Tried sourdough with a 50% whole wheat blend and it turned into a brick

I thought I'd get fancy and swap half the white flour for whole wheat in my usual sourdough recipe last weekend. The dough felt super stiff from the start and barely rose after 4 hours of proofing. I baked it anyway and ended up with a loaf that could probably break a window. Turns out whole wheat soaks up way more water than I expected, and I should have added maybe an extra 50ml to the hydration. I've been baking sourdough for about a year, but this was a total fail. Anyone else run into this when messing with flour ratios?

3 comments

3 Comments

young.kim2d ago

60% hydration with whole wheat is a recipe for disaster, I learned that the hard way too. Did you autolyse the whole wheat flour separately before mixing in the white flour and starter? I've found that pre-soaking the whole wheat for 30 minutes helps the bran absorb water and gives the gluten a fighting chance.

jenny_hall2d ago

The last time I tried pre-soaking whole wheat, I left it for an hour, got distracted watching a bread fail compilation on YouTube, and came back to a bowl of bran soup. But seriously, that 30 minute soak tip is a lifesaver - my dough went from a sticky brick to something I could actually stretch without crying. Funny how the simplest tweaks make you feel like a professional baker when you're really just barely avoiding another flat loaf disaster.

drewgonzalez2d ago

Pre-soaking the whole wheat for 30 minutes helps the bran absorb water" - that's the part that finally clicked for me after three sad loaves. @jenny_hall mentioned almost missing that soak window, but honestly even 15 minutes is better than nothing if you're in a rush. I started doing it while I get my starter ready and it made such a difference in how the dough handles during stretch and folds.