Sour Notes - Hydration in Sourdough

 

Slowly but surely, I've been building my own Sourdough Logbook - all of my notes and recipes in one place, along with my favorite recipes.  This is a compilation of various notes I've found helpful, regarding  hydration in sourdough, and how to calculate the "Bakers Percentages"

Printable version at the bottom of this post,  just right click and save as.

Base Recipes by Hydration

Chart assumes starter is equal parts flour and water—known as 100%, or 1:1:1 Starter

Hydration Math:
(Weight of Water divided by Weight of Flour) x 100
Don’t forget to add the water & flour in your starter to each total

For example - 350g of water divided by 500g of flour x 100 = 70%

High hydration makes lighter fluffier loafs

Lower hydration is significantly easier to work with

When in doubt, start with 70% Hydration.

There are many variables,  SO many variables - but in general:
 anywhere between 70-85% hydration works is best.

 When using higher levels of hydration, it's important to use flours with more protein, such as bread flour and whole wheat flour.  Some flour will not develop enough gluten structure at a higher hydration.

Higher hydration sourdough creates has a naturally thinner, crispier crust.

 An increased amount of water in sourdough will cause the dough to ferment more quickly.

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See more of my personal sourdough log book here:

https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2023/10/creating-my-sourdough-journal.html

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PRINTABLE VERSION - 
Right Click and "Save As"
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