Soft, fluffy sourdough sandwich bread. Oh this is what dreams are made of! I’ve made so many loaves of this bread lately. I’ve turned it into avocado toast, BLTs, and just simply gifted it to friends because that’s how I roll. I have all the step by step photos, tips and tricks for you to master this soft sourdough sandwich loaf at home.
I’ve been pretty obsessed with baking with my Sourdough Starter these past few months stuck at home. It’s like part science. Part magic. And 100% holy moly deliciousness. In fact I created this free e-mail series, Sourdough Simplified to help you get started making sourdough and take away some of the confusion.
I’ve been baking up this Sourdough Bread Recipe (From Starter!) about once a week. I’ve ventured out to make some Sourdough Brioche Bread to make crazy good french toast. Some Whole Wheat Sourdough Sandwich Bread to make amazing sandwiches each day. And let’s not forget about the weekends. Those are reserved for what might be the BEST Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls I have ever eaten.
So this time, a soft sourdough sandwich white bread. Because this is what all sandwiches deserve.
Ok but let’s back it up a bit. Maybe you’re new to sourdough.
What Is Sourdough?
Sourdough is basically an ancient way of making bread. Sourdough doesn’t rely on commercial yeast (aka those little packets you have bought at the store), but on wild yeast. Wild yeast is everywhere around us and even on us!
By simply combining flour and water, you create a live fermented culture from the wild yeast found on the grains of the wheat that the flour is made from. The more it is “fed”, meaning fresh flour and water, allows the wild yeast to multiply.
Because sourdough relies on wild yeast, the process can take much longer than commercial yeast bread recipes. But the complex flavor and texture is far superior of any other bread you will ever eat.
For more Sourdough 101: What Is Sourdough?<– click here.
Is Sourdough Bread Better For You?
Yes. 1000% yes. Sure at first glance, the nutrition label might look the same to conventional bread. But the long fermentation process is what has sourdough sailing past the conventional bread loaves by a mile for its health benefits. Plus it’s made with just a few simple ingredients compared to store-bought bread that has added chemicals and preservatives.
Whole grains, in general, that bread is made with can contain lots of great minerals. But the body can have a hard time absorbing those minerals due to phytic acid that is present in grains. But the lactic acid created from the fermentation process helps to break down the phytic acid allow your body to be able to absorb more of those minerals than you would be able to with bread made from commercial yeast.
Also, sourdough bread can be much more easily digested and enjoyed, especially those with a gluten sensitivity. The long fermentation process helps to already start the process of breaking down the gluten in the bread making it much easier to digest.
So more vitamins, minerals, and it’s easier to digest. Basically, sourdough is awesome.
Make Your Sourdough Starter…
If you haven’t gotten around yet to making your sourdough starter then let’s get going! What are you waiting for? It will take about 5 days to make your starter before you can attempt this bread. But it will be worth it. Here is the full guide on How To Make Sourdough Starter From Scratch.
Once you have your starter raring to go then you will need to feed and mantain your starter.
Want to jump in to sourdough but don’t want to make your own starter? Totally fine! Just buy a sourdough starter and it will be ready to use in a couple days.
Ingredients Needed
The best part about this sourdough sandwich bread is that it requires very few ingredients. I think that’s what I love about making sourdough anything! Just simple, real ingredients. Six ingredients. That’s it!
- Sourdough starter
- Water
- Sugar
- Flour
- Salt
- Oil
Ingredient Notes
- Water – I have made this with my tap water no issues, but if you’re concerned about the quality of your tap water then use filtered or bottled water to be safe.
- Flour – I used a combination of bread flour and all purpose which gives it great structure and a soft loaf at the same time. You can use 100% AP flour but the bread may be harder to shape.
- Salt – Different types of salt can vary by weight. I used kosher salt for the best pure salt taste.
- Oil – I use a neutral tasting oil such as canola or vegetable oil but I think any oil would work here like grapeseed or olive. I haven’t tested it without coconut oil, however.
Start With An Active Starter
You want to make sure to start with an ACTIVE STARTER. An active starter is a starter that has doubled in size and you use it when it’s at it’s peak of rising. This is usually about 4 hours after feeding it (if you have been storing the starter in your fridge then it may take a couple feedings to get the starter to an active bubbly stage where it doubles in size within 4 hours).
The time it takes for it to double in size can vary depending on water temperature and room temperature. Warmer = rises faster. Colder = rises slower.
How can you tell when your starter is ready?
I have two ways:
1. The Rubberband trick
Place a rubberband around your starter jar where the height of the starter starts when you feed it. And then when you see it’s doubled in size, it’s ready! Like so…
Update: You can also use a sharpie to mark the outside of your jar! Will wash right off!
