How to Make Sourdough Bread — This simple sourdough-style loaf uses Greek yogurt and sour cream instead of a traditional starter, so you can have a bakery-style bread in less than a day.
Table of Contents
- Easy Homemade Sourdough Bread Recipe
- Homemade Sourdough Bread Ingredients
- How to Make Sourdough Bread
- Do I Have to Use a Dutch Oven?
- Can I Freeze Sourdough Bread?
- Can I Make This Gluten Free?
- Tips for Making Sourdough Bread
- Easy Sourdough Bread Recipe
- More Homemade Bread Recipes
Easy Homemade Sourdough Bread Recipe
I’ve wanted to make sourdough for a long time and finally tried a fast, reliable method that gives excellent flavor and texture without a multi-day starter. Instead of waiting a week for a starter to develop, this version uses Greek yogurt and sour cream with a small amount of instant yeast. The live cultures in the dairy provide fermentation and a familiar tang, and the process can be done in under a day.
Traditional starters often take five to seven days or longer, and many sourdough loaves require a full day of work. This recipe is flexible: you can ferment the dough for about 6–10 hours for a mild tang or up to 18 hours for a more pronounced sourdough character. I tested the loaf with a 6½-hour rise and a 10-hour rise; both produced lovely loaves. The longer ferment developed a slightly more open crumb and stronger flavor, but both versions were delicious.
If you’ve baked before, this will be straightforward. The dough is wetter and heavier than many yeast breads, which helps create the soft interior and good oven spring. The result is a sturdy crust with a moist, tender crumb — great plain, toasted, or served with butter, jam, or dips.
This approach was inspired by other quick-sourdough methods that use cultured dairy to encourage fermentation. The satisfaction of pulling a bakery-style loaf from your own oven is wonderful, and this recipe keeps the steps simple so you can repeat it often.
Homemade Sourdough Bread Ingredients
What you’ll need:
- Bread flour
- Plain Greek yogurt with live active cultures
- Sour cream (or extra Greek yogurt)
- Salt
- Instant dry yeast (a scant teaspoon)
How to Make Sourdough Bread
Combine the flour, Greek yogurt, sour cream, salt, and instant yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Knead on low for 5–7 minutes; by hand, plan 7–10 minutes. Add sour cream as needed until the dough is very moist and cohesive. The dough will feel heavy and wetter than typical bread dough — that’s intentional.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled large bowl, shape it into a round, and flip it so both sides are lightly oiled. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled, about 6–8 hours (longer is fine). For long ferments (12–18 hours), reduce yeast to about 1/2 teaspoon to avoid over-expansion.
After the first rise, turn the dough onto a floured surface without punching it down to preserve the air pockets. Knead very gently for 2–3 minutes, form into a round loaf, place seam-side down in an oiled bowl, and cover. Let it rise for another 60–120 minutes until puffed.
About 45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) with a covered Dutch oven or heavy pot inside so it becomes very hot. When the dough is ready, remove the hot pot, place parchment in the bottom, and transfer the loaf into it. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 5–10 minutes more until the crust reaches your preferred color.
Cool the loaf completely on a wire rack before slicing — cooling finishes the bake and helps set the crumb. Store airtight at room temperature up to three days; older slices are best toasted.
Do I Have to Use a Dutch Oven?
A Dutch oven isn’t strictly required, but it helps produce the classic sourdough crust. The heavy covered pot traps steam released by the loaf in the first stage of baking, which encourages good oven spring and a crisp, blistered crust. If you don’t have a Dutch oven, use a heavy skillet or a roasting pan; results will still be tasty but the crust may be less dramatic.
Can I Freeze Sourdough Bread?
Yes. Cool completely before freezing. You can freeze the whole loaf or slice it and freeze portions for easy toasting later.
Can I Make This Gluten Free?
I haven’t tested this with gluten-free flours. My experience suggests that almond or spelt won’t behave like bread flour here. If you try a cup-for-cup gluten-free baking blend designed to replace all-purpose flour, results may vary. If you experiment successfully, please share your results.
Tips for Making Sourdough Bread
– Use a quality bread flour for best structure and rise; many bakers recommend King Arthur bread flour.
– Read the recipe through before starting so you understand the timing. Essentially you make a wet dough, allow a long first rise, shape, give a second rise, then bake in a preheated covered pot.
– If planning a very long ferment (12–18 hours), reduce the yeast to about 1/2 teaspoon.
– Serve simply with butter, honey butter, jam, hummus, or cheese. The loaf also toasts well and makes excellent sandwiches.
Easy Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups bread flour (use a good-quality bread flour)
- One 17.6-ounce tub plain unsweetened Greek yogurt with active cultures (about 500 g)
- About 1/2 to 1 cup sour cream (or extra Greek yogurt; light versions OK)
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- Scant 1 teaspoon instant dry yeast (slightly less than 1 teaspoon)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook (or use a large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon), add the flour, Greek yogurt, 1/2 cup sour cream, salt, and yeast.
- Knead on low for about 5–7 minutes (7–10 minutes by hand). Add more sour cream or yogurt as needed until the dough is very moist and comes together. The dough should be heavy and slightly sticky — err on the wetter side.
- Remove the dough, lightly oil a large bowl, shape the dough into a round, place it in the bowl, and flip it once so both sides are lightly oiled.
- Cover with plastic wrap (sprayed with cooking spray to prevent sticking) and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 6–8 hours, or until doubled. For overnight or longer ferments up to 18 hours, reduce yeast to 1/2 teaspoon.
- Turn the dough onto a floured surface without punching it down, knead lightly 2–3 minutes, shape into a round, place seam-side down in the bowl, cover, and let rise 60–120 minutes until puffed.
- About 45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450°F with a covered Dutch oven or heavy pot inside so it gets very hot.
- When ready, remove the hot pot, place parchment in the bottom, transfer the loaf into it, cover, and bake 30 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake 5–10 minutes more until the crust is as brown as you like.
- Remove the bread, cool completely on a wire rack before slicing, and serve. Store airtight at room temperature up to three days; toast older slices.
Notes
- Use Greek yogurt labeled “active cultures” (0% nonfat works well).
- Reduce yeast to 1/2 teaspoon if fermenting 12–18 hours to avoid overproofing.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an approximation.
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More Homemade Bread Recipes:
Explore more bread recipes including cheddar sourdough, make-ahead dinner rolls with honey butter, raisin bread, honey dinner rolls, focaccia with sun-dried tomatoes, and 100% whole wheat rolls. These recipes cover a range of textures and flavors — from soft sandwich loaves to hearty, crusty breads — and are great next steps after mastering this easy sourdough-style loaf.
Originally posted November 20, 2014; updated text February 25, 2022.