Learning Objective
Learn the technique of incorporating a 'soaker' into this multi-grain and seeded sourdough loaf.
This 5-Grain Sourdough loaf recipe has very kindly been given to us, for our Sourdough School students, and is from The Perfect Loaf: The Craft and Science of Sourdough Breads, Sweets and More by Maurizio Leo.
Maurizio Leo is an author and software engineer-turned-baker who has baked sourdough bread for over ten years in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. He created The Perfect Loaf blog in 2013 to share his passion and lessons learned when baking sourdough from home.
Maurizio grew up in an Italian household, and life revolved around good food made by hand. Whether it was the pizza and pasta his father cooked at his restaurant or the gnocchi and risotto his mother and grandmother prepared at home, he was imbued with an appreciation for homemade food that takes time to prepare – slow food. At The Perfect Loaf, he marries his analytical side and entrenched value for good food, to share his journey in baking naturally leavened sourdough.
5-Grain Sourdough recipe from The Perfect Loaf by Maurizio Leo.
![](https://thesourdoughclub.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/5-grain-loaf-0702_Leo_-9780593138410_art_r1.tif-low-res-copy.jpg)
A nourishing bread brimming with grains, seeds, and even a pseudo-cereal.
If you count the wheat and rye flours in this recipe, it should probably be called a seven-grain sourdough. To confuse things further, the name is kind of a misnomer anyway because I like to include flaxseed and buckwheat, both of which are not technically considered grains at all (flaxseed is, of course, a seed, and buckwheat is a pseudo-cereal). But these two are so nutritious and flavorful, they deserve a place in this wholesome bread. What this bread has in naming issues, it more than makes up for in flavor and healthfulness. It’s an incredibly flavor-forward loaf that is hearty and toothsome—the perfect bread for a thick minestrone.
Feel free to swap out any of the “grains” in the soaker for whatever you might have in your pantry. Instead of cracked spelt you could use cracked wheat or other grain, and instead of steel-cut oats you could use rolled oats or even flaked or rolled barley.
Baking Timeline
- Levain – 12 hours
- Mix
- Bulk fermentation – 3 hours, 30 mins
- Divide, preshape, bench rest – 35 mins
- Shape
- Proof – 19 hours (overnight)
- Bake – 55 mins
Total: 36 hours
Vitals
Total dough weight 1,800g
Pre-fermented flour 9.7%
Levain 17.3%
Hydration 85.0%
Yield Two 900g loaves
Total Formula
Weight – Ingredient – Baker’s %
606g White flour (~11.5% protein) 70.0%
130g Whole rye flour 15.0%
130g Whole wheat flour 15.0%
43g Whole spelt, cracked 5.0%
43g Steel-cut oats 5.0%
35g Polenta 4.0%
35g Buckwheat groats, cracked 4.0%
17g Flaxseeds 2.0%
736g Water 85.0%
16g Fine sea salt 1.8%
8g Ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration 0.9%
Additional Ingredients
Instant or old-fashioned rolled oats, for topping (optional)
Leaven Ingredients Bakers %
42g White flour(~11.5% protein) 50.0%
42g Whole rye flour 50.0%
42g Water 50.0%
8g Ripe sourdough starter 10.0%
100% hydration
- Prepare levain and soaker
Duration: 12 hours at warm room temperature: 74°–76°F (23°–24°C)
- Mix the levain: Warm or cool the water to about 78°F (25°C). In a medium bowl, mix the levain ingredients until well incorporated. Use your hands to knead the mixture until all dry bits of flour are incorporated (this stiff levain will feel strong and dry). Transfer the levain to a jar and loosely cover. Store in a warm place for 12 hours.
- Prepare the soaker: In a small heatproof bowl, combine the 43g cracked spelt, 43g oats, 35g polenta, 35g cracked buckwheat, 17g flaxseeds, and 173g boiling water. Stir well and let cool. Cover and set aside at room temperature until called for in bulk fermentation.
Dough Ingredients
564g White flour (~11.5% protein)
88g Whole rye flour
130g Whole wheat flour
521g Water
16g Fine sea salt
134g Levain
- Mix
Desired Dough Temperature (DDT): 78°F (25°C)
- Check the levain: It should show signs of readiness: well aerated, risen, soft, sticky, and an assertive sour aroma. If the levain is not showing these signs, let ferment 1 hour more and check again.
- Mix the dough: Warm or cool the water to about 78°F (25°C). In a large bowl, add the flour, water, salt, and ripe levain. Using wet hands, mix the ingredients until well incorporated.
- Strengthen the dough: With wet hands, use the slap and fold method [see book)] for about 5 minutes to strengthen the dough. The dough should look smooth and begin to hold its shape. If it is still shaggy and loose, continue to strengthen for a few more minutes, but don’t worry if it doesn’t smooth out completely. Transfer the dough back to the bowl or another container for bulk fermentation.
- Measure the temperature of the dough: Compare it to the DDT and record it as the final dough temperature. Cover the dough.
