When I first started baking all I wanted to make was a sourdough bread with a thin and crispy crust, but every time all I got was a thin soft crust, or a thick and hard crust, but never the crispy crust that I wanted. So I started experimenting until I finally managed to make the perfect crispy crust that I always wanted. Here is how I did it.
To make sourdough bread with a crispy crust, you need the crust to be thin and rigid. To obtain those characteristics you need to have enough water in the dough, let the dough ferment for a long period of time, have a lot of steam in the oven, and bake the bread at the right temperature.
It might sound a little complicated at first, but it’s actually quite easy. So let’s see how you can obtain the perfect crispy crust.
The 2 Things That You Need for a Perfect Crispy Crust
Bread crust has two main characteristics: thickness and flexibility.
So a crust can either be thin or thick, and rigid or flexible. And depending on which combination of characteristics your crust has it will be soft, crispy, chewy, or hard.
Here are all the possible combinations:
- A thin crust that is rigid will result in a crispy crust.
- A crust that is thin and flexible will make a loaf with a soft crust.
- If a crust is thick and rigid it will result in a loaf with a hard crust.
- And finally, a thick crust that is flexible will result in a chewy crust.
And here is a simplified version:
- Thin + Rigid = Crispy Crust
- Thin + Flexible = Soft Crust
- Thick + Rigid = Hard Crust
- Thick + Flexible = Chewy Crust
Now we are going to see what you have to do to obtain a thin and rigid crust, but if you want to try out other types of crust, let’s say soft, for example, you simply do the opposite thing at the part that influences the rigidity.
1. Fermentation Time
To put it simply, the longer your dough ferments the thinner the crust will be.
This is because during fermentation the dough develops an aerated protein structure, which in turn memes the exterior of the dough caramelizes as the vapor exits the loaf. This means that due to the long fermentation process sourdough bread naturally tends to have a thin crust. Especially when compared to commercial bread that uses yeast, which doesn’t need as much time to ferment to make the bread rise.
So if your sourdough bread comes out with a thick crust you might want to let it ferment for longer periods of time.
The second fermentation is also a very important aspect that influences the thickness of the crust. Putting the dough right when it reaches the fermentation peak will result in a thinner crust.
2. Steam Is Essential for a Crispy Crust
For a thing crispy crust make sure that you have enough stem, you can increase the steam in the oven using:
- A dutch oven
- A water sprayer
- A tray with water
- Ice cubes
While the loaf is baking the water inside it heats up and transforms into steam, which quickly escapes from the bread.
This escape of steam is what causes the loaf to rise. And this rising will continue until the crust is formed. When the crust gets hard enough the steam from inside the loaf won’t be able to get past it as easily and the loaf will stop rising, and the crust will start to get thicker.
So, as long as the crust is not formed, the bread will continue to rise by releasing steam, which in turn slows the formation of the crust, which means a thinner crust, which is what you want for a crispy crust.
Adding more water to the dough now is not an option since it basically changes the recipe completely and the dough might not rise. But there are other things that you can do to obtain a soft flexible crust.
A Dutch Oven. Dutch ovens are very popular amongst sourdough bakers because they are the best at stopping the steam from escaping into the surrounding. The only problem is that they are not exactly cheap, but if you have some money to spare they will be a great addition to your kitchen (and not only for sourdough bread).
Spraying Water. A simple thing that you can do to keep the crust from forming too soon is to occasionally spray the loaf with water while it’s baking. This technique is a staple when making french bread and baguettes, and it’s used for the same reason, to stop the dough from forming a crust too soon. All you need is a spray bottle and some water. When using this method I usually spray the loaf every 10 minutes, until the crust is completely formed.
A Tray With Water. The simplest thing that you can do is to place a tray with some water in it at the bottom of the oven. This is guaranteed to keep the environment moist, thus slowing down the formation of the crust, resulting in a more flexible crust.
Ice Cubes. One of the most efficient ways to increase the steam in the oven is to place a tray with ice cubes (5 or 6 medium-sized cubes should be enough) in the lower half of the oven, right when you put the bread in the oven. The reason why ice cubes are more efficient than the spraying bottle and the tray filled with water is the big difference in temperature, which will produce steam quicker and more efficiently..
Out of the 4 methods that I mentioned I would say that the most efficient one is the dutch oven, followed by the ice cubes. The other two methods, while they are not bad, are simply not as efficient as the other two.
And before moving to the next part, let me give you some instructions on how to use the dutch oven for the best results:
- Preheat your oven with the dutch oven inside of it (without the bread, the dutch oven should be empty),
- After the oven has heated up, spray, or brush some water on your loaf.
- Remove the dutch oven from the oven and remove the lid.
- Very carefully place the bread in the hot dutch oven and palace the lid back on,
- Place the dutch oven back in the oven and leave it there for about 30 minutes.
- Remove the lid of the dutch oven, and let the bread bake a little more.
- When the bread has reached the desired crust, remove it from the oven.
If you follow those instructions you will get the most out of your dutch oven, as well as a nice crispy crust.
3. The Ideal Baking Temperature for a Crispy Crust
For a thin, crispy crust, preheat your oven at the highest temperature possible and when you put the loaf in, reduce the temperature to 430°F (220°C), then reduce it to 375°F (190°C).
There are many ways in which you can cook a loaf, and all of them will result in a different type of crust.
