Wholemeal Sourdough Bread

Directions
Preparation:1hour  ›  Cook:55min  ›  Extra time:8days  ›  Ready in:8days2hours55min 

1. Sourdough Starter: A week before, prepare the sourdough. In a loosely covered bowl, combine 1 tablespoon wholemeal flour and 1 tablespoon water and mix together. Leave at room temperature.
2. Once every day for 7 days add more flour and water and stir well. Soon you will see bubbles of gas forming, as the wild yeasts and bacteria in the air and on the flour begin to multiply in the bowl. After one week, the starter can be stored in the fridge in a large jar. It should be a thick liquid of approximately half flour and water.
3. You will need to add more flour and water every time you take some out for making bread. Give it a good mix. Don't leave the starter too long without using and feeding. The starter never seems to go moldy, if kept fed and watered regularly. Don't tighten the lid of the jar as carbon dioxide needs to escape slowly.
4. Breadmaker: Add flour to the breadmaker then add the oil, ground caraway seeds, water, lemon juice and yogurt. Add 2 tablespoons sourdough starter to the mixture.
5. Switch on the breadmaker, choose the dough mode and press start.
6. When the dough cycle has finished tease the sticky dough out of the tin, then sprinkle with flour and knead the dough a little. Take out the paddle from the tin before replacing the dough back in the breadmaker as it leaves a gash in the bottom of the baked loaf.
7. Set the breadmaker to "bake" mode for 55 minutes.
8. Mixer: Add flour to the mixer bowl then add the oil, ground caraway seeds, water, lemon juice and yogurt. Add 2 tablespoons sourdough starter to the mixture. knead the dough in the mixer using a dough hook, add more water if the mixture is too dry. Knead for 5 minutes.
9. Place the kneaded dough into an oiled bowl then cover it with oiled tin foil and let it stand at a warm place for at least 8 hours or overnight, until doubled in size.
10. Re-knead the dough and put back in the bowl and cover with oiled tin foil to avoid it drying out and leave for another 1 to 2 hours to gradually rise again.
11. Set the oven to 175 degrees C and put the loaf in the oven for a 55 minutes. When the loaf is cooked, stand it on a wire mesh to cool down and allow the crust to dry.
12. By Hand: Add flour to a bowl then add the oil, ground caraway seeds, water, lemon juice and yogurt. Add 2 tablespoons sourdough starter to the mixture. Combine and knead by hand, add more water if the mixture is too dry. Knead for 5 minutes.
13. Place the kneaded dough into an oiled bowl then cover it with oiled tin foil and let it stand at a warm place for at least 8 hours or overnight, until doubled in size.
14. Re-knead the dough and put back in the bowl and cover with oiled tin foil to avoid it drying out and leave for another 1 to 2 hours to gradually rise again.
15. Set the oven to 175 degrees C and put the loaf in the oven for a 55 minutes. When the loaf is cooked, stand it on a wire mesh to cool down and allow the crust to dry.

Amount of Water

I suggest adding only 250ml of the water first as you don't want the dough to be too wet and sticky. Sourdough gets very sticky. The exact amount of water to add will vary depending on the exact amount of lemon juice and yogurt added, how runny the sourdough starter and yogurt are and the type of flour.