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Simple Bread Machine Sourdough Recipe

Most people love the idea of baking with sourdough because they see pictures of beautiful artisan loaves with deep crust, slashes, and all the rest. And then the reality of their bread is a flat, weird, situation that is not quite what they expected. Anyone else?

It’s time to end that sadness forever. Because once you master this bread machine sourdough recipe you’ll have a foolproof loaf you’ll be proud of every time.

Bread Machine Sourdough (Foolproof, No Yeast!)

A truly simple sourdough recipe that is kneaded in your bread machine.  A great everyday bread for the sourdough lover.
Print Recipe
cut sourdough loaf on board
Prep Time:30 minutes
Cook Time:45 minutes
rising time:18 hours
Total Time:19 hours 15 minutes

Equipment

  • Bread machine (with a dough cycle setting)
  • Large mixing bowl
  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Damp tea towel or kitchen towel
  • Baking Sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • Rimmed baking sheet

Ingredients

  • 3 cups bread flour (15.85 ounces/ 450 grams)
  • 1 cup lukewarm water (7.75 ounces/ 220 grams)
  • ¾ cup fed sourdough starter (5.65 ounces/ 165 grams)
  • ½ tablespoon sugar
  • 1 ¾ teaspoon salt

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Instructions

  • Autolyze.  Combine the bread flour, sourdough starter, sugar, and water in a large mixing bowl. The dough will feel drier than typical sourdough—this is normal. Do not add more water. Use your hands to make sure all ingredients are incorporated into a cohesive ball. Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and let the dough rest on the counter for 30 minutes.
    Tip: Pre-measure the salt and place it in a small container on the towel to remind yourself to add it later.
    bowl covered with towel
  • Knead.  After the autolyze, transfer the dough and salt into the bread machine bucket. Then, select the “dough” cycle. When the cycle ends, leave the dough in the machine to continue rising for 2-3 more hours.
    knead in machine
  • First rise.  Let the dough rise in the bread machine for 3-4 hours, including during the dough cycle. The dough should be noticeably puffier and soft to the touch, though it may not have doubled in size. This longer rise helps develop the flavor and texture of the bread.
  • Shape the loaf.  Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper and sprinkling cornmeal over the surface. Carefully remove the dough from the bread machine and gently shape it into a round or oval loaf. The dough will be slightly sticky, but avoid using flour for shaping. Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet.
  • Second Rise (overnight proof).  Spray a piece of plastic wrap with cooking spray and loosely cover the shaped dough. Place the covered loaf in the refrigerator to proof overnight for 8 to 16 hours.
  • Prep for baking.  In the morning, preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Position two racks: one in the center of the oven and the other in the lower middle. Then, place an empty-rimmed baking sheet on the lower rack while the oven is preheating. Next, remove the loaf from the fridge. Dust it lightly with flour and use a lame or a sharp serrated knife to slash the top of the dough, allowing the loaf to expand during baking.
    dough slashed down center and on side.
  • Bake with steam.  When the oven is fully preheated, carefully pour 1 cup of water into the baking sheet on the lower rack to create steam. Immediately place the loaf on the center rack and close the oven door. Bake the loaf for 45 minutes until it reaches a deep golden-brown color. Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool on a wire rack for at least 4 hours.
  • Slice and serve.  Once the bread has fully cooled (after at least 4 hours), use a sharp, serrated knife to slice the loaf into even pieces. Enjoy fresh or toasted with your favorite toppings!

Video

Notes

My sourdough starter is 100% hydration (equal parts flour and water).  If yours is dryer or wetter, you’ll need to add a bit more flour or water.
To make ahead, fully bake the loaf, allow it to cool completely, and freeze, well-wrapped, for up to a month.
I have sometimes skipped the autolyze step and thrown everything in the machine.  The loaf was still fine.😉
Before you begin, check that your sourdough starter is full of bubbles and ready to go.  Give it food 4-6 hours before you start or the evening before if it usually takes a while to get going.  This helps your bread rise well and taste amazing.
When you’re shaping the dough, it might be a bit sticky.  Avoid throwing in a lot of flour to fix this, as it could make your bread too heavy.  Wetting your hands can keep the stickiness at bay without messing with the dough’s moisture.
If you’re having difficulty moving or shaping the dough, a bench scraper can help.  It lets you lift and move the dough more efficiently without adding extra flour or overdoing the kneading.
Though the recipe suggests bread flour, feel free to mix in whole wheat or rye flour to change the flavor and texture.  Just remember, if you swap flours, you might need to tweak the amount of water since whole grains soak up more liquid.
It’s tempting to slice your bread fresh out of the oven, but waiting is key.  Letting it cool down for at least 4 hours on a cooling rack so the inside sets up correctly and doesn’t get squishy.
If the bread’s crust loses its crunch after storage, you can bring it back to life.  Heat your oven to 350°F (175°C), lightly mist the bread with water, and warm it for 5-10 minutes.  This trick gets the crust crispy again without drying out the bread inside.
Want to add a bit more pizzazz to your loaf?  After scoring, sprinkle on some sesame, poppy, or even a bit of coarse sea salt.  A quick spritz of water on the loaf before adding these toppings helps them stick better.

