Soft and fluffy sourdough sandwich bread is the perfect bread to have on hand. Made with all purpose flour, sourdough starter, butter and a little honey, this fermented bread has a lighter texture and tangy flavor.
One of the main complaints I hear about making crusty sourdough from readers is that they miss the soft sandwich loaf style of bread.
Not only is this recipe absolutely delicious (making it really hard to ever go back to store-bought bread), but it is also super simple. No strange ingredients, no stretching and folding every 30 minutes… Just mix, rise, shape, rise again, and bake.
Let it cool, slice and slather it with butter. It’s so yummy and it reminds me of a bread you would get on a breadboard from a restaurant.
Let’s be honest, though, it’s way better since it’s made from scratch and has that wonderful sourdough tang.
Make sure to save this sourdough loaf bread recipe for the future. It will be a go to for sure.
Tips:
- Use really soft butter and cube it up so it blends easier.
- Don’t over ferment the dough. It will turn into a wet sloppy disaster that won’t rise well. Still edible. Maybe. It could also be turned into sourdough croutons.
- When making the dough, using a stand mixer makes the process much easier and hands off. You can also do this with your hands.
- If you are new to sourdough, you can check out how to make a sourdough starter here, find my sourdough conversion chart, and baking glossary of terms.
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Tools you may need:
Measuring cups and spoons. You could also use a kitchen scale
FAQ:
Does sourdough bread make good sandwiches?
Yes. The delightful tanginess adds to the flavor profile of the sandwich, making it a wonderful addition. You can use crusty sourdough bread or this soft sourdough sandwich loaf.
Why is my sourdough sandwich bread not rising?
There could be a few reasons for this. The most likely one is that your sourdough starter may not be active enough or is weak.
Another contributor could be the temperature of the room where you are placing your dough to rise. The cooler the temperature the longer it will take for bread to rise.
Lastly, the water you use in your dough mixture could be a factor. If the water used was too hot, it may have killed the starter. Additionally, if you are using city water the chlorine could potentially kill the yeasts in the starter.
Are sourdough sandwiches healthy?
Sourdough is one of the healthiest breads since the grains are fermented, which makes it more digestible and the nutrients more available for your body to absorb.
Top with your favorite healthy toppings and you can have a wholesome and filling meal in one sandwich.
Ingredients:
Butter (softened) or coconut oil – I prefer using butter for that savory buttery flavor. If you are wanting to make a vegan version, you can use softened (not melted) coconut oil.
Honey or sugar – I like to use honey since it is a natural sweetener.
Salt – This gives the bread so much flavor and skipping it will leave you with a tasteless loaf.
Sourdough starter – You want a nice active and bubbly starter to make bread. Starter that isn’t ripe won’t produce nice fluffy bread.
Water – Room temperature.
All-purpose flour – The best part of this recipe is that it uses good ol’ plain all-purpose flour. Nothing fancy.
How To Make Sourdough Sandwich Bread
To a stand mixer, add all of the ingredients. I like to add the flour last, so I can add a bit less or more depending on my starter’s hydration.
Knead until dough is stretchy and smooth. You want it to pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl and be smooth and elastic – about 10 minutes. It should pass the windowpane test. Grab a small ball of the dough and stretch it into a square. It should stretch thin enough to see through without breaking.
Tip: This isn’t a super hydrated dough and won’t be very wet like other doughs.
Allow to bulk rise for 10-12 hours in a warm place like on top of a stove or refrigerator. You can go longer if you want the benefit of the fermentation, but if it gets over-proofed the dough will turn into a sloppy mess!
In the summer, I ferment mine more like 8 hours but can get away with longer in the colder months.
Shape The Loaves And Rise
Grease two loaf pans or add parchment paper.
Divide in two equal parts.
Shape by rolling the dough flat into a rectangle and rolling it up.
Add to parchment lined or buttered loaf pans.
Second rise for 2-4 hours at room temperature, or until doubled. Again this depends on the temp! It could be as little as 1 hour if the house is warm and the starter active. Do not skip this step.It adds volume and strength to the dough.
Bake
You can add an optional egg wash for more browning.
Bake at 375 for 45 minutes, or until golden on top.
Allow to cool completely before slicing.
Storage:
Store in an air-tight container for up to five days for best results.
You can also freeze loaves in freezer safe plastic bags for 3-6 months.
Find More Of My Sourdough Recipes:
- Sourdough Zucchini Bread
- Easy Homemade Sourdough Pasta Recipe
- Sourdough Coffee Cake
- The Best Soft Sourdough Pretzels
- Sourdough Brioche
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone .
