Troubleshooting
I Forgot Salt in My Sourdough — What Now?
If you forgot salt, you can still incorporate it during early bulk with a wet mix-in — don't panic.
If you forgot salt, dissolve it in a little water and work it into the dough during the first hour of bulk; the earlier you catch it, the better.
Rescue method
- Measure the missing salt (~2% of flour weight).
- Dissolve in 10–20g water.
- Dimple dough, pour in, gently squish/fold until distributed.
- Rest 10 minutes; fold again.
- Expect bulk to slow slightly after salt hits.
Why salt matters
Salt tightens gluten, moderates yeast, and makes flavor pop. Unsalted dough often feels slack and ferments faster early on.
Systematic debugging
When a loaf fails, resist the urge to change flour, hydration, schedule, and shaping all at once. Rank the suspects: starter strength, dough temperature, fermentation length, then shaping and bake setup. The same dense crumb has different fixes depending on whether the dough never rose or rose and collapsed.
What to log next bake
Write down starter peak time, dough temperature after mixing, bulk duration, final proof duration, and oven setup. One annotated failure teaches more than three untracked "meh" loaves. If two consecutive bakes share the same fault after one change, reverse that change and try the next suspect.
One thing to remember
When in doubt, give fermentation a fair window before blaming your oven or your scoring.
Rescue hierarchy
Slightly overproofed → bake sooner or make focaccia. Slightly underproofed → extend proof if the dough still has strength. Truly dead dough → discard recipes, not despair.
First question to ask
Was the starter actually at peak? Many 'dough problems' are sleepy-preferment problems. If the jar was fed right before mixing, or taken cold from the fridge, fix that before rewriting your formula.
Field notes
Treat this topic as a checkpoint inside a full bake, not a standalone trick that overrides fermentation. Whole-grain flour, warmer kitchens, and higher starter percentages all compress timelines — expect that interaction. Document one success in enough detail that you could hand the notes to a friend and they could reproduce it. Fix the earliest upstream fault; downstream symptoms often disappear on their own.
Also useful: weigh everything, preheat longer than you think, and cool fully before you judge crumb quality. Those three habits make every other tip more reliable.
Frequently asked questions
Sprinkle dry salt?
Dissolving helps distribution; dry salt can leave hot spots.
Double salt by accident?
Bake as focaccia with mild toppings or accept a salty loaf.
Salt types?
Fine sea salt dissolves easily; iodized works if you don't mind the taste.
SourdoughAI stage prompts make 'salt added' a checkbox, not a hope.