Just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to make this video and share this recipe. My children will not accept any other bread now. I have used this recipe and method for sandwich bread as well, and it is so delicious. I really appreciate your time and knowledge.
I just _love_ that you discussed the behaviour of the proteins in relation to the bran, and the percentage of each and how this affects fermentation time. A little biochemistry detail goes a long way!
The whole point is to understand the behaviour of each. It is the only way to have a bit of control over the process. Thank you so much for your feedback!
I learned so much from your video!! I’ve been baking with sourdough for over 30 years, and I’m still learning. Isn’t it wonderful! Thank you for adding to me in my sourdough journey!
Sourdough is a continuous learning process. I learned myself so much while doing it and I still have so many things to learn and practice. This is what keeps us motivated, right?
I am so happy you succeeded with this recipe. It is not a simple one and as every flour is different understanding how to adjust to get it right is so important!
I am so happy I found your videos. I have been watching lots of video and could not find a video that explains why you do every step. Thank you so much for making these video for us.
Every step has a meaning and if you do not understand why, you do not know how to adjust to make it better. There are so many variables in this process that you have to control to their sweet spot in order to have the desired loaf. Many of these variables are sometimes impossible to control in a home kitchen... humidity and temperature of the room, humidity of your flour... even if you follow blindly a recipe it won't turn exactly as for the author. Myself included, if I bake the exact same recipe, the loaves do not turn out exactly the same. So your only trick is to read the dough in the process and adjust on the way. This only comes with skills and practice.
Thank you so much for making the effort to pass on you knowledge in a clear, concise way. Greetings from the UK! I haven’t made it yet but I will soon! John
I stumbled across your video by chance while looking for whole wheat sourdough baking. This is absolutely one of the best-detailed instructions on bread baking I've ever seen. Thank you for your teaching ❤. Keep up the good work 👍👍👍.
I'm going to try you method over the next couple of days. I'm going to make one change that I'm sure will affect the final product. My loaf will be 35% rye with the balance whole wheat. I'm sure my loaf will be much more dense, but I love the flavor of rye. The whole wheat flour will be delivered late today and I'll start the process tonight. Wish me luck.
@@HungryShots Flavor was good, overall rise was less than ideal. The problem was the dough was too wet and therefore slack and of course rye isn't exactly packed with gluten. The next time around I'll reduce hydration and it should turn out perfect. Oh yes, the crumb was even but more dense than my usual 35% dark rye flour and the balance strong bread flour. The process you showed did work well for me and I'll use it again. Thanks so much for this video it was very helpful.
@@cutabove9046 this is what I love about bread. there is always that little something that you can improve and in the same time there is no failure, as everything will be eaten ;)
thanks for this!! Would you do a 25% whole rye (fresh milled) and the rest whole wheat dough? Your video is so efficiently done and there is no wasted time waiting for the next step.
Thank you so much for finding my videos effective as my target was always to be very clear as descriptive. As for the bread freshly milled I'll love it but I have 2 issues: I do not own a mill (I can buy one easily) but the biggest issue is I do not find grains in local farms.. just flour :(. If I find a source I am in!
So happy you liked it! I've read and practiced, I've seen videos and practiced, I've tested, observed, noted down and practiced again. There is no other secret than practice.
@@HungryShots Good for you! I'm making this recipe this morning & when I put my autolysed dough (hard white) & starter into the mixer, it fell apart - meaning it got very sticky & was not cohesive. I'm guessing that it's too much water for my flour.
I love the detailed info and visuals on the video. The time line provides a clear explanation of the sequence of processes. Thank you very much. May I ask what the dimensions of your glass dishes are?
Wow! Your video is the most inspiring of the sourdough videos I've seen. Now I understand why letting it sit in the fridge for longer periods of time, and doing more rises, helps bring out more flavor from the grain, itself. It's not just the "yeast" we're tasting, it's the wheat grain and it's constituents. Ok, got it. Thank you! And what brand is that wood-fired bake oven you used?
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I have a small wood-fire oven called Maximus that I think is coming from Portugal. There are multiple sellers in different countries, I bought mine from my-barbecue.com. Just as a suggestion, this is an entry-level wood-fired oven. Now after 5 years of using it, if I buy a new one, I'll look for a more professional one ;)
Really well done, bravo! I know it's hard to read the dough with 100% whole wheat. The fermentation goes exponentially faster and faster. Is this flour that you have milled at home, with nothing sifted out? Thank you kindly!