Nutrition

Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 408mg | Potassium: 38mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1mg
Servings: 10 slices
Calories: 138kcal
Author: Katie

Over time, this has become my go-to for daily baking. It’s incredibly easy, especially since my bread machine handles most of the kneading. With just a few basic ingredients and letting the dough rise overnight in the fridge, I always end up with a crispy loaf on the outside and soft and chewy inside.

It’s perfect for sandwiches, toast, or even just a buttered slice. At first, the dough might seem a bit dry, but I’ve learned that’s completely normal. Resist the urge to add extra water and trust the process, and it turns out perfectly every time.

I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.

Tips for the Best Bread Machine Sourdough

  • If your kitchen is a bit cold, your dough might take longer to rise. If it’s not getting bigger after a few hours, don’t worry! Just let it sit a little longer. A warmer kitchen makes the dough rise faster, so watch the dough and don’t just watch the clock..
  • Use a food scale for your flour and water to get the amounts right, if possible. This helps make sure your dough has the best moisture level for a great loaf.
  • If you’re planning to bake your bread early, plan. The dough must stay in the fridge for 8-16 hours for its second rise after you shape it, so get that done the night before. This slow rise in the cold helps bring out a rich, tangy taste in the sourdough.
  • It might be tempting to let the dough rise a lot for extra flavor, but if it rises too much, it might either fall apart or not puff up right when baked. Keep an eye on its size and how it feels—it should look bigger but not too much. If you gently press the dough and it slowly bounces back, it’s good to go.
  • Steam is important for a nice, crispy crust. Pour water into a hot baking tray when you put the bread in. If you don’t have a tray with edges, a metal pan or a cast-iron skillet works, too, so do it quickly to trap it in the steam.
  • Cutting little lines in your loaf before baking helps it grow in the oven without splitting in random places. If you don’t have a special tool, a sharp knife or a razor works fine. Make quick, slanted cuts to help your bread open up nicely as it bakes.
  • If you prefer a softer loaf, check out this Sourdough White Sandwich Bread recipe. It’s perfect for toast or sandwiches, with all the sourdough flavor in a more traditional sandwich loaf.

Having the right equipment and ingredients matters when making bread with a bread machine using sourdough. Here’s what you should focus on:

ingredients-for-sourdough-in-kitchenaid
  • Sourdough starter: This gives your bread its taste and helps it rise. You can look for it at specialty food stores and farmers’ markets or order it online. You can also easily make your own at home with flour and water—it takes about 5-7 days to get a strong starter going.
  • Bread flour: This has more protein than regular flour, making your bread chewier and stronger. You can find it in most stores, but if unavailable, regular flour is okay, too, though your bread might not be as chewy because bread flour is higher in protein.
  • Bread machine: It does the kneading for you. If you don’t have one, kneading by hand or using a mixer works, but a bread machine simplifies the process.
  • Lame or sharp knife: Cutting the dough helps control how it expands when baking. If you don’t have a lame (a bread-making knife), any sharp knife or razor blade will do.
  • Cornmeal: Putting cornmeal on the baking sheet before baking adds texture and prevents sticking. Flour can also work, but cornmeal gives a nice crunch.

Having these things ready can help you bake better bread more easily. It’s all about being prepared!

Serving Suggestions

Serve this sourdough bread with softened butter and sea salt, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping, a warm bowl of tomato soup, a cheese platter, or topped with avocado and poached eggs.

Troubleshooting and Help

Can I skip the autolyze step?

The autolyze step helps improve the dough’s texture, but if you’re short on time, you can throw everything in the bread machine and still get a great loaf.

My dough feels really dry—should I add more water?

It’s normal for this particular recipe. Once it rests and rises, the dough will soften and be easier to work with.

How do I know when my dough is done rising?

Great question! The dough should look noticeably puffier but doesn’t need to double in size. If you press it gently with a finger and it springs back slowly, it’s ready.

Can I bake this without letting it rise overnight in the fridge?

