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 440 g water.
Stir to combine.
Add 512 g bread flour.
Stir to form a sticky dough ball.
Cover with a towel or bowl cover, and 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
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Pin RecipeDescription
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 430 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
- 440 g (about 1.75 cups) 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
- 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. 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 for 6 to 18 hours — if it is super hot out or if you live in a humid environment, it may only take 6 hours. When the dough has nearly doubled in volume, it is ready.
- 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 hand in the oil to coat. Use your hand to deflate the dough: pull the dough from the sides and press it into the center. Video guidance here. Turn dough over so seam-side is down and gently stretch into an oblong shape.
- Transfer to prepared pan seam side down. Leave alone for 5 to 6 hours or until dough begins crowning 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 above 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 20 minutes before slicing.
- Category: Bread
- Method: Sourdough/Natural Leavening
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: bread, sourdough, sandwich, toasting, natural leavening, wild yeast
Susan says
How about measurements for those of us who don’t own scales?
Thank you
alexandra says
Just added volume measurements!
Mallory Allgeier says
An alternative to buying a starter is checking local bakeries! My local bakery gives away their starter for free. I have also had a lady who sells her bread at the farmer’s market give me a starter that she had going for several years!
alexandra says
Smart! Good point. And how nice of the woman at the farmer’s market?!
Karen Sept says
Would this be what Pyrex calls a 1.5 qt loaf pan?
alexandra says
I don’t think they’re quite the same, Karen. I just filled a 1.5 qt bowl with water and dumped it into my loaf pan. The loaf pan can fit about 3+ more cups of water, so I think it’s closer to a 2-qt or even slightly larger loaf pan. If you look for a loaf pan designed for a 1.5-lb loaf, you should be safe.
Mike says
My dough tripled in volume after 12 hours on first rising. Should I leave for full 18 hours or go with what the dough seems to be telling me?
alexandra says
Go with what the dough seems to be telling you! I’ll edit recipe now.
Clare says
After experiences with “Friendship” bread and Kombucha I was somewhat hesitant to invite another live culture into my kitchen. But, in spite of your warning and Jim Lahey’s slightly scary instructions in his Sullivan Street cookbook I decided to give it a go. I did start out with the SAF yeast in my fridge (it has been in there so long I consider it a local) but let it sit out for a few days so the ambient critters could join the party. I divided the mix in half and although they started out the same and were in the same environment, they developed completely different personalities. One developed a mellow slightly sweet smell and the other one was just vile! I am happy because I wasn’t really sure how to tell if my culture was “good”. I discarded the evil twin and this week made my first loaves with the good twin.
The recipe made 4 mini loaves (5 1/2 x 3 1/2). Because of my schedule, I let the first rise go for a full 24 hours and the second rise about 3.5 hours. I baked for 15 min at 425 and 15 min at 375. They have a really nice sourdough flavor and that shiny crumb I associate with sourdough bread. The size is perfect for appetizers, tea parties or just portion control.
alexandra says
So interesting, Clare! I’ll have to check out Lahey’s recipe. He’s such in inspiration. And I’m so happy mini loaves worked out here for you. Love the idea of having smaller loaves on hand. And me, too: I love the shiny crumb.
Neha says
Hi..i tried this recipe..the upper part didn’t become brown even after 45 minutes it was still white, hence kept for more time to make it brown. Feared that the bread will become hard took it out keeping for 10 mins more. Must admit that the inside part was super soft, however not happy with the top crust it became quite hard. What should i have missed?
★★★★
alexandra says
Bummer! What kind of flour did you use? It wasn’t bleached, was it? Does your oven run cool? Do you have an oven thermometer?
Neha says
I used normal maida flour..looks like it was bleached..i should use unbleached flour? No i dont have oven thermometer nor do it think my oven run cool
alexandra says
I think that’s the problem: bleached flour will not brown well at all. Yes, use unbleached flour and unbromated flour as well: are you able to find King Arthur Flour?
JanetMoh says
This bread turned out great. It’s so simple (you just have to remember to start it the night before!). I used olive oil to grease the pan. The crust came out simply divine. It was excellent toasted as well. This will become a regular in my house! I was a little worried because when I put it in the pan it was quite a loose dough. There really was no shaping it. I think perhaps my starter is a little more liquidy? I’ll add a little extra flour next time.
★★★★★
alexandra says
So happy to hear this! And yes, I need to make a note: I think depending on climate (and other variables, too), some people may need to use more or less water. Or, as you say, more flour. Thanks for writing.
