Early on in my sourdough journey I had a desire to have a recipes for sourdough bread that I knew by heart, that I could whip up on a whim without thinking about it.
I was baking sourdough from recipes I found on blogs and through Pinterest, exploring what measurement and techniques resonated for me, keeping in mind that I am at a high altitude. While artisan loaves quickly became a go to, I was still in search of recipes that could be the basis for so many other things.
I fell in love with sweet roll recipes and enriched dough recipes. And after experimenting with several different iterations, tweaking and adjusting ingredients, I came to the conclusion that this was the path I needed to follow to create my own Master Recipe for Sourdough Bread Sourdough.
With many, many tests to adjust the ingredients, times, and techniques, this recipe is one that I’m very proud of. It has become my go to, the one I know by heart and can pull together on a whim, or for a planned meal, of course.
Recipes for Sourdough Bread
This master recipe is extremely versatile, and I’ve tested at least 7 different variations of this recipe including:
- Sandwich Loaf
- Hotdog and Hamburger Buns
- Demi Loaves
- Dinner Rolls
- Hoagie buns
- Monkey Bread
- Cinnamon Rolls – My personal favorite
Slightly sweet, fluffy, and satisfying, this flexible recipe for sourdough bread covers all the bases and lends itself to any variation you could think of. Next, I will be testing how it performs as a pizza dough, how it would do frozen and thawed, and I’ll be testing some stuffed variations as well. Stay tuned for those.
Sourdough Bread: Master Recipe Ingredients
I do my best to choose high quality, organic ingredients when cooking from scratch, and this bread recipe is no exception. I will say, however, use what you have on hand and don’t worry if what you have is not organic. You are getting the great benefits of “from scratch” cooking by making this bread yourself and knowing exactly what you are putting in it.
Most of these ingredients you will have on hand already, the most unusual will be the sourdough starter. Sourdough starters can be purchased online, nowadays. You can also make one from scratch or get one from a friend. My sourdough starter is from Homestead and Chill, and I’ve named it Wilbur. Apparently, that’s a thing, naming you starter. A couple of other great places to purchase a starter are Ballerina Farm and Untamed Farm.
For this recipe, be sure your starter is fed, active and bubbly. (There is a variation in the recipe notes that uses the addition of dry yeast. For that variation you can use sourdough starter discard. The addition of dry yeast gives you an option if your starter is not at peak activity and speeds up the rising process making this a “done in a day” recipe.) You’ll need 240 grams (or 1 cup) of starter.
It’s fun to experiment with different combinations of flours for this recipe. I love the addition of Einkorn flour as it gives a lovely flavor. I do find that doing all einkorn or whole grain flour makes this dough denser, less fluffy. So just substituting about ½ – ¾ cup of a whole grain or einkorn flour is just right for giving it a bit more flavor and heartier texture. If whole grain flour is not your thing or you don’t have it on hand, All Purpose flour is perfect and will give you a fluffy tender texture.
Opt for grass fed butter and whole milk when you can. Low-fat milk will be fine but you may notice a different in the rich flavor when you use whole milk. Free range fresh eggs are my favorite. I was getting eggs from a friend that raises chickens. She recently lost her flock to a predator, which is very sad. I’m selfishly sad too and I need to find another egg source. However, you can find good quality eggs from the grocery and farmer’s market.
Finally sugar and salt. I prefer Kosher salt and organic raw sugar. You could also use honey instead of sugar.
Sourdough Bread: Assembling the Dough
A sturdy standing mixer works well to combine this dough. It can also be mixed and kneaded by hand, so you don’t have to have any special equipment.
Allow the butter to warm to room temperature. You can also melt the butter a little bit if you don’t have time to wait for it to come to room temp.
Combine the sourdough starter, eggs, and milk in medium bowl or measuring cup. Whisk well to break up the starter and combine the ingredients.
Add the flour, salt, and sugar into the bowl of the standing mixer (or a large bowl if mixing by hand) and stir until combined.
