Every home baker needs a foolproof recipe for soft, fluffy sourdough sandwich bread in their recipe box and here's one that will reward you with amazing bread each time. My easy sourdough sandwich loaf recipe doesn't need any added yeast; it uses an active, bubbling sourdough starter to create buttery, tangy flavor and a light, airy crumb. It slices beautifully too!
A fantastic same-day sourdough sandwich bread
Many sourdough breads need to be started the night before, but this sourdough sandwich loaf can easily be made in about eight hours from start to finish. So if you start the bread in the morning, you can have it baked and ready in time for dinner.
The recipe makes two sandwich loaves, which last us all week long. I use it to make all of my sandwiches even more delicious, and it's wonderful with peanut butter and jelly. You can even dunk it into soups and stews! But my hands-down favorite way to eat it is to toast it lightly - especially when it's a couple of days old - and slather it with vegan butter.
This recipe uses mostly white flour but I don't feel too bad about that because research shows that sourdough-based baked goods - even white sourdough bread - are healthier. Sourdough starter is full of healthy bacteria that are probiotic and extremely beneficial to the gut microbiome. These bacteria help partially break down gluten in the dough and make the bread easier to digest (they also improve the texture of the crumb, rewarding you with that soft sourdough bread you love).
Sourdough bread also has a lower glycemic index, which means it releases glucose into the blood more slowly. This recipe is vegan so it uses no eggs or milk, and consequently has no cholesterol and no natural sugars.
Even if all of that doesn't sway you, don't you know at least that one person who refuses to eat wholegrain bread? This bread would be perfect for them! If you still prefer a wholegrain version, I have a fantastic whole wheat sourdough sandwich bread recipe on the blog.
I made this bread a few weeks ago and it's AMAZING. Super easy and just perfect. I have made SD sandwich bread a few times and this is by far the best! Thank you!!! - Ryan
Sample schedule for baking sourdough sandwich bread
This is the timetable I follow when I make this sandwich bread for dinner:
- 8 a.m.: Make the first starter and set it aside to rise four hours.
- 12 noon: Make the dough and let it rise two hours.
- 2:30 p.m.: Shape the loaves and set aside to rise two more hours.
- 4: 45 p.m.: Bake bread for 40 minutes. Cool on wire rack before serving.
Recipe card
Sourdough Sandwich Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1½ cups sourdough starter (bubbling and active)
- 1½ cups lukewarm water
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 4-5 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or any neutral oil of your choice)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt (or any salt of your choice)
Instructions
First starter and rise
- Place the sourdough starter in a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add to it the wholewheat flour, 1 cup of all-purpose flour, and water. Mix well and set it aside, covered, in a warm place for four hours.
- After four hours the starter should be quite fluffy and bubbly.
Make sourdough sandwich bread dough
- Add 2 cups of all-purpose flour, olive oil and salt and mix. Add more flour as you knead until the dough becomes quite firm but still feels a little sticky to your fingers. You can do this by hand or in the stand mixer, using the dough hook attachment, on medium-low speed.
- Turn out the dough on the kitchen platform or any flat surface and knead by hand for 4-5 minutes or until the dough feels smooth and springy to your fingers and barely sticks to the platform.
Second rise
- Shape into a ball and place in an oiled bowl, turning the ball of dough around once to coat the top with oil. Cover tightly and place in a warm spot (like an oven with the light turned on) for at least two hours or until the dough has doubled.
Shape loaves
- Punch down the dough and divide into two. Roll out each half into a rectangle, about seven by 10 inches, and roll it up like a jelly roll. With the seam side down, tuck in the ends to form a loaf.
Third rise
- Prepare two loaf pans by spraying or brushing lightly with oil and then sprinkling on some cornmeal or semolina on the bottom and sides. Place the loaves into the prepared loaf pans.
- Cover the loaves with a kitchen towel and let them stand in a warm place for at least two more hours or until the dough domes above the top of the loaf pans.
Bake bread
- About half an hour before baking, preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit/220 degrees Celsius. Place the loaves in the oven and bake 40 minutes. Remove the loaves from the oven, turn them out on a rack, and let them cool thoroughly before slicing.
Notes
- Increase salt by up to one teaspoon if you like a saltier loaf.
- For a gluten-free version, try my gluten-free sourdough sandwich bread.
