It’s back to school for most, and planning for speedy and healthy lunches is imperative whether your kiddos are physically attending school or staying home. And if you’re like us here, easy lunches are the best lunches. Enter the mighty sandwich. Sandwiches slathered with crunchy peanut butter—you’re not eating smooth peanut butter, are you?—and homemade jelly, a mozzarella, tomato, and basil layer-cake-sandwich, or a classic tuna salad sandwich are always on rotation here.
But taking the humble sandwich to the next level requires the ideal bread. It helps the mundane transcend the standard measure. And while this site has pan bread recipes abound (I guess I do love good pan bread), this tangzhong sandwich bread is so delightful it’s quickly floated to the top choice for, as my kids call it, “square bread.”
That’s not to say my classic pain de mie or whole-grain pan loaf isn’t a treat, but this bread brings a certain softness to the crumb that’s hard to achieve without high hydration or added enrichments. And yet, in pre-cooking a portion of the total flour used in this recipe, you’ll do just that.
This pre-cooking technique, commonly called tangzhong, is classic for enriched bread such as Japanese-style shokupan (milk bread), and it’s a handy technique for bringing a level of softness to a loaf without excessive fat or oil addition. A healthier version, if you will.
What is Tangzhong (Pre-cooked Flour)?
The tangzhong technique (also known as water roux or simply pre-gelatinized flour) is cooking raw flour and a liquid to approximately 150°F (65°C). At this temperature, the starches in the flour will gelatinize, similar to how the exterior of a bagel gelatinizes when you boil the dough. This process turns the mixture into a sticky starch paste added to the dough during mixing and brings incredible softness to the final baked bread.
This upfront cooking is a small step at the beginning of this recipe, but one that results in more tender and fluffy bread without the need for other enrichments such as butter, oil, or eggs.
A quick roundup of the benefits of incorporating pre-cooked flour (or tangzhong) in your bread dough:
- Adds tenderness and an open interior without the use of eggs, butter, or sugar
- The dough can have lower hydration but still achieve a soft texture
- Prolongs the shelf life of the bread (and coupled with natural fermentation, which already preserves, this might be the best sandwich bread yet)
Check out my guide to making tangzhong for more information on this technique.
In the top left, the flour and milk are combined and whisked vigorously over medium-low heat. After a few minutes, the top-right shows the mixture starts to thicken. Continue to whisk, and don’t worry if you find small clumps here and there. The bottom-right shows the mixture sufficiently thickened and ready to remove from the flame. It will feel similar to a cooked porridge and be hard to whisk any further. Then, let the tangzhong mixture cool and add it as any other ingredient during mixing.
Flour Selection
Any medium-protein bread flour (around 11% protein) or all-purpose flour will work well in this recipe. I’ve made this with King Arthur Baking All-purpose with excellent results. And similarly, for the whole wheat portion, any whole wheat flour will work well.
Baking Schedule
This tangzhong pan bread is a direct bake, meaning it’s baked the same day you mix (except for the levain, which is created the night before).
Overnight proof option: while I don’t call for this dough to be retarded (cold proof overnight), this can be done if it’s better for your schedule. Simply place it in the fridge after it’s shaped and in the Pullman pan, then bake first thing in the morning.
Tangzhong Sandwich Bread Formula
For tips on how to calculate baker’s percentages or how to modify this formula, see my post on baker’s percentages (baker’s math).
| Total Dough Weight | 1,800 grams |
| Pre-fermented Flour | 11.00% |
| Levain in final dough | 25.96% |
| Yield | 2 x 900g pan loaves |
I love using my 9x4x4″ USA Pan Pullman pan (without the lid) for sandwich bread. Not only does the nonstick liner mean the loaves always remove cleanly, its straight sides mean neat slices perfect for sandwiches or toast.
But if you’re looking for how to make this recipe work in a different pan, see my post on shaping a sandwich loaf.
Total Formula
Desired dough temperature: 77°F (25°C). See my post on the importance of dough temperature for more information on dough temperatures.
The rows marked tangzhong below are the two ingredients cooked ahead of time, but they are still counted toward the formula’s overall percentages. In other words, the 8% whole wheat flour is still counted toward the total flour in the formula and is not an “extra” addition.
