Matcha and sourdough are a better match than they sound. The tea brings a soft, grassy, slightly bitter flavour that sits nicely against the tang of a long-fermented dough, and the colour turns an ordinary loaf into something people ask about. It is also easy to get wrong: too little and the bread is a vague khaki, too much and it tastes like stewed tea. Here is what we have learned.
Choosing your matcha
Matcha is sold in grades, usually ceremonial, latte and culinary. For bread you do not need ceremonial grade: most of its delicate flavour is lost in a hot oven, and it costs several times more. A good culinary or latte grade is ideal. What matters most is colour. Tip a little onto white paper: you want a vivid, fresh green. A dull olive or yellowish powder will give you a dull loaf.
Matcha goes stale quickly once opened. Keep it sealed, out of the light, in the fridge, and use it within a couple of months.
How much to use
Work it out as a percentage of the flour in the matcha dough:
- 1% (5 g per 500 g flour): a soft, pale green and a mild flavour.
- 2% (10 g per 500 g flour): a clear green and a gentle grassy flavour. This is where we usually land.
- 3% (15 g per 500 g flour): deep green and noticeably bitter, best balanced with honey or white chocolate.
Matcha soaks up a little water, so add about 5–10 g more water to a matcha dough than you would to the same plain dough, and expect it to feel a touch firmer.
Keeping the green bright
- Sift it into the flour. Whisk the matcha through the dry flour before any water goes in. Added to water it clumps and leaves dark specks.
- Do not over-bake. Heat is what turns the green brown. Bake with the lid on as normal, then drop the oven to about 220°C (200°C fan) for the uncovered stage and take the loaf out as soon as it reads about 96°C inside.
- Use it in a swirl. A matcha dough rolled up with a plain one keeps more of its colour on show than a fully green loaf, because the contrast does the work.
- Slice it once cool. The colour looks brightest on a clean cut once the crumb has set, after about two hours.
What goes well with matcha
Matcha likes sweetness and a little richness alongside it. Try white chocolate chips folded into the matcha dough, a spoonful of honey in the mix, black sesame seeds on the crust, sweet red bean paste rolled into the swirl, lemon or yuzu zest, or freeze-dried raspberries for a pink and green loaf.
Start with the swirl loaf
Our matcha swirl sourdough recipe uses two doughs, one plain and one matcha, rolled up together so every slice shows a green and cream spiral. It is a normal overnight sourdough with one extra step, and a good first matcha bake.
Bake it with a live starter
Our San Francisco sourdough starter is a live culture: add 75 g flour and 75 g warm water and it is usually bubbly and ready to bake with in about two hours.
FAQ
How much matcha should I put in sourdough?
About 2% of the flour weight is a good starting point, so 10 g matcha for 500 g flour. At 1% the colour is pale and the flavour mild; at 3% it is deep green but noticeably more bitter.
Why does my matcha sourdough look brown after baking?
The green fades with heat and time. A less vivid matcha, a long bake or a very dark finish all push it towards olive or brown. Use a bright matcha and lower the oven to about 220°C once the lid comes off.
Does matcha affect the rise of sourdough?
At the usual 1–3% it is a small effect. In our experience a matcha dough can run 20–30 minutes behind a plain one, so go by how the dough looks.
What flavours go with matcha in bread?
White chocolate, honey, black sesame, sweet red bean paste, raspberries and lemon or yuzu zest all work well with its grassy, slightly bitter taste.
More ideas in our sourdough recipe library.
