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5 from 1 vote

Soft Sourdough Sandwich Loaf

Great versatile dough for bread, buns, rolls, etc...
Prep Time8 hours
Cook Time40 minutes
Overnight Cold Ferment16 hours
Total Time1 day 40 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: sourdough

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Mix the dough
    In a large bowl/container, mix together your active starter, sugar, water, and olive oil until combined.
    Add the flour and salt, mixing until a shaggy dough forms.
  • Rest
    Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
  • Strengthen the dough
    Perform 3 sets of stretch and folds, spaced 30 minutes apart.
    These stretch and folds are included in your total bulk fermentation time.
  • Bulk ferment
    Let the dough bulk ferment for about 7 hours total from the time you first mixed the dough, or until it has at least doubled in size.
  • Pre-shape and rest
    Turn the dough out onto your work surface and loosely shape it into a round ball. Let it rest uncovered for 15 minutes.
    This short bench rest allows the gluten to relax, making final shaping easier.
  • Shape
    Shape into your preferred loaf.
    This recipe makes one large loaf (about 942g total dough weight), ideal for a tall Pullman pan.
    If using standard loaf pans, divide into two loaves at about 471g each.
    *See notes if you are making buns or rolls.
  • Rest
    Cover and let the shaped dough rest at room temperature for 1–1.5 hours.
    At this point, your total room temperature fermentation time will be around 8½ hours.
  • Overnight cold proof
    Transfer to the refrigerator and cold proof overnight.
    Bake the next day whenever it fits your schedule.
  • Second Rise
    Remove from the fridge and let rise again for 2–4 hours, depending on how much it rose overnight.
    Look for a puffy, airy/jiggly dough before baking.
  • Bake
    Preheat oven and bake at 375°F.
    If using a tall Pullman pan, lower your oven rack to the second position from the bottom.
    Bake for:
    -20 minutes
    -Rotate 180°
    -Bake another 20 minutes
    Total bake time: 40 minutes
    If you want deeper browning, add 1–3 extra minutes.
    *See notes for baking time adjustments for buns and rolls.
  • Cooling
    Remove the loaf from the pan right away after baking.
    Leaving it in the pan traps steam and can make the crust soggy.
    Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before slicing.
    Enjoy!

Notes

  • This loaf freezes beautifully.
  • Great for sandwiches, toast, and French toast.
  • The sugar and oil help create that soft “classic sandwich bread” texture.
  • Best sliced after fully cooled.
  • This dough is highly versatile and can be used for more than just sandwich bread.
  • Try shaping it into hamburger buns, hot dog buns, dinner rolls, slider buns, or sandwich rolls.
For buns or rolls: Instead of shaping after bulk fermentation, leave the dough in the original mixing bowl for the overnight cold proof. Move to the refrigerator right after bulk fermentation. The next day, divide and shape into your desired buns or rolls before the final rise.
This recipe makes:
  • 8 hamburger or hot dog buns
  • 9 dinner rolls in a 9x9 pan
Baking Notes:
  • Sandwich loaves bake for about 40 minutes.
  • Hamburger and hot dog buns usually bake faster, around 36 minutes total (18 minutes, rotate, then another 18 minutes). Watch closely toward the end, as they brown quickly.
  • Dinner rolls typically need the full 40 minutes because they are baked close together in the pan, but check a few minutes early.