Tools you might need
Tools you can and can’t bake without!
You need a few select items when you’re starting out with sourdough baking. There’s also a few items you might feel you can’t live without once you get them. Soon they’ll start cluttering your kitchen and your spouse might start to complain (until you bake your first awesome sourdough bread!).
I started out with a few items already, a large mixing bowl, a wooden spoon, measure cups, glass jars and a dough-scraper all of which I had gathered during the years. However there were some items that I really needed and I’ll list those first, then I’ll tell you a bit more about what you might want to get next.
There’s always going to be cheap and expensive tools out there, pick whichever fits your specific use case. Most work just as well for baking, but if you’re into instagramming or showing off, then you might want to go for some designer tools 🙂
Things you definately need
Mixing Bowl
Your trusty old mixing bowl. With or without a lid.
You might want to get one that holds at least 4 litres (approx. 4 qt), should be enough for most doughs. Can be used for proofing.
This one right here is Allehanda from IKEA with a lid which can be opened for whipping cream or to give the dough some air.
Wooden Spoon
Not much to say about a wooden spoon really. It gets the mixing job done. It’s usually only used in the first part of the mixing process, then rest is done by hand or by machine.
You can buy spoons like that more or less anywhere. This one is Rört, from IKEA.
Glass Jar
You need a glass jar to hold the sourdough starter. I usually switch between two jars when I need to wash one of them or need to make two starters. Don’t forget to remove the airtight seal if you close the lid on the starter or you might be in for a suprise.
This one here is 1 litres or 1 quarter, named Korken, from IKEA.
Kitchen Scale
The kitchen scale is probably the most important thing in my kitchen while baking anything. I’ve tried using measure cups for flour but it’s just not the same and it actually takes longer that way.
The scale needs to be big enough to fit a bowl and still be able to read the display and be able to zero out anytime – which lets you measure things in a bowl. The most important thing of course is that it measures correctly and has at the most 1 gram resolution.
I can’t specifically recommend a kitchen scale at this time. The one I have is no longer sold anywhere. Just make sure to get one with the above specifications at least.
Dough Scraper or Rubber Spatula
You need a tool to scrape the dough off from the mixing bowl without breaking all the gluten strands. You can either get a rubber spatula, which is what I started out with (and still use) or you could get a dough scraper which is more or less like a bench scraper but plastic and bendable.
This one is a spatula from IKEA, named Gubbröra.
Things you might want to get next
Bench Scraper
A bench scraper is needed to cut the dough if you’re making more than one loaf and it’s also used for lifting the dough while pre-shaping and shaping.
I don’t really have any recommendations here. There are plastic or rubber-coated ones as well, but I use one that looks like this one here. Search for bench scraper or dough cutter!
Thermometer
If you’re starting out it might be easier for you to stick a thermometer in the bread to make sure it’s perfectly baked. When you get to know your bread, you can usually see when it’s done and also tap the bottom of it which should sound hollow.
This one, Fantast from IKEA, should do the job.
Proofing Basket
The proofing basket is used to give your dough some support while proofing in the fridge. It will hopefully keep the shape you want.
There’s alot of different proofing baskets, shapes and sizes. If you bake loafs around 1kg then you need to get a proofing basket which supports 1kg – not more or less!
Some proofing baskets come with a cloth liner. It’s mostly for appearance, with a cloth liner the surface of the dough will be smooth, without it you’ll see the round lines from the basket. However, I prefer to use a liner or linen cloth as the dough doesn’t get stuck as much.
No recommendations on where to buy, you can find them almost everywhere.
Baking Steel or Baking Stone
Another item that I can’t live without anymore is my baking steel. It allows my loaves to rise quickly during the first 10-15 minutes and bakes them much quicker than with your common baking tray.
I chose baking steel instead of a stone due to the risk of cracking the stone, but also because the steel is lighter when I need to move it. It’s only 6mm thick and weigh’s around 6 kg.
The one I got (not in the picture) is from Pizzasteel.com and I bought a great combo there with 2 pizza peels and a dough cutter. I can highly recommend it!
Razor Blade
A sharp razor blade might be needed if you’d like to start scoring your bread with something other than a straight line.
When I started out I was using a sharp kitchen knife, but upgraded to using a bread lame with a double sided razor. Now I’m just holding the razor blade between my fingers while scoring as it feels easier.
Double sided razor blades are everywhere. Get a pack of 5 or 10, they’ll last a long time.
Conclusion
This concludes my guide to which tools to get, when and why.
Did I miss any important tool or are you missing any information? Give me some feedback in the comments and I’ll update the list!