Yes, you can! If you’re in a rush, let the dough rise at room temperature for another 2-3 hours. The slow, overnight rise helps develop the sourdough flavor, so try it when you can.

Can I use whole wheat flour instead of bread flour?

Yes, you can substitute some or all of the bread flour with whole wheat flour, but remember that whole wheat flour absorbs more water, so you may need to add a bit more liquid. It will also make the bread a little denser, adding a great nutty flavor.

My loaf didn’t rise as much as I expected. What went wrong?

There are a couple of reasons this could happen. If your starter wasn’t bubbly and active when you used it, that could slow the rise. Also, sourdough can be slightly slow to rise, especially in cooler kitchens. If this happens, just give it more time to puff up! If you’re having trouble with your sourdough starter and wondering if it’s still alive, don’t worry! Check out this helpful guide on how to tell if you’ve killed your sourdough starter.

Can I add herbs or seeds to this dough?

You can mix in dried herbs like rosemary and thyme or seeds like sunflower or flax. Add them during the kneading stage in the bread machine or when shaping the dough. It’s a great way to add extra flavor or texture to the loaf.

Storage Instructions

Once the bread has completely cooled, wrap it in a clean kitchen towel or place it in a paper bag. This will help keep the crust crispy while preventing the bread from drying. Avoid using plastic, as it can cause the crust to become soft. Stored this way, the bread will stay fresh for about 3 days at room temperature.

You can also freeze it. First, let the loaf cool completely. Then, slice the bread into pieces, making it easier to use later. Wrap the slices tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place them in a freezer-safe bag. Remove as much air as possible before sealing the bag. The bread can be stored in the freezer for up to 1 month.

When ready to use it, thaw the slices at room temperature or pop them straight into the toaster. You can also reheat them in the oven for a few minutes to freshen up the crust.

If the bread has softened after storage, you can refresh it by placing it in a 350°F oven for about 5-10 minutes to crisp up the crust again.

I hope this recipe convinces you that making sourdough at home is easy and fulfilling. With a few basic ingredients and letting your bread machine do the heavy lifting, you can enjoy fresh, homemade bread any day.

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By Katie Shaw

picture of smiling female

Katie shares simple, reliable recipes from her home in Virginia, where she lives with her husband, three daughters, a chocolate lab, and over thirty chickens.

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395 Comments

  1. Katie! You make it look SO easy!! When I pulled the dough out of the bread machine, it was super gummy, was sticking to my hands big time. In that case should a little more flour be added? It’s a fairly young starter; this is my second loaf. I ended up putting it into a loaf pan (glass), as it did not seem to want to hold shape. Turned out tasting fine.

    Reply

    1. this can happen when its humid out or if you use all purpose flour. you want the dough to be slightly sticky in the machine but not too wet 🙂

      Reply

  2. I am planning to use Italian flour 00 instead of bread flour- can’t find bread flour these days. My starter is not yet ready.
    I hope it will work.

    Reply

    1. it should still work. I would reduce the water about 20%, bread flour absorbs much more water. we couldn’t find bread flour here either but just yesterday I was able to get some. I think things are settling down

      Reply

  3. I started this yesterday and baked it this morning. It looks great, but I didn’t get much oven spring. Should the dough be back at room temperature before baking it? I also think maybe I didn’t score it deep enough?

    Reply

    1. no I bake straight from the fridge. if you used the steam and still didn’t get much oven spring, it is probably one of two things: 1. your starter wasn’t as strong as it could be (this happens to everyone from time to time, if timing your last feeding was slightly off, etc.), the other possibility is that it over proofed. during the first. proof and it had “nothing left to give” so to speak.

      Reply

  4. Hello Katie, my starter Spunky is 8 days old, has doubled in size and passed the float test.
    Should I add any instant yeast to the recipe or not? Looking to bake my 1st sourdough loaf on the weekend..thanks

    Reply

  5. 5 stars
    Made this recipe yesterday and baked it this morning. This is the first sourdough loaf that has come out for me. I will be doing this again. Many thanks to you for posting the video. Incredibly helpful!

    Reply

  6. Hello, I’m making this for the first time, about to put the dough in the bread maker. Is the overnight fridge necessary, or can I make the bread right after?

    Reply

    1. you can do the second rise at room temperature for about 4 hours. but yes, it needs a second rise of some sort 🙂

      Reply

  8. 5 stars
    Okay now THIS is spectacular sourdough bread! The only issue was that the crust was too dark. I will try again, reducing the oven temp to 445°and decreasing the bake time to 40 min. My family loves it!

