Easy Sourdough Baguette for Beginners

Make this classic French bread known for its long shape with a crispy crust and soft interior at home with simple steps, minimal effort, and delicious results. 

After you get good at making general loaves, it is such a fun challenge to practice your shaping techniques. I love making soft sourdough dinner rolls, sourdough breadsticks are a fantastic addition to dinner, sourdough hot dog buns are fun, and sourdough pretzels are so fun to make with kids. They are all fun to make and practice but are also forgiving and don’t require perfection. 

This sourdough baguette recipe is another perfect way to work on your shaping technique and is a good introduction to higher hydration doughs. This recipe has a 75% hydration, which means there is quite a bit of water compared to flour in this recipe, so the dough is softer and wetter than in a regular loaf. This means that it’s harder to work with, but it results in bigger open holes. It is not as wet as a ciabatta recipe, but it does high a higher hydration than a sandwich bread.

Ingredients needed for this recipe:

• All-Purpose Flour: All-purpose flour provides the necessary structure and texture. You don’t need anything fancy, just a basic good quality flour. 
• Water: It hydrates the flour, enabling gluten development and enhancing the dough’s elasticity. 
• Sourdough Starter: The sourdough starter introduces a complex, tangy flavor to your baguette. It’s also a natural leavening agent. Make sure it’s bubbly and has doubled in volume after feeding. Learn how to make a sourdough starter if you don’t have one already.
• Kosher Salt: Other than enhancing flavor, salt plays a crucial role in controlling fermentation. It also strengthens gluten structure, regulates yeast activity, and adds depth to the overall taste of your sourdough bread. 

Equipment needed for this recipe:

• Large mixing bowl
• Kitchen scale
• Parchment paper
• Sharp knife or bench scraper
• Large rimmed baking sheet
• Plastic wrap or a damp towel
• 9 by 9 baking dish 
• Lame for scoring
• Spray bottle for water

For more information on what tools you need for making sourdough, read my post on essential tools for the sourdough baker.

How to make sourdough baguettes

This recipe is very simple to make! Here is a brief overview of the recipe to give you an idea of how it works. For the full set of directions and measurements, please make sure you scroll down to the recipe card below!

Feed Your Sourdough Starter:

1. Begin by feeding your sourdough starter and  ensuring that your sourdough starter is active and bubbly. This process typically takes 4-12 hours before starting the bread. 

Make the dough:

1. In a large bowl, combine the warm water, all-purpose flour, the bubbly sourdough starter, and salt. Feel free to use a dough whisk, stand mixer, or clean hands.
2. With wet hands, gently mix the shaggy dough for about 5 minutes until it comes together. 
3. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

Stretch and Fold:

1. Perform a series of stretches and folds: Wet your hands to prevent sticking, then grab one edge of the dough, stretch it upwards, and fold it over. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat. 
2. Do this every 30 minutes for 3 rounds. This process strengthens the dough structure.

Bulk Ferment:

1. Cover the baguette dough with a wet towel or plastic wrap and let it bulk-ferment until it doubles in size. The duration will vary based on factors like room temperature and the activity of your starter. For me, this step took 5 hours. Look for small bubbles on the sides of your proofed dough to confirm readiness.

Shape Your Dough:

1. Divide your dough into four equal parts using a sharp knife or bench scraper.
2. Pre-shape each piece by forming them into a ball. 
3. Allow them to rest on the counter for about 20 minutes. 
4. Shape each piece into a baguette by gently stretching the dough into a rectangle. 
5. Fold the sides into the middle, creating a seam. 
6. Roll it over so it’s seam-side down and stretch it to elongate the shape.

Bake:

1. Fill a baking dish or Dutch oven with boiling water and place it on the bottom rack of the oven. This creates steam, essential for a crispy crust. 
2. Spritz the baguettes with water for browning and a crunchy crust.
3. Place them in the oven and carefully reduce the heat to 450 degrees. 
4. Bake for 20 minutes.
5. Rotate the baguettes for even browning and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
6. Allow each golden brown baguette to cool slightly before slicing. 

*Tip: Want a crisper crust? Preheat the oven with a pizza stone and use a water-filled pan for steam. Brushing the surface with olive oil before baking can also enhance crispiness.

Baker’s Schedule

Knowing how long a recipe will take you and when you need to be done by will help you know when to start making a recipe – that way you won’t end up baking at 2am because you didn’t take the time to know how long the process would take.

Here is roughly how long this recipe will take you:

• Mixing the dough: 30 minutes (plus sourdough starter feeding time)
• Stretch and fold: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Bulk Ferment: 4 to 6 hours
• Shaping: 30 minutes
• Overnight Cold Proof: 8 to 12 hours in the fridge (you can also leave this for up to 36 hours)
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Cool Time: 15 minutes

Overall this recipe will take you about 16-21 hours from start to finish, depending upon how cold or warm your house is.

Pro Tip: These timelines are general guidelines. Remember to watch your dough and not the clock – timing could be longer in colder/drier weather and faster in warmer/more humid weather.

Storage Information

These baguettes store best when covered lightly and stored at room temperature. They will keep for 3-4 days, but will be best when enjoyed fresh.

How to serve this to your family

This baguette is perfect for serving in so many ways. Cut it into thin rounds and serve it as part of a kid friendly charcuterie board. Or serve it with before a meal with Italian oil. Or serve it as part of a meal like rosemary peach chicken to soak up extra sauce or beside turkey noodle soup.