Sourdough Sandwich Bread
This sourdough sandwich bread is soft, fluffy, and perfect in every way. Made with just a few simple ingredients, it’s a reliable go-to loaf. You will be obsessed with this sourdough sandwich bread recipe!
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale
- Dough whisk or spoon
- Bench scraper (optional but helpful)
- Two loaf pans (one for baking, one inverted on top to act as a lid for steam)
- Parchment paper or avocado oil spray (to prevent sticking)
- Clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap (for covering dough during bulk ferment)
- Cooling rack
- Oven mitts
Ingredients
- 150 g sourdough starter active and bubbly
- 325 g filtered water room temperature
- 20 g honey
- 20 g olive oil
- 500 g bread flour or all-purpose
- 10 g salt
Instructions
Mix the dough:
- In a large mixing bowl (I prefer to use a glass bowl so I can see when bubbles form on the sides), combine 150 grams of your active sourdough starter, 325 grams of room-temperature filtered water (I use water from my Brita and microwave it for 30-40 seconds), 20 grams of honey, and 20 grams of olive oil. Use a dough whisk or whatever utensil you prefer to stir until everything is combined and the starter is dissolved.
- Add 500 grams of flour (you can use all-purpose unbleached or bread flour) and 10 grams of salt. Mix this until you don't have any flour pockets and you are left with a nice shaggy dough.
- Cover your bowl with a damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let it sit for an hour. I use disposable shower caps that I get at my local beauty supply store.
Stretch and folds:
- After your dough has been resting for one hour, you will do 3-4 sets of stretch and folds every 30 minutes. This is what is building the stretch in your dough.
- What is a stretch and fold? Grab one side of the dough, stretch it upward, then fold it over onto the opposite side. Turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat 30 more times (4 folds total). After each set cover your dough.
- After your final set, cover the dough and let it rise on your counter or in a temperature-stable environment until it has puffed up noticeably and has bubbles on the sides of the dough (this is where using a glass bowl comes in handy).
Shape:
- You can lightly flour your surface (I don't because I don't like how my dough feels when I do this, but it is up to you and how sticky your dough is)
- Dump your dough onto the counter and gently shape it into a loaf. You can laminate your dough, or you can do push and pulls until you are happy with the shape of your dough. Place it into a lightly greased or parchment-lined loaf pan. Cover the dough with your kitchen tea towel or plastic wrap.
Final proof:
- Let the dough rise for 1-2 hours at room temperature or until the dough has risen and is filling out the loaf pan. You can also let it proof overnight in the fridge. If I let it proof overnight in the fridge, I will bring it to room temperature before I bake it.
Preheat the oven:
- 30 minutes before baking, preheat your oven to 4°00 F.
Bake:
- Place a second loaf pan on top of your loaf pan with the dough to create a lid. Bake covered for 30 minutes and then remove the top pan and reduce the temperature to 350 F. Bake for another 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool:
- Remove the bread from the loaf pan and place it on a cooling rack. Let it cool for at least one hour before slicing. If you slice into it too early, you will be left with gummy bread. I promise the wait is worth it.