You need seven things to bake a good sourdough loaf: a scale, a bowl, a starter jar, a basket (or a bowl and towel), a bench scraper, a blade and a pot with a lid. Everything else makes it easier, and much of it is already in your kitchen.
The short list: a digital scale that reads in 1 g steps, a large bowl or clear tub, a quart jar for the starter, a 9 in banneton (or a bowl lined with a floured towel), a bench scraper, a lame or razor blade, and a 5 to 5.5 qt Dutch oven. For a first loaf, only the scale is hard to replace.
Each pick names the exact model we profile or a model bakers commonly buy, with what you can use instead. Start with the first group; add the rest when a bake shows you need it.
Sourdough is measured in grams, and salt and starter are small amounts. The pull-out display stays readable under a big bowl.
Already own something? Any kitchen scale that reads in 1 g steps and holds 5 kg. Cups are too rough for bread.
A clear, straight-sided tub with a lid lets you see the dough rise during bulk fermentation, which is how you know when it is done.
Already own something? Any large bowl covered with a plate or a shower cap. Mark the starting level with tape.
3. Starter jar
32 oz (about 950 ml), wide mouth
Room for a 100 to 200 g starter to double, a mouth wide enough for a spoon, and clear glass so you can see the bubbles and the rise.
Already own something? Any clear jar of about 1 quart with a loose lid. Put a rubber band at the level after feeding.
4. Proofing basket
About 500 to 800 g of dough (our estimate)
A basket holds the shaped loaf's shape while it proofs. For the common 900 g loaf, a 9 in round basket is the safest size; this 8.5 in one suits loaves up to about 800 g.
Already own something? A bowl about 8 to 9 in across, lined with a smooth kitchen towel dusted with rice flour.
Divides dough, lifts it off the counter while shaping, and cleans the board in one sweep.
Already own something? A thin metal spatula or a large knife for dividing; your hands for everything else.
A scored loaf opens where you cut it instead of bursting at the side. The curved setting gives the raised ear bakers look for.
Already own something? A new double-edged razor blade held at a low angle, or a very sharp serrated knife.
7. Dutch oven
About 750 to 1,000 g of dough (our estimate)
A preheated lidded pot traps the loaf's own steam, so the crust stays soft long enough for the loaf to rise in the oven. Five quarts fits a 750 to 1,000 g loaf (our estimate).
Already own something? A baking sheet with a deep roasting pan turned over the loaf, or a baking steel with steam.
Tells you the water and dough temperature, which decides how long bulk takes, and the loaf's center temperature when it is done.
Already own something? Any probe thermometer that reads to 1°F.
Bowl scraper
Flexible plastic, curved edge
Gets every gram of sticky dough out of the bowl and helps with stretch and folds.
Already own something? A silicone spatula.
Dough whisk
Stiff coiled wire on a wooden handle
Mixes flour and water into a shaggy dough without clogging like a balloon whisk.
Already own something? A wooden spoon or one wet hand.
Bread knife
10 in wavy-edge blade
A long serrated blade saws through a hard crust without crushing the crumb.
Already own something? Any serrated knife at least 2 in longer than the loaf is wide.
Holds the dough at a set proofing temperature (70 to 95°F with the water tray), so bulk runs at a steady pace in winter and summer alike.
Already own something? The oven with only the light on, checked with a thermometer.
Fits round and oval loaves up to about 1,500 g (our estimate) and loads from the side, but you lift heavy cast iron.
Lets you bake two small loaves, baguettes or pizza with strong bottom heat.
How we know: weights and sizes are the makers' published figures, linked from each product page, and a dough range marked “our estimate” is our arithmetic on them. We do not perform hands-on testing. How we compare.
Your first loaf needs a scale, a bowl, a jar for the starter and an oven. A bowl and a floured towel stand in for a banneton, a razor blade for a lame, and a covered roasting pan for a Dutch oven. Buy the scale first: every sourdough recipe is written in grams, and a 10 g error in salt or starter is easy to make with spoons.
Buy the Dutch oven second. It makes the biggest single difference to how much a loaf rises and how its crust colours, and a 5 quart cast-iron pot is the size most recipes assume.
The same dough can finish bulk fermentation in 4 hours on a warm day or take nearly 8 on a cool one, depending on its temperature. A thermometer tells you which day you are having. Aim for dough at about 75 to 78°F (24 to 26°C) after mixing; the water temperature calculator tells you how warm the water should be to get there, and the bulk fermentation chart shows how long the rise takes at each temperature.
A proofing box is worth it once you bake every week in a cold or very warm kitchen. Before that, the oven with the light on and a thermometer does the job.
Most home sourdough recipes make one loaf of 750 g to 1 kg of dough. That loaf fits a 9 in round basket, a 10 to 12 in oval basket, and a 5 to 5.5 qt Dutch oven. If you double the recipe, you need two baskets and either two bakes or a bigger pot. Find your total dough weight with the baker's percentage calculator, then check the basket and pot with the banneton size calculator.
| Dough weight | Round basket | Oval basket | Dutch oven |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 to 750 g | 8 in | 10 in | 4 to 5 qt |
| 750 to 1,000 g | 9 in | 12 in | 5 to 5.5 qt |
| 1,000 to 1,250 g | 10 in | 12 to 14 in | 6 to 7 qt |
A baking steel or stone, a second basket for a bâtard, a bread lame with replacement blades, linen couche cloth for baguettes, a proofing box, and a bread box or bag for storage. Add them when a recipe asks for them or a bake shows a gap, not because a list says so.
Feed the starter in its jar the night before. Weigh flour, water, starter and salt on the scale, mix in the bowl, and let bulk fermentation run in the tub. Turn the dough onto the counter, divide and shape with the bench scraper, and proof it in the basket. Score it with the blade, bake it in the preheated Dutch oven, and cool it on a rack for at least an hour before slicing with the bread knife. The bread timeline planner works out when each step happens.
A digital kitchen scale that reads in 1 g steps. Every sourdough recipe is written in grams, and flour measured in cups can vary by 20% or more.
No, but it is the easiest way to get a tall loaf with a crisp crust. A baking sheet with a roasting pan turned over the loaf, or a baking steel with a tray of boiling water for steam, also works.
No. A bowl about 8 to 9 in across, lined with a smooth towel dusted with rice flour, holds a 900 g loaf just as well. A banneton gives the ringed flour pattern and dries the surface slightly, which helps scoring.
A 5 to 5.5 qt round pot for the usual 750 to 1,000 g loaf; a 6 to 7 qt pot for bigger loaves. See Dutch oven sizes by dough weight.
