Bread Machine Sourdough Loaf

← All Recipes Bread Machine Sourdough Loaf
🟢 Beginner⏱ ~3.5 hrs🍞 1.5 lb loaf

A simple sourdough loaf made start to finish in a bread machine, using 100g of your active starter. Makes about a 1.5 lb (750g) loaf — no banneton, no Dutch oven, just press start.

Ingredients

  • 100g active sourdough starter (bubbly and at peak)
  • 400g strong white bread flour
  • 240ml warm water
  • 8g fine salt
  • 1 tbsp honey (optional, helps browning)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil (optional, softer crumb)
  • 1/4 tsp instant yeast (optional — insurance for the machine's fixed timing)

Method

  1. Wet ingredients: Pour the warm water into the bread machine pan, then add the starter. Add the honey and oil now if using. Make sure the starter is ripe and bubbly for the best rise.
  2. Flour: Add the flour on top so it fully covers the liquid. Don't mix — the machine does that.
  3. Salt (and optional yeast): Add the salt in one corner. If using yeast, make a small well in the centre of the flour, away from the salt and liquid, and add it there.
  4. Start the cycle: Fit the pan and select a Basic/White cycle (or a Sourdough/Artisan cycle if your machine has one), medium crust, ~1.5 lb / 750g loaf size, and start.
  5. Check the knead: A few minutes into the first knead, peek in. The dough should form a smooth, slightly tacky ball — add flour a teaspoon at a time if too sticky, or water a teaspoon at a time if too dry.
  6. Cool fully: Let the cycle finish, turn the loaf out onto a wire rack, and let it cool fully before slicing so the crumb sets and isn't gummy.
Bread machine tip: Pure sourdough rises slower than a bread machine's fixed timing often allows, so a Basic cycle can underproof an all-starter loaf. The optional 1/4 tsp instant yeast guarantees a reliable rise. For no added yeast, use the Dough cycle to mix and knead, then switch the machine off and leave the dough in the warm pan to proof until nearly doubled (often 3–6 hours with a lively starter), then run the Bake-only cycle.

Notes

  • Starter: use 100g of active starter at its peak (about the activity you'd have ~2 hours after feeding). Assumes a 100% hydration starter.
  • Wholemeal version: swap 100–150g of the white flour for wholemeal and add an extra 10–15ml water. It ferments faster and gives a deeper flavour.
  • Storage: keep cut-side down or in a paper bag for 2–3 days, or slice and freeze.

Bake this with our shelf-stable sourdough starter — activates in 2 hours, so you can bake your first loaf the same day.

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