The simplest and softest sourdough sandwich bread I have tried to date! This loaf has just a touch of oil and sugar, and is leavened using ONLY sourdough starter.
If you're looking for a homemade sourdough sandwich bread that is spongy and toasts like store-bought, look no further!
There's this all-butter sourdough sandwich bread that I LOVE, but this one is even softer.
The ideal in my mind of soft sandwich bread is white bread from the store. I don't understand why, but somehow that makes the best pb+j's known to mankind.
This bread is just a hair less soft than that. I'm pretty sure it's as close as bread can be while not including any added commercial yeast. But if your kids (or you!) are craving that spongy sandwich bread, this is just right!
Oh, and also worth mentioning is the fact that this toasts like a DREAM.
You know how some sourdough you can toast for ages, and it stays basically the same color but gets slightly harder? I don't understand why this is and honestly don't know if toast science has come far enough to give us any explanations. BUT, this bread makes the best toast.
Like, actually.
There is an episode of Portlandia where the guy is telling people the most popular grain throughout human history was toast. And people of course are like, "no way, it's gotta be rice." And he's like, "no, toast beat it out." I know that's a joke and for many reasons impossible, but this toast makes me question it.
The Dough
This dough is so simple. It's your basic sourdough loaf ingredients (flour, water, salt, and starter), plus oil and sugar.
The ingredients
- Flour - Bread flour or all purpose will work here! I use whatever is convenient.
- Starter - The recipe card calls for active starter, but can I tell you a secret?? I've made this with discard with great success. Just give it a bit of extra time to rise! (If you don't have a starter, see how easy it is to make one here).
- Oil - You can use whatever you like here. There are only 12 grams, so it doesn't affect the flavor too much. I typically use olive oil, but vegetable/canola oil, avocado oil, and melted coconut oil would all work!
- Sugar - Sugar does so much for bread! It gives it a softer texture, helps it stay fresh for longer, keeps the yeasts happy while the bread rises, and affects the flavor of the dough. Don't skip it!
- Water - At 285 grams water, this is a relatively low-hydration loaf. That means it is easy to work with!
- Salt - My number one rule of bread making is don't forget the salt. It's one of the few things that will make the result inedible.
Mixing
You don't need a mixer for this bread, and in fact, I prefer mixing this one by hand!
Start by combining the water, starter, sugar, and oil in a large bowl. Add the flour and salt. When it gets too hard to mix it with a spoon, use your hands until no dry bits of flour remain.
At this point, you can cover the dough and forget about it until it's risen. If I have the time, I like to do a round of stretch and folds and shape the dough into a nice round about 30 minutes after mixing the dough.
Even softer bread
The recipe as written will give you a really soft sandwich bread with a spongy interior and slightly crisp exterior.
If you want even softer bread, try...
- brushing the top of the loaf with water before baking.
- brushing the top of the loaf with melted butter after baking.
- draping a towel over the loaf as it cools on a wire rack.
A loaf that really does it all: sandwiches, toast, grilled cheese. Happy bread baking!
(The Softest!) Sourdough Sandwich Bread
Ingredients
- 285 grams water
- 70 grams active sourdough starter
- 16 grams sugar
- 12 grams oil (see note)
- 500 grams bread flour
- 13 grams salt
Directions
- Combine the water, starter, sugar, and oil in a large bowl. Add the flour and salt and mix until no dry flour remains. Mix with your hands if it becomes too difficult to do with a spoon. Cover and rest for 15-30 minutes, then perform a round of stretch and folds to form the dough into a tight ball. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled in size.Grease an 8 by 4-inch loaf pan. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a log. Place seam side-down in the prepared pan and cover with a towel. Let rise until the dome comes up 1-inch above the rim of the pan. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 45-50 minutes, until baked through and browned.Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then invert to release and cool completely on a wire rack.
Notes
Aimee says
Is it safe to assume I can bulk ferment overnight? There aren't rise times listed in the recipe and I don't want to let it go too long!
mandyjackson says
Yes! It takes about 12 hours to fully double for me - I usually do it overnight, too!
