{"id":20837,"date":"2026-07-21T10:00:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T08:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/bloemfontein\/?p=20837"},"modified":"2026-07-21T15:02:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T13:02:30","slug":"sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/bloemfontein\/blog\/2026\/07\/21\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\/","title":{"rendered":"Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3>There\u2019s something special about the smell of freshly baked sourdough bread in a home. The crisp crust, soft interior, and slightly tangy flavour make it a favourite among home bakers.<\/h3>\n<p>People call it an art \u2013 the holes in the bread, the sour taste, and the lingering aftertaste. Although sourdough may look intimidating, the basic process is actually simple when you tackle it step by step. The first secret of good sourdough is your <em>starter<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>This is a mixture of flour and water that develops natural yeast. You feed the starter daily at a 1:1 ratio with fresh flour and water until it becomes bubbly and active. Usually, this takes about five to seven days. When the starter doubles in size within a few hours, it\u2019s ready to bake with. An active or even gifted old starter is extremely important for your loaf \u2013 it\u2019s the foundation that determines everything.<\/p>\n<p>For a basic loaf, you only need four ingredients: bread flour, water, salt, and your active starter.<\/p>\n<p>Mix everything until a rough dough forms. Let the dough rest for about 30 minutes \u2013 this step is called <em>autolyse<\/em> and helps develop gluten. Next comes the folding process. Instead of kneading for a long time, you stretch and fold the dough every 30 minutes for about two hours. This gentle handling gives the bread its airy texture. Then, let the dough rise until it looks soft and puffy.<\/p>\n<p>The next step is shaping. Gently shape the dough into a round or oval loaf and place it in a floured basket or bowl. You can let it rise for a few more hours or refrigerate it overnight. Cold fermentation improves flavour and makes the dough easier to cut and bake. Before baking, preheat your oven and a cast-iron pot thoroughly. The hot pot helps create steam, which makes the crust extra crispy. Score a shallow pattern on the dough with a sharp knife \u2013 this allows the bread to expand beautifully while baking. Drop 1\u20132 ice cubes into the pot with the loaf; this creates steam that helps the bread rise even more. Bake first with the lid on, then without the lid for a deep golden-brown crust.<\/p>\n<p>The hardest part? Waiting for it to cool before slicing! It may feel like torture, but after all your hard work, it\u2019s worth it. An important point to remember is to write down your process, because your loaf and baking results depend on your starter, the type of flour you use, the dough\u2019s hydration level, and the oven you bake in. Each loaf and process may differ, leading you closer to the perfect little bundle of doughy love.<\/p>\n<p>Remember: sourdough isn\u2019t about perfection \u2013 it\u2019s about patience and practice. Every loaf teaches you something new. And few things are as satisfying as your very first homemade sourdough bread.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Text and Photographs: <\/strong><strong>Mariza Eberson<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s something special about the smell of freshly baked sourdough bread in a home. The crisp crust, soft interior, and slightly tangy flavour make it a favourite among home bakers. People call it an art \u2013 the holes in the bread, the sour taste, and the lingering aftertaste. Although sourdough may look intimidating, the basic [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":124,"featured_media":20838,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[826,31],"tags":[9212],"class_list":{"0":"post-20837","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-shopping","8":"category-sponsored","9":"tag-sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish - Get it Bloemfontein<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/bloemfontein\/blog\/2026\/07\/21\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish - Get it Bloemfontein\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There\u2019s something special about the smell of freshly baked sourdough bread in a home. The crisp crust, soft interior, and slightly tangy flavour make it a favourite among home bakers. People call it an art \u2013 the holes in the bread, the sour taste, and the lingering aftertaste. Although sourdough may look intimidating, the basic [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/bloemfontein\/blog\/2026\/07\/21\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Get it Bloemfontein\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-21T08:00:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-21T13:02:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/bloemfontein\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2026\/07\/Screenshot-2026-07-21-150209.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"503\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"321\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gypseenia Lion | Journalist and Photographer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gypseenia Lion | Journalist and Photographer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Gypseenia Lion | Journalist and Photographer\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/27b771438c31d902e059b0920745b004\"},\"headline\":\"Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-21T08:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-21T13:02:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":485,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/22\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/Screenshot-2026-07-21-150209.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Shopping\",\"Sponsored\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/bloemfontein\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/21\\\/sourdough-101-your-first-loaf-from-start-to-finish\\\/\",\"name\":\"Sourdough 101: Your First Loaf from Start to Finish - 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