2. The Float Test
Still not sure? Take a spoonful (just be careful to not deflate the bubbles) and place in a bowl of water. Does it float? If it does, then you’re ready! If it doesn’t let the starter continue to bubble away before using it.
Making The Sourdough Sandwich Bread Dough
- Ok now that your starter is ready time to make that dough! You want to first stir together your active starter, water, sugar and oil.
- Then go ahead and stir in your flour and salt. It will be quite shaggy at first. I stir with a fork then I just get in there with my hands. Nothing. More. Satisfying.
- Cover with a damp towel for about an hour then work into a smooth ball. I do this by bringing the edges up to the center and the flip it over. And let the dough rise, at room temperature for 8 to 10 hours. I prefer doing this overnight!
Shaping The Dough
Now you can let the dough rise all day and bake it up at night, or start the dough in the P.M. like I do and then it’s ready to be shaped and baked the next morning. No way is wrong. Do what works for you.
- About 8-10 hours have passed and it’s doubled in size it’s time to shape the dough.
- Shaping the dough is pretty simple. I just scrape the dough onto a lightly floured counter. Then just dimple the dough with your fingertips to release any air bubbles.
- Roll the dough into a log and tuck the ends. Let it hang out for about 5-10 minutes to let the gluten relax. And then tighten the shape with your hands. Just cup the dough and pull it toward you.
- And then it’s time to place it in an oiled loaf pan to go through a second rise!
Final Rise
You want to place the dough into an oiled loaf pan. Be sure to cover your dough. And now it needs to rise for another 1 1/2 – 2 hours until the dough rises about an inch above the rim of the loaf of the pan.
This time can vary depending on how warm your kitchen is. The colder the kitchen the longer it will take! Ideally, the bread would rise in a warm kitchen, about 75oF. You can always put your bread somewhere warm, or try putting it up high too – like above your fridge is always a good spot.
Time To Bake!
Once the dough has risen, it’s time to bake! I bake my loaf in a 375oF oven for about 40-45 minutes.
Gorgeous loaf of sandwich bread is almost yours…
Recipe Tips
- Make sure your starter is active before you start. Drop a small piece in a bowl of water to see if it floats. It it does, then it’s ready! If not, then it may need 1-2 more feedings.
- Measure Your Flour Using A Kitchen Scale . You can use measuring cups but for best accuracy it’s better use a kitchen scale and weigh out your flour. This ensures you don’t overmeasure, which can result in dense rolls. You can read my post on How To Measure Flour here.
- Use A Large Mixing Bowl! This dough will expand quite a bit. So the bigger the better.
- Use a damp towel. You don’t want the dough to dry out on top creating a film that will prevent the dough from rising.
Why Didn’t My Sourdough Sandwich Bread Rise?
- Starter Wasn’t Ready: This could be because your sourdough starter wasn’t quite bubbly and active enough. Be sure to do the “float test” before you begin.
- Cold Kitchen: Another culprit could be a cold kitchen! If your kitchen is cold the bread will take longer to rise. Ideally, your kitchen should be around 70°F.
- Overproofed: Another reason I found as I continue on this sourdough journey, is you overproofed your dough. If you overproof then there will be nothing left for it to do, and you will get no rise. So when you place the risen dough in the pan, make sure to not let the dough rise for more than 2 hours. The only exception is if your kitchen is super cold and it’s still not puffy.
Recipe FAQ’s
Bread flour helps to give some structure to this recipe. But if you have to use 100% all-purpose flour, the texture might not be quite the same and it may be harder to shape.
Sourdough bread will be fine at room temperature for about a week. The acidity to the bread is actually a natural mold deterrent so it won’t go bad as quickly. I think it’s best, however, if eaten within the first few days. Any leftovers, I love turning into croutons! Don’t let any of this go to waste.
Yes! I freeze for up to 3 months. Just make sure the bread is completely cool before freezing it. I wrap it in a few layers of plastic wrap and then a final layer of tin foil or place in a plastic bag. I would just unwrap and thaw at room temperature when ready to enjoy!
More Sourdough Recipes
Tools To Make This Sourdough Recipe
You can check out My Favorite Sourdough Bread Tools and Resources.
- Loaf Pan
- Large mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale
- Sourdough cookbook – ok not necessary but it’s chock full of amazing recipes that once you master this loaf you will want to make next.