Michelle says
I had the same issue with my dough. It easily doubled in the first rise, but when I transferred it to the pan, it was very loose. It’s doing its second rise as I type this… so I’m glad to hear it turned out well for you too even though it was loose! Fingers crossed.
alexandra says
Michelle, how did it end up turning out?? I’m thinking the change of seasons could be playing a role, too. Going to add a note about reducing water as the weather warms up. Do you live in a humid climate??
Michelle says
It was a major fail! Sadly that second rise never happened. I mean, it did not rise hardly at all once I transferred it to the loaf pan. I live in Los Angeles and it’s been more humid than normal but still pretty dry.
I tossed it out because after it didn’t rise within the 6-8 hour timeframe, I let it continue to sit overnight on the counter and was just afraid to bake it at that point. I’m so baffled as to what went wrong.
One note though – I did use AP flour instead of bread flour because it’s what I use when I make boules. Any ideas?? Thank you!
alexandra says
Michelle, such a bummer! I do think bread flour makes a difference here. Once I used all-purpose in the sourdough focaccia recipe, and I was not pleased. Bread flour absorbs more water, so if you use ap flour, the dough is going to be even wetter. Also, I am noticing even here in upstate New York that as it gets warmer out, the sourdough is rising much, much faster. Also, my mother lives in CT, where it is very humid, and she has to cut the water back in this recipe for it to work.
If you are game for trying it again, I would 1. Use bread flour. 2. Cut the water back by 20 g. 3. Consider using less starter if you want that long overnight rise.
You are using a scale, correct?
Sorry for the trouble!! I really hate when bread recipes in particular don’t work out for people.
Andreea says
Hi! I made this recipe three times already, and each time the crust came out pale, almost white. The first time around I followed the recipe to a tee. Next time, because I’m from Europe (Romania) and our flour usually absorbs less water, I only used 350 grams. The third time, thinking the dough had been over proofed the first and second time around, I let it rise in the fridge through the night (12 hours), then another eight at 25 degrees Celsius, in the bowl until it doubled in size, then in the pan until it hit the rim. This time around I got great oven spring, which tells me that the dough was probably not over proofed, but I still have no color in the crust. Have you got any idea what’s happening? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
alexandra says
Hi Andreea! Thanks for writing. Question: are you using bleached flour?
Andreea says
I think I am, but it’s my usual flour with which I bake all sourdough bread, that comes out of the oven dark brown. Do you think this may be the reason?
alexandra says
Hmmm, very interesting. My experience with bleached flour is that the loaves are very pale, but if you have had success with other loaves using bleached flour, then I’m a little puzzled. My suggestion would be to use unbleached flour and see what results you get using that first.
When you use bleached flour with your other loaves, are you baking them in a covered Dutch oven first? Or at higher heat? And is there any sweetener in the dough? Sugar, honey, maple syrup all contribute to browning. There is no sugar in this dough, so browning will be especially minimal when using bleached flour.
Andreea says
Well, turns out I was wrong. I did a quick search and apparently we have no bleached flour, because it’s banned in the EU. Sorry for the confusion. So no, no bleached flour, although I do use a refined flour, more suited for pastry I guess, and yes, I use higher temperatures. I bake my loaves somewhere between 464ºF and 392ºF and I use steam in the first ten minutes or so of baking. On my last try with this loaf, I used a higher temperature and it indeed browned more, but unevenly, on the top part at least. The parts that were in direct contact with the pan came out a nice golden color.
I’ll try higher temperatures and a less refined flour and come back to report on the results. 🙂
alexandra says
Interesting! OK, keep me posted and good luck!
Andreea says
Hey! Happy to report that the combination of higher heat, steam and a less refined flour did the trick. The bread came out beautifully brown and I can’t wait to taste it. Thank you for your help!
alexandra says
Oh yay! So happy to hear this. Thanks for writing back. I’m feeding my starter now to make focaccia for my parents tomorrow. Can’t wait.
Sophia says
Hi, has anyone tried this with whole wheat flour?
alexandra says
I would try using 1 cup (or 25%) whole wheat flour to start. I’ve tried it using 100% freshly milled flour, and it was just too dense. You may be able to get away with 2 cups or 50% wheat flour.
DPLK says
So excited to see this recipe after your teaser mention a few months ago!! Love the peasant bread recipe, and I always had wanted to tweak it to use my sourdough starter but never got around to it, and so it was a wish come true to have you adapt it for us!! I’m hoping to try this with whole wheat too, either by adapting one of the multigrain recipes in your book or just trying it with 1/2 or mostly whole wheat flour and adding vital wheat gluten to give it more bounce and lightness. If it turns out well I’ll come back to report!
alexandra says
Oh please report back! So happy to hear all of this 🙂
Griffin Marie says
Does adding the salt so early on not inhibit the rise? Or does the long proof take care of this? Most sourdough recipes I e seen add the salt later on in the process.
alexandra says
Hi Griffin! You are right: many sourdough bread recipes call for adding the salt at a later part of the process. I skip this step … find it to be a pain and not truly necessary. The salt may slow the rising down a little bit, but I always count on a long-ish slow rise for sourdough.