Sourdough Sandwich Bread
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, softened or coconut oil (113 g)
- 2 tablespoons honey or sugar, 42 g for honey or 24 g for sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt, 17 g
- 1 cup starter, active and bubbly (227 g)
- 2 1/2 cups water, 590 g
- 8 cups all purpose flour, 1120 g*
Instructions
- To a stand mixer, add all of the ingredients. I like to add the flour last, so I can add a bit less or more depending on my starter's hydration.
- Knead until dough is stretchy and smooth. You want it to pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl and be smooth and elastic – about 10 minutes. It should pass the windowpane test.
- Allow to bulk rise for 10-12 hours in a warm place like on top of a stove or refrigerator.
- Divide in two equal parts.
- Shape by rolling the dough flat into a rectangle and rolling it up.
- Add to parchment lined or buttered loaf pans.
- Second rise for 2-4 hours at room temperature, or until doubled.
- Bake at 375 for 45 minutes, or until golden on top. You can add an optional egg wash for more browning.
- Allow to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- *Some people have said making two loaves is too much for their stand mixer to handle. This depends on the type of stand mixer you have. If you have a standard KitchenAid mixer, you may want to halve the recipe and make one loaf.
- Use really soft butter and cube it up so it blends easier.
- Don’t over ferment the dough. It will turn into a wet sloppy disaster that won’t rise well. Still edible. Maybe. It could also be turned into sourdough croutons.
- When making the dough, using a stand mixer makes the process much easier and hands off. You can also do this with your hands.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I love this recipe and my loaves come out great. I’m wondering what your schedule is for the actual baking day- from feeding your starter (the night before?) all the way to baking so you’re not up too late at night! Thanks and I love your recipes!
You can adjust based on your schedule and needs. For example, you can feed the starter in the morning and then mix your dough up that night. Let your dough rise overnight and finish the process the next day. When you feed your starter totally depends on your starter and how soon it gets to its most active point. Hope that helps!
Epicly good! Wonderful texture and easy to work with, being lower hydration. I added a couple of stretch and folds at the beginning of the first rise… dough always does better with a gentle hand kneeding anyways. My KA 600 pro had no problems with the two-loaf recipe.
Will be my goto recipe for a while.
Love that! Great to hear you enjoy it.
Help. My dough split during the final rise. What could I have done wrong
Did it double in size or over ferment?
Amazing recipe!! The bread turned out really sour tasting, which isn’t a complaint I love it. I baked mine for 40 minutes, cutting into it after it cooled the bread crumb was perfection in my book. I’ve also made your sourdough English muffins…also amazing!! Thank you for sharing tried and true recipes, I appreciate that I’m not wasting ingredients or my time on bad recipes.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Have you ever tried doubling this recipe so you.dont have to make bread every other day?
Technically, this recipe makes two loaves so that will usually last us two days. I wouldn’t recommend doubling it because the stand mixer may not be able to handle it.
Can I use bread flour?
Yes!
Thanks for your amazing website! I’ve made the bagels a few times and we love them.
My question is, would it work if I shaped the dough after the first rise and put in the greased pans, let out in the fridge overnight to bake first thing in the morning?
I’m looking to bake a loaf first thing to send for sandwiches in school lunches.
Yes. It can do the second rise in the fridge. At least 12-15 hours. Just make sure to place plastic wrap over top to prevent it drying out.
Just started making this recipe for the first time. Although I will use my scale to measure in grams, I wanted to take a moment to let you know how much I appreciate you listing in grams AND cups. The cup measurement gives me a better idea of what I need to have on hand. Now back to my stretch and folds. 🍞 ❤️
Glad you’re enjoying the recipe!
Hello! I love this recipe, but I was wondering how to make it taste more sour without compromising the structure by overfermentation? Thank you so much!
One way to get a more sour taste in your bread is through your starter. If you ever have any hooch on your starter, just mix it in. This helps to enhance the sour taste.
Ok, so let my starter be more hungry when I make the bread? Thank you so much!
I read somewhere that subbing some of the salt with citric acid helps the sour taste.
I use half the recipe in my standard kitchen aid mixer and it works great. I have baked this recipe several times and my family really enjoys it. My loaf is usually ready within 20 minutes if I completely preheat the oven beforehand. We serve with eggs at breakfast and use for sandwiches or burgers. I’m excited to try it as a French toast casserole in the near future.
So glad you enjoy this recipe!
Hi Lisa! Could I let it rise the second the second time in the fridge in case I have to go somewhere and won’t be back in time to put it in the oven?
Yep!
Yes. You can store your dough in the fridge for up to five days before baking.