Bread Machine Sourdough Bread
Bread machine sourdough bread doesn’t have to be complicated! This version uses your discard for flavor and instant yeast for a dependable rise, and you get a soft, tender loaf of sourdough sandwich bread in just a few hours. Add everything to the pan, press start, and walk away!
Craving The Recipe Details?
What it is: A soft sourdough discard loaf with a golden crust, made simple with the help of your bread machine.
Why you'll love it: Fresh bread made with sourdough discard for flavor and instant yeast for reliable rise, so it can be mixed, proofed, and baked with no kneading in 3 ½ hours!
How to make it: Combine discard with water, sugar, oil, salt, flour, and instant yeast, pour it into your bread machine, and let the machine do the work.
Kevy called me from work while I was reorganizing the fridge. Heavy sigh!
Usually, that’s a him job, because it doesn’t really bug me. But at this point, I’ve got various sourdough starters, discards, and somewhere-in-betweens happening in there and I have run out of room.
He was razzing me about my ferment-y buddies taking up all the fridge space and I thought to myself: I gotta deal with this and I really don’t need to eat more sourdough brownies!
This sourdough bread machine recipe is dedicated to using discard!
Jump to:
Key Ingredients
Sourdough Discard: This recipe is pretty flexible when it comes to starter discard. Use the stuff you’ve been saving in the fridge for a week or use the leftover’s from this morning’s feeding. Just make sure your starter is 100% hydration, meaning the starter is fed with equal weights of flour and water. Use room temperature discard and stir down any bubbles before measuring.
Yeast: Because sometimes you just want instant gratification when it comes to sourdough goodies, this includes instant yeast. You’ll be enjoying freshly baked sourdough bread machine bread in mere hours with this recipe!
If you don’t have instant yeast or bread machine yeast
Use active dry yeast. Increase the amount to 2 teaspoons of active dry yeast and bloom it in the warm water until bubbly before adding to the bread pan.
Read More: Bread machine yeast substitutes
How To Make Bread Machine Sourdough Bread
This recipe makes a 2 lb loaf – please ensure that your bread maker has a 2 lb loaf capacity before starting.
Add Ingredients To Bread Pan:
- Combine the liquid ingredients: 1 cup sourdough discard (stirred down), 3/4 cup warm water, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 1 ½ teaspoon granulated sugar, and 1 ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt in the baking pan of your bread machine.
- Layer the dry ingredients as follows; 3 cups bread flour followed by 1 ½ teaspoons instant or bread machine yeast. Either sprinkle the yeast on top of the flour, where it's not touching the water or create a well in the flour, then add the yeast there.
Bake:
- Place the baking pan into the bread machine. Select Basic, Light Crust, and 2 lb Loaf options. If your machine does not have all these settings, simply select the Basic or White setting.
- Allow the bread machine to bake.
This is the hard part! Walk away! You'll be tempted to check on your bread and then start panicking cause the texture looks weird, the dough looks too wet, or the corners still have dry flour. Don't worry, I did all the peeking for you through the process.
During first knead: (about 10 minutes into the cycle) Some dry flour may remain around the edges while the wet looking dough comes together.
- I like to remove the mixing paddle after the last punch down.
After the final punch down: (about 1 hour and 30 minutes into the cycle) The dough still looks soft and slightly wet but is holding together.
- Fully proofed dough prior to baking.
After the final proof: (about 2 hours and 15 minutes into the cycle) The dough looks softer and wetter than a typical bread dough but it’s light and airy, full of visible bubbles under the surface, has expanded noticeably.
Cool:
- Remove the bread pan from the bread machine. Overturn the baked loaf onto a wire mesh cooling rack.
Don’t leave the loaf in the machine after it finishes
Remove it as soon as the cycle ends. The keep warm function can continue heating the loaf and leave you with a drier crust and crumb.
- Brush the top of the loaf with butter.
- Allow the bread to cool completely (if possible, I know it's hard!) before cutting.
Expert Tips
- Measure it right. Flour is very difficult to measure consistently when using cups, so to get the most accurate amount, stir the flour well in your bag or container, spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife. Alternatively, just use the weights provided in the recipe card.
- Set your expectations. This is a “quick” sourdough bread maker recipe because it uses discard and instant yeast. It doesn’t have the same amount of tang as an overnight fermented sourdough loaf, but it’s damn delicious either way!
- Check the age. Not all sourdough discards are equal. Fresher sourdough discard will have a much more mild sour flavor than an aged discard that’s been hiding in the back of your fridge for 3 weeks. I prefer to use a discard that’s been fed within the last 7 days.