I would be grateful for a photo of the aliquot jar when it has risen 40%. Does that mean it is almost doubled in size or does that mean it is almost 50% greater? Thank you!
I will probably dedicate a video on the aliquot jar. But to answer precisely your question, double in size means 100% rise (that's 2 times the volume), while 40% means 1.4 times the volume.
Impressive quality of your video :) One question about your autolysis: why do you prefer colder temperatures? I can imagine that way more diffusion and hydration of the molecules can take place without already "destroying" too much from the enzymes. But why would that be important if the bacteria and yeast eat/destroy the starch anyway?
Thank you for this interesting question. When you have an autolyse that is longer than 4 hours, it is advisable to use cold temperatures to hydrate the flour. At the room temperature, it would be like starting a new starter. The flour has many other bacteria that develop more rapidly than our sourdough bacteria. When you make a new starter, it will take few days for the sourdough bacteria to be the predominant one and kill the others in the acidic environment. But when you just make an autolyse of 12 hours at a room temperature you have many of them that develops with the enzymatic activity. In a cold environment this is suppressed. Later in the process, your dough might get under a ph of 4.2, the natural value of acidity that kills bacteria (not to talk about the heat during baking that kills them all) but you may have already developed flavours like mold in the dough due to extended autolyse at warm temperatures.
The number of the coil folds is dependent on how the dough looks like. If it turns flat, you may perform more coil folds. If it stands up maybe there is no need for an extra coil fold. Regarding the timing, you may perform the coil folds early in the bulk proofing stage when the volume is not much increased and you'll get a more wild crumb or later in bulk proofing stage and you'll get a more regular crumb. If the dough if more advanced in the proofing, there are more bubbles inside and the coil fold should be more gentle to to preserve them inside. That of course if you are looking for a more open crumb.
I have to ask a very important question, please answer. I like your recipes very much. Do you keep the bread at room temperature after you take it out of the refrigerator? Or do you shape it and put it directly in the oven. I kept it at room temperature for 3 hours after I took it out of the refrigerator. While shaping with a razor blade, my bread spread a lot and was out of shape.
Well, my first bread was actually whole wheat, and I baked a few more since, actually I've never had a problem with whole wheat, white flour was more problematic for me. Didn't hold shape, ect. Well... 😅😅😅 Now I did your recipe, thought that now I'll perfect the whole wheat, but...I just put it in the oven...😅😅 Well I didn't put it... I almost throw it, since it didn't have any shape😆 So I'm really curious how it'll turn out once it's done. Now I'll definitely go buy another flour because the one I used now isn't my favourite, I hope that's the problem.
Holding shape is directly related to building a strong gluten network. Bran proportion is one of the main barrier in developing a good structure for whole wheat bread. The protein content is another one. Doing multiple stretch and folds / coil folds, lamination are also improving. Think of a balloon. If the balloon is not of good quality, the air will easily escape. Your effort is done to improve the quality of this balloon that is the basic element of any hole in the crumb.
@@dlibera27 I usually keep the dough in the bread proofer where I do not need to cover the dough because the necessary humidity is maintained. However, if I do not use the bread proofer, covering it with a shower cap or a linen towel is mandatory.
I don't think my oven will go above 500 degrees Fahrenheit but 270 Celsius is 518 Fahrenheit. Can I still bake this bread at 475 Fahrenheit just for longer? I really want to make this bread but my oven doesn't get super hot
Question probablement idiote: quel crochet utilisez-vous avec votre Kmix? Le crochet d’origine? Le mien croche mal car il ne s’approche pas assez du bol (mais il faut faire avec). Stupid question: what hook do you use with your Kmix? The original one? I find my doughhook doesn’t get close enough to the edge of the bowl but I have to live with it.
Ce n'est pas du tout une question idiote, car il y a une astuce derrière. Mon précédent kmix était livré avec une petite clé pour régler la hauteur du crochet. Le nouveau est venu sans. Regardez cette vidéo pour comprendre comment régler la hauteur du crochet : th-cam.com/video/fbE3puvMV38/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=KenwoodGlobal
@@HungryShots Merci du Conseil, malheureusement, mon crochet n’est apparemment pas ajustable (contrairement aux autres outils). J’imagine que c’est pour faire des économies - le réglage d’usine étant suffisant pour la plupart des gens. Seuls les cinglés de mon espèce se plaindront.😡😡😡 Je continuerai à devoir utiliser le ‘k tool’ pour mélanger mes ingrédients 😢😢😢
Absolutely! The cold temperature will ensure that enzymatic activity in the flour is kept low. You can also keep it at room temperature (not summer preferably) but add salt, for the same reason.
if you want to make 100% WW than you need sourdough that is fed with whole wheat. Nothing prevents you to use white sourdough if you do not want exclusively whole wheat.
