Sourdough discard is just unfed sourdough starter. It can be turned into pancakes, crackers, waffles, pizza, muffins and more. However, I usually use it to bake sandwich bread by adding some yeast to the dough. This is because I want to bake the dough within a few hours of mixing and kneading the ingredients. The bread always turn out soft, fluffy and tasty. However, if you are prepared to wait for a longer fermentation period with the bread having a more tangy taste, you need not add the yeast. Just let the bacteria do their work and fermentation will take longer.
I usually bake 2 loaves of bread to last a week for my family. After the bread has cooled down completely, I will slice them up and store them either in my storage box or zip lock bag and put them into the freezer. The next day, I will just remove the number of slices that I need, let them thaw at room temperature on my kitchen counter. They will be then be soft for consumption. I will sometimes steam them or toast them.
Ingredients: (Makes 2 loaves)
- 200 g sourdough discard
- 500 g warm water
- 40 g sugar (or more if you prefer a sweeter bread)
- 10 g yeast
- 100 g melted butter
- 1000 g bread flour
- 10 g salt
Method:
- Prepare 2 baking pans 9 inch x 5 inch x 5 inch; line and grease with parchment paper.
- Add all the ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Mix all the ingredients till no flour can be seen and a smooth dough is formed.
- Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a wet towel.
- Let the dough rise till it doubles in size.
- Transfer dough onto the counter which has been lightly floured.
- Divide the dough into 2.
- Gently spread out one of the dough into a rectangle, the length according to the length of your pan.
- Roll up the dough, pinch the edges and place it into your pan.
- Repeat for the other dough.
- Let them rise again till they are about 1 inch over the top of the pan.
- Bake it at 175 deg C for 40 minutes.
- Once baked, remove the bread from the pan immediately and let it cool down completely on a metal rack.
- Slice and serve.
