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As I mentioned a few weeks, a number of requests about how to make my mother’s peasant bread with a sourdough starter encouraged me to dip my toe into the wonderful world of naturally leavened breads. You can read more about that experiment here, which led to this simple sourdough focaccia recipe, an adaptation of my favorite yeasted, refrigerator focaccia.
It also led to this sourdough toasting bread, which is essentially the same formula, just baked in a different vessel and without the slick of oil and sprinkling of sea salt on top. I’ve been making this bread even more often than the focaccia these days because I love the shape: it’s so nice for morning toast and for sandwiches.
PS: Essential Equipment For Sourdough Bread Baking
PPS: How to Activate, Feed, and Maintain A Sourdough Starter
Simple Sourdough Toasting Bread: What You Need
- A sourdough starter. I recommend buying one (read why here).
- Time. As with the focaccia, this bread rises first for about 6 to 18 hours (depending on the time of year and strength of your starter), then again for another 4 to 6.
- A large loaf pan. I’ve been using this 10 x 5-inch loaf pan. If you only have two smaller loaf pans, such as 8.5 x 4.5-inch pans, you’ll need to split the dough in half after the first rise.
That’s it! Ready? Here’s the play-by-play:
As always, when mixing sourdough doughs, it’s best to weigh everything with a digital scale. Start with 100 g starter. (If this looks familiar, it is: this is the same basic process for the sourdough focaccia.)
Add 10 g kosher (or other) salt.
Add 430 g water. (Or less, see recipe for notes.)
Stir to combine.
Add 512 g bread flour.
Stir to form a sticky dough ball.
Cover with a towel or bowl cover, and let rest for 30 minutes. Then, perform a series of stretches and folds. See video for guidance. Repeat this 3 more times for a total of 4 sets of stretches and folds during the first two hours. Then, let rise for 6 to 18 hours* (see recipe notes) at room temperature:
After 6 – 18 hours, it will look something like this:
Drizzle the surface of the dough with a little bit of olive oil; then fold the dough inwards from the sides to deflate.
Transfer dough to loaf pan.
Let rise till dough just begins to crown the rim of the pan, about 6 hours.
Bake for about 45 minutes.
Easy Sourdough Sandwich (or Toasting) Bread
- Prep Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 24 hours 40 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
** UPDATE: VIDEO GUIDANCE IS HERE **
The makeup of this dough is the same as this sourdough focaccia. Here, the dough is baked in a loaf pan, and there is no sea salt on top.
This recipe yields one large loaf. You’ll need a 10 x 5-inch loaf pan, such as this one. If you only have two smaller loaf pans, such as 8.5 x 4.5-inch pans, you should probably split the dough in half after the first rise.
Plan ahead: This dough rises first for 6 to 18 hours (or less if it is super hot out or if you live in a humid area) or until the dough doubles in volume; then again for about 4 to 6 hour or until the dough crowns the rim of the baking vessel.
If you’re just getting started with sourdough, check out this post first. You’ll find tips there on procuring a starter as well as how to feed it and maintain it.
Water: Chlorine in water can adversely affect sourdough. Leaving water at room temperature for 24 hours will allow most of the chlorine to escape. When I am in the habit of making sourdough bread, I fill a large pitcher with water and leave it out at room temperature. I use this for my sourdough breads and starter. Truth be told, I’ve used water straight from the tap and have not noticed a difference.
Water quantity: Also, depending on where you live and the time of year, you may need to cut the water back. If you live in a humid environment, for instance, I would suggest starting with 420 g water. If you are not using bread flour, you also may need to cut the water back a bit.
Ingredients
- 100 g (about 1/2 cup) active starter
- 10 g (about 2.5 teaspoons) kosher salt
- 430 g water, (or less, see notes above) room temperature
- 512 g (4 cups) bread flour, such as King Arthur Flour
- a few tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- room temperature butter, for greasing
Instructions
- Mix the dough: Place the starter, salt, and water in a large bowl. Stir with a spatula to combine — it doesn’t have to be uniformly mixed. Add the flour. Mix again until the flour is completely incorporated. If you have a straight-sided vessel, transfer the dough to it — it really helps monitor the rise and allows you to see when the dough doubles.