I let the bread rest after each coil and fold for 1 hour in 26C . The bread proofed fast before I finished the coil and fold sections. Could it be the temperature that messed it up??
Most probably, but the flour you use has big influence too. Bake it faster if you cannot reduce the proofing temperature. You can also try to adjust the hydration to match the one you flour wants.Try also another flour from a diferent brand to see if you get the same result.
Thank you for the video but this can’t be practical. Our ancestors didn’t have to wait two days and keep going back and forth every hour to have a loaf of bread.
@@issameQ Well, first let's define better. The flour that our ancestors had was way much healthier than what we have today. Their loaves were flatter, full of flavours and much nutritious than any bread we can do nowadays. The loaves we are doing now are much better looking, we have access to technologies like refrigeration, steamed ovens and exact temperature and ph measurements. I would give any good-looking loaf made in a fancy oven over one made in a wood-fired oven. As for the flours, unless using ancient flours, most of the grains we find today are genetically modified for production reasons with the disadvantage of losing nutrition and health characteristics. To simply answer your question, NO, I do not think we are doing it better.
My dough was making on track progress until the final fermentation: it did not rise overnight in the fridge. My fridge temp was 37* F. 12 hours later it looks exactly like the night before when i placed it in there. I'm not going to even bother baking it. I'm just going to throw it away. What a waste time and ingredients. I'm crestfallen.
Why would you throw it out after all of the work you did? Just take it out of the fridge and either bake it or rise it at room temperature for an short time.
This is a crucial point and please read this through. The reason you refrigerate has nothing to do with the rise. It is to allow time to develop the flavor so you will get that coveted flavor of sourdough. You can't do that at room temperature, the dough will overprove and then it falls flat when you take it out of the bannetons. By the time you put it in the fridge, if the dough was handled gently so the bubbles already there were not knocked out of it, it will rise in the oven dramatically. If you had trouble shaping and the air all got knocked out, let it rise a bit before you put it in the oven. But if you have been letting it rise like that in the past, it's probably why you have been getting a flat tough loaf. Sadly, you probably threw out nice sourdough.
Just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to make this video and share this recipe. My children will not accept any other bread now. I have used this recipe and method for sandwich bread as well, and it is so delicious. I really appreciate your time and knowledge.
Thank you so much for this lovely comment! I am so glad to help.
I just _love_ that you discussed the behaviour of the proteins in relation to the bran, and the percentage of each and how this affects fermentation time. A little biochemistry detail goes a long way!
The whole point is to understand the behaviour of each. It is the only way to have a bit of control over the process. Thank you so much for your feedback!
I learned so much from your video!! I’ve been baking with sourdough for over 30 years, and I’m still learning. Isn’t it wonderful! Thank you for adding to me in my sourdough journey!
Sourdough is a continuous learning process. I learned myself so much while doing it and I still have so many things to learn and practice. This is what keeps us motivated, right?
@@HungryShots Right!
I made this with freshly milled wheat and it's the best bread I made in a long time. Thank you so much.
I am so happy you succeeded with this recipe. It is not a simple one and as every flour is different understanding how to adjust to get it right is so important!
Thank you , the best I’ve seen so far
Thank you so much!
I am so happy I found your videos. I have been watching lots of video and could not find a video that explains why you do every step. Thank you so much for making these video for us.
Every step has a meaning and if you do not understand why, you do not know how to adjust to make it better. There are so many variables in this process that you have to control to their sweet spot in order to have the desired loaf. Many of these variables are sometimes impossible to control in a home kitchen... humidity and temperature of the room, humidity of your flour... even if you follow blindly a recipe it won't turn exactly as for the author. Myself included, if I bake the exact same recipe, the loaves do not turn out exactly the same. So your only trick is to read the dough in the process and adjust on the way. This only comes with skills and practice.
I totally agree. That is why I like your videos. Thank you so much for the explanation.