- Warm up routine. If my discard is straight out of the fridge I use the Whole Wheat setting on my Breville Custom Loaf, which includes a preheat phase that I use to bring cold ingredients to temperature. Bread machine cycles vary, so check your manual to see if yours does too!
- Ready to get started? My easy sourdough starter is ready to work with in 24 hours!
Why This Recipe Works
Sourdough discard brings fermented flavor. Sourdough discard has already gone through fermentation, so even though it isn’t doing the heavy lifting of raising this loaf, it still brings the fermented, slightly tangy flavor you want from sourdough.
Instant yeast makes the rise reliable. A standard bread machine cycle just doesn’t give naturally leavened sourdough enough time to rise consistently. Instant yeast takes over the job of leavening, giving this loaf a dependable rise in about 3 ½ hours while the discard provides the character.
Oil and sugar keep the loaf soft and tender. This recipe is designed for a soft sandwich style loaf, rather than a chewy, crusty artisan bread. The oil helps keep the crumb tender and moist, while a small amount of sugar adds sweetness and supports browning.
Sourdough Bread Machine Recipe FAQs
This sourdough bread machine recipe makes one 2 lb loaf and can’t be doubled in a bread machine due to capacity constraints. Ensure that your bread machine has the capacity for at least 2 lb before starting – I use my Breville Custom Loaf with a 2 ½ lb capacity for this recipe.
Discard that has been in the fridge for a week or even a week and a half works fine. In this recipe, the discard is included for flavor, so the yeast does the rising. The older the discard, the more sour the bread will taste. I prefer discard that was fed within the last 7 days.
If your discard has been hiding in the back of the fridge and shows any signs of fuzzy mold, pink or orange streaks, or smells rotten, throw it away immediately.
This is a “quick” sourdough. Because it uses discard and instant yeast, it doesn’t have as much tang as an overnight fermented loaf. The age of the discard impacts flavor: fresher discard tastes milder, while older discard tastes more sour.
–Dense: Old yeast, cold discard, cold water, or too much flour. Use the scoop and level method if you’re using cups as a measure, or for more consistent results use the weights provided in the recipe.
–Sunken or collapsed: Too much liquid, too much yeast, not enough flour or too high hydration discard. Confirm all ingredients were measured correctly. Use weighed measures for consistent results.
–Gummy: Loaf was cut before completely cooled, too much water, not enough flour. Allow loaf to cool completely before slicing, confirm all ingredients were measured correctly.
– Dry or hard crust: Loaf left in the machine after cycle ended. Remove loaf from machine as soon as the cycle ends.
Store your bread cut side down on a cutting board for up to 12 hours before the crust becomes too crisp. After 12 hours, I recommend transferring it to a bread bag or sealed plastic bag and store it at room temperature. It'll stay fresh for 2-3 days.
Freezing a Whole Loaf:
To freeze, wrap the loaf tightly in plastic wrap, then again in aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 3 months. When you're ready to enjoy it, let the loaf thaw at room temperature for a few hours, no need to unwrap it until it's fully defrosted.
Freezing Slices:
For easy, grab-and-go portions, slice the cooled loaf and lay the slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Freeze until solid, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container. This way, you can pull out just what you need. Toast or let thaw at room temperature and you're good to go!
This recipe was developed to create a soft dough. The biggest variables affecting the dough are the hydration of your discard, how your flour was measured, and if your water was measured using a water measuring cup or a standard measuring cup.
Bake In The Oven
You can also use your bread machine to mix and knead this sourdough discard dough, then finish the loaf in the oven!
- Follow steps 1-3 as you would if baking in the bread machine.
- Place the baking pan into the bread machine and choose the “Dough” cycle.
- Once the dough cycle is complete, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and shape it into a boule or a loaf, then transfer it to a greased 9×5 loaf pan.
- Cover loaf pan with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise for 45- 60 minutes, or until nearly doubled in size.
- Near the end of the rising, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake your loaf at 350°F. for approximately 40 minutes or until golden brown on top. You can check the doneness with an instant read thermometer - the internal temperature should be 195- 200°F.
- Turn baked loaf out onto a wire rack, then using a pastry or basting brush, brush the top with softened butter.
Variations + Substitutions
- Sugar: Swap the granulated sugar for brown sugar for a hint of caramel flavor.
- Whole wheat-ish: Replace up to ½ cup of bread flour for ½ cup whole wheat flour. This adds a little whole grain flavor without making it a whole wheat bread recipe.
- Oil: Swap out the oil for an equal amount of melted tallow or lard. I develop recipes using common ingredients, but I love to use my home-rendered tallow or lard in my bread recipes.
- Cardamom cranberry bread: Add 2 teaspoons cinnamon and 2 teaspoons cardamom with the dry ingredients. At the add-in beep, add 1 cup Craisins to the dough. Full cardamom cranberry bread recipe.