- Perform one (or more) “folds”: 30 minutes after you mix the dough, reach into the bowl and pull the dough up and into the center. Turn the bowl quarter turns and continue this pulling 8 to 10 times. See video for guidance. If time permits, repeat this “folding” step every 30 minutes for the first two hours. (Note: even if you perform just 1 fold, your dough will be in good shape.)
- Drizzle with a splash of olive oil and rub to coat. Cover bowl with a tea towel or bowl cover and set aside to rise at room temperature (70ºF/21ºC) for 4 to 18 hours — if it is super hot out or if you live in a humid environment, it may only take 4-6 hours. When the dough has nearly doubled in volume, it is ready. (Note: Do not use an oven with the light on for the bulk fermentation — it will be too warm. It is best to rely on visual cues (doubling in volume) as opposed to time to determine when the bulk fermentation is done. A straight-sided vessel makes monitoring the bulk fermentation especially easy because it allows you to see when your dough has truly doubled.)
- When the dough has nearly doubled, grease a 10 x 5-inch loaf pan with butter (or nonstick spray). Drizzle dough with a few tablespoons of olive oil. Rub your hands with a little bit of oil to coat. Use your hand to release the dough from the sides of the vessel, being careful not to completely deflate the dough. Video guidance here. Turn dough out onto a work surface. Quickly, shape the dough into a rectangle — I fold the dough envelope-style first; then I use a bench scraper to shape the dough into a rough rectangle. Transfer dough, seam-side down to prepared loaf pan and gently stretch into an oblong shape.
- Leave alone for 5 to 6 hours or until dough begins reaching the rim of the pan — this may take less time when it is very warm out. Do be patient with this second rise: to get good height, the dough should be near the rim of the pan before you transfer it to the oven.
- Heat oven to 425ºF. Transfer pan to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 375ºF. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes more or until golden all around. If you have an instant read thermometer, it should register 206-210ºF or so before removing. Remove pan from oven and turn bread out onto a cooling rack. Cool at least 30 minutes before slicing.
- Category: Bread
- Method: Sourdough/Natural Leavening
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: bread, sourdough, sandwich, toasting, natural leavening, wild yeast
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
Evan says
Just finished letting my dough rise and while i’ve made sourdough and many other breads before, i’ve never had one so thin and without much structure. I hope that after it proofs in the tin, it will still bake up nicely. I think the hydration level on this is a bit high for the flour I used. I have a rye flour sourdough starter and I used AP flour for 90% of the flour and the rest I used Rye Flour. I even used about 15-20 grams less water to make up for the different flour. Fingers crossed that it still comes out nicely. I’m salivating from the pictures on this post.
alexandra says
Hi Evan! My fingers are crossed as well. Rye flour definitely will make for a weaker dough, so you were smart to reduce the amount of water. Were you able to do any stretch and folds during the bulk fermentation? These instructions are not in the recipe, but whenever I use rye flour, I try to work in some stretch and folds to encourage gluten development. I currently have a 25% rye flour batch of sourdough rising, and it’s always interesting to observe the change in the texture of the dough after a few stretch and folds. Anyway, keep me posted on your loaf!
Charlie says
The absolute best sourdough we’ve made! Awesome recipe!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Charlie!
