With our easy gluten free sourdough starter, this Gluten Free Sourdough Bread is so perfect, you'll want to make it every single day!
Gluten Free Sourdough Bread was originally posted on June 22, 2020 and has been updated with a modified recipe using a new sourdough starter, new pictures, and a new video.
Some of the items linked in this post are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, if you click through and make a purchase, I will earn a small commission.
My husband has to remind me to slow down and take a breath when I find a new method of gluten free baking. Or a new (to me) ingredient that makes things so much better. My brain starts going a thousand miles a minute because I want to make ALL THE BREADS!!!
I have to learn to stop and focus on one thing at a time. But it's so hard because even though I wanted to update this earlier, I put it on a back burner. Not because I didn't have it nailed down, I wanted to try different variants and see how they would affect the final outcome. And I'm so glad I was diligent because there are so many new things I've learned about sourdough that are worth sharing.
Anywho, I know I'm a little late in revising this sourdough recipe to use my new(ish) sourdough starter method, but that's just how I am. I do NOT want to hurry things along just to get them on the blog because it's the right time. It's very important to me to test and retest recipes to make sure they're as perfect as I can get them before sharing them with you. But I promise, this one is well.worth.the.wait!
What IS Sourdough Bread?
Sourdough bread is a bread made without any commercial yeast. Instead, the yeast is substituted with a wild yeast and bacteria combined with flour and water, also known as a sourdough starter. You'll find all the details needed to start and maintain a gluten free sourdough starter in this post here.
When I think of sourdough bread, I'm transported to a local restaurant (Baker's Crust) eating a sandwich on their freshly baked sourdough without a care in the world. Slightly tangy, chewy textured, and a nice crisp crust, their sourdough was so good I could have eaten it plain. After taking my first bite of my homemade gf sourdough, I shut my eyes for a minute just to savor the flavor and the chew. It's like I was back in Baker's Crust eating that same bread again. Then I opened my eyes and looked again at the bread I had just made.
I was in an alternate reality because it sure looked just like the bread from that local restaurant, not at ALL like a gluten free version. And the texture was so spot on with what I remember! Isn't it crazy how memories of food we used to eat can stick so vividly in our minds, especially because we can no longer have those things?!?!
I promise you're going to love this bread, and any other breads you decide to make sourdough. Once I made one loaf, I was addicted and couldn't seem to stop baking ALL THE SOURDOUGH!!
ingredients needed to make the best GF sourdough of your life
- Gluten free sourdough starter--you obviously will need a starter and my easy gluten free sourdough starter requires no daily feedings and no daily discard once it's established. What's more, it can hang out in the fridge until you're ready to feed and use it.
- Baking powder--you can leave it out and the bread will still be delicious. You just might not get quite as much oven spring. You can also use regular baking powder, but my preference is to use heat-activated baking powder (affiliate link) because you get maximum oven spring. More on that below.
- Psyllium husks--another optional ingredient, but it lends a better ability to shape the dough. Without it, you may have some trouble with stickiness.
helpful tools for getting started
- Digital kitchen scale -- this is the hill I will die on. The kitchen scale hill. Please, just do yourself a favor and buy a cheap kitchen scale and start using it. You will thank me profusely. The accuracy and ease is bar none.
- Stand mixer -- a great stand mixer is an investment, but it's one that will last a long, long time (mine is still kickin' after nearly 30 years!). A Danish dough whisk can be substituted with a little more elbow grease, but you'll get the best results with a stand mixer.
- Dutch oven -- until I tried it, I didn't know the advantage of using a Dutch oven. But once I tried it, I'll never go back. It holds in the steam for maximum oven spring. There are circumstances where a Dutch oven just won't do, though (think baguettes), in which case the second best option is a pizza steel, pizza stone, or overturned baking sheet set on your middle rack with a shallow heat-proof pan on the rack below this. Hot water is poured into the shallow pan, which creates steam for good oven spring.