Patricia says
I only have 9x5 loaf pans. What adjustments do I need to make with the recipe? Brand new to sour dough thank you for your help
mandyjackson says
Hi Patricia! Welcome to sourdough 🙂 No adjustments needed - You'll just have a slightly wider and shorter loaf. I'd bake it once it reaches the rim of the pan (rather than an inch above it as listed in the recipe).
Kay says
Can I make hamburger buns with this recipe?
mandyjackson says
Hi Kay - you totally could make this into buns. I also have a recipe for same day sourdough burger buns here if you’re interested!
Anneli says
Thank you for sharing this recipe. The round of stretch and folds? Does this mean do for instance 4 x stretch and folds like in other sourdough bread recipes or it is just one time and then tighten into ball?
Thanks
mandyjackson says
Hi Anneli - You'll want to do stretch and folds around around the bowl just once, then let it rise. Once you've gone all the way around the bowl, the dough should be in a ball. You don't have to keep coming back and doing it like in some recipes. Hope this helps!
Marie says
This bread recipe is amazing, thank you for creating/posting it! Could you tell me, can I refrigerate it after the final rise in the baking dish, just until I have a moment to bake it?
I've made it several times already, according to the recipe and it is delicious:)
Marie
mandyjackson says
Rather than refrigerate after the second rise, I’d do it right after shaping. It can do a slow proof in the fridge and you can bake it anytime in the next 48 hours. You may want to let it sit at room temperature for an hour or so if it looks like it needs to rise slightly more. Glad this is such a hit!!
Marie says
This worked great, thank you!
Again, a fantastic recipe!
Caity says
What temperature does this bread need to be? Still 210?
mandyjackson says
The internal temperature should be 200 🙂
Alexa Lick says
Made this and it is awesome! Great texture. I just can’t get my toast to “toast” though and get golden brown like your photos, do you have any guidance? 🙂 Thank you in advance
mandyjackson says
I’d say it takes about twice as long as store bought bread to toast. I usually have to run it through my toaster twice. Hope that helps! The toast is definitely one of the best parts of this bread 🙂
Becky Holley says
Is the the second rise that you leave overnight? Refrigerated or counter?
mandyjackson says
The first rise is overnight (about 8-12 hours) on the counter.
Susan says
This turned out great and it really is so soft! Thanks for sharing!
Hannah Nix says
Instead of refined sugar could you swap out for honey?
mandyjackson says
Haven’t used honey in this, but it’s such a small amount I can’t imagine it would cause any issues. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Rebecca says
I’ve used honey and it worked just as well as sugar. Also found that adding tangzhong helps speed the gluten process up and can get a good loaf without the overnight rise. I’m using FMF, and this recipe works great!
Carolyn says
I live in Utah, in the USA. I have a conversion chart, but am never quite sure if the ingredients convert right. Could you post it in USA amounts?
Kathy Audy says
Your scale should offer both metric and imperial weights. Metric is generally used in baking because it’s more accurate.
Marais says
Hello! I have loved this recipe. Is there a good way to freeze so that I can store some and have fresh bread later? Would it be better to freeze as a dough or freeze after I baked the loaf?
mandyjackson says
Hi Marais! You can most definitely freeze this bread. I'd recommend freezing it after baking. I like to slice it before freezing so I can just grab a slice at a time rather than thaw the whole loaf. Glad you're liking this recipe 🙂
Jan says
This is the best recipe so far!! Thank you so much 😊
Kristy says
This bread makes me believe in myself again LOL! Thank you so much! The first time I made it in a regular 8x4 pan. Now I bought a Pullman loaf pan that’s 13x4x4. I know it’s prob tough for you to know if I could double the recipe and put it in there, but do you think it’s really that simple? Thanks for any advice! I just wanna stick with this recipe because it worked so perfectly before.
mandyjackson says
Haha! Love to hear that! For that size Pullman, I’d 1.5x the recipe (but take that with a grain of salt because I’ve never tried it and it’s just my best guess based on volume of pans). Good luck!