- Everything bagel bread: When the final rise ends and the machine is about to start baking, press pause, open the lid and brush the top of the loaf with egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water) and sprinkle generously with everything bagel seasoning. Close the lid and resume the bake cycle. Full everything bagel bread machine recipe.
More Great Sourdough Recipes
If you tried this Bread Machine Sourdough Bread recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!
📖 Printable Recipe
Bread Machine Sourdough Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough discard, stirred down, 250g
- ¾ cup warm water, 170g
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 25g
- 1 ½ teaspoon granulated sugar, 6g
- 1 ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt, 8g
- 3 cups bread flour , 400g
- 1½ teaspoon instant or bread machine yeast, 6g
Instructions
Bake In Bread Machine:
- Combine the liquid ingredients: 1 cup sourdough discard, ¾ cup warm water, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 1 ½ teaspoon granulated sugar, and 1 ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt in the baking pan of your bread machine.
- Layer the dry ingredients as follows; 3 cups bread flour followed by 1½ teaspoon instant or bread machine yeast. Either sprinkle the yeast on top of the flour, where it's not touching the water or create a well in the flour, then add the yeast there.
- Place the baking pan into the bread machine. Select Basic, Light Crust, and 2 lb Loaf options. If your machine does not have all these settings, simply select the Basic or White setting.
- Optional: remove the mixing paddle after the final punch down.
- Once the bread machine has completed its cycle, remove the bread pan from the bread machine. It's important to get to your machine as soon as possible once it beeps complete to avoid it kicking into keep warm mode, this will dry out your bread and make it less than pleasant.
- Overturn the baked loaf onto a wire mesh cooling rack then using a pastry or basting brush, brush the top with softened butter. Allow the bread to cool completely (if possible, I know it's hard!) before cutting.
Bake In Oven:
- Combine the liquid ingredients: 1 cup sourdough discard, ¾ cup warm water, 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar, and 1 ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt in the baking pan of your bread machine.
- Layer the dry ingredients as follows; 3 cups bread flour followed by 1½ teaspoons instant or bread machine yeast. Either sprinkle the yeast on top of the flour, where it's not touching the water or create a well in the flour, then add the yeast there.
- Place the baking pan into the bread machine and select the dough setting.
- Once the dough cycle is complete, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and shape it into a boule or a loaf, then transfer it to a greased 9×5 loaf pan.
- Cover loaf pan with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise for 45- 60 minutes, or until nearly doubled in size. Near the end of the rising, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake your loaf at 350°F. for approximately 40 minutes or until golden brown on top. You can check the doneness with an instant read thermometer - the internal temperature should be 195- 200°F.
- Turn baked loaf out onto a wire rack, then using a pastry or basting brush, brush the top with softened butter.
Notes
Expert Tips
- Measure it right. Flour is very difficult to measure consistently when using cups, so to get the most accurate amount, stir the flour well in your bag or container, spoon it into your measuring cup and level it off with the back of a knife. Alternatively, just use the weights provided in the recipe card.
- Set your expectations. This is a “quick” sourdough bread maker recipe because it uses discard and instant yeast. It doesn’t have the same amount of tang as an overnight fermented sourdough loaf, but it’s damn delicious either way!
- Check the age. Not all sourdough discards are equal. Fresher sourdough discard will have a much more mild sour flavor than an aged discard that’s been hiding in the back of your fridge for 3 weeks. I prefer to use a discard that’s been fed within the last 7 days.
- Warm up routine. If my discard is straight out of the fridge I use the Whole Wheat setting on my Breville Custom Loaf, which includes a preheat phase that I use to bring cold ingredients to temperature. Bread machine cycles vary, so check your manual to see if yours does too!
- Ready to get started? My easy sourdough starter is ready to work with in 24 hours!
I made this for 1 st time yesterday and turned out great ,but I found the crust to hard ! How do you make crust softer I have a sunbeam bread machine.
Hey Jodi, there are a few things you can do. Here’s what I would do! Up the fat a bit, you can use more oil, like double to 2 tablespoons? Brush the loaf when it comes out of the bread maker with softened butter or margarine, which will absorb into the crust and help keep it softer. You can also cover with a kitchen towel while it’s cooling to trap in some steam and that should also help soften the crust!
When making it into a loaf, what size loaf pan are you using??
Hey Donna, a standard 9×5 loaf pan works with this recipe!
Thank you!!
I made your easy starter with 50 g flour, 50 g water and 1/2 t yeast. I discarded all but 50 g and fed that with 50 g flour and 50 g water. The recipe says to let that sit for 6 – 12 hours and then to stir it down, and use 1 cup of the stirred down starter for the bread. Do you know the amount in grams? (Incidentally, I’m not sure I will have 1 cup once I’ve stirred it down). Thanks, I bake all of our bread and I’ve always wanted to try sourdough!
