Scoring Sourdough Bread Is About More Than Looks

Like a coffee connoisseur using a stencil to fashion gorgeous latte art or a barista carefully flicking their wrist to place milky foam at the peak of an espresso drink, amateur and professional bakers alike use tools to score their loaves into works of art. Despite the gorgeous result, scoring sourdough bread brings more to the loaf than just aesthetics. We spoke with Nathan Myhrvold, the founder of Modernist Cuisine and co-author of "Modernist Bread at Home" to learn the true advantages of scoring sourdough.

Myhrvold explains that there's more science involved than most people realize. "Many breads must be scored before they're baked in order to control for water vapor and carbon dioxide expansion in the bubbles," he says. "Aesthetics aside, cutting into the dough's surface does several things. The water contained within the dough turns to steam as it bakes; as with water, steam will find the path of least resistance, especially during the initial oven spring."

If you skip scoring, that's bad for looks and even, uniform baking. As Myhrvold points out, "Without scoring, the dough will decide for itself where it will expel steam (typically toward the weakest spots, which are usually the seams), which can make for unsightly rips that professional and home bakers know all too well as blowouts. Fortunately, scoring gives bakers an opportunity to create intentional weak spots in the dough. And if the cuts are symmetrical across the dough's surface, expansion will occur more evenly throughout the dough as it bakes."

Although it will take practice to score sourdough to your satisfaction, the act of scoring bread is relatively straightforward. Start by preparing your dough to your liking (don't forget to keep up with feeding your sourdough starter), then allow it to rise in a Dutch oven, like this enameled Lodge variety. A Dutch oven helps to trap heat and moisture in the dough and within the baking vessel. Similar to how the ice cube bread baking tip works, this water vapor assists with the bread's rise and helps develop a perfectly crisp crust and tender interior.

Just before placing your sourdough in the oven, it's time to score. Make a single score across the center of your loaf using a serrated bread knife, a razor blade, or a bread scorer. You might find a bread lame slashing tool works best if you're apprehensive about holding a bare blade. You only need a single slash for a healthy loaf, but feel free to get creative and test out different designs like crisscrosses and swirly patterns.

Bake your loaf according to your recipe's directions or personal preference, and you're good to go. Enjoy your hard-earned loaf alongside weekday dinners or for morning toast. Or if you're hosting any time soon consider baking an extra loaf. Fresh homemade bread is a real crowd-pleaser and between that and Ina Garten's hacks for throwing a great dinner party, you're in for a cheerful evening.