My simple Sourdough Bread recipe is perfect for enjoying on its own or using for sandwiches! I’ll be walking you in detail through every step so you can learn how to make perfect sourdough like a pro. Recipe includes a how-to video!
The Best Sourdough Bread Recipe
This homemade sourdough bread is the only bread we eat in my household anymore. In fact, I make 2-3 loaves a week and keep a stockpile in my freezer at all times! And once you try it… well, I think you will, too.
That’s because there’s a lot to love about sourdough bread. First and foremost, it has a high nutritional value and none of the additives (no added sugar, either) you’ll find in most store-bought breads. It also tastes amazing: classic, hearty bread (that’s not overly sour) with a thick, crusty exterior and a soft, springy interior.
But what I think you’ll love most about my recipe is how wonderfully versatile it is. It’s ideal both for dipping in soup, serving as a side with a salad, or using as a sandwich; it also makes an awesome grilled cheese that pairs beautifully with my tomato soup!
Homemade Bread is Easier Than You Think!
Making sourdough bread at home is shockingly easy, especially if you use the sourdough starter I shared last week. It is time consuming and you must have patience, but the work itself is very approachable.
There’s no kneading involved; instead, we’ll use an easy process known as stretching and folding, which develops the gluten much like kneading would, but is better suited for higher hydration dough like sourdough. There’s also no mixer or fancy equipment needed with my recipe — you don’t even need a banneton or a Dutch oven, just a pair of bread pans!
I’m so excited to share this one with you (and I’ve been teasing it long enough on Instagram, haven’t I?!), so let’s get started.
What You Need
My sourdough bread recipe has perfect flavor, especially considering there are so few ingredients. You will need:
- Sourdough starter. This can be homemade or store-bought. Obviously, I recommend making your own by using my sourdough starter recipe (this does take over a week to prepare, but it’s worth it!).
- Bread flour. I really recommend bread flour over all purpose for this recipe. Bread flour has a higher protein content and produces a better-crumbed sourdough bread, in my opinion.
- Olive oil. A bit of olive oil helps make the bread perfectly chewy and soft. I also find it keeps my sourdough softer longer.
- Salt. Salt is critical for flavor (unsurprisingly) but it also plays some other important roles in sourdough bread. It helps balance the acidity from our starter, strengthens the gluten in the dough (important for shape and texture), and it even helps extend the shelf life of the bread by acting as a natural preservative.
- Water. The water called for in my recipe will yield a sourdough loaf that is about 70% hydration. I love this hydration level; it produces a crumb that’s neither too dense nor too open, that’s not too sour but is still flavorful, and that is easy to shape and extremely versatile — we use it for everything from dipping in pot pie soup to eating sandwiches. Once you’re comfortable baking a bread at this hydration level, you can experiment with increasing the water if you’d like. More water usually yields a bread with a more open crumb, a more tangy flavor, and a crumb that’s less suitable for sandwiches but good for dipping.
I wrote this sourdough bread recipe with weights because I find it’s the easiest way to make it (just like with my macaron recipe); however, I have included cup measurements as well.
SAM’S TIP: While some people like to bake their sourdough bread in a dutch oven, I like to use a pair of bread pans. It doesn’t look as rustic this way, but it’s much more practical for my family to have a loaf of bread rather than a round of it. If you’re team Dutch oven, don’t worry–I provide instructions for how to make sourdough bread in a Dutch oven below.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Sourdough Bread
Make the Dough
- Combine sourdough starter, water, and oil in a large bowl. Make sure your starter is active and bubbly before adding it.
- Add the bread flour and salt.
- Stir until mostly combined (your dough will still look shaggy). Do not over-mix!
- Cover and let sit at room temperature for one hour.
Stretching & Folding
- Form your dough into a ball using your hands, the run your hands under cool water.
- Stretch the top of the dough up and over the bottom, then turn the dough 90 degrees and repeat. I demonstrate this in the video below if you need a better visual.
- Repeat the stretch and fold process a total of four times, then cover and place in a warm place to rise for 30 minutes.
- Let your dough rise until increased in size by 80%, repeating the stretch and fold process every 30 minutes.
Assembling
- Deflate and form your dough into a rectangular shape on a lightly floured surface.