C.S. says
This was my first attempt at sourdough, and it was wonderful! The dough was wetter and less structured than I expected it to be going into the loaf pan–I likely should have opted for the 430g of water–but it rose and baked beautifully. Thank you for providing such an approachable recipe!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, C.S.! It is definitely wet dough. So glad it worked out 😍😍😍🍞🍞🍞
a woman called Sam says
Can I use all purpose flour and some vital wheat gluten? Amt? Can I use the sourdough discard for this bread?
alexandra says
I have never mixed ap flour with vital wheat gluten to approximate bread flour, but it’s worth a shot. I’ve read, but again, cannot attest, that 1.5 teaspoons vital wheat gluten to 1 cup ap flour is about right. This bread calls for a vibrant, active starter. You can use your discard to make pancakes or waffles or soooo many other things, but save your vibrant, bubbling starter for this bread. If you want to learn more about sourdough, I have a free email course: Sourdough Demystified.
a woman called Sam says
BTW. I am NEW to working with sourdough and bread baking in general so any information is appreciated 😄
Jane says
Can I use a 9×5 loaf pan?
alexandra says
Yes!
Jessica Anderson says
This bread is fantastic! Thank you for posting this. I love that you don’t need yeast. Enjoying it right now as a sandwich. The crust is soft. The whole family loves it.
★★★★★
alexandra says
So great to hear this, Jessica! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Yolanda Rodriguez says
Thia was my first try at making sourdough bread and it was a total success I was given some starter from a friend and then followed your instructions for feeding it et. This sandwich bread is delicious brings me back memories of when I lived in San Francisco. My husband loved it and kept saying « you have to make more. I would like to make two loaves at a time, can I double the recipe?
Yolanda
★★★★★
alexandra says
So great to hear this, Yolanda! Wonderful that the husband approve, too 😍 Yes, you absolutely can double the recipe 🍞🍞
Errin Bald says
Hi! Think I can do one in a loaf pan and another in a Dutch oven? Thank you!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Hi Errin!
First off: this recipe as written makes 1 loaf, so you’d have to double it to make two loaves.
And regarding your question, I don’t think so: this is a much wetter (higher hydration) dough than doughs I typically shape into boules and bake in Dutch ovens. I think you’ll find shaping this dough into a round very, very frustrating. If you are looking for a crusty boule recipe, this is my favorite: Favorite Sourdough Bread
Olivia says
Hi, can I half the recipe in order to make a smaller loaf? Thanks!
alexandra says
Yes! What size pan are you planning on baking it in?
Olivia says
7 inch x 3 inch
★★★★★
alexandra says
I think it should be fine! It’s hard for me to tell exactly… the pan may be a little bit large, but it’s definitely worth a shot. Keep me posted!
Janet says
I commented earlier (“success!”) And I’m wondering about why this bread has a much stronger sourdough flavor than any other I have made. Is this because we use 100 gr of starter rather than my usual 1 tablespoon (for about 700 gr of flour) ? Is more starter needed to make a better sandwich-bread consistency?
alexandra says
Hi Janet! You can definitely reduce the amount of starter to suit your tastes and preferences. You do not need more starter to make it sandwich bread consistency. I like using 100 g of starter mostly because I like using my starter … I try to keep my starter on the very lean side so that I’m not discarding too much during feedings. I find when I use 100 g starter for a recipe, I have very little leftover, which I love.
I will be so curious as to how the loaf turns out for you if you use less starter. You may find, and this is very counterintuitive, that using less starter may actually make your bread taste more sour. The reasoning is that the starter will go through its food source at a slower rate and will produce more acetic acid along the way. When you use a large amount of starter, the bread can ferment more quickly so the time it has to produce acetic acid is shortened.
Keep me posted!
Janet says
Very interesting. . . I’ll experiment and let you know.
Thanks so much for your response.
