A pot of sourdough
· 2 min read
Thanks for reading, and for the generous notes that keep arriving. Use what is in season and the recipe for the most part writes itself. A kitchen scale shifted my baking more than any recipe did.
The short version
In January the light changes, and so does the work. Serve it with good bread and whatever greens look best. I keep a short list of things to try next; shopping at the market is near the top. What surprised me most was how little equipment it needed. I make a double batch and freeze half for busy weeks.
Most of what I know about stock came from getting it wrong first. Good soups is for the most part a series of small, unglamorous decisions. The dough should feel soft and slightly tacky, not sticky.
- Give fermenting a full autumn
- Leave room for bright mistakes
- Stop before you are tired
Looking ahead
None of this is new, and that is partly why it works. Here is what shifted, and what stayed exactly the same. This is less a primer and more a record of what worked for me.
The best advice I got was just to slow down. In May the light changes, and so does the work. The humble part is rarely the hard part; consistency is. The result is not perfect, but it is truthful.
This got going as a quick note and gradually turned into something longer. Some of this will be plain; some of it took me years.
flatbreadsbraised beans