If the temperature is too low the crust won’t harden too quickly but it will be very thick.
If the temperature is very high the crust will form very fast, but the inside of the bread won’t be ready. And while the inside is cooking the crust will only harden and thicken.
Finding the ideal temperature to bake your sourdough bread takes some practice, and requires you to experiment with different temperatures. But overall 430°F(220°C) is considered to be the ideal temperature.
What I found out works for me is to preheat the oven at the highest temperature, and when I put the bread in to bake it I reduce it to 430°F (220°C), and after 10 to 15 minutes I reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C).
This way the bread will have a good initial rise, due to the high temperature that helps the steam form faster, baking at 430°F (220°C) for a while will make sure that the interior heats up enough so that the crust won’t thicken. And then reducing the temperature to 375°F (190°C) will ensure that the crust will be nice and crispy.
Here is a simplified version:
- Preheat the oven to the highest temperature.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes at 430°F (220°C)
- Reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C) for the rest of the baking process.
Side Note: It’s important to remember that not all ovens are the same, so depending on your oven the amount of time that you have to bake the bread might slightly vary.
4. The Hydration Level of the Dough
The more water you have in the dough, the thinner the crust will be.
The amount of water that you’ve put in the dough will drastically influence the thickness and flexibility of the crust.
The more water you have in the dough the more steam it will produce in the oven, and the more steam you have the thinner the crust will be.
Most recipes are thought of in such a way that the crust will be either thin or thick, and while it’s ok to adjust the recipe by adding a little more water to it, sometimes it’s simply better to look for a new one. But before looking for a new recipe first try to add a little more water to it and see if you can get the crispy crust that you want.
The Size of the Loaf Drastically Influences the Crust
Smaller loaves have a thinner crust.
Another thing that drastically influences the thickness of the crust is the size of the loaf. The bigger the loaf is the longer it will have to stay in the oven, so the crust will only get thicker and thicker.
Loaves that are too big are also the reason why a lot of people burn their bread in the oven.
So instead of making one big loaf of sourdough bread, try making 2 or 3, and you will see a huge difference in the thickness of the crust.
Ingredients to Avoid if You Want a Crispy Crust
While traditionally sourdough is made using only starter, flour, water, and salt, some people, including myself, like to add a few extra ingredients to mix things up from time to time. This is perfectly fine, but if you want a crispy crust, there are some ingredients that you should avoid.
Among the most frequently extra ingredients used for sourdough bread that you should avoid are butter, milk, yogurt, and oil. And the reason for this is that they contain fat, which will soften up the bread and the crust.
Things like olives, nuts, and seeds are ok. While they do contain oil, the oil inside of them won’t spread too much through the bread so it won’t affect the crust.
Another thing that you should avoid is sugar. While in small quantities, like half a teaspoon, won’t soften up the crust, anything more will soften up the crust. The same thing applies to honey.
How to Cool Your Loaf So That the Crust Won’t Go Soft
So you’ve managed to bake a sourdough bread with an amazingly crispy crust. Now all you have to do is to make sure that the crust stays that way, and doesn’t go soft.
The best way to do this is to use a cooling rack and place it in a room with low humidity at room temperature.
If you don’t have a cooling rack you can always use something else, like the wire rack from the oven, or palace it on an upside-down glass. Right now, what you are looking for is to reduce the contact surface of the bread.
If you were to place your bread to cool on the counter directly, a large part of the loaf will be in contact with the counter and the bottom part will be covered in steam, which will make that part less crispy, it will thicken the crust, and you will have to wait longer to for the bread to cool down.
If there is a lot of humidity in the room where you let your bread rest, the humidity in the air will soften the crust. So if you are using your kitchen to make soup, for example, it’s better to let your bread cool somewhere else.
A lot of people also let their bread cool down in front of an open window, or in a room with a lower temperature. And while this will definitely cool down the bread faster it will also stop the cooking process. A sourdough bread is not completely cooked when you take it out of the oven, despite the fact that it looks that way. The interior is mostly raw, this is why you shouldn’t try to hurry things up. It’s best to leave your bread to cool down on its own at room temperature.
It’s extremely important to let your bread rest, and a lot of people don’t give their bread enough time, and this results in mostly raw bread. If you want to know how long you should let your sourdough bread rest, I made a dedicated article on this subject where I give the exact time periods, for different sizes and different types of flour. Here is a link to the article: How Long Should I Let My Sourdough Bread Rest? (+Pictures), for this article, I also made a few loaves of sourdough and cut them without letting them rest properly, and in the pictures, you can see how massive the difference is.
Final Thoughts
There you have it, 4 easy steps to make any sourdough bread have a crispy crust.
Basically, if you want to make a crispy crust you have to make sure that crust is thin and rigid.
The thickness of the crust is mostly controlled by the fermentation time and the amount of steam that is in the oven, as well as the amount of water found in the dough.
The rigidity of the crust is mostly influenced by the amount of heat in the oven, and how much time it spends in there.
When I want to make sourdough bread with crispy crust here is what I do:
- Preheat the oven at the highest temperature
- Place some ice cubes in a tray
- Spray some water on top of my loaf
- Place the ice cubes on the lowest level of the oven
- Put the bread in the oven
- Reduce the temperature to 430°F (220°C)
- After 15 minutes reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C)
- Wait for the bread to bake
- Place the loaf on a cooling rack and let it rest for 3 hours