Fresh-Milled Sourdough—Red Wheat & Kamut: A Love Letter to Ancient Grains

Jessica Kelly
Mar 25, 2025
7 min read

Fresh-milled Sourdough Recipe

Some things in life just feel right. The sound of rain hitting the roof on a slow Sunday morning. The smell of freshly tilled earth in the spring. The way homemade bread, warm from the oven, fills the house with the kind of comfort that no scented candle could ever replicate.

And then there’s milling your own flour—a process so simple, yet so deeply grounding, it makes you feel like you’ve unlocked some ancestral secret. There’s something almost rebellious about rejecting the ultra-processed flours on store shelves and instead grinding your own wheat, knowing exactly where it comes from, feeling the weight of tradition in your hands.

This recipe is a celebration of that. A rustic, deeply flavorful sourdough bread made with fresh-milled red wheat and Kamut—two ancient grains that bring a depth of flavor, a golden hue, and a rich, nutty aroma that sets this loaf apart.

But before we dive into the details, let me tell you—if you’ve never worked with fresh-milled flour before, be prepared for a learning curve. It’s thirstier than store-bought flour, meaning it absorbs more water. It’s also more delicate, as it hasn’t been stripped of its natural oils and nutrients. But the payoff? Oh, it’s worth every bit of effort.

So let’s begin.

Step 1: Mix the Starter and Water

This is where the magic starts. Your sourdough starter—your wild, living, bubbling kitchen pet—needs to be active and lively for this step. If it’s been sitting in the fridge, give it a good feed the day before so it’s at peak strength.

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve your active starter into the water. Use your hands. Yes, it’s a little messy, but feeling the texture of the dough is part of the process. The coolness of the water, the silky way the starter blends in—it’s a moment worth savoring.

Step 2: Add the Flour and Mix

Now, we introduce our freshly milled red wheat and Kamut flour. These flours bring a robust depth to the bread. Red wheat has a bold, hearty flavor—slightly sweet, slightly nutty—while Kamut is buttery, with a softer, almost golden quality to it. Here’s a link to my favorite grain mill (use code THEKITCHNGARDNS) as well as my favorite organic ancient grain wheat berries for both hard red wheat and kamut. Together, they create a loaf that’s as rich in history as it is in flavor.

Using a Danish dough whisk, a dough scraper, or just your hands, mix the flours into the water mixture. You’re not kneading yet—just combining until no dry bits remain. This step, called autolyse (or fermentolyse, since we’re including the starter), allows the flour to fully absorb the water, beginning the gluten development process naturally. Cover the bowl and let it sit for an hour.

Step 3: Add Salt and Knead

After an hour, it’s time to add the salt. Salt is essential—not just for flavor, but for structure. It tightens the gluten and strengthens the dough. Sprinkle it over the surface and gently knead by hand for about three minutes. At this stage, the dough will feel rough and sticky. Don’t panic. It’s supposed to. Give it a short 15-minute rest, and you’ll see how quickly it begins to transform.

Steps 4-7: The Stretch and Folds

Ah, the stretch and folds—perhaps my favorite part of the process. Instead of traditional kneading, sourdough relies on these gentle folds to build strength. Every 30 minutes, you’ll lift one side of the dough, stretch it upwards, and fold it over itself. Rotate the bowl, and repeat this process four times in total.

With each fold, you’ll notice the dough becoming smoother, silkier, and stronger. It’s like watching something come to life in slow motion. By the fourth fold, your dough will have developed enough strength to hold its shape.

Step 8: Pre-Shape and Rest

Now, gently turn the dough out onto a floured surface and give it a very light pre-shape. This just means pulling it together into a round shape, tucking in the edges, and letting it rest for 15 minutes.

Why rest? Because dough, much like toddlers, needs short breaks to behave properly. If you try to shape it too soon, it will resist. Give it time, and it will relax into the form you want.

Step 9: Final Shape and Cold Proof

This is where the dough truly becomes a loaf. Using gentle hands, shape it into a round or oval, depending on your preference. Place it into a well-floured banneton basket, seam side up.

At this point, you have two choices: bake it today or let it ferment overnight in the fridge. I always opt for the cold-proof method. There’s something special about letting time do its work, allowing the flavors to develop more deeply. Cover the dough and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.

Step 10: Preheat the Oven and Dutch Oven

When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 500°F with your Dutch oven inside. And here’s the key—leave your dough in the fridge until the very last moment. A cold dough hitting a blazing-hot Dutch oven creates that dramatic “oven spring” we all dream of.

Step 11: Score the Dough

Now comes the art. Turn your dough onto a piece of parchment paper and grab your lame, a clean razor blade, or the sharpest knife you own. The main score should be about ¼ to ½ inch deep. Decorative scoring can be more shallow, but don’t get too carried away on your first try. Scoring is part skill, part instinct—something you’ll refine over time.