- Refrigerate: The bread can be stored at room temperature for four days and in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
- Freeze: Freeze the bread for up to three months in a freezer-safe bag, whole or sliced.
Nutrition Information
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Top tip
How much water you need for the bread could vary depending on the hydration of your sourdough starter and the weather where you live. If you find that adding two cups of water results in a very sticky dough, reduce the amount of water next time to 1 cup and trickle in the remaining water while kneading the dough, if needed.
Sourdough sandwich bread FAQs
Yes, just halve the amount of ingredients and you are all set!
The culprit here is your sourdough starter. If it is not active and fed recently (as in eight hours to 24 hours before use) you simply won't have enough natural yeast in the starter for the dough to rise.
To create a softer crust for the sourdough sandwich bread, replace half the water with soy milk.
Bread flour will give you a slightly crustier loaf. Use it if you like a crustier bread, it will be fantastic.
If you have some experience baking bread, but are new to sourdough baking, you should have no trouble making this easy sourdough sandwich bread. If you are new to both bread making and sourdough bread making, you might have a learning curve.
You can use sourdough discard but make sure it's no more than two to three days old and comes from a very active, bubbly sourdough starter. I did use sourdough discard in the past for this recipe, but I find an active starter gives a better rise and therefore a fluffier loaf.
This happens to me too, especially when I get busy and don't knead the dough long enough or let the loaves proof too long after shaping. Next time knead the dough longer until it is very supple and smooth, and make sure you don't overproof the loaves, i.e. don't let them rise for longer than the recommended time.
LL says
I just want to thank you for sharing this sandwich sourdough recipe. I tried last night and the breads came out beautiful. It was chewy, crusty on the outside and moist on the inside.
Anonymous says
I have a Herman the German , a reliable old School Charlie and a Fred (Fred is a bit self conscious about it, I bake bread every week and I bake all our bread's, cakes, etc, etc. . . I make 2 loaves of sweet White bread, 2 loaves of Sourdough bread, dinner rolls, bagels, cinnamon roll bread, 2 Norwegian Honey Oat Sourdough Bread ( This is one of my recipes) and a English Muffin Bread. I had to name them so my Husband knew when I am speaking of these what I was referring to.
Debra Friedenberger says
Just wondering can I substitute milk for water? I make these loafs all the time hubby loves them, but going to try milk instead of water.
Vaishali says
Yes, I think that would be fine.
Sharon says
Hi there, Is the oven temp fan forced or conventional? Cheers, Sharon.
Vaishali says
Conventional.
Cindy says
Made this today...I preface this by saying I bake bread weekly, this recipe is great! ... it required MUCH more flour, but the results were EXCELLENT!!!! I did use some bread flour, but this makes quite a lovely loaf that holds up well to sandwiches.
Thank you for making my low salt cooking SO much easier with this lovely bread recipe!!!
Cindy says
Forgot to rate....
PC says
Update: It worked!! It's tinier that hoped but that's because I was afraid to let it rise to high above pan before baking. But I'll be damned, tastes fine. I'm sure something went wrong with the dough though, really was impossible to handle or shape.
PC says
What did I do wrong? Used a starter I already had going. The initial mixture was very liquid but I figured I could make it up in the next step with the addition of more flour but nope. It bubbled really nicely. Dough rises well upon sitting but endlessly sticky and floppy - imposible to knead or shape. I just plopped it in the pans to see if anything edible comes out of it. Haven't baked it yet.
Tyshima says
What sourdough starter did you use? All the ones I see have yeast in them.
Pete Seymour says
Just tried this recipe and it makes an awesome loaf of sandwich bread. I've been searching for a way to make sandwich bread from my sourdough starter (free of commercial yeast) and this has been the best recipe that I've tried. I did change out the AP flour some some dedicated bread flour. I also decreased the cooking time a bit, but that might be a result of fluctuations from one oven to the next.
Eileen Reed says
Do you feed your starter before using?
Vaishali says
No, okay to use unfed starter.
Colleen says
If using fed starter, do you need the first four hour rise? I've made this a couple times (was amazing) but wondering about possibly cutting down on time spent at home waiting for bread! I've always used fed starter (I wouldn't have 1.5 c of starter if it wasn't fed) and now wondering if I need that initial rise.