★★★★★
Janet says
I did it. I made a loaf with a levain of 1T starter to 70 gr. water and flour. But, starting too late at night, I did the stretch & folds the next day, having let the levain sit for around 17 hours. Used 400 gr flour, 300 gr water, 8 gr salt. S&F 5-6 times, put it in a loaf pan in fridge, baked the following day. Turned out very nicely, slightly less sour than the last time, but still pretty sharp. So you see, I was mixing two techniques, which kind of wrecks the experiment.
alexandra says
Oh I love this, Janet! I currently have two levains on my counter (each: 20 g starter, 50 g water, 50 g flour). Not sure where I’m going with them, but it’s fun to experiment. Glad this worked out. There’s no right way to get to a loaf of sourdough 🙂 🙂 🙂
Jessica says
Great sourdough loaf recipe! Love how simple the ingredients are and it’s my best sourdough bread so far! Artisanal style is great but this is more practical for what we eat. I followed this recipe exactly, the dough will be very very wet – don’t add more flour! I recommend using water on your hands and counter so it doesn’t stick. It turned out delicious! I also proofed the dough in the bread pan for 5 hours then placed in my fridge until I wanted to bake it so it didn’t over proof. Thanks for this great recipe!
★★★★★
alexandra says
So nice to hear this, Jessica! Great tip re wet hands and fridge proof — I love using my fridge with sourdough 🍞🍞🍞🍞
Katie says
SO GOOD! The taste was perfectly sour, and the texture was lovely with an outer crust and inner fluffiness. I only had all-purpose flour but I substituted 1-1 and it still worked great!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Katie!
Corey Austin Wood says
Hi! I’m going to try this tonight with All purpose flour. I usually only make 100% Whole wheat sourdough boules, and have never made a white sandwhich bread. Do you think it will come out ok with just AP flour? All I have 🙁
alexandra says
It will be great! Go for it 😍😍😍
Corey says
Turned out pretty good! Best sandwhich loaf I’ve made yet. I was worried with how long it’s proofed, especially compared to the whole wheat boules I make (these only take 4 or 5 hours of folds). But it was great.
Thanks!
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Corey!
Alexandria says
Hi!
I made this recipe this afternoon (started last night) and it worked great! It was my first sourdough-anything so I was a little nervous. I didn’t have bread flour and just used AP flour, it turned out very soft and fluffy, a good number of larger holes, could that be due to a weaker flour? Or is there a chance my starter is just too happy (lol, it basically quadruples everytime I feed it!)?
★★★★★
alexandra says
So nice to hear this, Alexandria! It’s so hard to tell what causes the larger holes. You could try doing a few more stretch and folds during the bulk fermentation; you could also do one more shaping: so, after your turn the dough out after the bulk fermentation, you could shape it as described in the recipe and shown in the video; then you could let it rest for 20-40 minutes; then repeat the shaping process again … this might just help create a little more tension.
So glad this worked out! Let me know if you give it another go!
Summer Ward says
Came out great! I let the first rise happen overnight which was a bit of a risk, but for convenience I thought I’d give it a go! I think it may have overproofed slightly (started around 8pm and checked at 6am). It was very bubbly, but I just shaped it twice and put it in the pan. I only have a 9X5. I think in my hasty second shaping I may not have achieved the best tension so there’s a large bubble and a crack down one side, but otherwise it’s perfect and delicious! Thank you!
★★★★★
alexandra says
The overnight rise is often a gamble, one I always take 🙂 🙂 🙂 It feels like the best use of time. I’ve had dough triple overnight, and it’s been fine. So happy this worked out well!
Ann says
All I have is all-purpose flour – it’s all I can find right now. You mention cutting the water back “a bit.” How much do you recommend cutting it back? I’m a baking novice so any guidance would be appreciated.
I tried this last week (before I saw to cut back the water) and the loaf was flat and dense and the dough going into the pan was pretty gloppy and un-shapable. I just have no idea how much less water to use.
alexandra says
Hi Ann, I would start with 380 g (cut it back by 50 g).
Question: It sounds as though your dough may have over fermented during the bulk fermentation. How long was the bulk fermentation? And did your dough double? How warm roughly is your kitchen?
Ann says
Thanks! I’ll give 380 a try tomorrow.