- Bread lame -- it's not absolutely necessary, but a bread lame is a great tool for scoring your sourdough. I started scoring with a serrated knife, but I found I got better results with a lame.
- Banneton basket -- these little baskets are perfect for shaping and getting those beautiful lines on your finished bread (and they're fairly cheap), but another alternative is an high-temperature-oven-safe bowl, such as a Pyrex bowl, lined with a tea towel will also do.
Tips for Making Gluten Free Sourdough Bread
When first starting my venture into the gluten free sourdough world, I knew the best recipe to begin with was my gluten free artisan bread. It's easy enough to make and it already has a good crust and nice texture.
But the first thing I needed to do was research, research, research. I knew nothing about baking sourdough, gluten free or not! And once I understood a little more, I started experimenting. And here's a few things I've learned along the way:
- Gluten free sourdough bread isn't as involved as its gluten-filled counterpart. What I mean by this is there is a lot of stretching and folding the dough when making regular (gluten-filled) sourdough bread. That doesn't work for gluten free dough (there's not enough stretch). So the hands-on time is exactly the same as in any of my bread recipes (very minimal).
- Sourdough takes longer to rise. I usually let most of my dough bulk ferment for roughly 2 hours. When making sourdough, however, this may increase to 3-4 hours (or more). And still, it won't have as much bulk rise as its commercial yeast counterpart.
- Completely optional, but adding baking powder to the dough increases its oven spring. And specifically adding heat-activated baking powder (affiliate link) will allow the baking powder to lay dormant until the dough hits the hot temperature of the oven.
how to make sourdough
- If you haven't yet made your gluten free starter, go to my sourdough starter post and get that going. It takes at least 10 days (or longer, depending on the time of year/temperature). Feed your starter with 50 grams of whole grain flour and 50 grams of water. Stir and adjust with more water if necessary. Allow it to almost double in size (depending on the thickness, it may not completely double), which will take 8-10 hours on average.
- When your starter is ready, make the dough. Add all ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on medium high for 5 minutes. Cover and proof for 3-4 hours, or until puffed. Refrigerate overnight.
- When ready to shape, knead dough on well-floured surface. Shape into boule or batard (or whatever shape your banneton basket is--if using). If not using a banneton, shape and place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Cover and let rise until almost doubled in size.
- Halfway through proofing, place a Dutch oven in your oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
- Carefully flip dough over onto a sheet of parchment and slash with a bread lame (affiliate link).
- Carefully lower shaped dough into hot Dutch oven with parchment and replace lid.
- Reduce heat to 450 degrees F and bake for 40 minutes with the lid on and 20 minutes with the lid off.
Rather Watch?
Timelines for Feeding Your Starter and Making Sourdough
There are a few different ways to make this bread that will fit into anyone's schedule. Pick the one that works best for you.
The Night Before Feeding
- Feed the starter directly from the fridge and replace the lid. Leave it on the counter all night long.
- In the morning, make your dough. Return the rest of the starter to the fridge until the next time you bake sourdough.
- Bulk ferment your dough for 3-4 hours, then refrigerate overnight.
- The next morning, shape dough, proof, and bake.
Morning Feeding
- Remove the starter from the fridge and allow it to warm up at room temperature before feeding it (a couple of hours).
- Feed your starter and allow it to nearly double in size, which can take up to 6-8 hours or more.
- In the evening, make your dough and return the rest of your starter to the fridge.
- Bulk ferment your dough for 3-4 hours, then refrigerate overnight.
- The next morning, shape dough, proof, and bake.
help! I fed my starter and now I have to leave
No worries. If you fed your starter and find that you unexpectedly have to go out, just put it in the fridge until you return. As long as the starter has been fed within 2 weeks, you can use it directly without needing to feed it again. However, if your starter has become too thin and inactive, this method will not work. That's why it's always best to err on the side of creating a thicker starter.
Why is Your Recipe in Grams and Not Cups?