Thank you so much for making the effort to pass on you knowledge in a clear, concise way. Greetings from the UK! I haven’t made it yet but I will soon! John
You're very welcome! I am so happy to spread this sourdough "virus" and make people bake bread at home and progress with their sourdough challenges
I stumbled across your video by chance while looking for whole wheat sourdough baking. This is absolutely one of the best-detailed instructions on bread baking I've ever seen. Thank you for your teaching ❤. Keep up the good work 👍👍👍.
Thank you so much! A comment like yours really motivate me to make more videos and share the secrets I learn. Thank you so much, it means a lot to me.
I'm going to try you method over the next couple of days. I'm going to make one change that I'm sure will affect the final product. My loaf will be 35% rye with the balance whole wheat. I'm sure my loaf will be much more dense, but I love the flavor of rye. The whole wheat flour will be delivered late today and I'll start the process tonight. Wish me luck.
I wrote you a reply but apparently it was lost :(. I was asking you about how it went your bake with rye and whole wheat?
@@HungryShots Flavor was good, overall rise was less than ideal. The problem was the dough was too wet and therefore slack and of course rye isn't exactly packed with gluten. The next time around I'll reduce hydration and it should turn out perfect. Oh yes, the crumb was even but more dense than my usual 35% dark rye flour and the balance strong bread flour. The process you showed did work well for me and I'll use it again. Thanks so much for this video it was very helpful.
@@cutabove9046 this is what I love about bread. there is always that little something that you can improve and in the same time there is no failure, as everything will be eaten ;)
thanks for this!! Would you do a 25% whole rye (fresh milled) and the rest whole wheat dough? Your video is so efficiently done and there is no wasted time waiting for the next step.
Thank you so much for finding my videos effective as my target was always to be very clear as descriptive. As for the bread freshly milled I'll love it but I have 2 issues: I do not own a mill (I can buy one easily) but the biggest issue is I do not find grains in local farms.. just flour :(. If I find a source I am in!
Toujours interessant de voir tes videos. Merci
Merci beaucoup!
This is one of the best videos I've seen on this topic. Thank you! How did you learn so much about bread?
So happy you liked it! I've read and practiced, I've seen videos and practiced, I've tested, observed, noted down and practiced again. There is no other secret than practice.
@@HungryShots Good for you! I'm making this recipe this morning & when I put my autolysed dough (hard white) & starter into the mixer, it fell apart - meaning it got very sticky & was not cohesive. I'm guessing that it's too much water for my flour.
I love the detailed info and visuals on the video. The time line provides a clear explanation of the sequence of processes. Thank you very much.
May I ask what the dimensions of your glass dishes are?
Thank you so much for your lovely comment. The glass bowls are 21x25cm.
Thank you for good explanation
👌👏
Glad you liked it
Wow …wonderful thanks❤
Thank you too!
Wow! Your video is the most inspiring of the sourdough videos I've seen. Now I understand why letting it sit in the fridge for longer periods of time, and doing more rises, helps bring out more flavor from the grain, itself. It's not just the "yeast" we're tasting, it's the wheat grain and it's constituents. Ok, got it. Thank you! And what brand is that wood-fired bake oven you used?
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I have a small wood-fire oven called Maximus that I think is coming from Portugal. There are multiple sellers in different countries, I bought mine from my-barbecue.com. Just as a suggestion, this is an entry-level wood-fired oven. Now after 5 years of using it, if I buy a new one, I'll look for a more professional one ;)
Thank you for sharing!
You are welcome!
Really well done, bravo! I know it's hard to read the dough with 100% whole wheat. The fermentation goes exponentially faster and faster. Is this flour that you have milled at home, with nothing sifted out? Thank you kindly!
I just read below that you do not mill your own. Cheers!
I would be grateful for a photo of the aliquot jar when it has risen 40%. Does that mean it is almost doubled in size or does that mean it is almost 50% greater? Thank you!
I will probably dedicate a video on the aliquot jar. But to answer precisely your question, double in size means 100% rise (that's 2 times the volume), while 40% means 1.4 times the volume.
Impressive quality of your video :)
One question about your autolysis: why do you prefer colder temperatures? I can imagine that way more diffusion and hydration of the molecules can take place without already "destroying" too much from the enzymes. But why would that be important if the bacteria and yeast eat/destroy the starch anyway?