Step 12: Bake

Carefully lift the parchment paper and lower your dough into the preheated Dutch oven. Quickly mist the dough with a few spritzes of water to create steam, then cover with the lid.

Lower the oven temperature to 450°F and bake for 30 minutes. To prevent the bottom from burning, place a baking sheet on the lower rack—this acts as a heat shield.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid, lower the oven to 400°F, and bake for another 25 minutes. If you want a deep, caramel-colored crust, rotate the bread halfway through. The internal temperature should read 205-210°F when done.

Step 13: Cooling (The Hardest Part)

Remove your beautiful, golden loaf from the Dutch oven and place it on a cooling rack. And now, the hardest part—waiting.

I know, I know. You want to slice into it immediately. But if you do, the interior will be gummy. It needs time for the crumb to set. Give it at least an hour—preferably two.

The Reward

And then, at last, you slice into it. The crust crackles, the crumb is soft and airy, and the flavors are deep, complex, and rich. The fresh-milled red wheat and Kamut shine through with a depth you just can’t get from store-bought flour.

This bread isn’t just food. It’s an experience. A process. A connection to something deeper—our ancestors, the land, and the simple joy of making something with our own hands.

So go ahead, slather a slice with butter, drizzle on some honey, and taste the fruits of your labor. You earned it.

RED WHEAT & KAMUT SOURDOUGH LOAF

This recipe is my go-to recipe for our daily sandwiches and toast because it is just so healthy. With the fresh-milled flour and sourdough, you know you are getting the best nutrition bread can offer! And you do not compromise on flavor with this recipe at all!

Ingredients

300 grams fresh milled hard red wheat flour I use mine warm from the mill
200 grams kamut flour khorasan flour or grind your own Khorasan berries
438 grams water room temperature ~70-75℉
102 grams active sourdough starter
16 grams salt
24 grams gluten flour (optional), also known as vital wheat gluten Optional (yields a better oven spring)-*If you use the gluten flour increase the water to 462 grams!!
rice flour for dusting

Instructions

First mix the active sourdough starter with the water until it’s dissolved in the water. Add the water mixture to the flour (and gluten flour if using) and using a danish dough whisk, dough scraper, or your hands combine it until there is no dry flour left.
Cover and let that fermentolyse for 1 hour.
After 1 hour add in the salt and hand knead for 3 minutes. Then rest for 15 minutes.
Perform the 1st stretch and fold, cover, and let rest 30 minutes.
Perform the 2nd stretch and fold, cover, and let rest 30 minutes.
Perform the 3rd stretch and fold, cover, and let rest 30 minutes.
Perform the 4th stretch and fold, cover, and let rest 15 minutes.
Pre-Shape and rest 15 minutes.
Final Shape, place in a floured Banneton, cover Banneton with a plastic wrap, shower cap or something similar and put in the fridge for a cold proof up to 24 hours. *See note 1
When ready to bake preheat your oven with the dutch oven to 500℉. (Leave your dough in the fridge until the very last minute – placing a cold dough into a hot oven will give you a better "spring" .)
When oven is preheated take your dough out of the fridge and gently invert it onto parchment paper.
Score your dough with a lame, clean razor, or sharp knife. The main score should be between 1/4-1/2″ deep and if you are doing decorative scoring it will be closer to 1/4″. Keep in mind you will get better with practice.
Using the parchment as a “handle” lift your scored dough and carefully place it in your preheated dutch oven. Using a spray bottle do a few spritzes of water before putting the lid on.Turn the oven temperature down to 450℉ and bake for 30 minutes. *Place a baking sheet on the lower rack to “shield” the dutch oven so your crust doesn’t over-bake or burn
Remove the dutch oven lid, turn oven down to 400℉ and bake for another 25 minutes. For even browning turn the bread half way through the last 25 minutes. If checking the internal temperature it should be around 205-210°F.
Remove from oven and place bread on a cooling rack.
Cool COMPLETELY before slicing. *If you cut into it while it’s warm it will be gummy.
If Baking Same Day Follow steps 1-8 and Final Shape, place in a floured Banneton, cover Banneton with a plastic wrap, shower cap or something similar and let bulk ferment on the counter at room temperature 4-6 hours until dough has risen by 70-80%. This time will vary based on the temperature of your home.
Bake as directed above in steps 10-15. Disregard any mention of the refrigerator in those steps.
NOTES : This may seem different without a bulk fermentation step, but the bulk fermentation technically starts when the starter is added to the flour and water. So the bulk fermentation in this recipe starts right away and goes through the folds. It still is bulk fermenting in the fridge until it completely cools down to the fridge temperature.

Fresh-Milled Sourdough—Red Wheat & Kamut: A Love Letter to Ancient Grains

RED WHEAT & KAMUT SOURDOUGH LOAF

Ingredients

Instructions

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