When it comes to gluten free sourdough baking, or any baking for that matter, it is really essential to have the proper measurements for each ingredient. The only way to assure this is by weight and not volume. One person's cup measurement could be a little different than another person's. By weighing ingredients, every person will always get the same exact ingredient amounts, which makes for better baking overall and easier troubleshooting if something goes wrong.
To Use a Dutch Oven or NOT To Use a Dutch Oven
I had tried baking bread in a Dutch oven previously, but it never really got to the height it did when I used the hot water technique in a shallow pan (see my original gf artisan bread post). But for sourdough, I really wanted to try it.
I bought myself this (affiliate link) 5 quart fairly cheap Dutch oven and set out to bake a great loaf of gf sourdough. And it did NOT disappoint!!!!! I am completely sold on the Dutch oven method. I now use a larger 6-quart Dutch oven because I find it offers less chance to get burned. If you don't have a Dutch oven, don't fret. You can still bake wonderful gluten free sourdough using the shallow pan hot water technique.
To use this technique, simply place a baking steel or stone or even an overturned baking sheet on the middle rack of your oven and a heat-resistant shallow baking pan (I use an old broiler pan) on the rack below it. Preheat your oven with both items in the oven and when ready to bake, slide the shaped dough (on a sheet of parchment) onto the baking steel/stone/pan and pour one cup of hot water into the shallow pan underneath. Close the door, drop the temp to 450 as per recipe instructions, and continue baking for 60 minutes total.
gluten free sourdough frequently asked questions
Sourdough bread is NOT gluten free, unless you make it with a gluten free starter and gluten free flours. While traditional sourdough breaks down some of the gluten in the bread, making it easier to digest, it is not gluten free and not safe for celiacs or anyone with a serious gluten intolerance.
There could be a few reasons, the top two being you didn't allow it to cool completely before cutting into it or you didn't bake it long enough. Most gluten free breads do best with a longer bake time than regular (wheat-based) breads.
Stash it in the fridge, where it will sit comfortably in limbo while awaiting your return. Guess what? As long as your starter is nice and strong, it will actually stay ready for up to TWO WEEKS!!
Not at all. Just pull it out, feed it with 30-50 grams of whole grain flour and 40-60 grams of water and it will revive right up. I once left mine in the back of my fridge for over 3 months and it was still alive and well after feeding!
How to Turn Any of My Breads into Sourdough
This gluten free artisan sourdough bread is just the beginning to a whole new gluten free world. There are many other breads that can be made using a sourdough starter instead of yeast with simple steps:
- Use 60 grams of gluten free sourdough starter as a replacement for the yeast in the recipe.
- Reduce the flour in the recipe by 30 grams and the liquid also by 30 grams. However, if adding anything else to the dough, such as nuts, seeds, etc, do not reduce the water content at all. I like to pre-soak my nuts and seeds overnight so they don't soak up much of the water in the dough. But I still leave the liquid content the same as some water will inevitably be lost.
- Add more time to bulk fermentation, as well as proofing. Sourdough always takes longer to rise than instant yeast.
- For more of an open crumb, add ¼ to ½ teaspoon of baking soda when kneading the dough before shaping (just make sure to knead it in well or your baked bread will have brown streaks in the interior). It's not conventional, but we can't always do the conventional thing when baking gluten free.
Can I Add Nuts or Seeds or Dried Fruit to My Sourdough?
Yes! Adding things like nuts, seeds, or dried fruit to bread is a great way to get extra nutrients and texture. I love a good seeded bread and sourdough is the ultimate seeded bread. See my Gluten Free Multigrain Seeded Bread recipe for ideas on how to do this (you will need to soak them prior to adding to the dough).
Hopefully your starter is bubbling away and you can now make your Perfect Gluten Free Sourdough Bread and be amazed that it's actually gluten free!
