Spelt and Wheat with Sourdough

Anyone comfortable with rye sourdough eventually wants to try spelt and wheat loaves. They're airier, have a more open crumb, and a thinner, shatteringly crisp crust. But they're more demanding: wheat sourdough needs to be more active, the dough needs more attention – and timing is critical.

The Difference from Rye

Wheat flour and spelt flour form a gluten network – which makes them completely different from rye:

• Rye: barely any gluten, the dough is sticky and holds its shape thanks to mucilage (pentosans)
• Wheat/spelt: lots of gluten, the dough can be folded, stretched, and shaped
• Wheat sourdough is less sour than rye sourdough – milder in flavor

What this means in practice: wheat and spelt doughs want to be folded, not kneaded. And over-proofing comes faster and is more damaging than with rye.

Building a Wheat Starter

If you've only worked with rye starter so far, you can convert your starter to wheat – or maintain a wheat starter alongside it.

Converting:

1. 1 tbsp rye starter + 50 g wheat flour type 550 + 50 g water
2. Feed fresh daily, for 2–3 days
3. From day 3–4 onward, wheat microbiology dominates

Wheat levain (preferment): Many bakers use a special "levain" – a well-active wheat preferment used shortly before its peak. Produces a milder, more complex flavor.

Basic Recipe for Wheat Sourdough Bread (1000 g dough)

Levain (8–12 h before baking)

• 10 g wheat starter
• 50 g wheat flour type 550
• 50 g water (28 °C)

Mix, let ripen for 8–12 h at 22–26 °C – it must be active and risen.

Autolyse (30 min before mixing)

• 350 g wheat flour type 550 or 812
• 50 g whole wheat flour
• 280 g water (30 °C)

Mix flour and water roughly, let rest for 30–60 minutes. Autolyse develops gluten without any mechanical energy.

Main Dough

1. Add the levain to the autolyse mixture, knead briefly
2. Add 9 g salt + 10 g water, work it in
3. Folds instead of kneading (see below)

Folding Instead of Kneading: The Technique

Wheat dough doesn't need intensive kneading – it's strengthened through regular stretching and folding.

Coil fold (the simplest method)

1. Grip the dough from underneath with wet hands and lift it up
2. Fold it forward, turn the bowl
3. Work all 4 sides = 1 round
4. 4 rounds in the first 2 hours, every 30 minutes

Lamination (for open crumb)

• Stretch the dough out on a dampened work surface (very thin)
• Fold it up like a letter
• Do this once during bulk fermentation

After folding: the dough noticeably tightens and becomes less sticky. That's the gluten network.

Spelt: Special Considerations

Spelt is delicate and popular – but its gluten is weaker and tears more easily than wheat's.

Important rules for spelt:

• Don't overknead: the gluten network tears under too much mechanical handling
• Use less water than with wheat (spelt dough tolerates about 5–10% less hydration)
• Shorter bulk fermentation – spelt over-proofs faster
• Cold proofing recommended for more control

Good spelt flours:

• Spelt flour 630 – light loaf, mild
• Spelt flour 1050 – more flavor, a bit more rustic
• Whole spelt flour – maximum flavor, denser crumb

Crumb Structure: Why Some Loaves Are Airier

An open crumb (large, irregular holes) is the goal for most home bakers. It comes from:

1. An active sourdough – not overripe, but well active
2. High hydration (75–80% for wheat)
3. Careful folding – a good gluten network
4. Good shaping – tension in the dough piece
5. Baking in a Dutch oven – traps moisture for better oven spring

Final Proof and Baking

Cold proofing (recommended)

• Put the shaped dough piece into the floured proofing basket
• Cover and refrigerate for 10–16 hours
• Go straight from the fridge into the hot Dutch oven

Baking in the Dutch Oven

• Preheat to 250 °C, at least 45 minutes
• Score the dough piece (important for wheat/spelt – see the article "Shaping & Scoring Bread")
• 20 min with the lid on → 20–25 min without the lid at 220 °C

Typical Mistakes with Wheat/Spelt

Dough spreads flat → Too little tension when shaping, or over-fermentation → proof for a shorter time, shape it tighter

Crust is pale and soft → Baking temperature too low, or opened too early → keep the Dutch oven closed longer

Dense, gummy crumb → Sourdough not active enough, or taken out of the oven too early → check the internal temperature (must reach 96–98 °C)

Conclusion

Wheat and spelt sourdough loaves take a bit more attention than rye breads – but they reward you with a spectacular crust, open crumb, and a mild, layered flavor. Once you understand the technique, you'll want to bake them again and again.