With the standing mixer fitted with a dough hook and running on a low speed (or stir setting) slowly pour in the wet ingredients. Add in the softened/melted butter. Increase the speed to medium. Once the ingredients are thoroughly combined, set a timer for 6 minutes. If combining by hand – thorough mix together all the ingredients.
The mixture may look a little wet to begin with. It should start to form a ball-like shape over time and cleanly pull away from the sides. If the dough does not ball up and come away from the sides and still looks a bit wet and messy within the 6 minute kneading time (or the dough is sticking to your fingers and not staying together when hand kneading) sprinkle in some flour 1 Tbl at a time, allowing the flour to fully mix in before the next addition, until the dough comes together. Knead for an additional 2-3 minutes in this case.
If kneading by hand, turn the dough mixture out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 – 10 minutes.
When the kneading is complete, the dough should be smooth, slightly tacky to the touch and hold an indentation when poked with a finger.
Bulk Ferment the Dough
Bulk fermenting is a term that refers to rising an amount of dough that will be divided into a number of loaves. Since we are doing small batch baking and the dough will be used for a single recipe the term “bulk” may be confusing. The bottom line is the dough needs to rise (and ferment) to give the proper lift for the subsequent recipes.
It is possible to raise the dough and cook one of the recipe in a day, it would be a very long day. So, for peace of mind, you should plan to cook your chosen recipe the day after starting the dough.
2 Bulk Fermenting Methods
There are 2 methods that I’ve found work for this dough, which is just another reason this recipe is great, it’s very flexible. Both methods take about the same amount of time. Start to finish from making the dough to the final bake can be somewhere between 18 – 24 hours.
Method 1
Cover the dough and place it in a warm area of the kitchen and allow to rise for 4 – 5 hours. You may not get a lot of rise out of the dough in this first rise. That’s ok, it will happen.
Transfer the dough to the fridge and leave overnight. Often I will make up the dough while I’m preparing dinner and let it sit on the counter for the rise time. I’ll then put it in the fridge before I go to bed.
Remove from the fridge and let rise again in a warm place until it has doubled from it’s original size, about 5-8 hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen. Then proceed with one of the linked recipes. Keep in mind there may be an additional 1 hour rise time for most of the recipes.
Method 2
This method uses a longer initial rise time and is refrigerated after shaping the dough.
Cover and place the dough in a warm area of the kitchen for 8-12 hours until the dough has doubled in size.
Once the dough has doubled, shape it according to the recipe directions you’ve chosen.
Cover and refrigerate overnight 8-12 hours. Set the shaped dough out at room temperature for 1-2 hours so the dough comes to room temperature and rises a bit more. Proceed with baking according the recipe instructions.
Sourdough Bread Recipes:
- Sandwich Loaf
- Hotdog and Hamburger Buns
- Demi – Loaves
- Dinner Rolls
- Hoagie buns
- Monkey Bread
- Cinnamon Rolls
Bake in a Day – Dry Yeast Variation
Sometimes you don’t want to wait 24 hours before baking bread. I get that! Don’t worry I’ve got you. Follow this speedy version of the master dough recipe that I often use when wanting to make same day bread.
Adding yeast to the recipe allows you to bake the bread in about 6 hours rather than waiting for the overnight fermentation and rise. Part of why I love this recipe is the versatility. If you eat sourdough for the digestion benefits the long ferment/rise time is perfect. However, if you want a quicker option with some of the sourdough flavor and benefits then this variation works great.
The ingredients from the master sourdough recipe are the same with the addition of dry active yeast. Instant yeast is also a good option. Again, use what you have on hand or have access to. You’ll need 1 tsp of yeast for this recipe.
Dry active yeast needs a little help to wake up. Activate the yeast by warming the milk to about 90˚F. This can be done in the microwave for about 30 seconds, or on the stovetop. Use a thermometer to check the temperature. Over-heating the milk can kill the yeast. Remove the milk from the heat and add ½ tsp of sugar from premeasured ¼ cup amount, stir until dissolved. Add the yeast and gently stir. Set aside for 5 minutes or until foamy and fragrant.