Best Ever Gluten Free Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
- 390 grams Kim's gluten free bread flour blend (another blend will not give the same results)
- 60 grams gluten free sourdough starter (mature and ripe)**
- 5 grams whole psyllium husks or 1½ teaspoon psyllium husk powder (not required, but it will help with the stretch of the dough)
- 6 grams (1 tsp) kosher salt
- 10 grams (2 tsp) heat-activated baking powder (optional, but improves the crumb structure) (regular baking powder can also be used with less open crumb structure)
- 390 ml water
- 26 grams olive oil
- 21 grams honey
- ¼-½ teaspoon baking soda, added during kneading and shaping, if desired (optional) (do not use this if already using baking powder in the dough) (see notes)***
Instructions
Feed the Starter
- When ready to feed your starter, remove it from the fridge and feed it with 30-50g of a whole grain flour of choice (see notes*) and 30-50g of water. Stir and cover tightly. Leave on the counter until nearly doubled in size.
Make the Dough
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the water, olive oil, honey, gf bread flour blend, psyllium husks, baking powder (if using), salt, and active starter. Knead using the dough hook for 5 minutes on medium high. Alternatively, the dough can be mixed in a large bowl using a Danish dough whisk or similar, but you will need to mix very vigorously to get the proper texture.
- Cover the dough and allow it to rise in a warm, draft-free area until puffed, but not doubled in size, about 3-4 hours (sourdough always takes longer to rise). Place the puffed dough in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and turn it out onto a surface well-floured with extra gf bread flour blend. If using baking soda, add ¼-½ teaspoon to top of dough and begin kneading dough until smooth. (Don't be afraid to add enough flour to shape the dough into a smooth shape).
- Form into a round and turn over into a floured banneton basket or in a floured tea towel-lined bowl. Cover and allow it to rise until dough reaches the top of the banneton or bowl, anywhere from 2-6 hours (this time varies because of temperature differences, humidity, etc).
- Towards the end of the rising time, place a Dutch oven with lid (or baking steel or stone and shallow pan) into the oven and preheat it to 500° F for 30 minutes.
- When the dough has finished rising, carefully flip it out onto a sheet of parchment paper and slash (score) it with a lame or sharp serrated knife. Open the oven door, carefully place the loaf in the Dutch oven, parchment and all, and replace the lid. Alternatively, slide the loaf, parchment and all, onto a baking steel or stone and pour one cup of hot water into the shallow pan. Immediately close the oven door and drop the temperature to 450° F. Bake the bread for 40 minutes. If using a Dutch oven, remove the cover and continue to bake for another 20 minutes. If using a baking steel or stone, bake the bread for the full 60 minutes.
- Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool before slicing.
Sarah says
Hi Kim,
Have you ever tried putting it back in the fridge after its proved in the banneton?
I'm in the middle of making this recipe now. I normally make wheat sourdough and I'm used to cold ferment being the last step which gives it a nice oven spring too.
Looking forward to the result!
Kim says
I haven't, but I'm sure it would work just fine 🙂
Nancy says
Tried this recipe for the first time, following it mostly to the letter (except mixing it with a food processor, as I don't have a stand mixer).
Changes: When I made the flour blend, I used brown rice flour as I didnt have any white. And I used guar gum instead of xanthan. My result looked great, like a real artisan style loaf. The taste is good. But it's very heavy and dry. I felt that the baking time was too long (60 minutes as directed) and it seems over-baked. I checked the temperature at least 10 minutes prior to the end and it was 205, which was likely done at that point. Was that why it is dry, or due to the brown rice flour?
Kim says
I have never used guar gum, but subbing the brown rice flour AND the guar gum is most likely your problem. Overbaking wouldn't make it heavy. Heaviness can be due to a number of different reasons, such as overproofing or underproofing, improper ingredients (such as in your case), improper measuring or not using a scale to measure accurately, etc.
Anna says
I have everything except a stand mixer. Is there another way like a good ol stir and hand kneading that will work? I've been making gluten-free sourdough successfully doing this with a different recipe and, I use my Corelle Visions glass pot with lid to bake in. It works very well. Thanks for your recipes.
Nancy Brown says
I don't have a stand mixer either and just used my food processor.