- Lift the right side of the dough, fold it over to the center, then repeat with the left side (like folding a paper in thirds).
- Roll into a tight log starting with the short end of the rectangle, then tuck the ends under.
- Place in a greased bread pan, cover loosely, and place in the fridge to rest overnight.
SAM’S TIP: I recommend proofing your dough in the refrigerator overnight rather than baking right away (I also provide instructions for baking right away, though). Proofing overnight will help develop the flavor, help the bread rise better, and encourage more fermentation. That being said, I don’t like to let my dough sit in the fridge for longer than 48 hours (absolute max) before baking. Letting it sit too long can cause over-proofing and can compromise the final texture of your sourdough bread. I also don’t freeze my dough before baking, so I can’t advise on that.
Baking
- Let the dough rest at room temperature while your oven preheats.
- Score the bread about ¼″ deep down the center.
- Cover with another bread pan or an aluminum foil tent.
- Bake at 450F for 30 minutes, then remove the cover and bake for 20-23 minutes or until the bread reaches 206-208F.
- Let the bread cool in its pan for 15 minutes.
- Remove the bread from the pan (carefully, it’s still hot!) and place on a cooling rack. Let the bread cool completely before slicing.
SAM’S TIP: Don’t cut into the bread while it’s still warm (I know, so hard, so tempting!). Doing this can make your loaf gummy and dense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sourdough is definitely one of the more nutritious types of bread. It’s a prebiotic-rich food made by fermenting dough with wild yeast and bacteria (sounds gross but in reality is delicious) and is more digestible than your standard white bread. It also has a lower glycemic index and less gluten than normal bread. If you’re going to be indulging in bread, this is arguably a better option than standard white bread.
While a traditional sourdough bread recipe is obviously not gluten free, sourdough bread is sometimes tolerated by people who are gluten sensitive (but not people with Celiac Disease). This is because some of the gluten is consumed during the fermentation process, which makes the bread more easily digestible.
Follow my recipe through the rolling and tucking step, then place in a lightly floured banneton (I use my Kitchenaid mixer bowl lined with a lightly floured kitchen towel, because I don’t actually have a banneton). Cover and let rise overnight in the fridge.
The next day, carefully turn out your dough onto a large piece of parchment paper and carefully lower this into a 4.5qt Dutch oven (a larger one would work, but your bread will be flatter and will likely cook faster). Allow the dough to sit uncovered while the oven preheats, then score, cover with a lid, and follow recipe instructions for baking.
I know that there are many sourdough bread recipes out there and so many different ways to make it, but this is my personal favorite version that I’ve carefully developed over the past year. I can’t wait to hear how you like it, I hope you’ll always want to keep a loaf in your house, too! ❤️
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Sourdough Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup (150 g) active starter bubbly, active, fed
- 1 ⅓ cups (315 g) warm water 90F
- 1 ½ (18 g) Tablesoons olive oil
- 3 ⅔ cups (450 g) bread flour
- 2 teaspoons (13 g) table salt
- Oil for greasing pan
- Additional flour for dusting work-surface
Recommended Equipment
- Bread lame (optional, or use sharp knife)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine sourdough starter, water, and olive oil. Stir until combined.⅔ cup (150 g) active starter, 1 ⅓ cups (315 g) warm water, 1 ½ (18 g) Tablesoons olive oil
- Add bread flour and sprinkle salt overtop. Use your (clean) hands or a wooden spoon to stir together until dough is mostly combined. It will still be a bit shaggy and should not be cohesive (don’t over-mix) but no dry patches of flour should remain.3 ⅔ cups (450 g) bread flour, 2 teaspoons (13 g) table salt
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit undisturbed for one hour (this is the “autolyse” period).
Stretch & Fold
- Form dough into a ball with your hands.
- Run your hands under cool water (prevents sticking!) and grasp the top of the dough and stretch it over the bottom. Turn the dough 90 degrees and repeat. Turn 90 degrees and repeat again, then once more (four total stretch & folds).
- Allow dough to rest, covered, in a warm place for 30 minutes.
- Repeat step 2 above every 30 minutes as dough rises.
- Allow dough to rise (stretching and folding every 30 minutes as indicated) until dough has increased in size about 80% (how long this takes depends on the temperature of your kitchen, typically mine is ready within 4-6 hours).