I let it rise overnight and it did double in size (if not more than double). It was probably about 72 degrees or so in the kitchen and I actually put it in the oven (turned off) so the cats didn’t mess with it…perhaps that made it warmer? The next day I let it rise in the pan for about 6 hours, but it definitely did not double then…not even close. It might have gained an inch in the pan.
The baker that gave me the starter said he is “very active.” I only wish I’d had enough knowledge at the time to ask what that means!
alexandra says
Great! Because the dough did not budge much once it was in the pan, I’m thinking it over fermented. So, I would try to shorten the bulk fermentation to 6 to 8 hours given the temperature of your kitchen and the very active starter. Using less water should help too!
Quinn says
I’ve made this a few times and it’s great!! I live in a humid place and it’s warm here, so I’ve decreased the water, but I always end up having to add more flour as well because the dough is way too wet otherwise. It also rises much faster than I expected. I also split it into two slightly smaller loaf pans since that’s all I have. I watched your recently added video and that helped as well!
I was wondering if I could get your advice though- when I make this, it’s the perfect bread for toast and tastes great, but when it’s not toasted I could never use it for a sandwich, it’s much harder than yours appears in the video. Do you have any idea how I could troubleshoot this? I’ve tried a few other recipes that turn out softer but this one has the best sourdough taste by far.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe and for your time!
alexandra says
Hi Quinn! It’s always so interesting to me to hear how environment and temperature affects the texture of the dough. I might try decreasing the water further if you’re still having to add more flour.
To make a softer crumb, you could try incorporating either oil or eggs into the dough. I haven’t done this, but these sorts of ingredients (milk, butter, too) promote a tender crumb. This is what I would suggest: try to figure out what the ideal amount of water by weight is for you to have a dough that is manageable. Then, I would put a liquid measure (or a bowl) on a scale. Add 1/4 cup oil (olive or grapeseed or something neutral) … I don’t know the weight off hand of 1/4 cup oil but note the weight for future attempts … then add water till you reach the weight you’ve deemed to be ideal (380 or 400 g or whatever the figure is). See how this mixture of oil-water works and then adjust from there in the future. Maybe oil + 1 egg + a little milk will do the trick, but I would shoot for the liquid ingredients to weigh that ideal figure you determine.
Hope this helps!
Quinn says
Just adding another comment because I forgot to put the rating in my last one!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Thanks!
Abraham says
Thank you for your recipes, Alexandra! They are really easy to follow for beginners like me. I used commercial bread flour, my own starter and followed exact measurements. Everything seemed to be going well until the second rise. After doubling over night, it was wet and runny when I poured it out to shape. Over the next six hours it broke down and became even more wet (closer to a starter than a dough) and didn’t rise again. I finally decided to just bake it. The end result was dense and under-baked. Clearly I messed up somewhere. By the way, I stay in Malaysia where the weather is tropical (approximately 29 C/84 F and humid).
alexandra says
Hi Abraham! It sounds as though your dough over-fermented. Because you are in such warm, humid spot, your bulk fermentation might have been done in 4-5 hours.
Next time, I would try to mix the dough in the morning-ish, so that you can monitor it. As soon as it doubles or just before it doubles, turn it out and shape it. You can always stick the pan with the dough in it in the fridge at this point and pick up in the morning if that timing works better for you.
Also, when you mixed the dough, was it very wet? If so, you might consider reducing the water a bit. Finally, have you baked successfully with your starter prior to this try?
Abraham says
Thank you so much for your quick reply! Will follow those steps. This is my first attempt at sourdough. Grew the starter from scratch over 15 days or so.
The dough wasn’t so wet when I mixed it. Consistency seemed right. Kind of elastic.
Also, if it doubles in 4-5 hours next time, should I shape and bake it right away or keep it for a second rise?
★★★★★
alexandra says
OK, great! Then, maybe don’t cut the water yet. Monitor the bulk fermentation and don’t let the dough grow much beyond double in volume. If it doubles in 4-5 hours great. But whenever it doubles, shape it, get it into its pan, and then let it rise again. This second rise will vary in terms of time, so just watch for the visual cues. When the dough reaches the rim of the pan or just crowns it, it’s ready for the oven.