Kim says
That works too, Nancy 🙂
Kim says
Hi, Anna! You can certainly try it and I don't see why it wouldn't work if you put enough muscle into it. If you happen to have a Danish dough whisk, they definitely help when mixing dough by hand. But either way, as long as the ingredients get very well mixed together, it should be fine 🙂
Chelsey says
Please don’t switch forms of measurement ESPECIALLY for the water in the middle of a recipe!!!!! Ughhh! 🤦♀️
Kim says
I don't know what you're talking about. Can you please elaborate?
Anna says
maybe referring to this:
390 ml water
26 grams olive oil
1 mL equals 1 g when measuring pure water.
Kim says
I'm sorry, Chelsey! I didn't realize I did that, but either way the water is the same in grams as it is in milliliters. I will change it, though, to reflect grams.
Thomas W Eaton says
Okay! I watched your video, "Gluten Free Sourdough bread 2.0 in which you demonstrate how to make a sourdough starter that appears to only take 24 hours to proof. It looks like just what I need so tried to find the recipe on your website but all I could find was a starter recipe that takes several days to proof. I'd like to try that but I just don't have time right now. How can I get the new recipe?
Kim says
I'm sorry. I think you got a little confused by the video. The bread itself (not the starter) only takes 24 hours to proof, but in order to make any sourdough bread, you first need to create a sourdough starter, which can take anywhere from 7 days to 14 days, depending on the air temperature and a few other factors. Once you have a sourdough starter established, you will then feed it (as I show at the beginning of the video) and use it to make whatever bread you're making.
Nicole says
Hi there, I'm planning to use this recipe for my first ever sourdough attempt. Should the honey be melted?
Kim says
I'm not sure where you are, but where I am most honey is runny and doesn't require melting. If yours is thick, then you could melt it.
Cindy says
This is delicious as all of your recipes are! Thank you for all the research and work you do for your recipes! Do you it would be possible to double this recipe?
Kim says
Awe, thank you so much!
I honestly haven't tried it, but I see no reason why it wouldn't work!
Tamara says
I doubled the recipe with no problem!
Brooke says
Loved the recipe and fun to make! My bread turned out very dense/heavy with no air even though I followed the recipe and instructions closely.
I made one batch of your bread flour and used 390g in the initial dough. Then when kneading and shaping the dough before rising, I ended up adding the remaining bread flour mix in order to get a cohesive dough that was not sticky. Was this too much flour? I also didn't get much of a rise. Any tips?
Kim says
I'm so sorry it took me so long to respond. My dad passed away and I got behind on answering comments and questions.
Sometimes if your gf sourdough starter is too thin, it will cause the dough for the bread to be sticky. Something I have to ask is did you use my flour blend? Or did you substitute anything within my flour blend? If you don't use a superfine or ultrafine rice flour, your dough will be sticky.
Lori Wolfe says
I made it and it is great! Entire family loved it! But is it 6 grams of salt? I used 12g and it was still great. Also, for the dough, is it 60 total grams of starter after feeding the starter? or is it 60 grams plus the feed of 30-50g gf flour and water? Thank you!
Marco says
Hi Lim, I tried your sourdough bread and while it tastes great, one issue I found is that the inside of the bread remains very doughy, even after cooking it for 70 minutes. Do you have any suggestions on why that might be the case?
Thak you for your help
Annette Moss says
I have made your sd 2 times and still ends up with hole inside. I kneaded til a smooth boule and added generous amount of flour. My starter is 4 months old and was very bubbly. I also made your flour exactly blend exactly to the gms specified. Could you troubleshoot and see what other variables may be causing this issue please?
Kim says
How large is the hole? It might just be your shaping technique, but without being there with you it's hard to troubleshoot.
Amanda Palumbo says
A hole is usually too much water in my experience. Lose 5ml and see what happens next time.
Kim says
It might have been under proofed or over proofed.
Stephanie says
Delicious! Even with the 12 grams of salt. It didn't rise much which many of you stated it was the salt amount error but thankfully it turned out and is delicious! There is no mention of how to store (not much left, lol). Would like to know if it should be left out or refrigerated. I know gluten free is different. Thanks for a fantastic recipe!