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 74g | Tangzhong: Whole wheat flour (Giusto’s Whole Wheat Flour) | 8.0% |
| 296g | Tangzhong: Whole milk | 32.0% |
| 693g | Medium-protein bread flour or All-purpose flour (~11% protein, Central Milling Artisan Baker’s Craft or King Arthur Baking All-Purpose) | 75.0% |
| 157g | Whole wheat flour (Giusto’s Whole Wheat) | 17.0% |
| 65g | Olive oil | 7.0% |
| 37g | Honey | 4.0% |
| 453g | Water | 49.0% |
| 17g | Salt | 1.8% |
| 10g | Sourdough starter | 1.1% |
Tangzhong Sandwich Bread Method
1. Prepare Levain – Night before mixing, 9:00 p.m. (Day one)
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 101g | Medium protein bread flour or all-purpose flour | 100.0% |
| 101g | Water | 100.0% |
| 10g | Ripe sourdough starter | 10.0% |
Mix the following ingredients in a container and leave covered to ripen at about 78°F (25°C) for 12 hours overnight.
2. Prepare the tangzhong (pre-cook flour) – 8:00 a.m. (Day two)
| Weight | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| 74g | Whole wheat flour |
| 296g | Whole milk |
Be sure to do this ahead of time to give the pre-cooked flour time to cool before mixing.
Milk alternative: If you want to avoid using milk in this recipe, substitute out the dairy milk in the roux, below, for water (or something like oat milk).
To a medium saucepan, add the flour and milk listed above. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook, whisking continuously, until the mixture thickens and becomes like a paste, about 5-8 minutes. In the beginning, whisk vigorously to break up any flour clumps, and be diligent about this near the end to avoid burning. The mixture won’t seem to do anything until it reaches a critical heat point, be patient; it will thicken.
Once it transforms into a viscous paste (something like oatmeal porridge), remove the pan from the heat and spread it out on a small plate to expedite cooling. Set the tangzhong aside until called for when mixing.
3. Mix – 9:00 a.m.
I used my KitchenAid stand mixer to mix this dough, but it’s possible to make this bread without a stand mixer by mixing everything together by hand in a mixing bowl. To do this, you’ll need to mix for around 10-15 minutes, depending on your technique (slap and fold will work really well!).
| Weight | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| All | Tangzhong (see Tangzhong above) |
| 591g | Medium-protein bread flour |
| 157g | Whole wheat flour |
| 65g | Olive oil |
| 37g | Honey |
| 351g | Water |
| 17g | Salt |
| 213g | Levain (see Prepare Levain, above) |
Mixing water temperature note: I used cold water from the fridge to mix this dough, mostly because my pre-cooked flour was not fully cool by the time I needed to mix. Be sure to take the temperature of the pre-cooked flour and other ingredients into account to get close to the final dough temperature listed for this recipe.
Use my mixing water temperature calculator to quickly help you determine what to heat or cool your water to so it meets the desired dough temperature for this recipe.
To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add the pre-cooked flour, flour, water, ripe levain, honey, olive oil, and salt. Mix on low speed for approximately 2 minutes until the ingredients come together, and no dry bits remain. Increase the mixer speed to medium (2 on a KitchenAid) and mix for 8-10 minutes until the dough starts to clump up around the dough hook. It won’t completely remove from the bottom of the bowl, and it will still be shaggy. See the image of my dough right after transferring to its bulk fermentation container.
Transfer your dough to a bulk fermentation container and cover.
4. Bulk Fermentation – 9:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
At room temperature, around 72-74°F (22-23°C), bulk should take about 3 1/2 hours. Give this dough three sets of stretch and folds during bulk fermentation (first rise) at 30-minute intervals, where the first set starts after 30 minutes from the start of bulk fermentation. For each set, wet your hands, grab one side and stretch it up and over the dough to the other side. Rotate the bowl 180° and perform another stretch and fold (this forms a long rectangle in the bowl). Then, rotate the bowl 90° and do another stretch and fold. Finally, turn the bowl 180° and do one last stretch and fold. You should have the dough neatly folded up in the bowl.
After the third set, let the dough rest for the remainder of bulk fermentation.
5. Divide and Pre-shape – 12:45 p.m.
Uncover your bulk fermentation container and gently scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a clean work surface. Using a bench knife, divide the dough directly in half and pre-shape each piece into a loose round. Let the rounds relax uncovered for 30 minutes.
6. Shape – 1:15 p.m.
First, lightly oil your Pullman pans with olive oil or another neutral oil. While this isn’t strictly necessary when using a USA Pan Pullman pan, it’s a little insurance just in case.
I shaped this dough in my typical method for shaping a pan loaf. Check out my guide to shaping pan loaves for detailed instruction.
Once the dough is shaped into a long tube, transfer each to their pan, seam-side-down. At this point, you can sprinkle on any toppings you’d like, I added white sesame seeds to one loaf, and instant oats to the other.
7. Proof – 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. (2 hours room temperature)
Cover the pans with a large, reusable plastic bag and seal shut. Let the dough proof at room temperature, around 72-74°F (22-23°C), for 2 hours.
Overnight proof option: before the 2 hour counter proof, cover the pans with bags and place them in your home refrigerator to proof overnight. Bake them the next morning as indicated below. Expect a slightly more sour flavor.