- Bulk fermentation
Duration: About 3 hours 30 minutes at warm room temperature: 74°–76°F (23°–24°C)
Folds: 3 sets of stretches and folds at 30-minute intervals
- Set the timer and make a note: Write down the current time as the start of bulk fermentation, set a timer for 30 minutes, and let the dough rest in a warm place.
- Add the grain soaker and stretch and fold: When your timer goes off, spread about one-quarter of the grains evenly over the dough. Using wet hands, pick up one side of the dough and stretch it up and fold it over. Spread another one-quarter of the grains over the top. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and perform another stretch and fold. Evenly spread on another one-quarter of the grains. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn, perform a stretch and fold, and spread on the remaining grains. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and perform the last stretch and fold. The dough should be folded up neatly. Cover and repeat these folds every 30 minutes for a total of 3 sets of stretches and folds.
- Let the dough rest: After the last set, cover the bowl and let the dough rest for the remainder of bulk fermentation, about 2 hours.
- Divide and preshape
- Check the dough: At the end of bulk fermentation, the dough will have risen significantly; it may have bubbles on top and at the sides, it should look smoother and less shaggy, and at the edge of the dough where it meets the container, it should dome downward. If you wet a hand and gently tug on the surface of the dough, it will feel elastic and cohesive, resisting your pull. If you don’t see dough that’s airy, strong, and “alive,” leave it for another 15 minutes in bulk fermentation and check again.
- Divide and preshape the dough: Using a bowl scraper, gently scrape the dough onto a clean work surface and use your bench knife to divide the dough directly in half. Using your bench knife in your dominant hand and with your other hand wet to reduce sticking, shape each piece of dough into a loose round. [for Preshaping, see book for more detail.] Let the rounds rest for 35 minutes, uncovered.
- Shape
- Prepare the proofing baskets: Line two proofing baskets or bowls with clean kitchen towels. Dust lightly and evenly with white flour.
- Shape the dough: Shape each as a boule or a bâtard [see book for more details].
- Add the topping (optional but recommended): Spread an even layer of oats in a sheet pan or on a clean kitchen towel. After shaping each piece of dough, quickly roll the top side in the oats so they stick. [See Add Toppings to Your Bread Dough, in the book for more detail.] Gently transfer each piece to a proofing basket, seam-side up. Place each basket inside a reusable plastic bag and seal.
- Proof
Duration: About 19 hours (overnight) in a home refrigerator: 39°F (4°C)
- Let the dough proof: Place the baskets in the refrigerator to proof overnight.
- Bake
Duration: 50 to 55 minutes in the oven
- Prepare the oven: Place an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven with no rack above it. Place a Dutch oven/combo cooker inside the oven and preheat to 450°F (230°C) for at least 30 minutes. [Alternatively, bake directly on a baking stone/steel; see book or more for details.]
- Score the dough: Take one of the proofing baskets out of the fridge, uncover, and put a piece of parchment paper over the basket. Place a pizza peel or inverted sheet pan on top of the parchment and, using both hands, flip everything over. Gently remove the basket and score the dough. [For Scoring, see book for more details.]
- Bake the dough: Slide the dough into the preheated Dutch oven and cover with the lid. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the lid. Continue to bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 206°–210°F (96°–99°C) and the crust has a deep mahogany color and a crackle/crunch when gently squeezed.
- Finish and cool: Let the loaf cool on a wire rack for 1 to 2 hours before slicing. For the second loaf, preheat the Dutch oven or baking surface for 15 minutes and repeat.
How to tinker
Sift and scald
To open the interior on this loaf, after making your levain use a sifting screen to sift the larger bran and germ pieces from the whole wheat flour. Transfer the bran and germ pieces left in the sifting screen to a heatproof medium bowl and set the bowl on a scale. Tare the scale and pour in boiling water just until it has covered the grain pieces. Stir well. Write down how much water you used to scald the grain and deduct that amount from Water 1 in the recipe. Be sure to do this sifting and scalding at the same time as you make the levain to give the mixture time to cool before you add it to the dough. During bulk fermentation, spread the mixture over the dough and work it in during the sets of stretches and folds.
The Perfect Loaf: The Craft and Science of Sourdough Breads, Sweets and More by Maurizio Leo.
Maurizio Leo’s blog The Perfect Loaf
You can follow Maurizio here on Instagram @maurizio and here @maurizio on Facebook.
Find additional recipes by Maurizio here at Food52
The Perfect Loaf Copyright © 2022 by Maurizio Leo. Photographs copyright © 2022 by Aubrie Pick. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House.
Sourdough School students can view Vanessa Kimbell and Maurizio Leo In Conversation talking about everything sourdough and The Perfect Loaf book.
Learning Outcome
Understanding the technique and that a soaker can be a mix of grains and seeds or a single variety of grain or seed that is mixed with water and left to soak for several hours before being added to bread dough. It is a great method for adding whole grains and seeds to your bread making it more nutritious and tasty.