Kaitlyn says
Approximately how long is the second rise? Just trying to time it right if I have to go somewhere.
mandyjackson says
Anywhere from 2-6 hours, depending on your kitchen temperature. If you want to stretch it out longer, you can always pop it in the fridge 🙂
Lori says
How long does the first rise take? And then how long does it take to rise in the loaf pan before baking?
mandyjackson says
Hi Lori - I've never added rise times to this recipe because it varies so much! In my kitchen in the winter, this dough typically takes about 12 hours to do the first rise, and about 4 hours to do the second one. I'd expect anywhere from 8-14 hours for the first rise, and 2-6 hours for the second rise. As always, go by visual cues rather than exact times for best results 🙂
Megan says
Thank you! I’ve made this several times and had good success with butting the dough in the fridge after 1st rise, to bake later on after shaping. After reading your comments, maybe I’ll shape before refrigerating next time.
Would I be able to sub some of the flour for whole wheat? I want to add some, but not necessarily a 100% whole wheat bread.
mandyjackson says
Hi Megan! I've adapted this to make it whole wheat and I might like it even more! You can find the recipe here. Good to know shaping after chilling has worked for you!
Christina Albrecht says
I love this recipe! I usually skip the stretch and fold all together and it still turns out beautifully!
Sarah says
I love your attitude! Too many recipes say that you have to use this or that flour or other ingredients. You give options. The one change I make is that I use whole milk instead of water and melted butter for oil. (my mother did that with milk straight from the cow)
mandyjackson says
Thanks, Sarah! I'll have to try this with milk sometime!
Jessica says
WOWzers! This is great and extremely easy and forgiving!! My first rise wasn't rising after maybe 8 hours so (it's cold and I may not have waited my starter out long enough) I told my husband to check it when he left for work......he forgot. Probably close to another 10 hours later I still gave it a whirl and it came out perfect! My first sourdough sandwich loaf too!! Anyway, thanks for this one!
mandyjackson says
Yes!!! I too love how flexible this recipe is 🙂 so glad it worked for you!!
Gary Bowers says
No professional here,but when I substitute 9x5 I divide the recipe into fifths and add that to the recipe to fill the bigger pan. Usually takes about 5 min xtra to cook. It's worked out for me on many occasions.
Sophie Gunlikson says
Has anyone frozen the loaves for later use? I'm trying to find a good recipe I can make for my sister postpartum. Also if you have, how do you "revive" it? TIA.
Morgan C says
I can’t tell you how many failed attempts I’ve had trying to make a soft sourdough sandwich bread with countless different recipes. I finally found a winner with this one! This really is so soft and works wonderfully for any kind of sandwich! I did a cold proof because I ran out of time to do the second rise before bed and I was afraid it would make it taste too sour (I don’t mind the sour taste but my kids don’t like it) but to my surprise it isn’t very sour at all. This will be my go to sandwich loaf from now on!
mandyjackson says
That’s great! So glad you liked this!
Lex says
I was looking for a simple recipe without dairy but still super soft and wow! This recipe exceeded my expectations! It’s soft and flavorful but not tangy/sour from the starter. We ate an entire loaf in one day between two people. Luckily I made two loaves!
Sara says
So delicious! But how do you keep yours from not getting an ear on top? It’s so nice and smooth in your photos. Mine has gotten quite an ear both times I’ve made it.
mandyjackson says
Hi Sara! Glad you’re enjoying this recipe! If you’re happy with the texture of the bread and just want a more controlled oven spring, I’d do a few diagonal scores right before baking.
Sara says
That worked like a charm!!! It’s perfect! Thank you!
Melanie Morton says
I love this recipe! Just to clarify, bake uuncovered? Thank you so much!
mandyjackson says
Yes - uncovered!
Shaz says
Do you score the bread?
mandyjackson says
You can if you want! I usually don’t for sandwich loaves.