Meredith Hansen says
I would like to make this recipe, wondering if I can start today do the first proof and then put it into the fridge overnight, take out tomorrow to do the final rise in the loaf pan and bake?
alexandra says
Hi Meredith! Yes, absolutely. After the bulk fermentation, turn the dough out, shape it, refrigerate it (either in an oiled bowl or the prepared loaf pan), then pick up in the morning, allowing the dough to rise at room temperature till it is nearly filling the loaf pan.
Jen says
Hi, Thanks for the recipe! This is exactly what I need to make PB & J for my kids.
How I can make it less sour/very mild sour taste?
1. Can I increase the amount of starter? If so, by how much?
2. Can I skip the last rise?
Thanks! BTW, your instructions for simple sourdough recipe was super easy to follow! I made it weeks ago and got great crumb tasty sourdough.
alexandra says
So great to hear this, Jen!
Increasing the amount of starter I think might be the best bet, because it will allow it to rise more quickly, and it may shorten both the bulk fermentation and the proof, though I can’t say for sure.
I don’t think you can skip the last rise unfortunately. It’s the kind of thing you need to play be ear and to rely on the visual cues when determining doneness.
Are you opposed to using yeast? If not, you could sprinkle in 1/2 teaspoon (or less) instant yeast, which will shorten the bulk fermentation as well.
Jen says
Alexandra, appreciate your quick response!! Haha yes, I’d like to avoid adding commercial yeast.
alexandra says
OK, got it, and sure thing! 😍
Stephen Ours says
Collassal Fail.
Too wet from the get-go.
This was not “dough” – it is “batter”.
Would be no stars is that were a possible rating
★
alexandra says
Stephen, hello. Did you use a scale to measure the flour and water, etc? And what type of flour are you using? If it’s too wet from the get-go, something is off with the measuring.
Gary Taylor says
Hi Alexandra
Complete beginner here who stumbled on this easy looking sourdough recipe because of the unavailability of yeast in UK in these strange times.
Just wanted to say thank you for the introduction to what is a far superior tasting bread, without too much fuss.
Packet yeast is now just a distant memory…
★★★★★
alexandra says
So great to hear this, Gary! Thanks so much for writing.
Bella C. says
First loaf with my sourdough starter, super impressed. Really good subtle sour taste. Know how to tweak for next time, humidity wise. I put a baking tray w ice cubes below the pan to increase oven spring (?), seemed to work a little. thank you!!
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Bella!
Alyson says
This recipe is perfect! Easy to follow and my first loaf turned out AMAZING! I really like the idea of it being in a loaf shape and I don’t have a dutch oven for “true” sourdough – but the flavor and rise was perfect. I’m making my second loaf now and I’ve sent it to my other friends who are dabbling with sourdough. Thank you so much! The video was great too for a first timer.
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Alyson!
JM says
Great recipe. Made sandwich loaf in a small pan with half of the dough, and a mini Asiago focaccia with the other half. Do you think the hydration is too high for this recipe to make a boule in the Dutch oven?
Thanks.
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this JM! I do think it’s a little too high hydration, but I have two options for you:
Favorite Easy Sourdough Boule (Whole Wheat-ish)
Simple Sourdough Boule
Sue says
In the directions it says to splash/rub olive oil on the dough for the first rise. Then again when putting it in the pan. But on your video it doesn’t show the olive oil being used on the first rise. So I’m not sure what will work best or if it even matters.
alexandra says
I know, sorry! That’s confusing. The truth is that I sometimes do oil and sometimes I don’t. I do it more in the winter, when the rises can be much longer, which can sometimes cause the top layer of the dough to form a light crust/dry out. The oil prevents that. In the summer, when rises are shorter, I don’t bother with the oil. You don’t need to do it, but if you do, it won’t hurt it 🙂