Many people believe sourdough is a type of bread but it's actually an ancient breadmaking technique, says sourdough expert Maya Handley,
After years living in the US, Maya - a former fashion photographer - now runs the Auckland bakery Florets.
Maya first started baking sourdough bread for her family and friends while living in New York, studied the process and eventually decided to become a full-time baker when she moved back to New Zealand.
After a couple of years delivering sourdough loaves around Auckland, Maya opened Floret last December.
Maya Handley - owner of Florets Photo: Supplied
The sourdough process - developed by Ancient Egyptians around 1,500BC - was the predominant method of breadmaking until only around 200 years ago when the much-quicker baker's yeast method took over, Maya tells Jesse Mulligan.
These days, most bread is made with baker's yeast or a combination of baker's yeast and sourdough.
But for people who are not celiac or gluten-intolerant, pure sourdough bread is easier to digest and more nutritious than bread made with baker's yeast.
"The sourdough breadmaking process unlocks the nutrient potential in grains. It dramatically changes the way we can digest bread and how we can receive the nutrients from the grains."
The three key benefits to eating sourdough - over bread made with baker's yeast - are that it's lower in sugar and gluten and higher in minerals and vitamins, she says.
Part of Maya's motivation for opening Floret, which is in the Auckland suburb of Grey Lynn, was to make fresh handcrafted, nutritious bread available to local communities.
But she says anyone can make great sourdough at home - with a bit of patience and perseverance.
Making your own sourdough 'starter' takes 1 to 2 weeks and all you need is flour and water.
If you mix 50 grams of flour with 50 grams of water (Florets uses filtered tap water), within a few days you'll start noticing that it's bubbling, Maya says.
"That means the yeast is producing carbon dioxide and that's the beginning of your culture."
It's then time to divide the starter and add more flour and water.
"With every [flour-and-water] feed in that beginning stage, you're strengthening the concentration of yeast and bacteria so that you have a strong enough culture after a week or two to leaven the bread."
You can tell when your dough is ready to bake by dropping a spoonful in a glass of water, Maya says. If it floats, there's enough carbon dioxide content for it to rise in the oven.
When you're starting out, stick to one recipe so you get to know how it should feel when it's ready to bake, she says.
Every style of bread dough has a slightly different feel which you can get to know only by making it over and over again.
"That's quite a key moment when you know it's ready to go in the oven and it's quite a delicate feel", Maya says.
Related listening:
- Sourdough 101 (This Way Up)
- The Shelly Bay Baker on sourdough science and breaking bread at home (Saturday Morning)
