I've been making sourdough for about 6 months now and my loaves always come out pretty dense. I'm using a decent starter that's been active for weeks, but I'm not getting those big open crumbs like the bakery bread. I'm doing bulk fermentation for 4-5 hours at room temp, then cold proofing overnight. What am I missing?
The density usually means you're not developing enough gluten strength or you're degassing too much during shaping - are you doing any stretch-and-folds during that bulk fermentation, or just doing a single mix? Also, 4-5 hours might be wrapping up your bulk too early; a lot of people go longer (like 6-8 hours) until they see the dough visibly puffed and jiggly. One more thing to check: when you score and bake, does your oven have enough steam in the first 15-20 minutes, and are you baking hot enough (like 450°F or higher)?
Your bulk fermentation time might actually be too long for your conditions. Four to five hours at room temperature can fully develop your dough before the gluten structure has a chance to trap gas effectively, especially if your starter is vigorous. What you're looking for is that sweet spot where fermentation is strong enough to create CO2 but the dough still has structural integrity to hold those bubbles. Try cutting bulk down to 3-4 hours and pay attention to how your dough looks and feels rather than the clock - it should increase by maybe 50-75%, not double completely.
The other thing I'd check is your shaping technique. Even if your dough has good structure going in, rough handling during pre-shape and final shape deflates everything you've built. You want to be gentle and deliberate, creating tension on the surface without actually pressing out the gas. Some people also benefit from doing one or two sets of stretch-and-folds in the first hour or two of bulk to build strength without overworking it. Skip the aggressive degassing that can happen if you're too heavy-handed with the tension.
One more angle: make sure your cold proof is actually cold. A fridge at 38-40°F is ideal. If it's warmer than that, fermentation keeps happening slowly and your crumb structure can collapse before you bake. And when you score and load into the Dutch oven, handle it like it's fragile - that's your last chance to keep those pockets intact before the oven spring does its thing.
Stretch-and-folds are honestly your biggest missing piece here. If you're just letting the dough sit untouched for 4-5 hours, you're not building the gluten network that actually traps and holds onto gas bubbles. Do 4-6 sets of stretch-and-folds during the first 2 hours of bulk fermentation, spaced about 30 minutes apart. This develops strength without overworking the dough, and it's what separates dense loaves from open crumb structure. The gas is already being produced by your starter - you just need the gluten scaffold to keep it there instead of letting it escape or collapse.
Here's a practical trick that helped me: pay attention to the poke test during bulk fermentation instead of timing it by the clock. When you gently poke the dough with a floured finger, it should spring back slowly - not instantly (underdeveloped) and not stay indented (overdeveloped). That timing varies wildly depending on your kitchen temp and starter strength, so 4-5 hours might genuinely be too long or too short for your specific conditions. Also, make sure you're being really gentle during shaping. A lot of people deflate their dough too aggressively trying to create surface tension, which just squeezes out all the gas you worked to build up.
One more thing: cold proofing overnight is good, but if your kitchen is really cold or your fridge is extra cold, the dough might not be getting enough final rise time. You want some visible puffing even after the overnight proof before you score and bake. If it looks exactly the same as when it went in, bump the fridge temp up slightly or let it sit out for 30 minutes before baking.
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