Making a 100% whole wheat sourdough sandwich bread has been on my baking bucket list for a long time. With cookbook recipe testing finished, the time was finally right! Although this loaf took many, many trials, I am pleased with how wholesomely delicious it turned out!
While I often replace about 30% of the flour in my go-to soft sourdough sandwich bread with whole grains, I knew making a completely whole wheat loaf would require some adjustments. One adjustment was amount of dough — because whole wheat does not rise as much as white flour, I had to increase the amount of dough in the tin to end up with slices that I considered tall enough.
Another adjustment was fermentation timetable. There is less “wiggle room” when it comes to whole wheat — the added nutrients cause fermentation to move quickly, which can cause the dough to overproof if you aren’t paying attention. Overproofing whole wheat doughs can lead to unpleasant sourness and a rougher crumb. For these reasons, I make this loaf all in one day (minus building the levain and soaker, which I prepare the night before). I experimented with refrigerating the dough partway through bulk fermentation (which I often do with other enriched doughs), but even with my fairly cold fridge the dough rose more than I expected and I ended up with overly sour loaves.
In addition to whole wheat flour, I decided to include an oatmeal soaker — I love the nutty tenderness oats add! Oats also hold on to moisture, helping this bread stay soft for days (though I especially enjoy this bread toasted)! I also used milk powder, maple syrup, and oil for additional softness and subtle sweetness. You can omit the milk powder if you want to keep this bread completely vegan, or try substituting a non-dairy milk powder. All in all, this loaf is nutty, wholesome, and just subtly sweet — — perfect for sandwiches and toast!
A few additional notes:
- If you’ve made any of the enriched sourdough loaves on this site, you may remember that two keys to a soft crumb and good rise are thorough mixing and full proofing. This is still the case with this loaf. However, it is easy to overknead whole wheat dough, especially using a stand mixer; go slowly and check the dough often for the windowpane. (Alternatively, you can knead this dough by hand.)
- If you follow me on Instagram, you may know that I worked quite a bit on trying to eliminate some small dense areas that can show up on the bottom and sides of pan loaves, particularly when using a 9x4x4 pullman loaf tin. After talking to some other bakers, a lot of reading, and additional tests, I’ve concluded that provided your fermentation is on point, this probably happens because the dough is being compressed as it rises and bakes. I don’t notice this issue in a standard 9×5 loaf tin (see comparison photos below), which has tapered sides (allowing the loaf to relax outwards). To me, this is an aesthetic issue — I don’t notice these areas when I eat the bread. Personally, I am willing to sacrifice a “perfect” crumb for a nice, tall slice; so I will continue to happily use my Pullman pan for this loaf! Keep in mind that there may be other reasons for dense spots — underfermentation or underbaking being the main ones.
- There are many different ways to shape a sandwich loaf; I describe one I like below. It is similar to how I shape my soft sourdough sandwich bread; but instead of dividing the dough into three pieces, I keep it in one piece — the dough seems to compress a little less this way.
- It’s important to bake and cool this loaf fully. Make sure the very center of the loaf registers 205F — there’s a lot of moisture in this loaf with the oat soaker, and if you underbake the insides will turn out gummy and the sides may cave in. Additionally, wait for the loaf to cool fully before slicing so the crumb can fully set — I like to give it at least 3 hours.
- As with all recipes but especially sourdough ones, the times listed below are for guidance/general ballpark. Exact timings will vary depending on the strength of your starter, how fresh your flour is, and the temperature of your environment. Paying attention to the physical cues — the appearance and feel of the dough and amount of rise — is much more important than sticking to a strict timetable!
100% Whole Wheat Sourdough Sandwich Bread with Maple and Oats
Makes one 9x4x4 or 9×5 loaf
Ingredients:
For the stiff sweet levain:
- 24g ripe 100% hydration sourdough starter
- 39g water, at room temperature
- 72g whole wheat flour
- 11g sugar (I used brown sugar)
For the oatmeal soaker:
- 60g rolled oats (regular, not quick)
- 150g boiling water
For the final dough:
- 177g water, at room temperature
- 34g neutral vegetable or olive oil
- 45g maple syrup
- All of the stiff sweet levain
- 336g whole wheat flour (I used half organic hard whole wheat and half Flourist sifted red spring wheat)
- 30g milk powder
- 9g salt
- All of the oatmeal soaker
To finish:
- Additional rolled oats, for garnish (optional)
- 14g / 1 Tbsp melted butter (optional)
Method:
- Make the stiff sweet levain (Day 1, evening): In a medium bowl, mix together the starter, water, whole wheat flour, and sugar until well combined. It should resemble a stiff dough. Cover and ferment at room temperature (74-76F) until tripled in volume and the top is starting to flatten, about 10-12 hours.