Forming the Dough
- Lightly grease a 9×5 loaf pan (with olive oil or butter) .Oil for greasing pan
- When dough has risen sufficiently, turn it out onto a clean, lightly floured surface.Additional flour for dusting work-surface
- Use your hands to gently deflate the dough and pat it into a rectangular shape. Lift the right side of the dough and fold it into the center (almost as if you were closing a book). Then, lift the left side of the dough and fold it over the first fold (use a bench scraper if the dough is sticking to your counter).
- Starting with a skinny end, tightly roll the dough, as if you were rolling up a cinnamon roll. Tuck the ends under and carefully transfer to prepared bread pan. Don’t worry if the bread doesn’t fill the pan right now.
- Cover pan tightly with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to rest overnight/for 12-24 hours.
Baking
- Remove sourdough from the refrigerator and preheat oven to 450F. Let oven preheat and dough rest (covered or uncovered) for at least 30-35 minutes before proceeding.
- Once oven has preheated, uncover bread, make a clean slice (about ¼” deep) down the center with a sharp knife or bread lame (to score it) then cover with another 9×5 pan (if you don’t have a second pan, you may instead make a makeshift oven using aluminum foil; tent it as high as the bread pan is deep).
- Transfer to center rack of preheated oven. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes then remove the lid and continue to bake another 20-23 minutes/until golden brown and the center of bread reaches 206-208F (97C).
- Allow bread to cool in pan for 15 minutes before gently turning it out onto a cooling rack (careful, the pan will still be hot!) to cool for at least 1-2 hours (until it no longer feels warm) before cutting into it.
Notes
To bake the same day:
Follow recipe through step 4 under the “Forming the Dough” section. Immediately after transferring dough to pan, preheat oven to 450F (230C). Allow dough to rest uncovered while oven preheats, at least 30 minutes. Once oven is preheated, follow directions in recipe starting with step 2 under the “Baking” section. Note that bread will not be as flavorful or nutritious & texture will not be as great if it is not allowed to sit in the fridge overnight.Storing & Freezing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. You may also freeze this bread. Freeze the whole loaf by wrapping tightly in plastic wrap and then wrapping in foil. When ready to thaw, keep covered completely and defrost at room temperature before unwrapping. We prefer to freeze pre-sliced: Cut bread into slices and storing in a plastic Ziploc bag (remove as much air as you can before freezing). If you struggle with freezer burn or plan to freeze the bread longer than a few weeks, you can individually wrap each slice in plastic wrap before closing in the plastic bag.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Janie
I have only had my starter going for about six months and tried several recipes with varying results, I believe related to difficulties with proofing too long or not enough and varying temperatures in the house during my learning. I tried this recipe and have now made perfect loaves every time! I didn’t have matching loaf pans but found a foil pan left from a restaurant carry out fit perfectly over my cast iron loaf pan and makes a great lid without having to do a tent each time. My family thinks I am amazing now but it is really just that the recipe and steps actually work! Thanks!
Cherish
Hello 🤗 I absolutely love this recipe! I actually have been using this recipe to make my sun-dried tomato, basil, parm cheese & pine nut, pesto bread. Excellent recipe!
Question.. can I double this recipe?
Please advise 🙂
Thanks so much!
p.s. I just love your website & videos! and the name you chose is so darn cute!! 🤗
All the best & happy baking!
Cherish
Sam
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed the sourdough so much! This recipe doubles very well. I make 2 loaves at once routinely. 🙂
Cherish
thank you, Sam! 🤗 Making more of this tomorrow. I now make 2 loaves so I can give one to a very grateful friend who loves this recipe. thanks again so very much 😘💕
E
Hi, what would you recommend for cooking time if I am putting this into a dutch oven?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We actually discuss how to make this recipe in a Dutch oven within the post 😊
Chehak
Really good recipe! I used 50% spelt flour, turned out amazing. Thanks for the recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, Chehak! 🩷
Rosemary Feagan
Will this make 4 mini loaves?
Sam
Hi Rosemary! I’m not sure how many mini loaves this will make, but you shouldn’t have any issues baking it in a mini loaf pan. I’m not sure on the bake time though.
