Why Is My Sourdough Sticking to the Banneton?
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The short answer: dough sticks to a banneton for one of three reasons — the wrong flour, not enough of it, or a dough that has proofed too long. Rice flour is the fix for the first two. Rice flour has almost no gluten and doesn't absorb water into a paste the way wheat flour does, so it sits on the surface as a dry barrier instead of dissolving into the dough.
This page is about diagnosing and fixing the problem. For choosing and preparing a basket in the first place, see the banneton guide.
The causes, in order of how often they're the culprit
1. You used wheat flour
By far the most common cause. Wheat flour hydrates, turns to glue against a wet dough, and gives up. Rice flour stays granular. If you change one thing, change this.
2. There wasn't enough of it, or it wasn't rubbed in
A dusting shaken over the top mostly lands on the ridges of the rattan and leaves the grooves bare, which is exactly where dough grips. Rice flour needs to be worked into the weave with your fingers, then the excess tapped out. A basket can look over-floured and still be right.
3. The dough surface was wet when it went in
The skin that touches the basket needs to be dry and taut. If your shaped loaf has a damp, slack surface — usually from a wet bench, wet hands, or shaping with too much water — it will stick regardless of how well the basket was floured. Shape on a lightly floured surface and dust the loaf itself before it goes in.
4. The dough was over-proofed
An over-fermented dough loses its structure, relaxes, and slumps down into the weave of the basket rather than sitting on top of it. It also tears when you try to release it. If your loaf sticks and spreads flat when it finally comes out, over-proofing is the problem, not the flour — read bulk fermentation.
5. The basket or liner is new
A brand new basket and a brand new linen liner are both at their least forgiving. Both season with use as rice flour works into the fibres. The first three or four bakes need noticeably more flour than the tenth.
6. The dough is very wet
Above roughly 78% hydration, dough will find any gap in your flouring. That's not a fault, it's just the territory — wet doughs need a liner or a much heavier hand with the rice flour. See sourdough hydration explained if you aren't sure what your hydration actually is.
What to do when it's stuck right now
- Don't pull at it. Tearing the skin costs you the oven spring.
- Invert the basket over your baking surface or parchment and give it a moment. Gravity does most of the work if you let it.
- If it hasn't dropped, tap the base of the basket firmly a few times, keeping it inverted.
- Still stuck at the edges: turn it back over and run a thin bench scraper or palette knife between the dough and the basket wall, working around the rim rather than digging under the loaf.
- If part of the loaf tears, score around the damage rather than through it. It will still bake well and taste identical.
- If it comes out badly misshapen, drop it into a loaf tin and bake it there. A tin loaf beats a wasted one.
Choosing your approach by hydration
- Under 70% — bare basket, rice flour rubbed into the grooves. You get the spiral pattern.
- 70–78% — bare basket still works but be generous, or use the liner on a humid day.
- Above 78% — use the linen liner, seasoned with rice flour. Reliable release matters more than the pattern.
- Doughs with seeds, nuts or a wet enriched crumb — liner, every time.
Liner care and seasoning is covered separately in banneton liner and cloth care.
Cold proofing makes release easier
A loaf that has spent the night in the fridge is firmer, drier at the surface, and drops out of a basket far more cleanly than one proofed warm on the bench. If you are fighting sticking repeatedly, moving your final proof to the fridge often solves it on its own. More on that in cold proofing sourdough.
A quick pre-bake checklist
- Rice flour, not wheat
- Rubbed into the grooves, excess tapped out
- Loaf shaped with a taut, dry skin
- Seam side up, exposed side dusted
- Proofed cold where possible
- Basket completely dry before it was used
Common questions
Can I use semolina or cornflour instead of rice flour?
Semolina works reasonably well and is coarse enough to stay put. Cornflour is too fine and behaves more like wheat flour. Rice flour remains the best of the three, and a bag lasts a very long time because you use so little.
Should I oil or spray the basket?
No. Oil soaks into rattan, goes rancid, and ruins the basket permanently. Flour only.
Why did it stick on one side only?
Uneven flouring, or the loaf was placed off-centre and one side pressed harder into the weave. Rotate your attention to the wall of the basket, not just the base.
Do I need to wash the basket after a bad stick?
Brush out the dried dough with a stiff dry brush once it has hardened — it comes away cleanly. Don't wash the basket with soap or soak it.
Is a liner cheating?
No. The only thing you give up is the spiral pattern on the crust, which is decoration. Plenty of bakers use a liner for every wet dough and a bare basket for everything else.
Need a replacement liner or a cleaning brush? Both are in our maintenance range. New basket? Browse banneton baskets.
