Sourdough Glossary: Essential Bread-Baking Terms Explained

The Sourdough Process in Twelve Terms

Before diving into the full glossary, here is the entire process in the order you will normally encounter it.

Starter preparation: bringing your starter to an active state before baking.
Feeding: giving the starter fresh flour and water.
Peak: the point when the starter is near its highest and most active.
Autolyse: resting flour and water before adding starter and salt.
Mixing: combining the autolysed dough, starter, salt, and any remaining water.
Bulk fermentation: the main fermentation of the dough before shaping.
Folding: stretching and folding the dough to build strength.
Pre-shape: gently organising the dough before its final shape.
Bench rest: letting pre-shaped dough relax.
Final shaping: creating the loaf’s final form and surface tension.
Final proof: the last rise after shaping.
Scoring, baking, and cooling: cutting the loaf, baking it, and waiting for the crumb to set.

Starter and Fermentation Terms

Active starter: A starter that has recently been fed and is visibly fermenting. It should show bubbles, clear growth, and usually a slightly domed surface. An active starter is better able to raise bread dough than one taken directly from the fridge and used immediately.
Discard: The portion of starter removed before a feeding. Removing some starter keeps the total quantity manageable and allows the remaining culture to receive enough fresh flour and water.
Feeding: Adding fresh flour and water to a starter. Feeding provides new food for its yeasts and bacteria and begins another cycle of fermentation and growth.
Feeding ratio: The proportion of starter, water, and flour used during feeding. A ratio of 1:3:3, for example, means one part starter, three parts water, and three parts flour by weight.
Fermentation: The biological process in which yeasts and bacteria consume carbohydrates and produce gases, acids, and flavour compounds. Gas helps the dough rise, while acids contribute flavour and influence dough structure.
Inoculation: The amount of starter or levain introduced into a dough or feeding. More inoculation usually makes fermentation begin faster; less inoculation generally produces a slower schedule.
Levain: A portion of starter prepared specifically for a bake. Some bakers use levain and starter interchangeably. Others reserve levain for the build that goes into the dough and starter for the culture they maintain between bakes.
Mature starter: An established starter that rises reliably after feeding. A mature starter is not merely old; it is stable enough to produce repeatable fermentation over several feeding cycles.
Peak: The point when a starter reaches or approaches its maximum height after feeding. Near peak, it is usually full of bubbles, well risen, and slightly domed. Once it passes peak, the surface flattens and the starter begins to fall.
Preferment: A mixture of flour, water, and a fermenting culture prepared before the final dough. Levain is the sourdough form of a preferment. Yeasted equivalents include poolish and biga.
Starter rise time: The time between feeding a starter and reaching the desired level of activity. Temperature, feeding ratio, flour, hydration, and starter condition all affect this duration.
Sourdough starter: A living culture of flour and water containing wild yeasts and lactic-acid bacteria. It ferments dough without commercial baker’s yeast and contributes acidity and flavour.
Starter hydration: The amount of water in a starter relative to its flour. A starter made with equal weights of water and flour has 100% hydration. Lower-hydration starters are firmer; higher-hydration starters are looser.
Starter level mark: A line, elastic band, or piece of tape placed at the starter’s level immediately after feeding. It makes the amount of growth easier to judge.
False rise: A dramatic early rise sometimes seen during the first days of creating a new starter. It does not necessarily mean the starter is mature. A new starter is more trustworthy when it rises consistently over several feedings.