Kristi F says
I can not thank you enough for this recipe!!! I have tried so many Sourdough recipes without commercial yeast with no success. This bread is amazing! Oven spring was immediate and huge! Taste is just wonderful! And I love that it is 5 ingredients and no commercial yeast. My bread did split at the top crust. Maybe I'll score it next time or maybe it rose too long. Either way, it will now be my go to recipe! Thank you!
Andrea says
I feel like something must have been left out, the bread is delish but sooo pale, there's no way it is even close to the picture. I even turned the oven up and did an extra 10 minutes. Did you brush something on before baking?
Vaishali says
Hi Andrea, Sourdough should give the bread a good color, but if it had a good texture and taste, I wouldn't worry about the color so much. I use dark metal or glass pans which make a difference to the color. You could also try spraying on some cooking spray or brushing on some oil the next time for a darker color.
Pete Seymour says
The color the the bread crust takes on can also be a product of how long is has risen. If it rises too long then the crust will become pale. Still will test great. Maybe try a little shorted second rise and see if that gives you the darker crust you are looking for.
Marie-Eve MacPherson says
Do you proof your starter before mixing the first step in your bread recipe?
Denise says
Made my starter (not yet named) and on day seven made the bread. It rose to the ceiling! Great loaf with a sharp tang on first bite. I will try the whole wheat recipe next weekend. I'd be okay with a lesser rising loaf! And I prefer the density of ww bread. I hope over time the starter will take on more complexity of flavor, and my husband is looking forward to weekly sourdough waffles. Thank you!
Sue says
I love making this bread. It's so good. Thank you for sharing. I was wondering if there was a way to let one of the rise times to be overnight? Maybe the first rise...instead of 4 hrs...could it wait for overnight? I ask because it makes a long day for me...with the 3 rises plus baking time is about 9 hrs.
Vaishali says
Hi Sue, you could try leaving the dough overnight in the refrigerator. That way it should still rise, but at a slower rate, and you'll also likely get more flavor. Let me know how it goes!
Francie Colby says
isn't sourdough chaned and good for people who can't do wheat?
Jane says
Is it possible to replace the whole wheat flour with something like chickpea flour?
Vaishali says
Hi Jane, it would really not work with chickpea flour because there's no gluten to help the bread build structure. Also the sourdough anyway has wheat in it. If you want to avoid most, but not all, wheat, you might try this with a gluten-free bread flour. If you do, I'd be interested in hearing how it turns out. You might want to keep some things in mind while modifying the recipe. I have a few tips in this post: https://holycowvegan.net/gluten-free-sandwich-bread/
Anonymous says
Is standard loaf pan an 8"?
Vaishali says
Yes, 8 or even 9 would be fine.
Bryn says
Hello, just tried this as my first actual loaf! Happy to say I got a significant rise, but when I pulled them out they were rock solid! Wah wah waaaaaah! What could I have done wrong?
Bryn says
Ok, wait a minute - as it's cooling it's getting softer!
Bryn says
Now my question is - how to store it best?
Vaishali says
Hi Bryn, you can store it in the refrigerator, in a plastic bag, like the ones you get when you buy storebought bread.
Ima says
Hi, I wanna try this recipe but my starter is not quite ripe yet. Also I use 100% hydration (100 grams water to 100 grams red whole wheat flour). Should I adjust the recipe or just try it's it is?
Thanks
Vaishali says
Hi Ima, you will need to adjust your starter because these measurements are for the starter made with the amount of hydration given in the recipe.
Joanna Burke says
Will try this recipe! I only ever make sourdough boules so I'm excited to try a sandwich loaf.
I did want to mention that the King Arthur Flour starter recipe is 100% hydration. 1/2 cup of water and 1 cup of flour are volume measurements and they have different densities but when flour is measured correctly (using the"fluff and sprinkle" method rather than scooping) they are roughly the same weight (about 4oz) and mass. A lot of bread bakers weigh or mass everything because it's more accurate and it's easier than using cup measures. If yours is perfect with more water, I would guess you are scooping your flour and therefore actually getting more flour than they intended, which is why adding water brought it back to the hydration it should be. There's a video from King Arthur Flour about the difference in amount of flour here: .
Hope that's interesting and/or helpful! If that's obvious, just ignore me. Chemist wife syndrome. ?
