Add the sourdough garlic knot dough ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment.Mix on low speed for a couple of minutes until the dough starts coming together. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 8-10 minutes until the dough wraps around the dough hook, is tacky, and you can stretch it without it tearing immediately.

Transfer the dough to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Gather it into a ball.Cover and place in a warm location to bulk ferment for about 4 hours.During bulk fermentation, perform a couple of stretch and folds in the first hour with 30 minutes separated between each fold to strengthen it further.Rest the dough for the remainder of bulk fermentation. Bulk fermentation is complete when the dough has doubled in size and feels full of air.

Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour and up to 48 hours.

Turn out the chilled dough onto a scale to weigh it and divide the total weight by twelve. Use a bench scraper or a knife to divide the dough into twelve equal-sized pieces (about 50-55 grams each).

To shape, I highly recommend viewing my shaping video or photos in the guide above.Lightly flour your work surface. Use both hands to roll out a piece of dough into a long rope about 10-12 inches long. Create a U shape and cross one end over the other, creating a hole at the bottom of the U. Tie one end through the hole in the center like a pretzel. Finally, loop the two loose ends into the center of the hole to complete the garlic knot.Repeat with the remaining knots.

Prepare a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper.Space the garlic knots on the lined baking sheet at least two inches apart so they don’t bake into each other. Use two baking sheets if they don’t all fit.Cover the knots with plastic wrap (I gently spray with non-stick spray so it doesn’t stick to the knots as they proof).Then, place the pan in a warm location to proof for 1½ to 2 hours, or until they’ve doubled in size, feel poofy, and look puffy.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF (204ºC).Once preheated, brush a light oil or plant milk or aquafaba wash over the tops of the proofed garlic knots.Bake for 17-20 minutes, or until the garlic knots are uniformly golden brown.

As the garlic knots bake, make the garlic butter. In a medium pan on the stovetop, melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the minced garlic cloves to the hot butter. Roast the garlic for a few minutes until it’s light brown and fragrant, stirring the garlic frequently.As soon as the garlic starts to brown, remove it from the heat and pour the garlic butter into a small bowl. Add the salt, red pepper flakes, vegan parmesan cheese or nooch, and parsley to the hot bowl and stir.

Once baked, add the hot garlic knots to a large bowl and pour the garlic butter on top of the garlic knots.Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, a lid, or a cutting board, and shake the bowl to coat the knots in the garlic butter.Grate more vegan parmesan cheese on top and rip apart the knots and enjoy while warm dipped in marinara sauce.