Joe Baker’s sourdough bread. Photo courtesy of Blair Baker.
The rise of sourdough bread, so to speak, was a purely natural thing. Before yeasts could be dried and packaged to be shipped all over the world, it was the naturally occurring ones that created the original leavened bread. By creating a starter and nurturing it, humans discovered a way to cultivate these yeasts for the specific purpose of making leavened bread, reliably and consistently.
With the advent of more industrialized breads, however, the process of making sourdough – admittedly a long one – is left to those willing to invest the time and effort for a better loaf of bread. We consulted with one of those people – Joe Baker, Chef Instructor at Le Cordon Bleu – about how to turn this sourdough starter into sourdough baguette.
Click here for the whole Fare Perspective on Sourdough Bread, parts one and two! You will find a starter tutorial at the end of part one.