• 500g (1lb 2oz) strong white bread flour
• 150g (5½oz) very active starter (it should be thick batter consistency; see below)
• 325ml (11fl oz) tepid water
• 10g (¼oz) fine sea salt
• rye or wholemeal flour, for dusting
• 1 medium proving basket
• 1 × 22–25cm (8½–10in) diameter cast-iron pot

For the starter

• A starter is fermentation of flour and water that produces ‘wild’ yeasts and bacteria that make your bread rise and give it flavour.
• Day 1 Place 25g (1oz) rye flour with 50ml (1¾fl oz) warm water in a clean bowl. Stir well, cover and leave overnight in a warm place (at around 30°C/86°F).
• Days 2, 3 and 4 Every day add 25g (1oz) rye flour and 50ml (1¾fl oz) warm water. After each addition, stir well, cover and put the mixture back in the warm place. (By Day 3 it should show signs of fermentation.)
• Day 5 You should now have 300g (10½oz) or so of active starter to use in baking. Store the mixture in the fridge, but make sure to feed it once or twice, each time adding a further 25g (1oz) rye flour and 50ml (1¾fl oz) warm water, to ensure it’s active before using again. Each time you use a quantity of active starter, replace its weight with a mixture of fresh flour and water in a ratio of 1 part flour to 2 parts water, and allow it to ferment for next time.

If you’ve overlooked your starter for three or four days, you’ll need to refresh it a couple of days before baking. Drop a spoonful into a glass of water – if it floats, the starter’s ready to use.

Place the flour and starter in a large mixing bowl. Pour in the water and mix the ingredients into a dough (1–2 minutes). Cover with a plastic bag, and leave to prove in a warm place for 1–2 hours.

Sprinkle over the salt, then scrunch it in with your hands. Now you need to stretch the dough to develop its structure. Think of the surface of the dough as a clock face. Wet your hands and take hold of the edge of the dough at 12 o’clock. Stretch it up out of the bowl, then fold it down onto itself. Do the same at 6 o’clock, then 3, and finally 9. Aim to trap a little air with each fold. Cover again and leave to prove somewhere warm for 1 hour. Repeat the stretching, folding, covering and proving three or four more times. After the final proving, turn out the dough onto a floured work surface and leave it to rest. Liberally sprinkle the proving basket with rye or wholemeal flour. Twice fold the dough through the clock face, then pop the dough into the basket, seams uppermost. Sprinkle the surface with more flour, then cover and leave somewhere warm until it has risen by at least two-thirds and feels light and airy – up to 6 hours.

Preheat your oven to 240°C/475°F/gas mark 8. Place your cast-iron pot in the centre of the oven with the lid on and let it heat up for 10–15 minutes. Carefully remove the lid and quickly turn out the dough into the pot. The surface that was face down in the basket will now be uppermost. Slash the bread across its face. Place the lid on the pot and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and turn down the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Bake for a further 25 minutes. Turn the bread out of the pot onto a rack and allow to cool. It will keep well for a couple of days and toast beautifully for several more.