Dry active yeast is a dehydrated version of fresh yeast. The warm milk coupled with sugar will wake up the yeast and give it something to eat. Hence, activating the yeast.
When using instant yeast. Add the yeast into the flour, salt, sugar mixture. It will then be activated once the wet ingredients are added.
Combine the ingredients just like the master recipe. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 3-5 hours until doubled in size. In my test runs of this recipe the dough has doubled in less than 3 hours in warm spot. Keep an eye on it as it could grow very quickly with addition of yeast.
Punch down and shape following any of these linked recipes for sourdough bread:
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Sourdough Bread Master Recipe
Equipment
- Standing mixer with Dough Hook Attachment Optional
- Measuring Cups Liquid and dry
- Measuring Spoons
- Large Mixing Bowl if not using standing mixer
- Bench Scraper
- Plastic wrap, beeswax wrap, or parchment paper
- Dough Whisk Optional
Ingredients
- 3 3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
- 1/4 Cup Sugar or Honey
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt or Sea Salt
- 1 Large Egg room temperature
- 1 Cup Active Sourdough Starter
- 3/4 Cup Milk warmed to 90˚ F on stovetop or microwave
- 6 Tbls Butter Softened
Instructions
- Be sure your sourdough starter is fed and at peak activity. If you keep your starter in the fridge you may need to feed it twice to get peak activation. (See the recipe notes for a quicker version of this recipe using sourdough discard and the addition of dry yeast.)
If Using Standing Mixer:
- Measure the flour, sugar, and salt and add it to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook.
- Combine the sourdough starter, egg, and milk in a 4 cup glass measuring cup or medium bowl. Mix well to incorporated the starter.
- With the standing mixer running at a low speed, slowly pour in the wet ingredients and add the softened butter. Mix until fully combined and no flour is remaining in the bottom of the bowl.
- Set the mixer at medium speed to knead the dough for 6 minutes. The dough is done when it completely pulls away from the sides and balls up around the dough hook. The dough should look smooth and when pressing your finger into the dough it will leave an imprint, the dough will feel tacky but no dough will stick to your finger.
If Mixing by Hand:
- Combine the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Using a dough whisk helps with this task.
- Pour in the dry ingredients and the butter and combine fully.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly flour surface and knead for 8-12 minutes, use a bench scraper to help turn and knead the dough if it feel loose and sticky at first. Knead until the dough is tacky but doesn't stick your hands. Pressing a finger into the side of the dough leaves an indentation. The dough should be smooth and hold it's shape.
Proceed After Kneading by Mixer or by Hand:
Bulk ferment the dough – 2 Methods*
- The temperature of the room will affect the timing. Be sure it's in a warm place, 75 – 80 degrees is ideal. Be sure your starter is at peak activity.
- After the bulk fermentation is complete proceed with any of the linked recipes in this post.
Method 1: Preferred for all linked recipes
- Cover the dough and place it in a warm area of the kitchen and allow to rise for 4 – 5 hours. You may not get a lot of rise out of the dough in this first rise. Transfer the dough to the fridge and leave overnight. Remove from the fridge and let rise again in a warm place until it has doubled from it's original size, about 5-8 hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen. Then proceed with one of the linked recipes. Keep in mind there may be an additional 1 hour rise time for most of the recipes.
Method 2: Best for Dinner Rolls and Sandwich Breads
- This method uses a longer initial rise time and is refrigerated after shaping the dough. When used for cinnamon rolls and monkey bread the filling can weep. This method is not ideal for those recipes.
- Cover and place the dough in a warm area of the kitchen for 8-12 hours until the dough has doubled in size. Once the dough has doubled, shape it according to the recipe directions you've chosen. Cover and refrigerate overnight 8-12 hours. Set the shaped dough out at room temperature for 1-2 hours so the dough comes to room temperature and rises a bit more. Proceed with baking according the recipe instructions.
