Scrolling through your Instagram feed and wondering why other people’s sourdough loaves look so darn stunning? It’s not a filter, but an easy, gotta-try technique called bread scoring. Here’s a quick guide to the how’s and why’s of bread scoring, with plenty of beautiful inspiration to try in your own kitchen.
What Is Bread Scoring?
Bread scoring is the practice of slashing the surface of bread dough immediately before baking. Why? As bread bakes, it rises quickly and dramatically (bakers call this “oven spring”). The yeast is releasing carbon dioxide, and the water in the bread is rapidly evaporating. Robust oven spring is a good sign that you’ve got an open, airy crumb.
Scoring the bread lets bakers “guide” the oven spring, optimizing the rise and shape of the baked loaf. Scoring bread can be as simple as making a quick slice down the middle of a loaf, but advanced bakers often seize the opportunity to treat bread scoring as a way to decorate the blank slate of dough.
Are you kneading your bread the right way?
Easy, Beautiful Scoring Techniques
Ready to pop your homemade sourdough bread into the oven? Try these beginner’s scoring techniques from talented Instagrammers.
A simple slash down the middle creates an appealing, rustic loaf. Use a sharp knife and cut not-too-deep into the bread, at an angle. Make a smooth, confident cut.
A few curved slashes open into a leaf-like pattern.
Many small dashes result in a design that looks like grains of wheat.
Slashing a box shape gives the bread a dimensional rise, like a hat.
Psst: you can use scoring techniques on a yeasted bread like this crusty homemade loaf, as well as sourdough breads.
Advanced Scoring Techniques
Instagram is an amazing resource for bread art. These bakers use complex scoring techniques to create breads almost too pretty too eat.
Sarah Owens’s botanical designs show off her flavored loaves.
A pattern radiating from the center of a loaf has a cool web-like effect.
A pattern of leaves and vines can go as intricate as you like.
Dusting the bread with flour before making your cuts results in a gorgeous, stenciled look on the finished loaf.
And, of course, some bakers go all out and etch elaborate, portrait-worthy designs into their loaves.
Next time you bake a homemade loaf, give bread scoring a try. Even a few simple cuts can yield a loaf that’s a cut above the rest.
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Need a refresher on bread baking? Check out our ultimate
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