Proof: Dust a 9″ round banneton basket with rice flour. If you do not have a banneton basket, you can line a bowl with a lint free kitchen towel and dust that with rice flour. Turn the shaped loaf into the prepared banneton (or bowl) with the seam side up. Cover again and let proof for 3-4 hours at room temperature (68-74 F, 20-23 C).
Prep Oven: At least an 45 minutes before baking your bread, preheat the oven to 450 F (230 C). You do not need to preheat your pot. I have tested this recipe with both a preheated and a cold pot, and it bakes just as nicely with a pot that has not been preheated.
Score: To check if your loaf is done proofing and ready to bake, gently press a finger into the dough about 1/2″ in. If the hole fills in immediately then it needs a bit more time to proof. If it fills in slowly, then you are ready to bake. Turn the loaf out onto a piece of parchment paper and use a bread lame or a sharp knife to score it however you like. I typically just make one big slash down the middle.
Bake: Transfer the dough on the parchment paper into a dutch oven or oven safe pot that is at least 4 qts in size. Place the lid on top and place it on the center rack of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 425 F (220 C). And bake with the lid on for 40 minutes. Take the lid off and if you would like a bit more color on the crust, bake it for 5-15 more minutes with the lid off.
Cool: Allow the bread to cool on a cooling rack for at the very least 1 hour before slicing it. Preferably let it cool for 4-12 hours for the best flavor, texture, and to prevent it from staling too quickly.
Store: Keep the bread at room temperature completely uncovered for the first 24 hours. If you have sliced into the bread, place the bread cut side down on your cutting board. For day 2 & 3 I generally transfer it into a ziplock bag and refresh it by toasting it because the crust will get soft. After that, I slice it and store it in the freezer. Toast to refresh from frozen.
NOTES
Example Timeline #1 (work day timeline):
9:30 pm (day before bake): Feed Starter
7:30 am: Mix Dough
5:30 pm: Shape Dough
8:30 pm: Bake
Sourdough for breakfast the next day!
Example Timeline #2 (weekend timeline):
1 pm (Saturday): Feed Starter
9 pm (Saturday): Mix Dough
9 am (Sunday): Shape Dough
12:00 pm (Sunday): Bake
Sourdough for Sunday Dinner!
*Using Whole Wheat Flour: Because this is a fairly low hydration and a no-knead dough, it really does work best with white flour. However, if you want to use some whole wheat flour I recommend replacing 100 grams of the white flour with 100 grams of whole wheat flour and increasing the water amount to 324 grams.
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