How to Make Sourdough in a Bread Machine
Wondering if you can make sourdough in a bread machine? The answer is YES! But there are a few really important things to consider before you get started. This guide to bread machine sourdough baking will help guide you through your first loaf.
If you're wondering, "Can I bake sourdough in a bread machine?" the answer is a delicious YES. You can still get that classic tang and chewy bite without the all-day timing dance or complicated shaping.
In this beginner guide, I'll explain how sourdough works in a bread maker vs. an oven, when you should use starter vs. discard, and the best bread machine programs to choose.
Once you're ready to bake, don't miss my bread machine sourdough recipe, it's the perfect first loaf for you to try!
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Why Try Sourdough in a Bread Machine?
When sourdough baking first took off like the hot trend it is, home bakers spent a lot more time at home.
The regular pace of family life has returned with a vengeance and between work obligations, the family calendar, and just keeping up with your own self care, we are all busier than ever.
You do not need to sacrifice having warm, fresh, home-baked bread just because you're busy. Baking with a bread machine offers you a quick short cut to golden brown, crusty sourdough loaves you'd never have time to bake without that little bit of help!
I think you should absolutely give bread machine sourdough baking a try because:
- Wholesome and Budget-Friendly: From-scratch breads have minimal ingredients and you get to control the quality of what goes into them.
- Quick & Easy: Even if you never baked a loaf of bread before, you can bake stunning loaves that will delight your family with a push of a button.
- Reliable & Hands-Off: With a few trusted recipes you can learn to just dump the ingredients in and walk away for a few hours knowing that you will come back to warm bread waiting for you.
- Delicious Sourdough Tang: All that flavor you love with a fraction of the effort. Yes, Please!
Understanding Sourdough
There are two kinds of sourdough baking and it is essential that you understand the differences:
Traditional Sourdough:
Sourdough purists will tell you this is the only way to bake sourdough. A fermented starter is used to naturally rise the bread with absolutely no additional commercial yeast added to the dough.
This process can take several days between feeding the starter, prepping the dough, long rests for rising and kneading, and complicated baking timings.
In the end, you hope to get a golden brown loaf with big, airy pockets in every slice.
Bread Machine Sourdough:
Now consider the modern convenience of a bread maker. Using a bread machine shortens that several days-long process down to a mere 3 hours or so.
You will need to use commercial yeast (sold in practically every grocery store) to help rise the dough because the sourdough starter won't have enough time to work its magic.
How does this affect the dough and the final bread?
- Sourdough Flavor: The starter is used as a flavor agent. The older your starter is, the more powerful that sour tang will be. I like to feed my starter and let the discard rest in my fridge for at least 5 days up to 2 weeks for my bread machine baking to maximize that sour flavor.
- Sourdough Texture: A bread machine sourdough loaf is far springier than a non-sourdough bread recipe so you will still notice a remarkable difference between the loaves.
- Crispy Crust: Even in a bread machine, a sourdough bread bakes up more crispy than a regular loaf but you can encourage this along by changing your bread program and darkness setting. It won't ever reach the same texture as a traditional sourdough bread, but for the time saving convenience, I think you'll find it is still a valuable bread to keep in your routine.
Sourdough Starter Tips
If you are feeling ready to try your hand at sourdough baking, I encourage you to explore my sourdough starter guides:
- Getting Started with a New Sourdough Starter: Where to get starter, what to do with it when it first comes to your kitchen, and an explanation of the phases.
- How to Feed Your Sourdough Starter: How to maintain your starter.
- Sourdough Discard Recipes: Since I try to have a waste-free kitchen whenever possible, I have easy and delicious recipes for using your extra sourdough discard even outside the bread machine.
But what you need to know right now is that there is a difference between active sourdough starter and sourdough discard:
Active Starter:
This happens a few hours after you've fed your starter. It rises and gets very bubbly. This is an essential stage for traditional sourdough baking but it does not matter for bread machine baking because we will be adding yeast.
Sourdough Discard:
This is the excess starter you have after you've fed your sourdough. It is hungry starter that will eventually expire without a feed. The hungrier it gets, the more sour it will be.
I store my discard in a big storage tub and let it rest in my fridge until I'm ready to bake. You could use it in the bread machine as-is or let it cultivate a more sour tang over the course of a few days.
The First Recipe to Try
If you have a copy of my cookbook, The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook, you have access to my husband's and my favorite sourdough recipe: Speedy Sourdough Loaf, page 33.
My husband was always in charge of baking this loaf and he loved to use the Zojirushi bread maker since it could bake up perfectly golden brown.
He also developed the recipe for our favorite sourdough dinner rolls, "Tim's Buns," on page 137 but I wouldn't jump right to that recipe for your first bake.
I've perfected a bread machine sourdough white bread recipe that is a perfect place to start. This is an easy loaf that slices perfectly and you'll want to use as an everyday bread for all the things.
I'm still working on a tangier loaf filled with more sourdough flavor, I'll be sure to share it as soon as I have it.
Choosing the Right Bread Machine Program
If you plan to do a lot of sourdough baking with your bread maker, this is something you should consider if you plan to purchase a new bread maker.
While I love the affordability, size, and power in the Cuisinart bread machine, my husband firmly believes that the more expensive Zojirushi bread maker is the better choice because it offers a "Crusty Bread" program that the basic Cuisinart does not.
For a basic machine, you will have to choose between either the BASIC/WHITE program or you will need to set a custom bake time which can get a little more complicated.
If your bread maker offers it, you will have better luck with a Crusty Bread or perhaps an Artisanal Bread program.
Personally, I prefer to keep everything easy and I just accept the limitations that comes with the BASIC/WHITE on my Cusinart. Fresh bread is so much better than store bought and if keeping it easy means that actually happens? So be it.
However, if you have more time and are really particular about the texture, you could always choose the DOUGH program and bake the sourdough bread in your oven.
More Bread Machine Sourdough Recipes
While a sourdough loaf is a popular choice, there are so many more ways you can use sourdough starter in your bread machine.
Some of my favorite sourdough recipes are not in loaf form!
- Sourdough Focaccia: My sourdough focaccia starts with the DOUGH program and then is baked in the oven. This is the best of both worlds and doesn't require fancy shaping skills.
- Sourdough Pizza Crust: Similarly, make a batch of sourdough pizza dough in your bread machine for homemade pizza night. Then bake it in the oven to serve with pizza.
- Garlic Parmesan Sourdough: And if you want a fun flavor variation for a loaf that bakes right in the bread maker, try my garlic parmesan sourdough bread!
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