Thank you for this interesting question. When you have an autolyse that is longer than 4 hours, it is advisable to use cold temperatures to hydrate the flour. At the room temperature, it would be like starting a new starter. The flour has many other bacteria that develop more rapidly than our sourdough bacteria. When you make a new starter, it will take few days for the sourdough bacteria to be the predominant one and kill the others in the acidic environment. But when you just make an autolyse of 12 hours at a room temperature you have many of them that develops with the enzymatic activity. In a cold environment this is suppressed. Later in the process, your dough might get under a ph of 4.2, the natural value of acidity that kills bacteria (not to talk about the heat during baking that kills them all) but you may have already developed flavours like mold in the dough due to extended autolyse at warm temperatures.
@@HungryShots thank you so much for the comprehensive explanation :) I never thought about this quite important aspect.
Hi, new subscriber here and I am so grateful for this video. May I ask the kind of whole grain you used for this bread? Thank you
Thank you too! The flour is whole wheat from a local farm.
Is it safe to say that we may perform less coil folds if the dough in the aliquot jar increase in volume by 40%?
The number of the coil folds is dependent on how the dough looks like. If it turns flat, you may perform more coil folds. If it stands up maybe there is no need for an extra coil fold. Regarding the timing, you may perform the coil folds early in the bulk proofing stage when the volume is not much increased and you'll get a more wild crumb or later in bulk proofing stage and you'll get a more regular crumb. If the dough if more advanced in the proofing, there are more bubbles inside and the coil fold should be more gentle to to preserve them inside. That of course if you are looking for a more open crumb.
I have to ask a very important question, please answer. I like your recipes very much. Do you keep the bread at room temperature after you take it out of the refrigerator? Or do you shape it and put it directly in the oven. I kept it at room temperature for 3 hours after I took it out of the refrigerator. While shaping with a razor blade, my bread spread a lot and was out of shape.
I never keep the dough at room temperature before baking. I bake it straight from the oven because when the dough is cold is much easier to score it.
What kind of whole wheat flour are we talking about?
Fresh milled ?
Or can stone ground from commercial mills work as well?
I wish I had access to grains to mill my own flour. I rely on am organic whole wheat flour that I buy from a local farm here in Belgium.
Is there a video to explain how to make starter? Thanks
I made my starter 9 years ago and explained the process on my blog here: www.hungryshots.com/2014/07/white-sourdough-starter.html
Amazing demo .Can I use raisin starter instead of the whole wheat sourdough to make it?
I never used raisin starter, but you can give it a try.
O minunatie de paine! Ma abonez cu drag!25
La fel si eu, Loredana!
Well, my first bread was actually whole wheat, and I baked a few more since, actually I've never had a problem with whole wheat, white flour was more problematic for me. Didn't hold shape, ect. Well...
😅😅😅 Now I did your recipe, thought that now I'll perfect the whole wheat, but...I just put it in the oven...😅😅 Well I didn't put it... I almost throw it, since it didn't have any shape😆 So I'm really curious how it'll turn out once it's done. Now I'll definitely go buy another flour because the one I used now isn't my favourite, I hope that's the problem.
Holding shape is directly related to building a strong gluten network. Bran proportion is one of the main barrier in developing a good structure for whole wheat bread. The protein content is another one. Doing multiple stretch and folds / coil folds, lamination are also improving. Think of a balloon. If the balloon is not of good quality, the air will easily escape. Your effort is done to improve the quality of this balloon that is the basic element of any hole in the crumb.
Should I use white young yeast or whole wheat young yeast?
I suggest to use whole wheat sourdough.
好棒....不錯.....但太花時間了....
Sourdough bread it is time consuming, however it worth the time to enjoy a healthy slice of bread.
I'm thinking of adding black olives. At what stage would you add the olives?
The lamination is the best moment to add any extra ingredients (seeds, nuts, dried fruits, olives etc.)
@@HungryShots Thank you.
During the coil folds is the dough covered while resting?
@@HungryShots 250g of olives, seeds, nuts dried fruits?
@@dlibera27 I usually keep the dough in the bread proofer where I do not need to cover the dough because the necessary humidity is maintained. However, if I do not use the bread proofer, covering it with a shower cap or a linen towel is mandatory.
I don't think my oven will go above 500 degrees Fahrenheit but 270 Celsius is 518 Fahrenheit. Can I still bake this bread at 475 Fahrenheit just for longer? I really want to make this bread but my oven doesn't get super hot
Absolutely! You can bake it even at 180C. It will take longer though. Many bakers use 230-240C as their standard baking temperature.