- Cooling Rack
Sourdough Sandwich Bread
Ingredients
- 65 g (1/3 cup) bubbly, active starter
- 300 g (1 1/4 cups) warm water
- 12 g (1 Tbsp) granulated sugar
- 15 g (1 Tbsp) oil
- 400 g (3 1/3 cups) bread flour
- 100 g (3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp) all purpose flour
- 9 g (1 1/2 tsp) salt
- melted butter for brushing on top (optional)
Instructions
- Make The Dough. In a large bowl, whisk together the starter, water, sugar, and oil together with a fork. Add the flours and salt. Mix to combine. Finish by hand, until a rough dough forms. Cover with a damp towel and let rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour. (If needed Replenish starter with flour and water at this point). After dough has rested, work the dough into a smooth ball, about 20 seconds. The dough will be supple and smooth when it comes together.
- Bulk Rise. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let rise at room temperature, 70oF, until double in size, about 8 to 10 hours. The dough will look nice and domed when ready.
- Shape. Remove the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently dimple the surface with your fingertips to release any large air bubbles. Roll the dough into a log, tucking the ends underneath. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, lightly coat a 9-inch loaf pan with oil. With floured hands, cup the dough and pull it toward you to tighten its shape. Place into your loaf pan, seam side down.
- Second Rise. Cover the dough and let rest until it has risen about 1 inch above the rim of the pan, about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours, depending on room temperature. Near the end of the rising time, pre-heat your oven to 375F.
- Bake. Bake the dough on the center rack in your 375F preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes. When finished, remove the loaf from the oven and brush the crust with the melted butter (optional) Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- Active Starter is key! Make sure your starter is active before you start. Drop a small piece in a bowl of water to see if it floats. It it does, then it’s ready! If not, then it may need 1-2 more feedings.
- Use A Kitchen Scale. For best accuracy, it’s best that you weigh your ingredients and not rely on volume (measuring cups)
- Damp Towel!! When you let the dough rise overnight, be sure to use a damp towel to cover it so it doesn’t dry out and not rise properly.
- Storage: The loaf is best consumed within a week, stored in a plastic bag at room temperature. Otherwise freeze for up to 3 months.
- Recipe From: The Clever Carrot’s cookbook – Artisan Bread Made Simple
Deirdra says
I’m trying to replace as many store-bought, preservative-packed items with homemade. Sandwich bread always felt like the most daunting thing to replace, so I kept pushing it off. Then I tried this recipe and I’m sold. I’ll never buy bread at the store again. My kids love it and I feel so much better packing their lunches with this bread. Thank you!
Heather says
that’s amazing to hear Deirdra!! So glad everyone loves it!
Stephanie says
I’ve been on the hunt for a good sourdough sandwich bread basically since I made my starter. I’ve tried so many and they always come out with a hard crust. I’m limited to a toaster oven right now so I think that was part of the reason my loaves weren’t coming out as well either. Then I found this recipe. It’s soft with just the right amount of firmness. The crust is soft, and the flavor is so good. I used maple syrup in place of the sugar and I also experimented and added cocoa powder and chocolate chips to a loaf. It came out so good! Thank you for my new bread!!
Heather says
aw thank you Stephanie!! I’m so glad you loved it and had so much success. and adding cocoa powder and chocolate chips sounds right up my alley. I’ll have to try!!
john santella says
I’m just about to start mixing the dough for this recipe. My question: what are your thoughts on adding a cold ferment to the process?
Heather says
Hi John, I haven’t tried- should work fine but may just affect rising times. Let me know if you try!
Lydia says
I have successfully done a cold ferment once the dough has doubled for the bulk rise. I just put it straight into the fridge and once it comes out carry on with the shaping and second rise. I tried a cold ferment after the second rise once and the dough deflated so I would only try it after the bulk rise.
Heather says
Hi Lydia, next time try letting the dough rise at room temperature after the cold ferment. That may help
Karen says
Can I omit the sugar?
Heather says
Sugar is what the yeast feeds on- so I would not recommend. You can always try swapping with honey or a coconut sugar.
Gemma says
After months of trying and failing to make sourdough bread, I just followed your recipe and it’s the best bread I’ve ever made! Thank you for sharing it! It’s officially my go to bread recipe now!
Heather says
Aw that’s awesome Gemma!! So glad you found success with the recipe!
Keturah says
Thank you for a wonderful recipe! This was my first time making sourdough loaves and they turned out beautifully!
Heather says
Oh that’s awesome to hear Keturah!! So happy to hear 🙂
Emily says
Holy moly deliciousness!! I followed your recipe exactly and it is spot-on PERFECT!!! Thanks for the great recipe! I’ll be making more of these babies stat.
Heather says
aw that’s awesome to hear Emily so glad you loved it!!
Vicky says
I love this recipe so much! Perfect loaf! Easy to make and i just really keep making it over and over again! Great for sandwiches and everything else! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful bread recipe!
Heather says
aw that’s great to hear Vicky!!