Jordan says
I ended up having to take a lot of this recipe on faith, but I’m glad I did. I ended up doing a 24 hour first rise, with my dough in the fridge for the first 12 hours to get as much “sour” as I could into the bread. I’m glad I did, because I ended up adding another cup and a half or so of flour after the first rise, because my dough looked more like cake batter than anything. The addition of flour I think knocked out some of my tartness, but got the dough to a banana bread consistency I was much more comfortable with. There was no way I wasn’t going to be able to shape this dough, though, and I’m almost tempted to call it a batter instead of a dough. The second rise only took 2 or so hours to crown the top of the tin, but my kitchen is HOT so that’s to be expected.
The end product is delicious, a little spongy, but moist on the inside and crunchy on the outside. Thanks!
★★★★
alexandra says
Hi Jordan! So interesting re flour and having to add so much more. Questions: are you using bread flour or all-purpose? And are you using a scale to measure the flour? So glad this turned out well for you in the end!
Dan Waln says
turned out perfect. I ended up adding more flour (by weight) than what the recipe called for.
★★★★★
alexandra says
Wonderful to hear this, Dan!
Rebecca says
I see a lot about using bread flour vs AP flour. I actually use AP flour all the time. I’m on a budget and the extra to get bread flour just can’t be spared. I do have to reduce the water but I also live in a very humid city. Honestly this recipe is totally functional and delicious with AP so I would encourage people to not let it stop them
alexandra says
Rebecca I’m so happy to hear this. I switched to bread flour because it seemed to be more foolproof here, but prior to going on this sourdough bender, I always used ap flour. Glad to know ap flour works for you in this recipe, and I’m glad you’ve been able to adapt the recipe for your humid climate. Thanks for writing.
Kellie says
I use King Arthur bread flour and had to add considerably more flour to the recipe. We live in a dry climate so I’m not sure what the reason is. Bread is going in the oven now so cross your fingers for me!
alexandra says
Fingers are crossed! Question: did you use a scale to measure the flour?
Kristine says
Any notes/suggestions on using a stand mixer and an oven with a proof setting?
alexandra says
I don’t recommend the oven proof setting for sourdough bread … I think it’s best to let it take its course at room temperature. I’ve tried letting the dough rise in an oven that I preheated for 1 minute and then shut off, and it just was too warm for the dough, and caused it to weaken … when I turned it out, it was impossible to shape, no spring, etc.
In terms of a stand mixer, I would knead the dough for 10 minutes or so until it looks smooth.
Kellie says
Oh my goodness! This bread turned out perfectly on my first try. I usually make the standard style loaves but this is just great for everyday sandwiches. The process had me a bit worried but as it turns out, a little patience, and a little less water in an Arizona climate,is the key to this fabulous bread. Thanks so much for sharing this.
★★★★★
alexandra says
Oh yay! So happy to hear this, Kellie!
Neha says
I used normal maida flour..looks like it was bleached..i should use unbleached flour? No i dont have oven thermometer nor do it think my oven run cool
Doc Cordray says
Could I use all whole wheat flour instead of bread flour?
alexandra says
You could try, but the loaf will be very, very dense. I don’t like using more than 25% whole wheat flour for this reason. If you want to learn more about how I feel about whole wheat flour in general, read this post: Easy, Whole Wheat(-ish) Sourdough Bread
El says
I followed this recipe as closely as possible only substituting AP flour for bread flour. It’s very cold where I live so had to leave my dough to proof above my fire place for almost 24 hours. When I turned it out to shape it was goopy mess. Any ideas why? I am wondering if my fire place was too warm a place and weakened the dough. It’s on it’s second rise now so fingers crossed when it goes in the oven!
alexandra says
Hi! Two thoughts: 1. The fireplace spot is likely too warm. When I’ve tried to let sourdough rise in my barely warm oven, the same thing happens: goopy, weak dough. I think you need to let it rise at room temperature and just be patient.
2. I have had success using all-purpose flour here, but when people have trouble with it, I suggest they use bread flour, which will make for a less wet dough. Question: are you using a scale to measure the flour?
aneta says
my started is more watery then what yours looks like on the picture, should I add more flour to the recipe to soak up the additional water? thank you
alexandra says
Couldn’t hurt to add a little more flour! Are you using a scale?