- Make the oatmeal soaker (Day 1, evening): Place the oats in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Stir to make sure all the oats are hydrated. Cover and let sit until you are ready to mix the dough. (I do this at the same time I mix the levain.)
- Autolyse the dough (Day 2, morning): In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the water, oil, and maple syrup. Tear the ripe stiff levain into several pieces and add it to the liquid. Stir with a flexible spatula to disperse and break up the levain. Add the whole wheat flour and milk powder. Stir just until all the flour is hydrated and there are no dry spots. The dough should be fairly stiff at this point. Cover and let sit for 45 minutes.
- Mix the dough: Add the salt to the autolysed dough. Mix on low (speed 1 on a KitchenAid) until the salt is evenly dispersed and the dough begins to smooth out, about 3-4 minutes. Increase the speed to medium low (speed 2-3 on a KitchenAid) and mix until the dough is very smooth and supple and reaches windowpane stage, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the dough hook a couple of times during this process to make sure the dough is evenly mixed. (Alternatively, you can knead by hand — it will take longer, but this dough is easy to handle.)
- Add the oatmeal soaker: Add the oatmeal soaker and use your hands to squish it into the dough, folding the dough over onto itself several times to disperse the soaker evenly. Mix on low for one minute to make sure the dough is evenly mixed — do not overmix, or the gluten may start to break down. The dough may be a little sticky, but still strong and smooth and hold together easily. Transfer to a large oiled bowl or container for bulk fermentation. Desired dough temperature is 76-79F.
- Bulk fermentation: Let the dough rise at room temperature until it has risen 60-75%, about 2-3 hours at 75-77F. Because the dough was well-developed during mixing, there’s no need to do any stretches and folds (though you can if you want to). When ready to shape, the dough should feel airy and puffy, but still strong — do not push the bulk too far as the high whole-grain percentage can cause the dough to overferment quickly.
- Shape: Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. To create a very tight, even crumb (my preference for sandwich breads), use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rectangle about 9 x 13. Starting with a short edge, roll the dough up tightly like a jelly roll. Let rest 10 minutes, uncovered. Roll into a rectangle again, along the seam, and re-roll like a jelly roll as tightly as possible. (Try to get the short edge as close to 9″ as possible, but a little under is fine — the dough will relax to fill the tin.)
- Coat: Lightly grease a 9x4x4 or 9×5 loaf pan. If you want to coat your loaf with oats, lay down a clean, lint-free tea towel and sprinkle with a thin, even layer of rolled oats. Lightly spritz the shaped loaf with water, then carefully flip the loaf onto the towel, seam side up. Use your hands to rock the loaf back and forth a few times so that the oats stick to the loaf. Transfer the loaf to the prepared pan, seam side down. Cover with lightly oiled plastic.
- Proof: Proof the loaf at room temperature until it has doubled in size and passes the “poke test” — when you gently poke the loaf with a floured finger, the indentation should fill back very slowly. In a 9x4x4 pan, the dough should have risen about 1 inch above the rim in the center (in a standard 9×5 pan, about 2 1/2 inches). This typically takes me about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours; but exact timing will depend on the warmth of your kitchen and strength of your starter.
- Preheat the oven: About 45 minutes before you anticipate your loaf being ready to bake, preheat your oven to 425F with a rack in the middle and a rack below (for steaming, optional). About 10-20 minutes before baking, place a few small dishtowels (preferably ratty ones) in a roasting pan. Pour enough very hot or boiling water over the towels to fully saturate them. Place the roasting pan in the oven on the lower rack. (This is optional but helps create steam in the oven. I find this gives the loaf a better rise and shiny crust without needing to use an egg wash.)
