Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread (No Mixer, No Kneading)
A soft, tender sourdough sandwich loaf made entirely by hand. A microwave tangzhong keeps it soft for days, stretch and folds replace the stand mixer, and it cold proofs in a basket instead of the pan so your loaf pan stays free until it bakes.
Servings: 12 Slices
Calories: 195kcal
Equipment
- Large microwave safe mixing bowl
- Whisk
- bench scraper
- Oval proofing basket or a linen lined rectangular storage container
- 2 9x5 loaf pans or 10x5 ince pans
- Parchment paper
- Lame or razor blade
- Instant read thermometer
- - Pastry brush
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
Tangzhong
- 25 g bread flour 3 tablespoons
- 125 g whole milk 1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon
Dough
- 125 g whole milk cold (1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon)
- 75 g water cold (1/3 cup)
- 50 g egg 1 large
- 75 g active sourdough starter 1/3 cup
- 36 g granulated sugar 3 tablespoons
- 30 g butter melted and cooled (2 tablespoons)
- 425 g bread flour 3 1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon
- 10 g salt 1 3/4 teaspoons
For Finishing
- 14 g butter softened (1 tablespoon) optional
Instructions
- In the microwave, melt your butter.
Make the Tangzhong
- Whisk the 25g of bread flour into the 125g of milk in a large microwave safe bowl until completely smooth with no large lumps sitting on the bottom.
- Microwave in 20 to 30 second bursts, whisking well between each one, until it thickens to the consistency of pudding and the whisk leaves a trail behind it. This usually takes about a minute total.
- Let the tangzhong sit for about 5 minutes while you weigh out the rest of your ingredients.
Mix your Dough
- Whisk the cold milk, cold water, and sugar directly into the warm paste until smooth. This brings the temperature down. Check that it feels no warmer than lukewarm before you go on.
- Whisk in the egg, then the sourdough starter, then the melted butter, until the mixture looks uniform.
- Add the bread flour and salt. Mix with a dough whisk or your hands until no dry flour remains and you have a shaggy mass. It will feel sticky and loose at this stage, which is normal. Use your dough scraper to clean off the sides of the bowl and make the dough into a round in the center of the bowl.
- Cover and rest 1 hour.
- Perform 3 sets of stretch and folds spaced 1 hour apart, covering the bowl between each set. For each set, pull the edge of the dough up and fold it into the middle, turning the bowl as you go until you have worked all the way around about 6 times. Then put your fingers on the seam and your thumb against the side of the bowl, flip the dough over onto itself so the seam sits on the bottom, and push and tuck around the edge a few times until the ball is taut. (see the shaping video on the blog)
- Let the dough bulk ferment at room temperature until it has risen by 50 to 70 percent, is domed on top, and jiggles when you move the bowl. This will take longer than a lean loaf because the sugar, fat, and dairy slow fermentation. Mine took about 7 hours at 72 degrees F.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and pre shape into a round. Rest 15-20 minutes seam side down.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter. Slide both hands underneath the dough on opposite sides, then lift and fold those two sides up to meet in the middle, pushing and squeezing them together as you go. Pinch the seam closed along the top.
- Turn the dough and repeat on the two opposite ends, folding them up and in with the same squeeze, then pinch those seams shut. You should have a cylinder the length of your pan with blunt ends rather than tapered points.
- Place the dough seams side down and pull it back toward you, making the top to the dough taunt.
- Place the shaped loaf seam side up into a floured proofing basket. Cover and refrigerate 8 to 14 hours.
Bake your Bread
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F
- Line the your pan with parchment. Remove it and turn the cold loaf out onto a sheet of parchment, then use it as a sling to lower the loaf into the pan. Trim any overhang to about an inch.
- Invert the second pan over the top as a lid and bake 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, mist the top with water and score a single shallow cut down the center of the loaf, running nearly the full length.
- REDUCE THE OVEN to 375F Replace the lid and bake 30 minutes.
- Remove the lid, reduce the oven , and bake 12 to 15 minutes more, until golden and the internal temperature reaches 195F.
- Lift the loaf out of the pan using the parchment sling, peel the parchment away, and set it on a wire rack. Wait a minute or two, then brush the top and sides with a thin film of the softened butter. Use a light hand, since too much butter sits on the surface instead of soaking in.
- Cool completely before slicing. A tangzhong crumb needs to cool fully for the starch to set, and slicing it warm will make it seem gummy.
Notes
Shaping and Crumb
The shaping above is a double Caddy Clasp, which compresses the dough as you work it and releases some of the gas it is holding. That is what gives you the tightest and most sliceable crumb, and it is the one I like best. Every dough behaves a little differently in every kitchen though, so you may prefer another. A batard and a single fold followed by a roll both work here, and all three are walked through in the shaping section of the post. The general rule is that the more you compress the dough while shaping, the tighter the crumb comes out.
If the Dough Feels Too Loose
Do not judge it at the shaggy stage. The tangzhong has not distributed and the flour has not finished drinking. Give it the first rest and one full set of folds before adding anything. If it is still slack after that, sprinkle 10 to 15g of flour over the surface during the second set of folds and wait 20 minutes before deciding whether it needs more.
No Proofing Basket
A cotton or linen cloth set inside a rectangular plastic storage container works exactly as well as an oval banneton. Hold the cloth in place with a large rubber band around the lip of the container, which also lets you adjust how high or low the cloth sits. Flour the cloth the same way you would flour a basket.
Soft Crust
The crust softens on its own as the loaf cools and moisture moves from the crumb outward, so the butter is there to help it along and add shine rather than to rescue anything. A thin film is all you need. If you would rather skip the butter, a light spritz of water over the whole loaf gives you a nice shine as it cools.
If You Forget to Turn the Oven Down
The loaf will come out much darker but it will still be soft once you butter it. Oven temperature controls the color of the crust and the butter controls the softness, so a hot bake is a forgiving mistake rather than a ruined loaf.
Storage
Store completely cooled in a bag or bread box on the counter. Do not refrigerate, since cold temperatures speed up staling. If the loaf will not be eaten within a few days, slice it first and freeze it so you can pull out individual slices as you need them.