-Joanna
Michael says
Thank you for pointing this out. I was surprised to see that she didn’t use weight to measure the ingredients.
Shalini says
I have another question.. lol. Sorry, I'm a newbie at baking. Well, in a recipe like yours that states 1 1/2 cups of sourdough starter, what happens if the hydration levels of my starter is different from yours? Thanks again haha 🙂
Vaishali says
Hey there, that's the reason I state that you use sourdough with the same hydration as mine: 1 cup flour to 3/4 cup water. Otherwise you will have to increase/decrease the amount of flour and water in your recipe, which could change the bread significantly.
Shalini says
Ohh.. okay. I'll follow your measurements for the starter next time 🙂 thanks
Shalini says
Also, what size loaf pan did you use?
Thanks again 🙂
Vaishali says
Hey Shalini, I use 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pans.The color of the crust depends on the pan you're using. A darker pan gives you a darker crust.
Shalini says
The top of my bread was pale, it looked uncooked even though it actually was well-cooked.. I don't understand the relation of the color of the pan to the color of the crust, do you mean the part that's covered by the pan, like the lower part of the bread?
Fyre says
Shalini - dark pans absorb more energy (light, heat, what-have-you) than light or clear pans. So in effect, they're hotter? You might consider turning up the temperature of your oven 15-20*F for the browning phase at the end.
Troy Clement says
I love this recipe it makes beautiful loaves, right now I am making a batch with ancient grains added cant wait.
Vaishali says
Sounds delicious! Thanks for the feedback.
Shalini says
Hi,
I baked this today and the crust didn't turn brown at all like in your pictures. What kind of oven do you use? Thanks 🙂
joe says
I made this today and it turned fantastic. Tkls.
Vaishali says
Thanks for letting me know, Joe! Glad you enjoyed it.
Anusha says
Sam 🙂 Sammy boy 🙂
Vaishali says
I love that name because it was also the name of my first dog. I've already picked the name though-- George. 🙂 Thanks, Anusha.
l7171 says
Your bread sounds wonderful
and about to try baking it now,
thank you for making it possible.
Vaishali says
Awesome, hope you like it!
Vidya says
How about Bianca? Since it's white and all?! 🙂
Vaishali says
Thanks for the suggestion, Vidya. Definitely in the running. ?
Niki says
Sounds amazing! Any idea if I could use gf flours? Any specific ones?
Thanks so much for sharing your awesome recipes!!
Vaishali says
Niki, that's an interesting question. You can make a glutenfree sourdough and there is a recipe on the King Arthur blog but it uses a special starter. I also have seen versions with kefir which of course would not be vegan. If you're looking for a glutenfree sandwich bread, although not a sourdough one, you might want to try this: https://holycowvegan.net/gluten-free-sandwich-bread/
Rakesh Saxena says
Superb!!!!
Vaishali says
?
ChannonD says
George...as in "I want to hug him and squeeze him and call him George" The classic line from Bugs Bunny's take on "Of Mice and Men". Makes me giggle every time.
How does one "feed" their starter and "keep it alive"? I LOVE sourdough bread, but whole grain versions are hard to find. I'd love to make some, but my disability makes that only possible on occasions. So, given that, I'm not sure if I'm a good candidate for creating, feeding and loving my very own George.
Namrata says
Yeah George gets my vote too. It's such a good name for a sourdough starter <3
Plus naming your starter is such a cute concept, love it!! The bread looks lovely btw, I don't bake anything more complicated than cookies so I won't probably be making this, but I will ask my friend to bake some 🙂
Thanks, this post makes me so happy, especially the naming part !!
Vaishali says
Hope your friend bakes it for you, Namrata. 🙂
Vaishali says
Love George! He is seriously in the running. Channon, I have a few whole wheat sourdough breads on the blog but I am in the process of developing an all whole wheat recipe with sourdough only.
Girija says
Sivaay 🙂
Vaishali says
?? ?
giri says
Si from Desi, Va from your name and ay from Jay 🙂 name for you new starter
Vaishali says
Haha, that's a good one. 🙂 Love it!
Diane says
I have had a time getting this bread recipe to work right. Seems so simple and I’ve made lots of sourdough bread but it is so sticky and takes a long time to rise. Any suggestions?
Francie Colby says
you do not need this recipe over night?