Marie Turner
I am just beginning my sour dough journey. This recipe turned out perfect! It has me so exited to continue this! Thank you so very much for sharing it!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Congrats, Marie! And welcome to the sourdough club 😉 We’re so happy your bread turned out so nicely and are eager to hear what else you try!
Michelle Thigpen
I am making this recipe two to three times a week. The only issue I have is bubbles in the dough. When it comes out of the fridge and gets ready to bake, there are bubbles everywhere on the dough. What am I doing wrong here?
Sam
Hi Michelle! Bubbles in the dough aren’t typically seen as a problem when making sourdough. When you are rolling it to get it into the pan you can try to work out the bubbles. These can also start to form if it sits in the refrigerator for too long. They are a result of the fermentation occurring. I hope that helps! 🙂
Cecelia Mizzoni
Oh my!!! This recipe is outstanding! I followed to the “t” but pulled out at 10 minutes uncovered after it temped at 208. What a delight! The crust, the rise, the crumb…this is now my go to sourdough recipe! Thank you!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed it, Cecelia! Thanks for the review ❤️
Sandra Ramson
Can you line the pan with parchment paper vs oiling the pan?
I am excited to try your recipe.
I am currently in the autolyse step of your recipe. looking forward to baking this Tomorrow night or Tues.
Thank you for your post!
Sandra
Sam
Hi Sandra! Parchment paper typically isn’t rated for this high of a heat so I don’t use it here.
Sandra Ramson
thank you for your quick response!
I’m excited to bake this bread.
Sandra Ramson
I followed your recipe and I am excited to report, I LOVED the bread!
I can’t wait to make another batch.❤️
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Wonderful! Thanks for letting us know how it went for you, Sandra ❤️
Kim H
Can you proof this in a banneton and bake in a covered Dutch oven?
Sam
Hi Kim! That will work. 🙂
Jacqui
I am doing exactly that Kim. I did some research and saw a video on YouTube with this baking method for a 70% hydration sourdough bread. Make sure you use parchment that is rated for 450 degrees which is the temp I am baking it from a cold oven for 1 hour covered and then removing it from the clay baker and the paper. Return the loaf to the oven and place the loaf directly in the oven for 12 minutes at a reduced temp of 400 degrees. Test the bread for doneness. It should be above 200 F. I hope this helps. Good luck
Megan
How to you store your leftover starter since you didn’t use it all? And how would you add to it for future use?
Sam
Hi Megan! I store it in the refrigerator and when you want to use it again, take it out of the refrigerator, let it warm to room temperature and then proceed like normal. 🙂 I do have a post on making a sourdough starter that could be helpful. 🙂
Patty
This recipe worked so well for me! The bread turned out beautifully and is delicious! And I have a starter in the fridge for when we finish this loaf ( which won’t take long!). Thank you!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for letting us know, Patty! Welcome to the sourdough club 😉
K
Just tried this recipe and I love it. The bread looks and tastes great. If I want a harder crust and a less soft crumb should I omit the olive oil?
Sam
Unfortunately I’m not sure that would work well. 🙁
K
I’ve made this recipe 5 times now and the results are always amazing. Brown crust, good rise and a great crumb. And I love the ease of using the loaf pans. This is the recipe I’ll be using from now on.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy our recipe is a winner for you! Thanks for commenting 🥰
Karen
Sam, this is the most excellent sourdough sandwich bread recipe ever! Thanks for developing and sharing it. My daughter who is away for college and I used my starter to make your bread in our respective houses (Maine and Boston) over the phone last weekend. Her very first loaf came out PERFECT and she was so happy and proud!
Paula
I want to add some fun mix-ins (cinnamon/raisins, cheese, etc.). When is best to incorporate them? And what ratio/changes would you recommend if I wanted to use part wheat flour?
Sam
Hi Paula! It’s best to incorporate add ins during the stretch and fold process. I have not experimented with whole wheat flour, but just note that it is thirstier so you may not need as much. I would go by texture.
Angela M.
I have an extra large loaf pan. I’m not sure of how much of each ingredient to use? Maybe you can help? The pan is 12”X5”.
Sam
Hi Angela! Unfortunately I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure. My initial thought would be to increase everything by 33% since your pan is about 33% larger, but again without having tried it I can’t really say for sure how it would work. Let me know how it goes if you do try it. 🙂