8. Bake – 3:30 p.m. (pre-heat oven at 3:00 p.m.)
Check on your dough: it should have risen just below the top of the Pullman pan and be very light and airy to the touch (see above). If it’s not quite there, give it another 15 minutes and check again.
I steamed the oven for this bake as described on my post on baking with steam in a home oven.
Preheat your oven, with rack at the bottom third run and a pan with lava rocks on the bottom, to 400°F (205°C).
Once your oven is preheated, remove your proofed loaves from their bags and slide them into the oven. Carefully pour a cup of ice into the pan with lava rocks at the bottom of the oven and quickly close the oven door.
Bake at 400°F (205°C) for 20 minutes with steam. After this time, vent the oven, remove the steaming pan(s), and close the oven door. Bake for an additional 30-35 minutes until the top is well-colored and the internal temp is around 205°F (96°C). Remove the pans and gently knock out the loaves onto a wire rack. Return the loaves to the oven to bake for an additional 5 minutes without their pans to add extra color to the bottom and sides.
Let the loaves cool for 2 hours before slicing to ensure the interior is fully set. These will store incredibly well as described in my post on how to store bread.
This bread has a delightful flavor that has little sourness. The overnight, mild levain with all white flour helped to this end as did the direct bake (no overnight cold-proof). The sourness that does slyly peek through comes at you at the very end of each bite, a gentle, but welcome, pop of flavor.
What I love about this bread—besides the tender interior, flavors created through natural fermentation, and flavorful, wheaty abundance, of course—is the shatteringly thin crust that forms when a slice is toasted (see above). We have the Pullman pan to thank here, and while a mouth-melting slice of bread is delightful, the added crunch in each slice is downright satisfying. And I think this might be the secret success of this bread: it’s soft, without excessive oil, eggs, or butter, for kiddos to love it, but still shores up enough strength to carry any ingredient you throw at it.
As I finish typing up these final words, I still can’t get the idea of crunchy peanut butter out of my mind. Shall we confess it’s time, yet again, for another amped-up PB&J? Buon appetito!
Tangzhong Sourdough Sandwich Bread
- Prep Time: 19 hours
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 19 hours 55 minutes
- Yield: 2 loaves
- Category: Sourdough, Sandwich Bread
- Cuisine: American
Description
This bread has a delightful flavor that has little sourness. The overnight, mild levain with all white flour helped to this end as did the direct bake (no overnight cold-proof). The sourness that does slyly peek through comes at you at the very end of each bite, a gentle, but welcome, pop of flavor.
What I love about this bread—besides the tender interior, flavors created through natural fermentation, and flavorful wheaty abundance, of course—is the shatteringly thin crust that forms when a slice is toasted (see above). We have the Pullman pan to thank here, and while a mouth-melting slice of bread is delightful, the added crunch in each slice is downright satisfying. And I think this might be the secret success of this bread: it’s soft, without excessive oil, eggs, or butter, for kiddos to love it, but still shores up enough strength to carry any ingredient you throw at it.
Ingredients
Levain
- 101g medium-protein bread flour
- 101g water
- 10g ripe sourdough starter
Tangzhong
- 74g whole wheat flour
- 296g whole milk
Main Dough
- all the tangzhong
- 591g medium-protein bread flour or all-purpose flour
- 157g whole wheat flour
- 65g extra virgin olive oil
- 37g honey
- 351g water
- 17g salt
- all the levain
Instructions
- Prepare levain (Day one, the night before mixing, 9:00 p.m.)
In a small container, mix together the levain ingredients and keep at 78°F (26°C) for 12 hours. - Prepare the Tangzhong (Day two, 8:00 a.m.)
Add the tangzhong ingredients to a medium-size saucepan. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook, whisking continuously, until the mixture thickens and becomes like a paste, about 5-8 minutes. - Mix (9:00 a.m.)
To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment add the Main Dough ingredients. Mix on low speed for approximately 2 minutes until the ingredients come together, and no dry bits remain. Increase the mixer speed to medium (2 on a KitchenAid) and mix for 8-10 minutes until the dough starts to clump up around the dough hook. It won’t completely remove from the bottom of the bowl, and it will still be shaggy. Transfer your dough to a bulk fermentation container and cover. - Bulk Fermentation (9:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.)
Give the dough 3 sets of stretch and folds at 30-minute intervals, where the first set starts 30 minutes after the start of bulk fermentation. - Divide and Preshape (12:45 p.m.)
Scrape out the dough, divide it in half, and preshape each half into a loose round. Let rest for 30 minutes, uncovered. - Shape (1:15 p.m.)