Hey Sharon, good question, you likely won’t have enough starter, but you can feed it again before using it, just feed say 100g starter, 100g water and 100g flour, then you’ll have plenty of starter for this recipe. In general, 1 cup of starter weighs about 230g.
Simple, tender crumb; lovely crust! I’ve made this half a dozen times now with perfect results each time. I either remove the paddle just before baking, or place in parchment-lined loaf pan after shaping and just prior to final rise.
So happy to hear you love this recipe, Anne!
What size loaf pan do you use? Also, what oven temperature and for how long? Thank you!!
Made this bread completely in my Zoji bread maker. I made it with King Arthur Bread Flour. I followed the recipe as printed. I chose Basic bread setting & Dark crust since my machine does not have a French Bread setting. The crust was not dark, but the bread had a wonderful crumb & flavor. Will definitely do again. Thank you for the recipe. Instructions were easy to follow.
Thanks for sharing! Love this recipe, I’m glad you do too!
Do I HAVE to use DISCARD for this recipe ?
You could use active starter, the recipe time is so short that the starter won’t make much of an impact in leavening, but if you want to make it and only have fed starter, it will work. I wrote it as a way to use up some discard but discard is basically unfed starter, so no harm in swapping them out because the yeast is doing the heavy lifting!
Turned out perfect! My bread machine doesn’t have a French setting so I did the dark crust setting. (Old machine). Followed recipe to a tee. Thank you so much!!!!
Thanks for sharing the setting you used, this is really helpful to other bakers! Really glad you enjoyed this recipe, Abby!
Thank you for this!! I’m new to sourdough and my bread has tasted fantastic but is turning out too dense. Adding yeast to supplement the starter has made this process much easier! I bake mine in Dutch oven with parchment, but I love using my bread machine for kneading and timing the dough. Really helpful article 🙂
This is the best! Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe – Love the idea of baking in a dutch oven – I do that when I’m making my everything bagel bread machine bread!
Absolutely delicious! I used olive oil in place of vegetable oil. Next time, I may try my homemade seasoned olive oil for subtle flavor. It was very easy & I needed that today because I was doing taxes 🙄
So thank you, my husband was astounded 😊
Tax season might be the worst season! I’m so glad you both liked the recipe!
This is the absolute best bread I’ve ever had! I used her recipe for the Easy Sourdough Starter to start. The taste, the crumb, everything about it is perfect! We are a family of 3 adults that very rarely ever bought bread, but I wanted to try making a loaf because my husband gets heartburn from store bought. I was kind of concerned about how to store it and keep it fresh since we don’t typically eat much bread…well we finished the entire loaf in less than 24 hours! Thank you so much for such an easy and delicious recipe!
Hi, I have a packet of Red Star sour dough yeast. It doesn’t give the bread that really sour dough taste but it is suppose to do a pretty good job. I have not used it yet. I was wondering if I could use this instead of the starter. It is used exactly as if you were using a packet of instant yeast. I just have NO luck with starters.
thanks so much. Merry Christmas!!
Merry Christmas Lynda! If you’re struggling with a starter you might be interested in giving my quick sourdough starter a try – it’s made with regular yeast. Mine is now over 3 years old and absolutely bulletproof!
The bread came out great except the top was not smooth, it was very rough. What could cause that? I even added a few more tablespoons of water because it looked hard.
That’s a good question. I’m guessing maybe a bit too much flour got scooped in the cups when you measured?
Tried this recipe for a second time and it turned out wonderfully. My starter is made of whole wheat and is always pasty so the amount of water I’ve added each time is the 3/4 cup plus 2 T. I like how it rises and its lighter taste. Holds its shape while slicing the entire loaf by hand.
Ally,
Hi! Your sourdough recipe looks great! But I have a 1 lb bread machine. Would you tell me how to adjust the recipe?
Thx!
Cecilia
Hi Cecilia,
I haven’t tried it, but I’m guessing if you multiplied the ingredients by .66 (2/3rds) you’d end up with a recipe pretty close to 1 lb!
@Ally,
Genius! I will try it! Thx!
Let me know how it goes!
Ally,
I have just recently gotten in to sourdough. I’ve made brownies and other foods from discard that turned out great.
This was my 3rd (& probably final) attempt at bread. First 2 tries were a disappointment. Not soft, too crumbly, not at all good for sandwiches.
Your recipe is fantastic. I am now super glad I’m doing sourdough.
Thank you so very, very much.
Kerry
Kerry, this absolutely made my day! I am so glad to hear you loved the recipe <3