- Bake and cool: Bake the loaf for 20 minutes, then remove the roasting pan. Turn the oven temperature down to 400F and continue baking for another 20-25 minutes, or until the top is well browned and the internal temperature of the very center of the loaf reaches 205F. (If the loaf is taking on too much color for your liking, tent it with foil midway through baking.) Once the center has reached 205F, remove loaf from the tin and return to the oven to bake for 1-2 more minutes (optional, for more color on the sides/bottom). Transfer the loaf to a wire rack and brush melted butter over the top and sides — this optional finish helps keep the crust soft and flavorful. Let the loaf cool completely before cutting, at least 3 hours. Store leftovers in a sealed plastic bag for 4 to 5 days, or freeze for longer storage.
Hello! If you are using 1/2 sifted Flourist spring red wheat, wouldn’t that make this loaf not 100% whole wheat?
I’m planning on using fresh milled flour from my KoMo, and want to account for some bread flour as a replacement if necessary!
Thank you!
Hi! I do consider the sifted flours as whole wheat as well (in contrast to white flour). I did try this recipe with just hard whole wheat and it worked too, so I think you would be ok using fresh-milled flour here. You may need to increase the water a touch and really keep an eye on the fermentation, though — it might take a few tries to dial it in exactly for your particular flour. Let me know how it works for you!
Thank you for a stellar recipe writing. Reallly appreciate you taking the time for wrting the proccess in such detail.
Thank you so much for your kind comment! I hope you have success wth the recipe!
I’m excited to try this recipe! However, I don’t have milk powder. I do have whole milk. Do you think I can substitute the liquid milk for the milk powder? If so, should it be a 1:1 substitution and should I omit that amount of water from the recipe? Thank you!
Hi! I think that should be ok; I would replace the 177g water in the final dough with 177g milk. Let me know how it works if you try it!
Will try that today…..substituting water with milk
Thank you! Levain rising now. Will let you know how it goes!
Hi! Just wondering if there were any updates on how using milk vs. milk powder went? I don’t have milk powder either and am hoping the milk sub worked!
Hi Irene, a couple of people have told me milk worked for them so I’d be inclined to try it!
Thanks, Ruth. I’m going to try it and will let you know how it goes! And thanks to Marnie for her added follow up.
Hi Ruth! So, I tried it and kept everything the same and just omitted the milk powder since I didn’t have any. And it turned out wonderfully! I had some technical difficulties (ahem, called not reading directions carefully enough!) but it still turned out really great. It is a gorgeous loaf and is equally delicious. I did have to proof longer than the suggested time but I think it is because our house is on the cold side. Once I put it on a thick butcher block on top of a radiator, it really started to proof well and I got a gorgeous rise before baking. It did not rise any further in the oven, so I would try to get the rise before baking. I was worried it was going to be more sour b/c of the longer proof, but it is just very delicately sour (and sweet) and very delicious and soft. I think this is one of my best breads ever–I fully recommend this recipe, even with the omission of the milk powder. This will definitely be added to the regular rotation! Thank you!
I think the use of milk worked well. It was the best tasting whole-grain bread I’ve ever had! I had some other problems with the loaf, however. My starter was a couple if hours past peak when I used it and our kitchen was really cold. Also, the dough was *really* stiff–I’m wondering if the flour I used (a combination of King Arthur whole wheat and KA white whole wheat) absorbed more of the liquid than the flours in the original recipe. In any case, all of that seemed to lead to very little rise during the bulk fermentation or after shaping. It did have a decent oven spring somehow, which saved it. So, incredibly yummy but slightly dense (though not as bad as I’d feared it would be) loaf. I will try again soon.
Glad to hear the milk worked out for you! The dough is on the stiffer side but shouldn’t be dry. I haven’t tried KA flours specifically in this recipe, though in my experience they can sometimes handle a bit more liquid. You can always add a touch more liquid at the end of mixing if the dough needs help coming together.
I would suspect the temperature of your kitchen probably contributed most to the lack of rise. It should be quite noticeable both during bulk and after shaping. You might try popping it in the oven with the light on for some extra warmth — while some doughs are ok just fermenting longer at lower temperatures, I find with high percentage whole wheat doughs the end product can get unpleasantly sour. Hope that helps, and glad you enjoyed the bread!