Dough and Ingredient Terms

Aliquot jar: A small sample of dough placed in a narrow container and marked at its starting level. Bakers use it to estimate how much the main dough has expanded during bulk fermentation.
Ash content: A flour measurement describing the mineral material left after a laboratory sample is burned. Higher ash values often indicate that more of the grain’s outer layers remain in the flour.
Autolyse: A rest after mixing flour and water, usually before adding starter and salt. It allows flour to absorb water and begins gluten development with very little physical work.
Baker’s percentage: A way of writing recipes in which the total flour is always 100%. Every other ingredient is expressed as a percentage of that flour weight. A dough with 700 g water and 1,000 g flour has 70% hydration.
Bassinage: Holding back part of the water and adding it later during mixing. This can make a wet dough easier to combine and lets the baker adjust its consistency gradually.
Bread flour: Wheat flour intended for bread making, usually with enough protein to create a strong gluten network. Exact protein levels and naming conventions vary by country and mill.
Dough hydration: The total water in the dough expressed as a percentage of total flour weight. Lower-hydration doughs feel firmer and are usually easier to shape. Higher-hydration doughs feel wetter and often require stronger flour and more confident handling.
Dough strength: The dough’s ability to stretch, hold gas, and maintain its shape. Strength develops through flour selection, hydration, mixing, folding, fermentation, and time.
Dough temperature: The temperature of the dough during fermentation. Warmer dough generally ferments faster, while cooler dough ferments more slowly. Recording temperature helps explain why identical recipes can follow different schedules.
Extraction rate: The percentage of the original grain that remains in the finished flour. Higher extraction usually means more bran and germ are retained.
Final hydration: Hydration calculated using all flour and all water in the finished dough, including the flour and water contained in the starter or levain.
Flour strength: A flour’s ability to form dough that can stretch and retain gas. Protein percentage provides a clue, but it does not describe flour strength perfectly on its own.
Gluten: The elastic protein network formed when wheat flour is hydrated and worked. It allows dough to stretch and trap the gas created during fermentation.
Gluten development: The process of building and organising the dough’s gluten network. Mixing, folding, resting, and fermentation all contribute to it.
High-hydration dough: A relatively wet dough. There is no universal percentage at which dough suddenly becomes “high hydration,” because different flours absorb water differently. Around 70% and above often feels wet to a new baker.
Protein percentage: The amount of protein listed for a flour. Higher-protein wheat flour often creates stronger bread dough, although protein quality and flour processing also matter.
Salt: An ingredient that adds flavour, strengthens dough, and moderates fermentation. It should be distributed evenly throughout the dough.
Whole-wheat flour: Flour containing the bran, germ, and endosperm of the wheat grain. It adds flavour and nutrients, absorbs more water, and can make dough feel heavier or stickier.
Rye flour: Flour made from rye. It can ferment quickly and contribute strong flavour, but it does not build the same elastic gluten network as wheat flour.

Fermentation, Folding, and Shaping Terms

Bench rest: A short rest after pre-shaping and before final shaping. It allows the gluten to relax so the dough stretches more easily and resists less during shaping. The dough does not literally need to rest on a bench.
Bulk fermentation: The main fermentation period after mixing and before shaping. “Bulk” means the dough is still fermenting as one mass. Folding usually happens during the earlier part of this stage.
Coil fold: A gentle fold in which the dough is lifted from the middle and allowed to tuck underneath itself. It is particularly useful for wet or delicate dough.
Degassing: Removing gas from dough by pressing or handling it. Some degassing happens naturally during shaping, but aggressive handling can remove more gas than intended.
Division: Separating a batch of dough into portions for multiple loaves. It is unnecessary when the entire dough will become one loaf.
Fold: A strength-building action in which part of the dough is stretched and folded over itself. Folds organise the gluten network without requiring prolonged kneading.
Folding window: The early part of bulk fermentation during which folds are performed. After the final fold, the dough normally continues fermenting without further handling.
Final proof: The final rise after shaping and before baking. It can happen at room temperature, in the fridge, or as a combination of warm and cold stages.
Final shaping: Giving the dough its final loaf shape while creating enough surface tension to help it hold form and rise upward.
Lamination: Stretching dough into a thin sheet and folding it back together. Some bakers use it to build strength or distribute inclusions such as seeds, cheese, or dried fruit.
Overproofed: Dough that has fermented beyond its ideal final-proof point. It may feel very weak, spread easily, collapse when pressed, or show limited expansion in the oven.
Poke test: A rough readiness check performed by gently pressing the dough. Dough that springs back immediately may need more time. Dough that returns slowly and keeps a slight dent is often ready. Dough that collapses may be overproofed.
Pre-shape: A gentle first shaping that organises the dough before final shaping. It creates light tension and makes the final shape easier to build.
Proofing: The rise of shaped dough before baking. In everyday recipes, “proofing” usually means the final proof, although some people use the word more broadly for any dough rise.
Retard or retarding: Deliberately slowing fermentation with cold temperature. A cold final proof in the fridge is often called an overnight retard.
Stretch and fold: A fold performed by lifting one side of the dough, stretching it, and folding it toward the centre. The bowl is rotated and the action is repeated around the dough.
Surface tension: The gentle tightness created around the outside of a shaped loaf. Good tension helps the dough hold its form, but too much tension can tear its surface.
Underproofed: Dough baked before the final proof has progressed far enough. It may spring back very quickly when pressed and can produce a dense crumb, uneven tunnels, or uncontrolled tearing.
Warm proof: A final-proof stage carried out at room temperature or another relatively warm location. It proceeds faster than cold proofing and therefore needs closer observation.
Cold proof: A final-proof stage carried out in the refrigerator. It slows fermentation, makes scheduling easier, and often makes chilled dough easier to score.
Windowpane test: Stretching a small piece of dough until it forms a thin membrane. If it stretches without tearing immediately, the gluten network has developed. Sourdough does not always need a perfect, transparent windowpane before bulk fermentation begins.

