If you would like to use wholemeal/wholewheat/whole grain flours with my master recipe, it is easily converted.
Please note that you can use whatever starter you have, the flour is your starter does not have to match the flour in your dough.
My master recipe is very easily converted to include different flours, and ingredients, it provides a base for you to create whatever version of sourdough you fancy. And this includes using wholemeal flours (that’s what it’s called in the UK; it can be called wholewheat and/or wholegrain).
This loaf, above and below, was made using 250g strong white bread flour and 250g strong wholemeal bread flour. Everything else remained the same as my master recipe: 350g water, 50g starter, 1tsp salt. I used the same process as always and baked for the same time.
This mix can be baked successfully from a hot or cold oven start.
The loaf below was made using only wholemeal flour; this was a smaller loaf made with 300g strong wholemeal bread flour, 220g water, 30g starter and 3/4tsp salt. Everything else the same.
The nature of wholemeal flour is that it will always produce a closer crumb, that’s very typical and to be expected.
You will find that the dough is firmer than a 100% white loaf, and consequently easier to score cleanly and happily.
You will also find that it handle quite differently; in the morning after the overnight prove it only needs a very gentle pull together to place into the banneton. It can then be in the fridge for as long or short a time as you choose.
To see the dough for these loaves in action and the scoring and baked outcomes, check out the video on my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/9MOJBKrHsC4
Happy Wholemeal Baking!
Hi
My first try to follow your recipe and make sourdough
Would love any tips
Thanks
Bela
Please read my master recipe and all of my tips 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Perfect thank you So much this is exactly what I’m looking for. I have a large sack of wholemeal flour to use up…..
Fab 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Does it need to be wholemeal bread flour or will plain wholemeal do? Also can this recipe be used for spelt flour too? Many thanks
Any wholemeal will work but with something you need to use small amounts
Thank you for your extremely helpful website. Can’t wait for your book to be published. I made this loaf over 3 days, so gave it a full 23 hours in the fridge and baked it this morning. It smells so good and the crust is crunchy and the texture chewy, just about perfect. I had hoped it would rise more than it did. What depth should the scoring be?
Hi, thank you so much 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
I score about 1cm deep.
Your bread sounds great! Enjoy it 😊😊😊
23 hours is a long time in the fridge, just be careful the dough didn’t lose some structure across all that time..
Just wondering if it would be the same with rye flour? Or perhaps I should start just feeling my starter with rye flour?
With rye flour you need to start small, it’s a very very different flour..
I’m wondering if you can help! My dough was gorgeous all throughout and lovely when I put it into the banneton and into the fridge and then……nothing. It didn’t rise at all in the fridge and didn’t rise when I baked it. What could’ve happened?
There’s a possibility the dough might have over proved…or, as is the way with wholemeal loaves, it’s just a typical outcome. They are often denser..
I found your site from an FB sourdough group. It’s lovely and there’s loads of great info. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. 🙏 I have made a few attempts with SD but am yet to get a good loaf, though it’s been good learning along the way. For health reasons, I am using only WW flour. What I understand from your master recipe and tips is that a strong starter is the key. I am experimenting with fruit yeast water. Any recommendations for using yeast water as a starter? Also, how to determine whether the dough is ready for the second proof in the fridge? Do we wait for it to double in size during the first rise? I made a yeast water loaf today. I had kept it in the fridge for an overnight proof but in the morning after 12 hours I saw that it hardly had increased in size in the makeshift banneton. I kept it outside in a closed box with warm water and by the time I checked I think it had over proofed (it didn’t have the solid jiggly feel I see in your videos). 🙂 Haven’t sliced it yet, so don’t know how it will taste.
Hi, thank you for your comment.
This will assist with using your fruit yeast water https://foodbod.wordpress.com/2017/07/26/fruit-yeast-water-bread/
And yes, look for the dough to double.
My frequently asked questions page will help 👍🏻
Hi if I use 500g wholemeal flour.. How much starter and water would I need?
That amount of starter doesn’t change, the amount of water might change depending on your flour