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–+ servings

Chocolate Sourdough Bread

This bread combines the rich flavors of cocoa and semi-sweet chocolate chips for a decadent twist on a classic loaf.
Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:40 minutes
Rise Time:20 hours 10 minutes
Total Time:21 hours

Ingredients

  • ½ cup active and bubbly sourdough starter
  • 1 ½ cup water warmed to 90 degrees F
  • 3 cups + 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ⅔ cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 ¾ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla bean powder can sub with 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup cocoa powder
  • ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Prep Starter. The night before, feed your sourdough starter so you have 100 grams of active and bubbly starter the next day. (my favorite combination is 40 grams of unbleached all-purpose flour, 30 grams of filtered water, and 30 grams of sourdough starter)
    A large glass bowl with a mixed dough of sourdough starter, water, and flour.
  • Autolyze. In a large bowl add the sourdough starter and water. Stir to combine. Next, add the all-purpose flour, stir to combine, and allow the mixture to sit for 10 minutes.
    Side-by-side images showing a bowl with sourdough starter on the left and a bowl with starter and water mixed together on the right.
  • Mix the remaining dry ingredients separately. In a small bowl add the whole wheat flour, salt, sugar, vanilla bean powder, and cocoa powder. Stir until fully combined.
    Side-by-side images showing a bowl with wet dough and dry cocoa mixture on the left, and the fully mixed chocolate dough on the right.
  • Add dry ingredients to the dough. Add the cocoa powder mixture to the flour/water/sourdough mixture. Using a spatula try to incorporate everything together. Once it gets too hard to use the spatula, turn the mixture out onto a clean dry surface. Knead the dough so everything has been incorporated.
    Side-by-side images showing a bowl with dry ingredients, including cocoa powder, sugar, and vanilla bean powder on the left, and the same bowl with the ingredients fully mixed on the right.
  • Rest. Cover the bowl and allow it to sit covered for 30 minutes.
  • Stretch and fold. Next start the stretch and folds. Wet your hands with warm water, pick up one side of the dough, stretch, and fold the dough over. Repeat this process 3 or 4 times. Flip the dough over. Cover the dough and allow it to sit for 30 minutes. Repeat the stretch and fold 2 more times. *This dough is a dryer dough so it may not stretch out too far and that is okay. The stretch and folds help strengthen the dough.*
    Side-by-side images showing the chocolate dough being stretched on the left, and the same dough formed into a ball on the right.
  • First rise (Bulk Fermentatiion). After the last stretch and fold session, cover the dough and allow the dough to sit at room temperature for 6-8 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.
  • Add chocolate chips. Turn the dough out onto a clean dry surface.Fold the chocolate chips into the dough by adding about a 3rd of the chocolate chips, gently fold the dough, add another third, gently fold the dough, and add the last bit of chocolate chips, and gently fold the dough. **Try to avoid pressing too hard when folding so you don’t remove all of the air inside the dough.
    Side-by-side images showing the process of adding chocolate chips to the chocolate dough, with chocolate chips sprinkled on the dough and the dough folded over to incorporate them.
  • Second rise. Shape the dough into a round shape so it fits nicely in your banneton. Transfer the dough to a well-floured banneton and cover with plastic. Place it in the fridge for 10-12 hours (overnight is best)
    Side-by-side images showing the chocolate dough before and after the first rise in a glass bowl.
  • Preheat oven. Preheat the Dutch oven to 425 degrees F for a minimum of 30 minutes. (This helps make sure that the Dutch oven is at temperature)
    The chocolate dough shaped into a ball and placed in a floured banneton for the second rise.
  • Prep loaf. Take the dough out of the fridge and turn the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper or a silicone bread mat.Using a bread razor, score the dough down the center, shift the dough 90 degrees and score the dough again making a + sign or an X.
    Side-by-side images showing the scored chocolate dough on a silicone mat on the left, and the dough placed in a preheated Dutch oven on the right.
  • Bake, removing the lid partway. Transfer the dough to the hot Dutch oven. Cover and bake at 425 degrees F for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and reduce the heat of the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for another 20 minutes.
    The baked chocolate sourdough bread with a crusty exterior and chocolate chips visible, cooling in a Dutch oven.
  • Cool and Slice. Remove the bread from the oven and transfer it to a wire cooling rack. Allow the bread to cool completely (at least 1 hour) before cutting into it.
    A close-up of a sliced loaf of chocolate sourdough bread showing a rich, dark, chocolatey interior with pockets of melted chocolate.

Notes

This whole recipe was made by using a digital scale and I recommend you do the same.
To speed this recipe up you can add 1 teaspoon of instant yeast and reduce the rise time to 6 hours total.
Keeping the dough in a warm place will help speed up the bulk rise.
I used cacao powder and cocoa powder can be used without any adjustments.
You can substitute the vanilla bean powder for vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste. The vanilla bean paste is substituted at a 1:1 ratio and the vanilla extract needs to be doubled.

Nutrition

Calories: 235kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 343mg | Potassium: 176mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 7IU | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 3mg
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 235kcal
Author: Katie