Raquel says
The best sandwich bread. The fact that this a sourdough recipe makes it even better!!! Hats off to the chef. Making my 4th loaf tonight. I should add that I live at over 4000ft elevation and it still come out perfect. I follow recipe exact.
Heather says
wow that’s awesome to hear Raquel!!
Jacqueline says
Do you think that I could long ferment the dough in the fridge after shaping and placing in bread tin? I need the longer fermentation for my gut! Wondering how long I could put it in the fridge for?
Heather says
Hi Jacqueline, I haven’t tried it but it looks like 36 hours would be an OK time to let it sit and ferment shaped in the loaf pan in the fridge. Let me know if you try it!
Erin says
Hi Heather,
I know this is an old post but thought I’d comment because I was wondering the same thing. I let it ferment in the loaf pan in my fridge for 48 hours. It was amazing when I baked it!
Heather says
Hi Erin, thank you for leaving a kind review and so glad you loved the bread!
Ann says
I’ve made this bread probably 5 times already so I figured I should review it!
-I never weigh anything and it turns out great every time (use cups measurement)!
-it’s the perfect sandwich bread no huge holes, soft and slices extra thin but still sturdy!
-it’s not too sour my toddler loves it for PBJ
-very easy recipe I’ve added in some extra stretching and folding before and not noticed a difference so at all so why bother right!
-my 2nd rise always takes forever maybe my pan is too big not sure but it’s no big deal I just cook it when it feels right haha or put it in the oven with the light on for the 2nd rise
Overall highly recommended great recipe and it has frozen very well for me!
Heather says
Thank you for such a lovely review Ann! I’m so glad this bread has worked out so wonderfully for you and that your toddler loves it too 🙂
Amber says
Omg this bread was amazing. Apparently my starter is on steroids I doubled recipe and made two loaves. Only proofed for 5 min in tins bc so fast and came out huge 😂 I made again to bake today , I’ll split into 3/4 loaves this time for a smaller loaf now that I know. But this bread was sooo soft and moist and easy. Thank you!!
Taylor Smith says
I’m so glad you enjoyed the Sourdough Bread! Thanks for leaving a review. ❤️
Dana says
This was so great! I’ve been wanting to find an EASY “throw together” sandwich bread and this is it. So nice not to have to fuss with stretches and kneading. Planning on making this again tonight! Uses coconut sugar in place of regular.
Sig says
made for first time and it didn’t rise above the pan during final proofing (likely due to 67 degree kitchen) but this bread was so good! Thanks for the recipe!
Ashley says
I made this and it turned out wonderful, it was a super easy recipe!! My family loved it!
Taylor Smith says
I’m so happy your family loved it!
K says
Can I substitute the bread flour with more all purpose?
Heather says
You can use AP flour – use the same amount though don’t add more. The texture will vary slightly but still delicious!
Rebecca says
When you say warm water, what is the target temp? I’m using approx 100 degrees F for the water. Will granulated sugar work better than organic cane sugar?
Heather says
Yes I aim for 100-105F. Basically if I can stick my finger in it and it doesn’t burn me then it’s all set. Yes either sugar works!
Vicki F Bauer says
Confusing instructions because of typos. Another confusion was in Step 1. “Replenish starter with flour and water.” That statement might have been better understood if in parentheses as it had nothing to do with the recipe. The typos were: “our” fingertips instead of YOUR fingertips; place into your “local” pan instead of your LOAF pan.
Tonight I’m starting my 3rd loaf. I’m determined to make this recipe develop into a beautifully textured, relatively light ,bread. My first loaf could have been a door stop! The second attempt was lighter but still too dense to enjoy. If the 3rd loaf is not a hit with my family, I’m moving on to greener pastures.
YES, I have used a digital kitchen scale for accurate measurements. YES, the ambient temperature is in the 70*F range of a degree either side.
Heather says
Hi Vicki, thank you for letting me know about the typos. I have fixed those in the recipe now. Sourdough does take practice and some patience. It sounds like if the bread was dense then your starter was not as active as it should be to start your dough or the dough was overproofed by the time you went to bake it. Times and temperature in the recipe can always vary depending on your starter, season, and where you live. The dough may take less time than 8-10 hours to rise if your kitchen is warmer or the water was to start. When it comes sourdough so it’s best to also go with look and feel as to when it’s ready. Many readers have had fantastic success with this recipe so I hope you give it another try and let me know how else I can troubleshoot!
Pamela says
This recipe is great! The bread came out perfect.
Easy process, great results.
Heather says
fabulous!
Eowyn says
I used this recipe for my first attempt at bread with my current starter, and made it twice within two days, so you could say I found it pleasing. 🙂 It was even yummy when I forgot to add salt into my second batch!
Heather says
amazing!