Thank you, Ruth! I guess I should finally fix the light in my oven!
Hi Ruth! Made this loaf and it tasted wonderful! I don’t know why my dough was very sticky after I added the oats. Not just a little too. My dough wasn’t very stiff. I had to mix it more than a minute to get the oats incorporated. My kitchen wasn’t the warmest either so that’s probably why it didn’t rise as much and I didn’t want to push it any longer. Need to try this again.
This loaf came out wonderfully! Thank you for writing such clear, detailed instructions so that even a beginner like me can experience sourdough success 🙂
Is that really 24g sourdough starter?
Yes, you just 24g starter to build the stiff levain.
Has anyone tried putting the oat mash in with the wet ingredients? That step was terribly messy. I think I willl try it if the loaf turns out. Mine is in a 9x4x4 pan and I took it out of the fridge this morning at about 10am and it is 6:45 PM. I am used to sourdough taking 10-12 hours to rise, so the times in this recipe seem very short. I don’t want to put it in to bake until it is risen to where I want it to be since I have not seen much of a rise in the oven in my sourdough before. So this has been a 2-3 day process with all the risings. It seems others are not having the time issues I am. My kitchen is around 65 when the oven isn’t on.
Hi! As mentioned in the recipe, estimated timings are based on a dough temperature of around 76-79F and room temperature of 75-77F. If your room temperature is only 65F, I would expect your risings to take significantly longer. If possible, I would try finding a warmer spot (perhaps the oven with the light turned on); for a loaf with this much wholegrain I find longer, cooler rise times to introduce more sourness than I personally prefer.
Hi Ruth! I would love to try this recipe, I’m wondering roughly what protein per cent your whole wheat flour has? I am not familiar with those brands. I have access to either 9% or 14%, I’m assuming the higher protein would be best for this loaf? Thanks for your advice 🙂
I would go for the 14%!
Thanks Ruth for the advice! I ended up with a flour that is about 16%!
I have tried this a couple of times now and have a few questions about the mixing. Am I right that in a dough with all whole wheat and not a lot of enrichment, the windowpane will not be *as* strong as in white enriched doughs? I am hesitant to mix too far as you have warned against overmixing.
Also, although my dough does seem quite nice and strong before adding the oat mix, but afterwards it gets very sticky and loses the windowpane nearly entirely. You warn against overmixing here too, so I wonder should I be mixing (after adding the oats) long enough to get the windowpane back again, or really just as little as possible, even if it is very sticky?
Thankyou for your help! I can tell this will be an amazing bread if I can get it right 🙂
Hi Robyn, you’re correct that the windowpane will be weaker with a whole wheat dough. After adding the oat mix the dough should still hold together and not be soupy or batterlike, although some stickiness is normal. Is the loaf rising properly? If so, you’re probably on the right track and I wouldn’t worry about it. You can always add in a couple stretch and folds during bulk fermentation if you’re worried that the dough isn’t strong enough. Hope that helps!
This bread was phenomenal!!! This has officially made the rotation of breads to make regularly.
Hi, I live in India and have been making sour dough bread for past 7 years but only with 20% whole wheat.
The red wheat mentioned in your recipe is not available in my country.
We have whole wheat but I don’t know how will it work with your awesome recipe. Kindly guide.
Alok
Hello! Unfortunately I’m not familiar with the wheat flour in India so I don’t have the knowledge to advise with any specific changes. I would say the adjustments are usually in the hydration and fermentation times. If your flour is not as strong you likely would need to lower the hydration; I would start with 10% and experiment from there. And being in a warm climate I would imagine your fermentation times would be much quicker. Hope that helps!
Great loaf. I found that I didn’t need to add moisture to the oven due to the enrichments already in the bread itself – they add plenty of moisture whereas when I bake lean whole wheat breads, those that have no enrichments, the moisture is a must!
So it was nice to be able to get wonderful results without the extra work.
(I learned this ‘trick’ from a professional baker who asked me why I was using steam with enriched breads….I had just been following directions without really thinking about what I was doing..)