For the first recipe of the year - matcha sourdough!

Well, I am already making great progress on a few of my new year’s goals… but the most exciting one was really today, when I checked on my brand new rye sourdough starter and it was SUPER active! Just waiting for me to bake something delicious with it! And so, bread is happening.

Not just any old bread though, this is going to be THE loaf of sourdough bread where I totally level up my sourdough game and achieve greatness! I have never been able to get the famous “ear” on any of my loaves, and the texture is never quite right (always sort of gummy)... but not this time! This time, I researched and read about it and I think I actually know what I am doing this time. It’s kinda nice…

I decided that I would try another new thing with this loaf, and try making it a matcha green tea sourdough loaf! Crazy? Perhaps! But also hopefully crazy yummy.

So as I am writing this post, my bread is currently sitting in my kitchen in the autolyse phase, where the flour and water become one and the water completely hydrates the flour. This starts the development of gluten and completely changes the texture of the dough!

I plan to get all of my dough folding done this evening, before popping it into the fridge overnight, then into the oven first thing tomorrow morning! Freshly baked bread for sandwiches tomorrow for lunch…? How great does that sound?

Overall, I am just so excited that my sourdough experiment has started off so excellently already! My starter looked absolutely perfect before I added it in for the fermentolyse stage (which I learned is what the autolyse stage is called if you add the starter at the beginning) - lots of bubbles and as light as mousse! I am super excited to test out the new bannatons that my family got me for Christmas with today’s bake as well… so much excellent stuff to be excited about!

I will add to this post as the bread baking progresses…

Matcha swirls sourdough :

• 120g bread flour (40%)

• 150g high-protein bread flour (50%)

• 30g whole grain flour (10%)

• 1 tbsp. Matcha powder

• 240g water (82% hydration)

• 60g starter (20%)

• 6g salt (2%)

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour and the water and allow to autolyse for 2 hours

2. Add the starter, salt and matcha powder and mix well

3. Perform 1 set of stretch and folds, then cover and let rest for 30 minutes

4. Perform 1 set lamination, then cover and let rest for 30 minutes

5. Perform 2 sets of coil folds, then cover and let rest for 30 minutes between each

6. Allow to bulk ferment for 5½ hours at slightly higher than room temperature (26-27 C, I just put mine in an oven that is turned off but has the light on)

7. Allow to retard in the fridge for around 12 hours (3 C)

8. Preheat your oven and Dutch oven pot for 20 minutes at 250C

9. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200C and bake for 20 minutes longer, uncovered

10. Allow to cool completely before cutting