A proper weekend sourdough schedule. Build a small levain Saturday morning, mix the dough Saturday evening, bulk overnight, ball Sunday morning, and cold-proof until Sunday or Monday evening. The long cold proof gives you flexibility and a beautifully extensible, flavourful crust.
In a clean jar, combine 25g active starter, 50g white flour, and 50g water (room temperature). Mix until fully combined. Cover loosely and leave at room temperature for 8–12 hours — it should at least double and look bubbly and domed. This makes 125g levain; you'll use 100g and return 25g to your starter jar. For a nuttier flavour, replace 25g of the white flour with whole wheat flour.
Combine 386g flour and 289g water in a large bowl (or dial back to 266g water for a stiffer, less extensible dough). Mix until all dry flour is incorporated — no need to knead. Cover and rest for 20–30 minutes (autolyse). This develops gluten passively before adding the levain and salt.
Add 96.4g ripe levain and 8.7g salt to the autolysed dough. Squeeze and fold the dough until both are fully incorporated. The dough will feel sticky at first — keep working it until it comes together into a cohesive mass.
Perform 2–3 sets of stretch and folds during the first 2 hours, spaced about 45 minutes apart. For each set: grab one side of the dough, stretch it upward, fold over to the opposite side. Rotate 90° and repeat 4 times. The dough will strengthen and become smoother with each set.
Cover the bowl and leave at room temperature (21–23°C) to bulk ferment overnight — approximately 10–12 hours. The dough is ready when it has grown by 50–75%, feels airy and jiggly, and shows bubbles on the surface and sides. Cooler kitchens may need longer; warmer kitchens shorter.
Turn the dough onto an unfloured surface. Divide into 3 equal pieces of approximately 260g each. Shape each into a tight ball: fold the edges underneath and drag toward you across the surface to build tension. Lightly oil each ball and place in a sealed container.
Refrigerate the containers immediately. Cold proof for a minimum of 6 hours, up to 36 hours. The longer the proof (within that window), the more flavour. This flexibility is one of the key advantages of the recipe — bake Sunday evening or Monday evening, whichever suits.
Remove dough balls from the fridge 1 hour before baking to allow the gluten to relax. Cold dough is very elastic and hard to stretch.
Preheat oven with a baking steel or stone on the top rack to maximum (250°C or higher) for at least 45 minutes. If you have a pizza oven, bring it to 450–500°C.
Stretch each ball gently by hand — sourdough is very extensible, don't rush it. Top and slide onto the hot steel or stone. Bake at 250°C for 8–10 minutes until the crust is golden and the base is crisp. In a pizza oven, bake 90 seconds to 2 minutes.