I had been experimenting with making bread without using either baker’s yeast or a starter. It is possible, because a small amount yeast is naturally in the air & on the flour itself. Not using yeast to make bread is a simple process but it takes quite a bit of time for the dough to be ready & I usually use two days. The length of resting is dependent on factors like temperature, just like the resting/proving with any other bread recipe.
I prefer working with at least some whole grain flour because, beyond reasons of taste, whole grains provide extra food for the dough, same idea with using whole wheat flour when making a starter, but not necessary.
Ingredients:
300 grams all purpose flour
100 grams whole grain flour
250 grams warm water
8 grams salt
Mix the ingredients and mix until it forms a dough and knead the dough in the bowl. The amount here is not going to produce a very wet dough. Leave it in the bowl.
Rest for 1 and a half to 2 days. Flipping over the dough every 12 hours to check on it. It will start smelling like a sourdough starter. You can tell when it’s ready because it will have noticeable surface bubbles.
When you are ready to bake, take the dough out of the bowl, shape it and put the dough onto a greased pan that has cornmeal sprinkled on it, slash the top.
Heat the oven for 425 F and bake for 40 minutes, up to 8 minutes off the pan.
Once it’s done baking, let it cool for 5 minutes. Also, this what the inside of the bread looks like. Note the air pockets are present even if they aren’t large.
A Pocket Full of Scratch 