    Reply

  10. Hey all you sourdough bread bakers out there.
    I know it’s extremely hard if not impossible right now to find good quality bread flour. Well set your mind at ease. I’ve found a great resource for King Arthur Bread Flour.
    Here’s what you need (not knead ????) to do.
    Go to the App Store, and download the “Instacart” app, then set up an Instacart account (Free), then, in the search window of Instacart, look for a store called “Restaurant Depot”, click on it and do a search for bread flour, then scroll down until you find King Arthur Special Patent Flour (12.7% protein). You can get a 50 lb bag (yes, 50lb) for only $15.29! Can you say BARGAIN!!!
    I know 50 lbs seems like a whole lot, but if you’re really into baking, it won’t take long to go through it, or perhaps you have someone to share it with.
    Anyway thought I’d just pass this along to all of you. Happy Baking!????????????
    Barbara

    Reply

  11. Hi, sorry if this question has already been asked, but I am very new to using sourdough starter. The recipe calls for fed starter. Does that mean you are using it after you have discarded and fed the starter? Or are you using your discard?

    Reply

  12. Hi,
    I was wondering if I can bake this bread in my new cast iron (5qt) dutch oven? If so would I need to change anything about the process i.e. steam tray, etc.?
    Thank you!

    Reply

    1. a Dutch Oven will work great! no tray and steam necessary. I usually bake about 30 minutes with the lid on, 15-20 with it off.

      Reply

  14. Hi! I got introduced to true sour bread by the Netflix Documentary “Cooked.” It spoke of health benefits of true sour dough bread in that using sour dough instead of yeast means that processes similar to digestion begin before you even eat the bread, aiding in your own digestion of the bread. I was wondering, when you said, “But it breaks some of the sourdough rules because it is kneaded fully, like a yeast dough, in the bread machine” will it still have the health benefits associated with sour dough bread even if this rule is broken? My guess is yes? Because what you use to knead it I think would not have an affect on the chemistry of the bread? But baking chemistry eludes me! Thanks!

    Reply

    2. kellie, the health benefits are because of the long fermentation time. this recipe still has that, you’re good 🙂

      Reply

  15. 5 stars
    I use this recipe all the time, and I love it! Last week I used a cold Dutch oven method and it was amazing! It rose so nicely. I have a question… I was looking at your jalapeño cheddar recipe. Do you think I could use this recipe and add jalapeño and cheddar to it? Thanks!

    Reply

    1. hi Jane, I don t know how they would do in the bread machine, I think it would rip them up a little. I would fold them in by hand after the machine kneads and then just stick the dough back in. (but at that point, it might be easier just t o do the whole by hand)

      Reply

  16. Enjoying great success with this recipe – thank you!
    Question – would using a silpat mat instead of parchment work? I can imagine I would still need to use cornmeal. Anyone tried this?

    Reply

  17. 5 stars
    Just want to say THANK YOU for this recipe! I have been trying to work out how to use my bread machine to make sourdough for MONTHS without success. This is absolutely delicious and so easy!!

    Reply

      1. I made this recipe yesterday/today and it came out tasting very good. I didn’t slash the top deeply enough so it burst on the side, but I still consider it a success. It was my first attempt at sourdough bread. My girlfriend asked me to make about loaf soon.

        Thank you for this recipe.

        Wayne B

      1. Hi, Katie. Made my first loaf today. Not bad! A couple of questions, tho. 1) My kitchen scale is broken, so I used the volume measures. Is the sourdough starter measured in a dry measuring cup, or a liquid measuring cup? 2) My oven isn’t great… tends to cook quicker on one side than the other, so I always need to rotate pans. At what point in the baking process is it safe to open the oven to reposition the sheet? 3) The parchment stuck to the bottom of my loaf. If I skip the parchment, will the loaf stick to the pan? Thanks!

      2. I measure starter in a dry cup.

        As far as opening the door, I would wait until the loaf has risen to a height you are happy with. The steam makes it rise and opening the door risks losing some of it. But to be honest, if you are quick it should be okay. 🙂

        I have done it without the parchment and it has worked. Just sprinkle very generously with cornmeal! Good luck!

  19. My first truly yest free bread and was wonderful! I wish I could share a picture with you. My only issue was the crust was difficult to slice, but was perfect the next day. Thank you! The video is great too, btw.

    Reply

      1. 5 stars
        I took a pic and put it on instagram…I tagged you so hopefully you can. Baguettes for today!

  20. 5 stars
    Followed your instructions for the sourdough starter and then baked a loaf of bread with this recipe. It turned out great! Looking forward to learning more about sourdough baking! Thanks for your easy to follow instructions!

    Reply

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