Question probablement idiote: quel crochet utilisez-vous avec votre Kmix? Le crochet d’origine? Le mien croche mal car il ne s’approche pas assez du bol (mais il faut faire avec).
Stupid question: what hook do you use with your Kmix? The original one? I find my doughhook doesn’t get close enough to the edge of the bowl but I have to live with it.
Ce n'est pas du tout une question idiote, car il y a une astuce derrière. Mon précédent kmix était livré avec une petite clé pour régler la hauteur du crochet. Le nouveau est venu sans. Regardez cette vidéo pour comprendre comment régler la hauteur du crochet : th-cam.com/video/fbE3puvMV38/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=KenwoodGlobal
@@HungryShots
Merci du Conseil, malheureusement, mon crochet n’est apparemment pas ajustable (contrairement aux autres outils). J’imagine que c’est pour faire des économies - le réglage d’usine étant suffisant pour la plupart des gens. Seuls les cinglés de mon espèce se plaindront.😡😡😡
Je continuerai à devoir utiliser le ‘k tool’ pour mélanger mes ingrédients 😢😢😢
Can I put mix dough in fridge over 10 hrs until it autolysis finished?
Absolutely! The cold temperature will ensure that enzymatic activity in the flour is kept low. You can also keep it at room temperature (not summer preferably) but add salt, for the same reason.
@@HungryShots Thank you for your response. You've helped me understand much more about why bread does what it does.🥰
I am gunnen try-out
thank you! Let me know how it went!
Can I take this dough and make a sandwich loaf out of it? I prefer a sandwich bread over an artisan bread
You definitely can do this!
You are awesome.
Thank you so much! Very much appreciated! ❤
100% Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread for Which sourdough should I use, white or whole wheat?
if you want to make 100% WW than you need sourdough that is fed with whole wheat. Nothing prevents you to use white sourdough if you do not want exclusively whole wheat.
💐🌷❤🌷💐
thank you
I made your whole wheat bread this weekend and came out flat.
I let the bread rest after each coil and fold for 1 hour in 26C . The bread proofed fast before I finished the coil and fold sections. Could it be the temperature that messed it up??
Most probably, but the flour you use has big influence too. Bake it faster if you cannot reduce the proofing temperature. You can also try to adjust the hydration to match the one you flour wants.Try also another flour from a diferent brand to see if you get the same result.
Thank you for the video but this can’t be practical. Our ancestors didn’t have to wait two days and keep going back and forth every hour to have a loaf of bread.
Our ancestors didn't make bread in the way we do it today.
@ Do we do it better?
@@issameQ Well, first let's define better. The flour that our ancestors had was way much healthier than what we have today. Their loaves were flatter, full of flavours and much nutritious than any bread we can do nowadays. The loaves we are doing now are much better looking, we have access to technologies like refrigeration, steamed ovens and exact temperature and ph measurements. I would give any good-looking loaf made in a fancy oven over one made in a wood-fired oven. As for the flours, unless using ancient flours, most of the grains we find today are genetically modified for production reasons with the disadvantage of losing nutrition and health characteristics. To simply answer your question, NO, I do not think we are doing it better.
My dough was making on track progress until the final fermentation: it did not rise overnight in the fridge. My fridge temp was 37* F. 12 hours later it looks exactly like the night before when i placed it in there. I'm not going to even bother baking it. I'm just going to throw it away. What a waste time and ingredients. I'm crestfallen.
Why would you throw it out after all of the work you did? Just take it out of the fridge and either bake it or rise it at room temperature for an short time.
@@susandelhaise4355 I think I just got tired of eating frisbees.
To succeed, there is only one secret: you need to understand your flour characteristics. They are so so so different!
This is a crucial point and please read this through. The reason you refrigerate has nothing to do with the rise. It is to allow time to develop the flavor so you will get that coveted flavor of sourdough. You can't do that at room temperature, the dough will overprove and then it falls flat when you take it out of the bannetons. By the time you put it in the fridge, if the dough was handled gently so the bubbles already there were not knocked out of it, it will rise in the oven dramatically. If you had trouble shaping and the air all got knocked out, let it rise a bit before you put it in the oven. But if you have been letting it rise like that in the past, it's probably why you have been getting a flat tough loaf.
Sadly, you probably threw out nice sourdough.