How to make Surprisingly Soft Oatmeal Sandwich Bread with Sourdough

Alright, this Oatmeal Sourdough Sandwich Bread will blow your mind.  It is soft, light, and fluffy sandwich bread, filled with fiber and flavors from the oatmeal.

And not to forget, this sourdough sandwich bread is sweet and hearty just like actual oatmeal.

All the Goodness of Oatmeal in your sandwich bread!

Instant Oats, Flax Meal, Honey, Cinnamon and Milk!

The conjectures that take our mind as we hear the name Oatmeal Sourdough Sandwich Bread are:

• Thick and dense oatmeal bread,

• Commercial yeast-leavened bread.

But let me tell you. This bread is none of these. Instead, it is light, flavorful, and healthy sandwich bread that you would want to make again and again.

 And it is 100 percent naturally leavened bread. You are not going to need any packaged yeast here.

There are numerous recipes on the internet that add commercial yeast to the sourdough to leaven the bread. But that is something that I have never done. I was determined to make it solely sourdough bread.

A Little disclaimer here!

When we are baking with sourdough, it all about patience. Let nature take the course. All we need to do is be its observer and wait for the right time. On ideal days and with an active starter you will be able to bake the loaf the same day, whereas sometimes you will have to wait for the next day.

Key Ingredients for making an Oatmeal Sandwich Bread with Sourdough

1. Bread Flour

I have used bread flour in this recipe. Bread flour ensures a good rise in the loaf. You can substitute it with an equal volume of all-purpose flour. But the results might vary.

2. Milk

So, this is a rich dough. But I have not used any oil or butter. I am using just milk to make the loaf soft. I recommend using only whole milk, as milk acts as a sole tenderizer in this recipe. It gives our oatmeal sandwich bread a light, delicate texture.

3. Instant oatmeal

So, Oatmeal is our star ingredient in this recipe. I have worked this recipe with instant oatmeal. And it works best with instant oatmeal only.

The old fashioned rolled oats or steel-cut oats will just not work in this particular recipe. The hydration will be changed if you are using any other kind of oats.

4. Honey

This is a honey oatmeal sandwich loaf. Who likes their oatmeal without honey or syrup! So, honey in our oatmeal bread too. Choose to use some mild-flavored honey.

Honey can be substituted with any sweetener of your choice.

5. Flax meal

This is an optional ingredient. But I like the flavor of flax meal with oatmeal and honey. It makes a perfect breakfast loaf!

Method to make Honey Oatmeal Sandwich Bread With Sourdough

1. Sourdough Starter or Levain

This recipe does not necessarily need a Levain. You can straightway use a sourdough starter. Just make sure that the starter is ripe and well-fed.

Most of the time, I intentionally coincide my baking day with my feeding day. So, mainly I either bake with fed starter, which translates into Levain, or sometimes with discard.

Here we need a well-fed starter. I refrigerate and feed my starter once every week, which is usually the case with most of us home bakers. So, read this as:

If your starter was fed in the last 2-3 days, just remove the starter from the fridge, and let it come to room temperature, measure, and use.

And if your starter was fed 4 days ago, go ahead and prepare a Levain.

Prepare a Levain as follows:

Sourdough Starter-25 g

Bread flour-50

Water-50g

2. Pseudo Autolyse

In a bowl of a stand mixer combine everything including the starter or Levain and combine until no dry flour is left. 

And just let it rest.

This step is just like autolyze but I used the term pseudo because unlike conventional autolyze, it involves the starter as well.

This step is essential because it gives them the time the flour needs to develop a gluten structure. Also, the oatmeal will absorb the water and will be incorporated well into the dough.

I just let the dough rest in the bowl of the stand mixer only.

The dough will look super hydrated at this point but let the dough rest for 30 minutes. The oats will swell by absorbing the water and it will give body to the dough. Also, gluten development will take place and give the dough some beginning elasticity.

3. Kneading the dough for the Oatmeal Sourdough Sandwich Bread

I like to use my stand mixer for the entire kneading job. I place the bowl again under the stand mixer and knead the dough for good 15-17 minutes.

The dough should come together as smooth dough. The dough should leave the bottom of the bowl and should not be sticky. If needed add 1 or 2 tablespoons of flour, but not too much.

Now, transfer the dough to a greased bowl and cover with a cling wrap.

4. Bulk rise/ Primary Fermentation

Let it rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours or until it doubles in size. The time will depend on the ambient temperature. It can sometimes take 6-7 hours for the dough to proof. Be patient and keep observing. If it suits your schedule, let it cold rise overnight in the fridge.

But there are some ways to fasten the fermentation/ proofing process in sourdough bread:

1.Good old warm oven:

Place the sourdough in the lap of a warm oven, with lights switched on.

On super cold days, I  turn on the oven for 2-3 minutes, and when it is warm, turn it off.  Then, I place the dough in the warm oven with lights on.

Alternately, you can place a pan of boiling water next to the fermenting dough in the oven. It can help with fermentation.

These are the little manipulations that we can do to fasten the natural fermentation process.

2. Ferment/ bulk rise/proof the dough in your instant pot:

If you own an instant pot with the yogurt setting. Go ahead and proof the dough in your instant pot. The instant pot allows you to set the exact temperature which ensures optimal temperature for yeast activity.

Using either of these methods is optional. These are just suggestions if you want to speed up the proofing process.

5. Shaping and Proofing the dough for the Oatmeal Sandwich Bread

Shape the loaf by first pressing the dough to form a flat rectangle. Then, I roll the dough to form a log. Seal the edges of the log by pressing with fingertips.

Gently transfer the dough into a 9X5 inch loaf pan and let it proof for 2-3 hours until the dough has risen well above the rim of the loaf. ( Read: about an inch above the rim at the center of the loaf.)

6. Baking and adding the Oatmeal on the top of the loaf.

This sourdough oatmeal bread will take 40-45 minutes to fully bake at 355 ⁰F.

You can add the oatmeal at the top of the loaf, before putting the loaf pan into the oven. But there are chances of deflating the risen loaf.

 We intend to give it a honey wash for that glossy shine. As honey has a thick consistency, it is not easier to spread on a risen dough.

Also,  there is no way oatmeal is going to stay stuck on the surface of the dough without a honey wash/ egg wash.

So, I suggest, you just let the bread bake for about 15-20 minutes. Then, take it out in between and give a honey wash, sprinkle the oatmeal on the top, and put it back in the oven.

This is a full-proof way of getting the oatmeal on the surface of the loaf without running into any risks of deflating it.

Concluding notes on the Sourdough Oatmeal Sandwich bread

This is a very light bread considering the high fiber ingredients that we are adding to it. Be it flax meal or instant Oatmeal. It is definitely going to be a little hearty than a regular loaf.

This oatmeal sourdough bread will pleasantly surprise you with its taste and texture.

That's it, for this blog post.

Please find complete ingredients and steps in the recipe down below.

Do comment or Tag me on Instagram if you try our instant oatmeal bread recipe. I would love to see your sourdough bakes. 

Keep baking, keep eating, and keep learning.