Don't miss those sourdough tools. They have all been tested by me in day to day use and work great.

The short version

• Start with what you have. A bowl lined with a kitchen towel works as a banneton, and two baking trays plus a bowl of boiling water can stand in for a Dutch oven.
• Get a Dutch oven if you bake with gas or with a fan that can’t be switched off. In those ovens the two-tray method doesn’t work.
• A thermometer tells you when your bread is done: at about 92 °C (197 °F) in the core. It matters most for loaf pans.
• A pH meter is precise but optional. For beginners, a dough sample in a straight-sided jar does the job.

Tools

Banneton proofing basket (25cm length, 15cm width, 8.5cm height): https://thbrco.io/banneton

Cooling rack: https://thbrco.io/cooling-rack

Dough scraper: https://thbrco.io/dough-scraper

Dutch oven for batards (Challenger Bread Pan): https://thbrco.io/dutch-oven-batards

Dutch oven round (Lodge): https://thbrco.io/dutch-oven-round

Dutch oven with glas lid (Brovn): https://thbrco.io/dutch-oven-glas-lid

Infrared thermometer: https://thbrco.io/infared-meter

Loaf pan (30cm length x 12cm width x 9cm height): https://thbrco.io/loaf-pan-regular

Loaf pan with lid (34cm length, 13cm width, 12cm height): https://thbrco.io/loaf-pan-lid

No stick spray (vegetable based): https://thbrco.io/non-stick-spray

pH meter to check acidity: https://thbrco.io/ph-meter

Weck starter jars: https://thbrco.io/weck-jars

Why each tool is on the list

Starter jars

Cover your starter, but not airtight, because it needs some gas exchange. I often just put a second glass upside down on top. If the surface dries out a lot, change the cover: mold shows up on dried-out patches and on the edges of the jar.

A second, straight-sided jar holds the aliquot, a small sample of your dough that tells you when bulk fermentation is done. Keep it next to the dough and use room-temperature water, so the sample doesn’t run ahead or behind.

Scale

My recipes are in grams and baker’s math, every ingredient a percentage of the flour, so any recipe scales with a calculator. When you divide a big batch, the scale makes every piece the same weight.

Dough scraper

It helps you drag the dough over an unfloured counter until the surface is smooth. When dividing, quick cuts keep the dough from sticking. For shaping, slide it under the dough to flip it.

Banneton

The basket holds your shaped dough during the final proof, and the surface dries a little in there, which makes scoring easier. Gently rub the dough with a bit of flour before it goes in.

Dutch ovens

A Dutch oven traps the steam coming out of your dough. The steam keeps the surface soft and stretchy for longer, so the loaf can rise before the crust sets. Cast iron, enameled cast iron, clay or a glass lid all work the same way. Preheat it well so the dough doesn’t stick. I bake at 230 °C (446 °F), 30 minutes with the lid on and 15 to 20 minutes without.

The downsides: they are expensive, heavy (some weigh up to 10 kg) and dangerous when hot, so wear heat-resistant gloves. Cast iron needs seasoning, and you bake one loaf at a time.

Loaf pans

The dough goes straight into the pan after mixing, no shaping needed. I bake at about 200 °C (390 °F) rather than 230 °C (446 °F), because the inside takes longer to bake in a pan. Use steam, or a loaf pan with a lid, which keeps the moisture in like a Dutch oven. Grease generously; a non-stick vegetable oil spray does wonders. Skip the soap and wipe the pan with a kitchen towel: the patina makes it less sticky with every bake.

Thermometer

At about 92 °C (197 °F) in the core, your bread is done. For the core you need a probe; a barbecue thermometer works. The infrared thermometer in the list only reads surfaces, such as your Dutch oven or baking stone, which makes it the tool for checking what your oven really reaches: the display can be off. In a big loaf pan the outside can look done while the inside is still raw.

pH meter

As your dough ferments, acid builds up and the pH drops. Once you know the values of your best bread, you can repeat them. I end bulk fermentation at around pH 4.1, but yours will differ. Choose a meter made for semi-solid food, ideally with a spear tip and automatic temperature compensation. Calibrate it often and rinse it for at least a minute before it touches dough, because the liquid around the probe isn’t food safe.

Cooling rack

Let the loaf cool completely before you cut it. The crumb keeps setting as it cools, and bread cut too early is gummy inside.

No Dutch oven yet? Use two trays

This is the method I recommend for beginners. It costs little and bakes several loaves at once, in my oven 2 freestanding loaves and 4 in loaf pans. You need two trays, a heat-resistant bowl, boiling water and oven gloves.

1. Preheat the oven and one tray to 230 °C (446 °F).
2. Set the hot tray on the cooling rack or anything heat resistant, and put your scored loaves on it, on parchment paper or semolina.
3. Slide them back in with the cold tray upside down on top, and pour boiling water into the bowl.
4. After 30 minutes, remove the top tray and the water. Bake another 15 to 25 minutes, until you like the crust color.

It doesn’t work in a gas oven or with a fan you can’t switch off. Details are in the baking chapter of my free book.

Merchandise

If you want to support me also check out some of my custom designed bread baking T-Shirts: https://the-bread-code.myteespring.co/

Please note that some of the links are affiliate links and that I earn a commission whenever you buy a product. I would not recommend something that I have not personally tested. All the tools here work great.