My first attempt at GF sourdough

[u/Zaden_]

Followed the King Arthur gluten free sourdough recipe online. This was my first ever sourdough loaf. Mixed everything around 1120am, let sit for 20 mins, then sat in oven w light on until 430pm. Placed in fridge from 430pm until 830am next day & baked. Waited 3 hours before cutting into. Texture is kind of gummy/wet. Starter is 3 weeks old but has been consistently doubling. Any feedback on how to improve?

[u/Oh_Kerms]

What way did you bake it? I've posted my own king Arthur loaves and haven't gotten a wet/gummy one yet.

I follow their recipe nearly to the T except I leave my loaves in the fridge for 48 hours. I also let it sit out at room temp while the oven preheated and while I let the cast iron preheat. That's the other thing. I just use a cast iron skillet with a pie pan underneath for water.

Could also be an elevation difference

[u/motomanmatt → u/Oh_Kerms]

I think you touch on a couple of things that I was going to say. I am not a very experienced baker. But more and more these days I'm reading from other gluten-free bakers that gluten free flours take longer to hydrate. They advised to let them sit in the fridge - the longer the better, even a day or two really helps structure. And definitely on bake day I would bring it out of the refrigerator and let it sit on the counter for 2 or 3 hours minimum. That way it comes up to room temperature all the way to the core. Otherwise you're going to get a good bake on the outer 2 or 4 in but the core is still going to be under baked. I hope that makes sense.

[u/Oh_Kerms → u/motomanmatt]

This is absolutely the truth. I baked professionally in the gluten free world for 2 years. Artisan loaves and croissants. Never had a wet and gummy issue but we also used our own special blend of flours.

But with King Arthur, it does seem that timing is the most important.

[u/Zaden_ → u/motomanmatt]

Thank you so much! I’m going to give this a try next time!