Beremeal Sourdough Recipe
by Marie Lester
We’re delighted to share a special recipe for bere sourdough from Marie Lester, a passionate baker who has kindly contributed this tried-and-true favourite. Marie’s beremeal sourdough recipe beautifully celebrates the charm of beremeal, bringing its nutty taste and wholesome texture to life.
A heartfelt thank you to Marie for sharing this wonderful recipe with us! We hope it inspires you to get baking and discover the unique qualities of bere for yourself.
For this bread, Marie milled some bere berries and made a ‘soaker’ with some of the grains.
Milling
I milled some bere berries using a Mockmill, on setting 5. You can, of course, use beremeal milled by Barony Mill.
Soaker
A soaker is when cracked/whole berries (grains) or seeds are soaked in water – often overnight – to soften them. They are also then cooked. I found that an overnight soak was too long so I soak and cook the berries for a shorter time so they don’t have a negative effect on the dough and retain a bit of bite.
The water used in the soaker is part of the total water used for the dough (which is nearing 90% in this recipe).
Flours
Orkney Beremeal is low in gluten so to ensure that the gluten network is robust, in this recipe, the barley is mixed with a bread flour and a Type 2 stoneground wheat flour. You can use a whole grain wheat flour. In this case, sieve out some of the bran – around 20%. Alternatively use a high extraction flour such as a French semi-complete, T80 OR T110, a Ruchmehl type flour OR a very finely-milled whole wheat.
The timings below are based on a kitchen temperature of c20c. If the temperature of your kitchen is hotter or cooler than this, adjust the timings accordingly.
The recipe below makes 2 batards using 500g bannetons
Day 1
Step 1
Ingredients
- 85g bere berries, home-milled on a Mockmill (setting 5) or use beremeal flour from Barony Mill
- 190g high extraction stoneground wheat flour or whole wheat flour, sieved to remove c20% of the bran (see note above)
- 350g strong bread flour
- 25g white spelt
- 9g diastatic malt powder (or 1 teaspoon honey)
- 460g water (lukewarm)
- 45g bere berries plus water for soaking
Method
Begin with an autolysis: weigh out the flours (and malt powder, if using). Stir them together and then add in 460g lukewarm water. If adding honey, dissolve in the water.
Use a Danish whisk to combine and then use a dough scraper to ensure that no dry flour remains at the bottom of the bowl. Rest (autolyse) for 60 minutes to allow the flours and water to bind.
At the same time as the autolysis, soak 45g barley berries in lots of cold water for 90 minutes.
Step 2
Ingredients
- 130g ripe sourdough starter (example feeding ratio 12 hours before – 1:2.5:2.5)
- 10g water
Method
Add the starter to the dough with 10g water and mix until the dough and starter are integrated. Rest for 30-40 minutes.
Step 3
Ingredients
- 13g salt dissolved in 13g water
Method
Dissolve the salt in the water and dimple the salt solution into the dough. Mix for about 4 minutes using the ‘Rubaud’ method – ie scooping the dough from underneath – until the dough is uniform and then rest for 90 minutes.
Cook the Bere Berries: discard the soaking water and add 120g fresh water to the berries in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes or until the water has been absorbed (stir every now and again to ensure that it doesn’t burn on the bottom). Put the bere berries into a bowl, cover loosely and leave to cool until needed (about 2 hours).
Step 4
Perform a coil fold and rest for 60 minutes.
Step 5
Laminate the soaker into the dough (demonstration video).
Lightly mist your work surface, half coil fold the dough onto the work surface and rest for 20 minutes. Then ease out the dough into a small sheet and ‘paint’ the bere berries evenly over it using your fingers. Fold, roll and place in a bowl. Rest for 75 minutes.
Step 6
Perform a coil fold. Repeat 2 more times with an interval of 45-60 minutes in between – with the dough looks relaxed.
Step 7
Rest the dough untouched for c1-1.5 hours until it is ready to be shaped.
Things to look for: the dough will have grown in volume, have fermentation bubbles on the surface and feel very light and airy to the touch (like marshmallow). This takes c7-8 hours from when the starter is added.
Step 8
Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Using a dampened bench knife, divide the dough into two and preshape each piece into a ball. Cover and rest until the dough has relaxed (c30 minutes).
Step 9
Ingredients
- Brown rice flour for dusting
Lightly dust the top of each dough ball and the work surface with brown rice flour. Gently shape each dough into a batard (scan QR code or @marielesterbaker Instagram reel of 20/11/24).
Place the dough into a lightly-floured 500g banneton and cover. Rest until proofed (c30 minutes). The ‘poke’ test helps you to tell when this is. Prod the dough gently. The dough will ping back very slowly when proofed (total ambient bulk should be around 8 hours).
Place the bannetons into the fridge overnight (fridge temperature: 5C).
Day 2
Ingredients
- Ice cubes for baking
Preheat a Dutch oven (DO) in your oven for 60 mins at 250C/480F/Gas mark 9.
Remove the bannetons from the fridge. Turn each dough out onto a bread mat. Score and decorate (see photos for examples). Using the bread mat, transfer the dough to the Dutch Oven. Add an ice cube at each end under the mat. Cover with the casserole lid. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid, turn the oven down to 220C/425F/Gas mark 7 and bake for a further 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, place on a rack and cool for at least 2+ hours before slicing.
Fresh From The Mill!
Order your stoneground bere or bere berries from our online shop and experience the unique taste of bere.
Example Workflow
Day 1
0800 Autolysis plus soak barley berries in cold water for 1.5 hours
0900 Add the sourdough starter
0930 Add salt solution
Cook the bere berries for 30 minutes
1100 Coil fold
1145 Laminate the cooled cooked barley berries into the dough
1300 Coil fold
1400 Coil fold
1500 Coil fold
1600 Preshape the dough
1630 Shape the dough
1700 Refrigerate the dough and retard overnight
Day 2
1000 Preheat Dutch oven
1100 Bake for 35 minutes
About Marie
In 2019, Marie Lester was asked to create the recipes for the book ‘Vintage Breadboards’, published by Prospect Books. This was the beginning of her bread-baking journey.
She has also created recipes for Sharpham Park. In 2020 Roger Saul asked Marie to create a sourdough recipe using his new Heritage Spelt flour with accompanying demonstration method films for Sharpham Park customers. Marie has also created recipes for the British Hemp Company, Netherton Foundry and Totally Swedish. She is now a regular contributor to BROT – the leading German magazine on bread.
Marie runs workshops and has advised and taught home bakers who wish to make simple, good bread, both in the UK and internationally.
In 2024 she launched her ‘Magic of Sourdough‘ recipe series: individual recipes for the home baker. Examples of Marie’s bakes (sourdough, yeast and hybrid) can be found on her Instagram: @marielesterbaker along with a number of reels which demonstrate how to laminate dough, different shaping methods, and ways to score and decorate bread.
Marie is a member of the Guild of Food Writers.