Kim says
So glad you liked it! I never store my breads in the fridge. It tends to dry them out. I leave them at room temperature and either place them in a plastic bag or wrap them in plastic wrap or foil, but for longer storage it is ideal to slice them and freeze individual slices.
Rebecca Klein says
I replaced the water with whey and used cup for cup flour. It was amazing how well this bread tasted! It was super sticky when hot from the oven, but 20 minutes cooling later it was the perfect texture! The only problem was we ate it too fast! I wish I could post a picture!
Kim says
I'm going to try that next time I make ricotta cheese and have tons of leftover whey! Thanks for the great idea 🙂
Becky says
PLEASE READ
I have had many wonderful bakes from you. I think your genius! However, the print out recipe has a typo. Your video shows and says 6 grams salt, but the print out says 12 grams. The bread will not rise if you add 12 grams. You deserve all reviews to be 5 star, I fear all the fails are because of this error. I have tried to reply to some issues.
Kim says
Thank you so much, Becky, for your diligence about this and getting this info to me! I really truly appreciate it and I will correct it on the written recipe now 😍
KARL D. DUVALL says
Question- xanthan gum is shown in the picture but I can't find mention of it anywhere else. How much xanthan gum?
Kim says
I'm so sorry, Karl. That was a mistake in the picture. Please use the recipe ingredients and don't go by the picture. I will see about replacing that picture (if I can figure out how to do that, haha!)
Alessandro says
Well Kim, I am happy to report that despite our incredulity, your recipe worked and the resulting bread was not only fluffy and beautiful, but also pretty damn good! And I am a bit of a spoiled person when it comes to bread - I bake my own wheat sourdough and enjoy every aspect of it. However my wife doesn't digest gluten all that well and for that reason she has been eating GF bread for quite some years now. She also makes her own but never tried the sourdough way or shaped, free-standing loaves. So we decided to try and apart a few substitutions (used albumin instead of whey isolate and forgot about the baking powder in the kneading stage) the bread came out very nice. So thank you very much for sharing the result of your efforts with us all!
A tip for those who don't have access to a banneton: we used one of those ice cream boxes, slightly greased in sunflower oil and dusted with whole rice flour. The box is inexpensive, comes with a lid, and the rounded corners on the bottom give the loaf a nice shape. Also, if you don't have a dutch oven or a Le Creuset casserole, you can use any heavy steel pot with a lid (see that it has no plastic or wood parts) or oven safe glassware the likes of Pyrex (provided it has a lid). The bonus of glassware is that you get to see the oven spring in real time, which is so nice).
Kim says
So glad to hear your wife liked it!!
Joy says
I absolutely love this bread, however I would like a more sour taste. Is there a way to create a stronger sour flavor? Maybe a preferment?
Kim says
Check out this post: https://www.pantrymama.com/how-to-make-sourdough-more-sour-a-guide-to-getting-more-tang-in-your-bread/
Mia says
Tastes good. Mine is never rising properly 😭
Do you think adding some conventional yeast to the mixture (as well at the full 60g sourdough starter) would help? 🤔
Becky says
I have had the same problem after 2 very successful bakes. I then realized that the printable recipe has an error. In the video, she says 6 grams salt but in the written out one she put 12 grams salt. Too much salt will kill the rise. Since correcting my print out, I have had successful bakes once again. Hope this helps.
Kim says
You could try, but please understand that sourdough always takes longer to rise. I just made a loaf of sourdough the other day and, even though it's summer, because we keep our house at 72 degrees F, it took overnight on the counter to rise. So patience is key here. But you are definitely welcome to adding regular yeast if you'd like.
ash says
hi there, the first step says to “ Feed the Starter… with 30-50g of a whole grain flour of choice”. wouldn’t that make this not gluten free? how can i substitute the whole grain flour for a gluten free one without messing up the starter? thanks!
Kim says
There are many whole grain flours that are gluten free. See the list within the post itself.