Easy Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Soft, wholesome sourdough bread with a golden crust — perfect for sandwiches, toast, and just about everything in between.

There’s something pretty special about making your own bread, especially when it’s as simple as mixing a few ingredients the day before, letting time do most of the work, and waking up to dough that’s ready to bake.

This is my go-to sourdough sandwich loaf. I make it every week, sometimes twice a week if I have time. It uses a little whole wheat flour for extra nutrition, milk for a fluffy soft inside, and an overnight rest in the fridge to make mornings easy.

Makes: 1 loaf

Prep: About 20 minutes of hands-on time, plus rising

Best for: Starting the day before, baking the next morning

What you'll need

For the starter

Mix these together the night before you plan to make your dough. Leave on the counter overnight, covered.

• 55 g flour

• 55 g water

• 15 g sourdough starter

  
  

For the dough

• 100 g active sourdough starter

• 10 g kosher or additive-free salt

• 330 g room-temperature water

• 100 g milk

• 100 g whole wheat flour

• 412 g white bread flour

You'll also need a loaf tin, a little butter for greasing, and a drizzle of olive oil.

Method

Night before: Get your starter ready

Mix the flour, water and starter together in a small container. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight.

By morning, it should have at least doubled, be active and bubbly, and ready to use in your dough. Measure out 100 g for the recipe.

Step 1: Mix the dough

In a large rectangular glass container or bowl, combine the starter, salt, water and milk. Give everything a good stir.

Add the whole wheat flour and white bread flour. Mix until all the flour is incorporated and there are no dry patches left.

The dough will feel sticky. That's completely normal — resist the urge to add extra flour.

Step 2: Stretch and fold

Leave the dough to rest, covered, for 30 minutes.

With slightly damp hands, grab one side of the dough, stretch it upwards, then fold it back over itself. Turn the container and repeat until you've stretched and folded all four sides.

Cover the dough and rest for another 30 minutes.

Repeat this process 4 times.

(Note: Don't stress about getting this perfect. If you don't have time to do 4 folds, do 1 or 2 - Even one round of folds will help strengthen your dough.)

Step 3: Let the dough rise

Once you've finished your folds, cover the container with a lid, tea towel or bowl cover.

Leave the dough at room temperature until it has increased in volume by about 50%.

(Tip: Use a vivid or washable marker to mark the dough's starting height on the outside of your container. It's much easier to see how much it's risen than to guess!)

How long it takes to rise depends on the time of year ie: the temparature of your kitchen. In summer my dough might rise in 2-3hrs, in winter it is more like 5-7hrs. Watch the dough rather than the clock.

Step 4: Shape your loaf

Once the dough has risen by around 50%, grease a loaf tin with butter. You can also line the middle with baking paper if you like.

Drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil over the dough and rub a little oil onto your hands.

Gently loosen the dough from the sides of the container, taking care not to knock out too much of the air. Turn it out onto a work surface.

Shape it into a rough rectangle. I like to fold it envelope-style first:

Take one side of the dough (at 3 o clock) and fold it into the centre, like you do with a stretch and fold. Take the next side of the dough (at 6 o clock) and fold it into the centre. Take the 9 o clock edge and fold that into the centre. Finally take the 12 o clock edge and fold that into the centre.

pick up the dough with both hands and flip the whole dough over to the other side.

Using a bench scraper, gently shape the dough into a rounded rectangle shape, scraping the bench scraper under the dough and pulling towards you, in order to tighten the dough as you pull.

Pick up the dough with both hands and transfer to your prepared tin.

Step 5: Into the fridge overnight

Cover the loaf tin with a tea towel or bowl cover and place it in the fridge overnight.

Step 6: Bake in the morning

The next morning, preheat your oven to 230°C.

Place the loaf tin straight into the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

Reduce the temperature to 190°C and bake for another 20–25 minutes, or until the loaf is golden all around and baked through.

Remove from the oven and leave the bread in the tin for 5 minutes before turning it out onto a cooling rack.

Step 7: The hardest part — waiting!

Let the loaf cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing.

I know it's tempting to cut into fresh bread straight away, but giving it time to cool helps the inside finish setting, so you get lovely slices rather than a gummy crumb.

Then slice, spread with butter, make a sandwich, or toast it for breakfast.

A few things worth remembering

• Sticky dough is normal. Use slightly damp or oiled hands rather than adding more flour.

• Rise time varies. A warm kitchen will speed things up, while a cooler one will slow things down.

• Don't wait for the dough to double. This recipe calls for an increase of about 50% before shaping.

• Your first loaf doesn't need to be perfect. Sourdough gets easier the more familiar you become with how your dough behaves.

Happy baking! There's nothing quite like a homemade sourdough loaf waiting on the kitchen bench.