In a rush? You can skip straight to Naturally Leavened Cold-Proof Artisan White Sourdough Bread Recipe at my tumblr. Or you can jump to my Just the Basics section.
I lurk a lot on Reddit, specifically the Breadit subreddit. Although I don’t post a lot of content (at least not yet anyway), I like to see what other bakers are doing with their bread and what techniques work best for different people.
Something that caught my eye recently was blistered crust.
Seriously, the blisters are almost pornographic whenever someone shares their latest bake. The photos make me drool, and I get the itch to mix some flour, starter, salt, and water together.
With many of my recipes, however, blistered crust was a happy accident and not a consistent feature. Many Reddit users recommended a long, cold proof to achieve a blistered crust, but no one seemed to agree just how long of a proof one needed to get the best results.
So this week I set out to achieve the ultimate blistered crust with a simple, straightforward artisan loaf with white bread flour. I think I nailed it.
