Sourdough
Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven
A 5-quart cast iron pot with a loop handle. The lid traps the loaf's own steam for the first half of the bake, which is what produces real oven spring and a crackling crust at home.
Products
Products we actually use, grouped by what it's for. Every pick has a full write-up behind it.
Sourdough
This isn't a wish list. It's a list of my favorite bread baking (including sourdough) supplies & my favorite types of flour, salt & yeast that I use often. Some items are necessities. Some are splurges, but totally worth it. I hope this list helps anyone just starting out in the sourdough bread making hobbie.
Sourdough
VEDALIO Sourdough Starter Kit
Round and oval proofing baskets, a starter jar, and the small tools a first loaf needs, in one box. The cheapest way to find out whether the hobby sticks before buying pieces individually.
Sourdough
Reynolds Plastic Wrap with Slide Cutter
A big roll with a slide cutter that actually cuts straight. Covering a bulk ferment keeps a skin from forming on the dough while it sits.
Sourdough
Cambro Round Container Lid
The matching cover for Cambro round containers, sold separately as restaurant supply normally is. Fits the 12, 18 and 22 quart sizes.
Sourdough
Cambro 12 Quart Round Container
Clear commercial-grade tub with volume graduations up the side, so you can see exactly how far a bulk ferment has risen instead of guessing.
Sourdough
6 Quart Round Containers (2-Pack)
A two-pack of lidded 6 quart tubs with a dough scraper thrown in. The smaller size suits a single-loaf bulk ferment better than a full 12 quart.
Sourdough
Rubbermaid Easy Find Lids Container
Lids that snap to the base and to each other, which is the whole point — no more digging through a cupboard for the one that fits. A 14 cup tub holds a single-loaf ferment comfortably.
Sourdough
JOYUMY Unbleached Parchment Sheets
Precut flat sheets rather than a curling roll, so the paper lies down instead of springing back. Used as a sling, it lowers a loaf into a screaming-hot Dutch oven without a burnt knuckle.
Sourdough
KitchenAid 7 Quart Bowl-Lift Stand Mixer
The splurge on this list. A bowl-lift frame handles stiff, high-hydration doughs that make a tilt-head model walk across the counter, and the 7 quart bowl takes a double batch.
Sourdough
Breville Tea Maker & Kettle
Five temperature presets and a basket that lifts itself out when the timer ends. Not bread equipment, but a kettle that hits an exact temperature is genuinely useful for warming water to spec.
Sourdough
Escali Primo Digital Food Scale
Sourdough is arithmetic before it is baking, and a cup of flour varies by up to 20% depending on how it was scooped. A tare button and gram accuracy are what make a recipe repeatable.
Sourdough
Flour Water Salt Yeast
Ken Forkish's guide to artisan bread and pizza, and the book most often handed to someone who has just built a starter. It teaches the method behind the recipes rather than just the recipes.
Sourdough
SAF-Instant Red Label Yeast
A one-pound brick that costs about what three envelopes do and keeps for a year in the freezer. Red Label is the standard-dough version, for everything that is not a sweet enriched loaf.
Sourdough
King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
Milled to a higher protein content than most supermarket all-purpose flour, which means more gluten and a sturdier crumb. Consistent bag to bag, so your hydration stays where you set it.