Over the past year that I’ve spent honing my home baking I’ve come to one important conclusion:
Bread is not as complicated as it’s made out to be. This is especially true when it comes to sourdough!
I don’t feed my starter on a regular schedule, rather by what its reaction is to feeding; I don’t measure out exact quantities when I do feed my starter, but go by sight and feel; and I don’t know the hydration of my starter – nor does it matter to me. I just do what works in my home.
So after I made my first few batches of English muffins, which included kneading, resting, and punching down (if it included the addition of commercial yeast, the cardinal sin of sourdough baking if you ask me) my intuition got the best of me and I decided to take a more relaxed approach to muffin making: combine all ingredients, stretch & fold, and set aside for bulk ferment.
The results I get from this lazy-girl recipe are EXACTLY the same as the more labor-intensive method. In fact, I think they taste better when they’re allowed to rest and develop more gluten undisturbed by the general assault most people put on their bread dough. Just look at those nooks and crannies! And given time to rest, the sour flavor is unbelievably good.
Another thing I learned about myself through baking muffins is that I really don’t care what they look like, which translates directly to making square muffins rather than cutting round ones and wasting precious dough from around the edges. Photogenic? No. Still delicious? Absolutely.
I like to fry mine in olive oil in a cast iron skillet over low heat. If you have a lid for your skillet you can cook them to the perfect toastiness and still be thoroughly done on the inside. Just leave the lid on during cooking.
To successfully bake most of these no-knead sourdough recipes you’ll need a nice vigorous starter. I feed mine and leave it on the counter so I know it’s ready for baking. If you’re bringing yours out of hibernation, I suggest feeding it two to three times before baking.
No-Knead Sourdough English Muffins
No-Knead Sourdough English Muffins
Description
To successfully bake most of these no-knead sourdough recipes you'll need a nice vigorous starter. I feed mine and leave it on the counter so I know it's ready for baking. If you're bringing yours out of hibernation, I suggest feeding it two to three times before baking.
Ingredients
Instructions
-
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Bring together by hand until a sticky but cohesive dough is formed. Cover and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
-
Begin stretching and folding. I recommend doing at least 4 stretches at 15-minutes intervals; an additional 2 folds at 30 minutes are optional but produce more aeration in the dough.
-
After the final stretch and fold, sprinkle a rolling surface with flour and corn meal; flatten the dough until it's about 1/2" thick. Press into a cookie sheet or leave on the counter for bulk fermentation.
-
Cover dough and allow to rise for 6-12 hours depending on the activity of your sourdough starter. It should double in size.
-
Cut the dough into your desired biscuit shape. Allow to rest for another 30 minutes before cooking.
-
Warm a frying pan over low-medium heat. Oil liberally and cook each biscuit, covered, for 3-5 minutes each side. Remove from heat to a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before storing. These can be frozen with exceptional results.