Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Soft and buttery, this Sourdough Sandwich Bread is a great base for any type of sandwich, hot or cold.

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When you’re looking to change it up from classic crusty sourdough bread, sourdough sandwich bread is a fresh and delicious alternative. It’s soft and buttery, with a tender closed crumb – perfect for holding that sandwich together.

This Sourdough Sandwich Bread is made with the same ingredients as classic sourdough – water, flour, salt and of course, sourdough starter. However, the addition of butter and a little honey turn the bread into a soft and fluffy, buttery, and slightly sweet sandwich bread.

I call it sandwich bread, but really, it’s a delicious bread for lots of different things. It’s great for breakfast as buttered toast or as French toast. Its flavor goes so well with peanut butter and jelly, and it’s delicious as a grilled cheese. Or, skip the hamburger buns and dress it up as a hamburger. Whatever you make with it, I hope you enjoy this sandwich bread as much as we do.

Find More Sourdough Bread Recipes at Quail Creek Homestead:

• Sourdough Buttermilk Bread
• Favorite Sourdough Bread – 70% Hydration Recipe
• No-Knead Sourdough Bagels
• Sourdough Slider Buns

What You Need to Make Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Large heavy-bottomed mixing bowl

Wooden spoon

Kitchen scale

Loaf pans – I prefer glass or ceramic loaf pans with more vertical sides, instead of curved sides. This makes better slices of bread.

Ingredients for Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Water – non-chlorinated, if possible

Butter, melted

Honey

Sourdough leaven – see below for how to make a leaven for this recipe

Bread flour – in a pinch, you can sub all purpose flour for bread flour. I like to use organic flours whenever possible.

All purpose flour

Whole wheat flour – I like the flavor that a little bit of whole wheat flour provides, but if you don’t have it, sub all purpose flour.

Salt – I like to use a natural salt with no additives, like Redmond Real Salt.

How to Make a Leaven for This Recipe

I prefer to make a leaven, separate from my starter, for each sourdough recipe I make. But really, it’s personal preference. If you prefer to keep a large starter and feed directly into it for each recipe, that’s fine too!

For this recipe, you will need 200 grams of leaven. Mix the following ingredients well and place in a warm spot to activate. This will probably take anywhere from 4-12 hours depending on the temperate of your house and the vitality of your starter.

• 100 grams non-chlorinated water
• 100 grams bread flour
• 20 grams active starter

How to Make Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Add water to a large mixing bowl, then whisk in melted butter and honey. Add the leaven and gently whisk until a milky liquid forms. Add flour and stir to combine well. Cover the dough and let rest 30 minutes.

Add the salt to the dough along with 10 grams water. Using a wet hand, mix the salt into the dough well until a smooth dough forms. Stretch and fold the dough over onto itself to form back into a ball. Cover and let rest another 30 minutes.

Perform 3 rounds of stretch and folds over the next 1.5 hours, 30 minutes apart. The dough should be smooth and elastic by the last round. Place the dough in a warm place to bulk ferment 4-6 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and divide in half. Let the dough rest while you grease two loaf pans. To shape the dough, stretch it out into a rectangle and roll it up, pinching the seams. Place the loaves in pans and cover; let rise in a warm place another 1-2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Uncover the loaves and bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden brown.

Let the bread cool 10-15 minutes, then turn the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.