How to Make Delicious Sourdough Baguettes

Holiday season is in full swing and that is why you need to be making sourdough baguettes! They are incredibly easy to make, and are the perfect vessel for appetizers, along side soups, or even just enjoyed on their own.

Baguettes are a classic form of bread that are used for so many recipes. However, when bought from the store they can be dry, tough and just not very enjoyable to eat. That is why you need to try making sourdough baguettes at home!

If you are sitting here thinking, there’s no way I can do that. They must be so difficult. I am here to change your mind about that. If you can make a lovely loaf of traditional sourdough bread, then you can make sourdough baguettes…I promise!

This recipe starts with my classic sourdough bread dough. You do your folds, let it bulk rise and then instead of shaping it into a banneton, you shape it into baguettes. Many people will tell you that you need special baking tools for this but you absolutely do not. I make a simple mold for the baguettes with parchment paper and bake them on a standard baking sheet with some steam below. They turn out light and fluffy with a perfectly crisp and chewy crust. Your holiday entertaining is begging you to make these!

Tips for Making Sourdough Baguettes

1. Make sure you are using a nice strong, fed sourdough starter. Ideally you want to feed your sourdough starter a 1:4:4 ratio about 8-10 hours before using it to make the dough. This is the optimal ratio for getting a super strong starter.
2. Know when your bulk fermentation is done. An easy way to not get a beautiful resulting bread, is by under proofing or over proofing your dough. Typically you want to let the dough bulk ferment for 6-7 hours but that can vary depending on the temperature in your house. You will know it is done when it has almost doubled in size, is rounded on top and no longer super sticky to the touch.
3. Always wet your hands before folding or shaping your dough. This will prevent it from sticking to your hands and will allow it to keep its nice shape.
4. When you bake the baguettes, because they are being baked openly on a baking sheet, you need to make sure you are creating steam. This is done by placing a cast iron skillet with boiling water in the bottom of your oven. Do not skip this step it is important!

Sourdough Baguette Ingredients

Sourdough Starter– As mentioned above you want to make sure your starter is fed, has reached its peak and is nice and strong.

Flour- Use whichever type of flour you typically use to make sourdough bread. Unbleached all purpose flour or bread flour.

Salt- You want to use a fine salt. I like Himalayan or a fine sea salt.

Water– Use room temperature water.

The Steps

Make the Dough

1. Start by whisking together the water and sourdough starter in a large bowl with a dough whisk until milky.
2. Next, add in the flour and salt and continue to mix until a dough starts to form, I like to go in and mix it with my hands at the end to make sure there are no dry flour spots left.
3. Once you have a shaggy dough, cover the bowl of dough and let is rest for 45 minutes.

Fold & Bulk Rise

1. After 45 minutes, perform a set of coil folds or stretch and folds. Cover the bowl, and let rest another 45 minutes.
2. Repeat step 4, 2-3 more times for a total of 3-4 sets of folds. After the final fold, cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and let it bulk rise on the counter for 6-8 hours. The timing will vary depending on how warm your house is. Our house stays around 19 degrees Celsius so my dough usually takes close to 8 hours.

Shape

1. Then you are going to dump the dough out onto a clean counter.
2. Cut the dough into 2 pieces, and form each one into a rectangle that is about 10 inches long and 5 inches high. Fold the top third of the dough into the middle and press down along the seam with your fingers.
3. Then, repeat this with folding the bottom of the dough into the middle to create your log or baguette shape.
4. Once you have your log, I like to go along the center seam and stitch the bread like you would with a regular loaf. Essentially you are pulling the dough on either side of the seam into the middle, all the way along that center seam.

1. Once your baguettes are shaped, you want to take a big piece of parchment paper and lay it on a baking sheet. Sprinkle flour over half of it, then take one of the baguettes and gently lift it onto that floured parchment, making sure you are flipping it upside down, so that the smooth side is now on top.
2. Then, you want to fold the middle of the parchment into a little peek (see pictures) to form a barrier between the baguettes to help them hold their shape.
3. Finally, spirnkle some flour on the remaining sides of the parchment and transfer the second baguette onto that spot. You can gently fold up the parchment on the other side of that 2nd baguette to help hold the baguette in place.
4. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place in the fridge over night or for up to 24 hours.

Bake

1. When you are ready to bake the baguettes, preheat your oven to 450F and place a baking sheet in the oven while it preheats.
2. After about 30 minutes of the oven preheating, place a cast iron pan on the bttom rack of the oven. Boil a kettle of water, then pour that into the dutch oven. This is what is going to create steam while the bread bakes.
3. Remove the warmed pan from the oven, then carefully lift the parchment, with the baguettes onto the warmed pan.
4. Using a bread lame score 4-5 diagonal lines on top of each baguette.
5. Place the baking sheet with baguettes in the center of your oven, and bake for 35-40 minutes or unitl dark golden.
6. Remove the baguettes from the oven and allow to cool completely before slicing. Enjoy!

If you give this recipe a try, leave a comment of recipe review below!

Looking for make sourdough bread recipes to try this season?

https://cmbarndominium.com/perfectly-soft-gooey-sourdough-monkey-bread/

https://cmbarndominium.com/how-to-make-perfectly-soft-sourdough-ciabatta-buns/

https://cmbarndominium.com/the-best-apple-pie-sourdough-cinnamon-buns/

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