So, my friends. This has been a LONG time coming.
I first began working on my gluten-free sourdough bread recipe about two years ago, which was about a year after I began my overall sourdough journey. It started when I had a few people in my life who were dealing with either a gluten intolerance or celiac disease, and I felt sorry that I couldn't share my baked goods with them.
I started my mission by first attempting a gluten free starter, in which I made by mixing equal parts of 1:1 gluten free baking flour (BAD decision in hindsight) with water. I noticed some miiiiinimal activity, and thought that it was working! Yay! So I went ahead and tried making a gluten free sourdough bread using basically my standard sourdough bread recipe but replacing the flour with that same gluten free 1:1 flour.
It did not work AT ALL.
It was actually a total failure in and of itself. It was SO gummy... like almost actual gum (thanks for nothing, xantham gum...)
This is when I began to do some proper research. At the time, there were ZERO gluten free sourdough bread recipes on the internet at all. So in my research, I started by reading blog posts by other bakers who work with gluten free products quite often, and some of the characteristics they noticed in each ingredient. Such as, this flour is denser, while this one is grainier, this one is similar to gluten flours but with no elasticity, etc. From this research, I learned that the best flour to use for a starter was quinoa flour, as it produced the most similar taste to that of regular wheat flours, while also having a comparable amount of yeast and bacterias. I also learned that for the flavor and density components, a mixture of flours would produce the best results, and that most gluten free flours are on the heavier side, so it is important to balance them with a starch.
I also read about general gluten free bread baking (not sourdough) and what worked in terms of baking times/temps/taste.
My last mission was to find an ingredient that mimicked the gluten and elasticity of gluten breads, without any of those nasty gums. While researching, I read a lot about psyllium husk and how it performs a similar effect as the gums in gluten free baking, without producing the gumminess. I was always aware that flax and chia seeds performed a similar way, but I felt using them on their own wouldn't be strong enough, so enter psyllium husk powder to the mix.
Lastly, I learned that since there is no gluten in gluten free bread (wow, shocker!) you don't have to knead!!! Woohoo!
Now that I have encompassed all of this information on gluten free baking, I decided to start to document my journey via Youtube videos. I started with my gluten free sourdough starter journey, which I wasn't sure if it would actually work. You can find that video here:
Since creating the above video, I have learned from commenters that a few other flours work well in place of quinoa flour, if you're unable to find it. Some of those mentioned include: brown rice flour, white rice flour, and oat flour. Those that do NOT work: sorghum flour (one of my Instagram followers tried this and it almost immediately molded). I still think that quinoa will produce the best result, as the earthiness gives such a nice flavor component to the tangy mix, but again, if you don't have it on hand you can sub it out.
Since developing the above method for the starter, I actually tried another route which I felt worked a little bit better. I shared it to my Instagram story and had a lot of success with it and so did my followers. You can find it in the image below:
From experience, either one will work for creating a starter, but the second one is a bit easier to follow. Either way you decide to do it, please share your results from me! I love to see it :)
Now...
We officially have our starter rolling, and we can finally get on to the (gluten free) bread and butter of this post, THE RECIPE! Yeeeeeee!
So, if you already bake sourdough, then great, you already have all of the materials! The ingredients, however, you may not already have on hand. If thats the case, you can find most of them on Amazon, if not in your local grocery store.
The overall recipe, I feel, is much simpler than a traditional sourdough bread recipe as it entails significantly less steps, but on the other hand, more ingredients and technicalities, so I guess, weigh your pros and cons? Idk, I like them both!
I created a youtube video of my step my step process for my recipe where I talk about each ingredient as well, so if you prefer to watch a video for the steps, here it is:
Okay okay okay, onto the written recipe!
Gluten Free Sourdough Bread Recipe
Ingredients
(Yields 2 smaller loaves)
For levain:
60 g quinoa flour
60 g water
30 g active gluten free starter
For bread:
540 g warm water
10 g psyllium husk powder
4 TBSP ground flax seeds (or 2 tbsp each of ground flax and ground chia)
12 g salt
2 tsp sugar
150 g prepared gluten free levain
456 g gluten free flour mix (consists of: 100 g tapioca starch, 100 g sorghum flour, 116 g millet flour, 140 g brown rice flour)
2 TBSP avocado oil (or any other neutral oil)
Day 1
8 AM
1. Prepare levain by mixing the quinoa flour, water and active gluten free starter. Cover with a lid and set aside for about 8-12 hours (this is dependent on the rate of fermentation of your starter).
7 PM
2. In a bowl, combine the water, psyllium husk powder and ground flax seeds (or chia, or combination of the two). Whisk until combined and then set aside for about 20 minutes until a thick gel forms.
3. Once gel forms, add the salt and sugar and mix well. Once combined, add the gluten free starter and mix again. Once all the wet ingredients are combined, add in your gluten free flour mix and combine with a spatula until completely combined and a thick dough forms. Then you’ll add in your oil and combine the mixture with your hands. Once all ingredients have been thoroughly mixed in, cover the dough with a towel and set aside in a warm spot for about 3 hours.
10 PM
4. After 3 hours, your dough should have visibly increased in volume (a good indicator is checking the bottom of the bowl, if you notice air bubbles at the bottom as well as an increase in dough volume, this is an indicator that your dough is ready to be shaped). If not, let it sit for about another hour and check again. If it is ready, you can proceed to shape.
5. Flour your surface and two bannetons/kitchen towel lined baskets with brown rice flour. Dump your dough out onto the floured surface and using your dough scraper, divide the batch into two equal halves.
6. Gently shape each loaf into a rounded boule shape (it will not be perfectly smooth, so just create a rounded shape to the best of your ability). Once shaped, place the loaves seam side up into your bannetons. Dust the top with a bit more brown rice flour, then cover your loaves with kitchen towels and place into the fridge overnight (or if your house is on the cooler side, you can leave it on the counter) to proof.
Day 2
10 AM
7. The next morning, remove your loaves from the fridge but leave them covered with the kitchen towel. They will finish proofing at room temperature while your oven heats up.
8. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F with two dutch ovens inside and a baking sheet on the bottom rack to prevent burning on the bottom.
11 AM
9. Once the oven is preheated, flip the loaves onto a piece of parchment paper and score the top (a simple X across the top will be more than sufficient). Carefully transfer the loaves with parchment paper to the inside of the dutch oven. Place an ice cube underneath the parchment paper (so that it is directly hitting the dutch oven) and cover with the lid. Place into the oven and immediately lower the oven temperature to 450 degrees F. Bake the loaves covered with the lid for 30 minutes, then remove the lid and bake another 30 minutes.
10.Once done baking, leave the dutch ovens inside the oven but turn the oven off. Open the oven door slightly and allow the loaves to begin cooling inside the oven with the door open for about 15-20 minutes. You can then move them to a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least an hour at room temperature before slicing into it.
If you try my recipe, please please please send me photos or tag me on Instagram!!! I love to see your bakes! @allisonbread
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