I know you very often add Kamut to your bread recipes. Would you ever add it to this recipe? And if so, do you have a “split” recommendation for the 550 grams flour total?
Thanks much!
Yes! I love to add Kamut to pretty much everything! lol. I would do 100g Kamut and 450g Hard white wheat. Let me know how it goes! Happy Baking! 🙂
After several loaves of trial and error with this recipe, I have finally figured it out! I made one loaf today with sharp cheddar cheese and one plain. My first few loaves have been pretty flat (but delicious), but I’ve now gotten them to rise well! They are absolutely gorgeous and it’s so hard letting them rest after baking- I just want to dig right in!
I do have a question though- if I were to do a pumpkin chocolate chip sourdough, would I replace some of the initial water with pumpkin puree, since it’s about 90% hydration? And if so, how much would you recommend? Thank you!
Any chance you’ve baked this in a regular loaf pan? Same recipe, but just not a boule and not baked in a dutch oven. Im curious if it’d rise much and at what temp I’d bake it.
I have not tried this recipe in a loaf pan, but I would think it should work, just won’t have the same crispy outside texture without the steam. Let me know if you give it a try! I do have a sourdough sandwich bread recipe that I do bake in a loaf pan, and is delicious! https://grainsinsmallplaces.net/sourdough-sandwich-bread/
Happy Baking!
I want to make dinner rolls. I only have hard red and soft white berries. Do you think I could make good rolls with 3/4 hard red and 1/4 soft white? Thank you!
I would use mostly hard red, and only a little bit of soft white, maybe 85% hard red and 15% soft white. You may need to increase the flour by just a bit with the soft white added. OR you can make it will all hard red as well. Let me know how it goes! Happy Baking! 🙂
Hi! Like so many others, my sourdough is no longer turns out as well now that I’m using FMF. I am going to try your recipe next though! But I’m wondering why the shaping here is different than traditional sourdough recipes for store bought flour. Is that just the way you’ve always done it or did you find the change was necessary for FMF? Thank you!
Hi! Yes, sourdough made with fresh milled flour is a whole new ballgame! The shaping can be done other ways as well, that is just a shaping method that is easier to explain for beginners. Let me know what you think! Happy Baking! 🙂
First time sourdough baker here! I’ve made the starter based on your recipe and it’s ALIVE!!! Question, I have it in the fridge because I can’t feed it twice everyday with my schedule but how do I get it to be a little less sour? Would I bring the fridge starter out the day before and then do the leaven overnight? I noticed that using the cold starter to make the leaven didn’t bubble up very much.
Yay! That’s awesome! It does get more sour in the fridge, you can maintain your starter on the counter with once a day feedings. If in the fridge, you need to get it out a day or 2 before baking, and feed a heavy feeding. I like to feed 1:2:2 ratio for this. (ex. 50g starter, 100g flour, 100g water.)
Then feed again before putting back in the fridge, make sure it doubles before putting it in the fridge. I hope that helps! 🙂
Could we use this same recipe to make 1 loaf of sourdough instead of 4 bread bowls?
Yes! It can make 1 loaf or 4 bread bowls! 🙂
Hey! Ok so if I keep my starter in the fridge, do I need to take it out the night BEFORE I make the leaven for this recipe (two days before I bake)? Or could I still just use it the night beforehand ? Would I just double the recipe if I wanted to make two loaves at a time? Thank you so much ☺️
If it is a strong healthy starter, that you are maintaining even in the fridge, you can just get it out the night before to make the leaven. But, if it is neglected or has been several days since a feeding, then I would bring it out 2 days before to make sure it is strong and active and ready to raise bread. Yes, you can double for 2 loaves. 🙂
Ok thank you! I was told it’s a strong starter! I just purchased from someone very reputable a week ago. I haven’t fed it yet myself, but she fed it last Thursday! So if I take it out and do the leaven tonight, I should be fine? Or should I wait the two days? First time ever making sourdough, so forgive me for all the questions! Thank you so much
I would recommend feeding it and seeing how it reacts. It should double with nice bubbles and a pleasant smell about 4-8 hours after a feeding. That will give you a baseline. You got this! Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Is this recipe and description in your book?
I am impatiently awaiting for it to arrive this coming week
Yes! It is! Yay, I hope you love it! 🙂
Hello! I am new to fresh milled flour, I’m attempting my first sourdough loaf today with your recipe 🙂
My question is, in the ingredients, it lists 550 g milled flour but in the instructions it says 500 g milled flour. Is there a step later to add the other 50 g that I’m missing?
Thank you so much!
I broke it up to include the feeding the night before for the leaven.
Hello! Your milled flour almost looks bran-less! When you mixed to begin the autolyse…your flour almost looked like the consistency of all purpose. Mine does not. Are you milling very finely? Thanks for the help. No one ever really talks about the milling fineness that I have seen.
I mill my flour fine, it depends on the mill you have. The Impact Mill is the mill I used for this, and it mills nice fine flour.
Hi! I just got my mill and I’ve been baking sourdough for about 5 years, so excited to try this! I was curious if this dough would be ok with a longer flour/water autolyse instead of the fermentolyse with the starter added in at the beginning? And then followed by another rest after the fermentolyse before adding salt- Would this help dough develop better or is the timing an issue? Thanks!
That method would be more like my original recipe here https://grainsinsmallplaces.net/sourdough-fresh-milled-flour-easy/
Any tips on doubling the recipe for 2 loaves? What would I need to measure for the leaven? Sorry if this is a dumb question, I just am not sure if just doubling a starter is the correct way to go.
You can double all the ingredients, just watch your rise time the more starter you use, the faster it will rise. You can also double all the ingredients except the starter for a slightly slower rise. I hope that makes sense! 🙂
Thank you!! This is now my go-to recipe for a beautiful, round boule. I think using the levain so that the sourdough is guaranteed-active makes the difference since I don’t bake daily.
Awesome! I am so happy to hear that! Yay, Nice job! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Hi! I’m looking for a sourdough sandwich loaf recipe with FG flour, but also honey and oil. Thanks!
You can use honey in place of the sugar, and oil in place of the butter in this recipe. sub out 1 for 1. Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Love this recipe. I autolyze just fresh milled flour and water for 60 minutes before I add the starter, salt and rest of water with 30g of honey. Gives me a great loaf every time. Love the videos and the teaching that goes on. I learn so much and want to thank Kara for making my FMF journey so much easier!!! (And my Ank mixer learning from your videos is helpful too!)
Awesome! I am so happy to hear they are helpful! Nice job, thanks so much! 🙂