Scoring and Baking Terms

Baker’s lame: A handle that holds a razor blade for scoring bread. The word is pronounced roughly like “lahm.” A bare razor or another very sharp blade can also be used carefully.
Banneton: A basket used to support shaped dough during final proof. It is also called a proofing basket. A towel-lined bowl can serve a similar purpose.
Covered bake: Baking the loaf inside a covered pot for the first part of the bake. The cover traps steam released by the dough and keeps the crust flexible while the loaf expands.
Dutch oven: A heavy oven-safe pot with a lid, often made from cast iron. It creates a small enclosed baking chamber that traps steam around the loaf.
Ear: The raised flap of crust that can form along an angled score. It is an aesthetic feature rather than a requirement for good bread.
Expansion score: The main functional cut that gives the loaf a controlled place to open as it expands in the oven.
Open bake: Baking bread without covering it with a pot. Steam must usually be introduced separately during the early part of the bake.
Oven spring: The rapid expansion that happens during the early part of baking. Heat expands trapped gases and increases yeast activity briefly before the loaf’s structure sets.
Scoring: Cutting the surface of shaped dough immediately before baking. The cut directs expansion and reduces random tearing.
Steam: Moisture kept around the loaf during the early part of baking. Steam delays crust setting so the bread can expand before the surface becomes firm.
Steam tray: A heat-resistant metal tray used to create steam during an open bake. Hot water is added carefully after the dough enters the oven. Steam and heated metal can cause serious burns, so the setup must be handled cautiously.
Uncovered bake: The later stage of pot baking after the lid is removed. Moisture can escape, allowing the crust to brown and become crisp.

Crumb, Crust, and Result Terms

Blistered crust: A crust covered with small bubbles or blisters. These often appear after long or cold fermentation and are mostly an aesthetic feature.
Crumb: The inside of the bread. Bakers assess its softness, moisture, elasticity, flavour, and pattern of holes.
Crumb structure: The size, distribution, and character of the holes inside a loaf. A useful crumb should suit the bread rather than simply contain the largest possible holes.
Crust: The browned exterior of the loaf. Baking time, temperature, moisture, and cooling affect its thickness and crispness.
Dense crumb: A crumb with small, closely packed holes. It may be intentional, especially in whole-grain or lower-hydration bread, or it may indicate weak fermentation or insufficient dough strength.
Fool’s crumb: A crumb containing a few very large tunnels surrounded by dense areas. It can look dramatically open at first glance but often indicates uneven fermentation or underproofing.
Gummy crumb: A sticky or rubbery interior that may cling to the knife. Possible causes include cutting the bread too early, underbaking, excessive moisture, or fermentation problems.
Open crumb: A crumb with relatively large and irregular holes. It is desirable in some styles of bread, but it is not the universal measure of a successful loaf.
Tight crumb: A crumb with many small, evenly distributed holes. It can be ideal for sandwiches and spreads and is not automatically a defect.
Well-risen loaf: A loaf that has gained good height and volume. It reflects the combined effects of starter activity, fermentation, dough strength, shaping, proofing, scoring, and baking.
Wild tearing: Cracks that appear away from the intended score. They can occur when the score is too shallow, the surface dries out, or the loaf enters the oven underproofed.

Commonly Confused Sourdough Terms

Starter vs levain

Your starter is the culture you maintain over time. A levain is often a portion prepared specifically for one recipe. Many bakers use the words interchangeably, so context matters more than winning the terminology argument.

Bulk fermentation vs final proof

Bulk fermentation happens after mixing and before shaping. Final proof happens after the loaf has been shaped.

Pre-shape vs final shape

Pre-shaping gently organises the dough. Final shaping creates its finished form and builds stronger surface tension.

Fermentation vs proofing

Fermentation is the broad biological process happening throughout the dough. Proofing usually refers to the rise after shaping.

Dough hydration vs starter hydration

Dough hydration describes the water and flour in the entire dough. Starter hydration describes only the water and flour inside the starter.

Hydration vs feeding ratio

Hydration compares water with flour. A feeding ratio describes starter, water, and flour, such as 1:3:3.

Cold proof vs cold fermentation

A cold proof is specifically the refrigerated rise after shaping. Cold fermentation is a broader term that may describe any fermentation slowed with refrigeration.

Open crumb vs good crumb

An open crumb is simply one style of crumb. A good crumb is one that suits the bread you intended to make, tastes good, is properly baked, and is pleasant to eat. A loaf does not need holes large enough to store loose change.

Do You Need to Know All of This?

Absolutely not.

For a first loaf, the most important terms are: active starter, peak, autolyse, hydration, bulk fermentation, folding, shaping, final proof, scoring, and cooling.

The rest becomes useful naturally as you bake, compare results, and start wondering why one loaf rose beautifully while the next one behaved like an edible doorstop.

Put the Vocabulary into Practice

Crumblytics guides you through each stage of a sourdough bake, records your timings and ingredients, and helps you compare the result with previous loaves.

Start a guided bake in Crumblytics