Advanced Sourdough Shaping: Coil Folds, Lamination, and Stitch Method

If you have been baking sourdough for a while and feel comfortable with basic stretch and fold and the shaping techniques in my beginner guide, it is time to add some new tools to your repertoire. These three techniques — coil folds, lamination, and the stitch method — solve specific problems that basic folding cannot, and they give you finer control over your dough's structure and final shape.

Coil Folds

Coil folds are my favorite upgrade from stretch and fold. Instead of reaching into the container and pulling the dough up and over, you lift the dough from underneath at the center, letting both sides fold under from gravity. The result is a gentler, more effective fold that builds strength without degassing.

How to Do It

Wet your hands. Slide them under the dough at the center of the container, palms up. Lift the middle of the dough straight up, letting the two ends fall and fold underneath. The dough should form a natural coil shape as it folds. Set it down gently, rotate the container 90 degrees, and repeat. That is one set.

The key difference from stretch and fold is that you never pull the dough by its edges. This prevents tearing, preserves gas bubbles, and creates a more even gluten development. Coil folds are especially useful for wet doughs (75%+ hydration) where stretch and fold can feel like wrestling with a sticky creature.

Lamination

Lamination is a technique borrowed from pastry making where you stretch the dough extremely thin on a wet surface, then fold it back on itself in layers. It provides an enormous amount of gluten development in a single manipulation and is the best way to incorporate mix-ins (cheese, olives, herbs, dried fruit) evenly throughout the dough.

How to Do It

About 30-60 minutes into bulk fermentation (after one set of coil folds or stretch and folds), wet your countertop generously. Turn the dough out onto the wet surface. Using wet hands, gently stretch the dough outward in all directions until it is as thin as possible without tearing. You are aiming for a large, roughly rectangular sheet that is nearly translucent in the thinnest spots.

If you are adding mix-ins, scatter them over the surface now. Then fold the dough like a letter: bring the left third over the center, then the right third over that. Rotate 90 degrees and fold again into thirds. You now have a compact, layered package with incredible gluten structure. Return it to your container and continue bulk fermentation.

The Stitch Method for Final Shaping

The stitch method is a final shaping technique that builds exceptional surface tension, particularly for batard (oval) shapes. Instead of the traditional fold-and-roll approach, you create tension by pulling and overlapping the dough in a stitching pattern, similar to lacing a shoe.

How to Do It

Lightly flour your work surface. Place your preshaped dough seam-side up (smooth side down). Working from the top of the dough toward the bottom, grab a small portion from the left edge, stretch it slightly, and fold it to the right of center. Then grab a portion from the right edge, stretch it slightly, and fold it to the left of center, overlapping the first fold. Continue alternating left and right, working your way down the dough like lacing up a boot.

When you reach the bottom, roll the dough gently toward you to close the seam, creating a taut, elongated batard shape. The overlapping folds create multiple layers of surface tension, which is why this method produces a tighter, more controlled shape than a simple fold-and-roll.

Combining These Techniques

These three techniques work together in a natural sequence. During bulk fermentation, use coil folds for the first two sets (spaced 30 minutes apart), then do a lamination fold for the third manipulation. Continue with coil folds if needed. For final shaping, use the stitch method for batards or a traditional round shaping for boules.

This combination addresses every stage of gluten development: coil folds build initial strength gently, lamination creates a dramatic structural boost in one step, and the stitch method builds the final surface tension needed for a tall, proud loaf with great oven spring.

One word of caution: do not add all three techniques to your routine simultaneously if you have not used them before. Try one at a time, bake with it a few times, and understand how it changes your dough before adding the next. Each technique is a tool for a specific purpose, and understanding when to use each one is more valuable than executing all of them mechanically in every bake.

The goal of advanced technique is not complexity for its own sake. It is solving specific problems. If your dough is too weak, coil folds help. If you want to add mix-ins without destroying your crumb, lamination is the answer. If your loaves spread flat during proofing, try the stitch method. Match the technique to the problem, and your bread will improve faster than following any rigid formula.