I really loved the combination of smoked gouda and green chile in my last loaf and I wanted to expand on the savoriness by adding some chopped bacon. The results did not disappoint! The smokiness from the cheese combined with the roasted and earthy notes from the green chile combine extremely well with the bacon.

Using the lazy sourdough method is actually quite simple. The real key to this method is that you can use your unfed starter straight from the fridge without the need to make a levain. There’s also no autolyse which saves about 30 minutes.

Schedule: Here’s a link to the lazy sourdough method.

The exact schedule I used is at the bottom of this post.

Ingredients:

This recipe makes two loaves. Simply divide all the ingredients in half if you only want one loaf.

Dough

• 1,000g bread flour
• 750g filtered water @ 88’F
• 185g unfed starter straight from fridge (100% hydration)
• 22g sea salt
• 170g Roasted Hatch Green Chile (medium/hot 2020 batch)
• 170g Smoked Gouda (cut into 1/4″ cubes)
• 80g thick cut bacon (about 6 pieces)
• for the top – 85g shredded cheddar cheese
• for the top – 85g chopped green chile

Method:

After mixing the flour, water, salt and starter, I performed 4 stretch and folds within the first 2 hours, separated by 30 minutes. I added the bacon green chile and smoked gouda during the first stretch and fold. The kitchen was hovering around 70’F so I went with nearly a full 8 hour bulk fermentation.

After bulk fermentation, I shaped the loaves and put them into floured bannetons where they sat in the fridge for an overnight proof.

I baked the loaves in preheated dutch ovens at 450’F for 20 minutes covered, then removed the lid of the dutch oven and baked for an additional 30 minutes. I added the topping portion of the green chile and shredded cheddar when I removed the lid of the dutch oven.

Result:

As I mentioned earlier, the combo of smoked gouda and green chile is phenomenal in bread. Adding the bacon took the loaf to another level. The smokiness from the gouda and the spiciness of roasted green chile combined extremely well with the flavor of bacon. The rise was perfect and I was extremely happy with the crust.

The amount of bacon, gouda and green chile was perfect. All three ingredients are mixed throughout very evenly so you get some of the flavor with each bite.

Depending on your heat tolerance, you might want to go with a mild or medium heat level of green chile. I love spicy food and this year’s medium-hot green chile definitely leans more ‘hot’ than ‘medium’.

What’s this bread good for? So far I’ve used it with a patty melt and also some garlic bread for dunking in soup. It was awesome with the patty melt and might be my go-to whenever doing pressed sandwiches.

My Baking Notes

• Ambient Temperature @ mixing: 70’F
• Mixed @ 12:25pm on May 10th
• Dough was 84’F at mixing
• 4 stretch and folds in first 2 hours
• Started proof @ 8:25pm on May 10th
• Preheated oven @ 12:45pm on May 11th
• Out of fridge and into oven @ 1:45pm