Sourdough Bread

Sourdough Bread: Rustic, Tangy, and Wonderfully Chewy

There’s something deeply satisfying about baking your own sourdough bread—the crackly crust, the airy crumb, the tangy flavor that only gets better with time. This homemade sourdough loaf is a labor of love and a delicious reward. Made with just flour, water, salt, and your sourdough starter, it’s slow-fermented and naturally leavened for that classic, artisan feel.

Why You’ll Love This Sourdough Bread

This bread is everything you want in a homemade loaf: chewy, golden, and packed with complex flavor. The long fermentation brings a lovely tang and makes the dough easier to digest. Plus, it’s naturally vegan and made with just a few pantry staples. Whether you’re slathering a slice with nut butter, piling on your favorite sandwich toppings, or just eating it warm with a little olive oil, there’s comfort in every bite.

Fun Flavor Variations For Your Sourdough Bread

Why settle for plain when you can get creative with different flavor combinations:

• Seeded Loaf: Add sesame, flax, or poppy seeds to the dough or roll the shaped loaf in them before baking.

• Roasted Garlic & Herb: Mix in roasted garlic cloves and fresh rosemary or thyme for a savory twist.

• Cranberry Walnut: For a slightly sweet, nutty variation, fold in dried cranberries and chopped walnuts.

Serving Ideas For Your Sourdough Bread

This Sourdough is incredibly versatile and can be used in various ways:

• Avocado Toast: Top a toasted slice with avocado, flaky salt, and chili flakes.

• Hearty Sandwiches: Layer it with tofu deli slices, fresh veggies, and big slathers of hummus or vegan mayo.

• Bread Bowls: Hollow out a boule and fill it with your favorite soup or stew for a cozy meal.

• Classic with Olive Oil: Simply tear off a chunk and dip it into good olive oil with herbs.

Tips For The Best Sourdough Bread

For the best results, follow these simple tips to perfect your Sourdough every time:

• Feed Your Starter: Make sure your sourdough starter is bubbly and active before mixing your dough. If you need to create a sourdough starter or revive your existing starter, follow my instructions.

• Don’t Rush the Process: Sourdough takes time! Long fermentation is key to developing flavor and structure.

• Preheat Your Dutch Oven: Get your Dutch oven blazing hot before baking to ensure great oven spring and a crisp crust.

• Score with Intention: Use a sharp blade to score the top so your bread expands in all the right ways.

• Make Ahead: After shaping, you can refrigerate the dough overnight and bake straight from the fridge the next day for an even more developed flavor.

The Final Bite

Baking sourdough bread is part science, part art—and always rewarding. It connects you to tradition, slows you down, and fills your kitchen with the unbeatable aroma of freshly baked bread. Whether you’re brand new to sourdough or a seasoned pro, this recipe is a delicious place to start (or return to). Have you tried making this Sourdough before? Let me know how you customize it in the comments below!

Print Recipe

Crusty Sourdough Loaf

This sourdough bread recipe delivers a crusty, golden loaf with a chewy, flavorful crumb—perfect for sandwiches, toast, or enjoying warm from the oven.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time50 minutes mins

Resting Time16 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Total Time18 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Artisanal, Bread, Chewy, Crusty, Sourdough

Servings: 1 Loaf

Equipment

• Stand Mixer Optional
• Mixing Bowl
• Dutch Oven or Bread Baking Pan or Bread Stone

Ingredients

• 1 cup Ripe and Fed Active Sourdough Starter
• 2 cups Room Temperature Water Between 70 and 80℉
• 2¾ cup Bread Flour Plus more as needed to get dough to your desired texture
• ¼ cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 1¼ tsp Sea Salt

Instructions

• Add the room temperature water into a large bowl. Add the active starter to the water and stir until the starter is dissolved. Mix in bread flour, whole wheat flour, and salt into the bowl. Mix well until all bits of flour are moistened and have formed a soft tacky dough.
• Cover with a damp towel and let rest for 20 minutes.
• After letting the dough rest, knead the dough for an additional 4 to 5 minutes. You want a soft dough that’s somewhat tacky. You can either use your stand mixer with the dough hook or use your hands. I enjoy kneading the dough myself; it is a workout, and I love the feeling of the dough coming together! Note here, you also want a pretty wet tacky dough, but if your dough is too wet, you can also add more flour here. I would begin adding 1 tbsp at a time while kneading it.
• Place the dough back into the bowl, cover with a damp kitchen towel, plate or plastic wrap and let your dough rise for 1 hour.
• After an hour, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Fold it like a business letter. Then do a quarter turn and fold it again and once more. Place the dough back into the bowl and let it rise for 15 minutes, and do another letter turn, do this 2 more times, at 15 minute intervals, for a total of 4 folds. After the 4 folds, place the dough back into the bowl and let the dough rise for another 15 minutes.
• After your last fold and 15 minute resting period, turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Gently shape it into a round by gently cupping the dough, pulling and twisting it towards you while building surface tension.
• Place the rough back in the bowl and cover and let rise for another 20 minutes. Then place the covered bowl, recommend covering the bowl with a fitting lid or plastic wrap to prevent the fridge from drying out your dough, in the fridge and let it rise for 8 to 12 hours.
• Remove the dough from the fridge, and let sit at room temperature for an hour. After an hour, do your final shaping of your bread. Repeat the letter folds and then gently shape it into a round, like you did before putting the dough in the fridge, by gently cupping the dough, pulling and twisting it towards you while building surface tension. Place the dough on parchment paper or a silicone baking mat with the seam side down. Let the dough rise for another 30 minutes.
• While your dough is on its last 30 minutes rise, place your empty Dutch oven inside the oven and preheat to 450°F.
• Score the bread using a bread lame, razor blade, or sharp knife, and make 2 deep diagonal slashes into the dough.
• After your oven and Dutch oven have preheated, carry the dough by the corners of the parchment paper or silicone bread mat like a sling and very carefully place it into the preheated Dutch oven. Then place the lid back on the Dutch oven.
• Bake your bread with the lid on for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
• After your bread has been baked, resist and let your bread fully cool before cutting into it. If you cut your bread while it is hot, it will ruin the structure of your bread.
• Your Bread will keep for 5 to 6 days in a bread bag on the counter. Note that the bread can be sliced and placed in the freezer and will stay fresh for 3 to 4 months in the freezer.

Notes

I use the 1:2:3 ratio for my sourdough, so it is 1 part active sourdough starter, 2 parts water, and 3 parts flour. I like to do 75% bread flour and 25% whole wheat flour for my flour ratios but feel free to play around with your flour here. With this, you can scale up or down this sourdough bread recipe! 

*Sourdough Starter

**Waking Up Your Sourdough Starter