Pre Dough

This rice and quinoa based pre-dough is used in many sourdough bread recipes on this site. Making it is a simple process: mix dry and wet ingredients and allow time for fermentation. Pre-dough is a key ingredient for improving rise, flavor and performance in savory (and some sweet) baked goods.

Ingredients

1/2 cup (60 grams) brown rice flour
2 Tablespoons (15 grams) oat flour
4 teaspoons (7.5 grams) coarse buckwheat meal (see note)
4 teaspoons (7.5 grams) steel-cut oats
2 Tablespoons (20 grams) quinoa sourdough starter
1/3 cup (80 ml) water

Procedure:

1) Place, in a small, lidded bowl such as Tupperware, all the ingredients. Stir well to mix and cover loosely.

2) Allow pre-dough to ferment until it rises, smells beer-y, and tastes sour. This will take about 5 hours at 72 F or 2 1/2 hours at 100 F. If you are able to measure pH, the pre-dough is properly fermented at pH 4.2 - 4.4.

3) Cover tightly and store in the refrigerator. Pro-dough is good for about 10 days.