Lightly oil two 9x4x4-inch Pullman pans with olive oil or neutral oil. Shape each piece of dough into a tube shape and transfer it to the pan. Top with sesame seeds, rolled oats, etc. - Proof (1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at room temperature)
Cover the pans with reusable plastic and seal shut. Let the dough proof for 2 hours at 72-74°F (22-23°C). - Bake (3:30 p.m.)
Preheat your oven, with a rack at the bottom third run and a pan with lava rocks on the bottom, to 400°F (205°C). Bake at 400°F (205°C) for 20 minutes with steam. After this time, vent the oven, remove the steaming pan(s), and close the oven door. Bake for an additional 30-35 minutes until the top is well-colored and the internal temp is around 205°F (96°C). Remove the pans and gently knock out the loaves onto a wire rack. Return the loaves to the oven to bake for an additional 5 minutes without their pans to add extra color to the bottom and sides. Let the loaves cool for 2 hours on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
This bread can also be proofed overnight to bake the next day. At the proof step (#7), instead of proofing on the counter, retard the dough to the fridge (covered). Any time the next day, remove the dough from the fridge and bake straight away.
A full-fat nut or oat milk or water can be used to make the tangzhong.
What’s Next?
For another tangzhong recipe, check out our ultra-soft and delectable sourdough cardamom rolls.
506 Comments
Hi Maurizio,
The amell in the house is amazing. Thanks for this wonderful recipe.
Two questions:
1. I bake with a German oven, is 205C the optimal temp? My loaf became pretty brown after 20 min (post steam).
2. Two big cracks appeared one on the top and one on the side of the loaf. What could be the reason for that?
* by the way, I used only 170 g starter, could this affect the results?
Thanks so much and continue with your great blogging
So glad to hear that! Answers:
1. If your oven browned too quickly, drop the temp down to 190C and bake for longer.
2. Usually cracks like this are from either under proofing or insufficient steam…
Hope that helps!
I’ve been baking sourdough artisan bread and loaf bread for 30 years but recently have been trying to find the perfect sandwich loaf. Well, this sourdough with the tangzhong is exactly what I wanted. It is perfect. I even added more whole grain and it’s still perfect. Thanks so much for your recipe and your site.
Amazing to hear that, William. Huge praise that I do not take lightly—thank you! Enjoy 🙂
The other thing that’s amazing is that you actually respond to questions and comments. Very unlike many other sites.
I do take quite a bit of time to do that, it’s something I wish I’d had when I first started out baking and had a million questions! Plus, I love helping others 🙂
This is my 2nd attempt at sourdough bread: I’m working on the sandwich bread now. The dough is very, very wet and slack. Some is clumping around the dough hook but most is sitting, batter-like, at the bottom of the bowl. I was afraid of this – when I tried to make sourdough bread before, the dough could not be handled without adding a LOT more flour.
This time, I added the water very gradually and didn’t use all of it (probably 120 – 125 g water unused). What am I doing wrong and is there any way to prevent or treat the problem?
Before you go any further, try just letting it rest, in the refrigerator if possible. Lots of times, especially whole wheat flour, improves with time. It does need more hydration than regular flour, but it needs time to absorb it. IF you have the time, do some folds to strengthen the gluten, but if you don’t, that’s fine. Just let it rest.
I realize I’m replying a day later, but if you’ve left it in the fridge all this time and it’s still unmanageable, leave it one more day. Just use wet hands to handle it, and if you can try to get at least a couple of lifts and folds just to help things along. Don’t add flour or water! Just time. You’ll get there!!
It’s ok if you don’t add all the water! It’s likely due to the flour you’re using, which is just fine—all flour will be different. Leave out as much water as necessary.
Hi! Today will be my second loaf of this great recipe! I just had two clarifying questions. 1) My tangzhong thickens faster than described but I want to be sure it’s cooked thoroughly. Do you think my temp might be too high (although it’s pretty low) or could the fat in the whole milk be the cause? 2) I notice I never see a no-salt autolyse in your sandwich bread recipes. I’m glad to save a step but wonder if there are times that’s more important than others.
Thanks for all of the recipes and techniques!
Gina M
I’m a recent fan of your site, and even more recent arrival to the land of the Hokkaido style of bread making. My younger adult son is the only one in the family who can eat carbs at will so he gets to be the, hopefully grateful, Guinea pig of this mom’s foray into new breads.
I have to confess that I only found this recipe because I found to my dismay that my yeast was dead, just at the end of assembling another tangzhong milk bread recipe. And it was too late to go buy more. I did have sourdough starter, which was recently fed but in the fridge. So here I am.
I realized that your recipe doesn’t use yeast at all, but your levain uses a very large amount of liquid, but a very tiny amount of sourdough starter. I’m guessing that it’s to keep the acidity low since your recipe includes whole wheat flour. So I used very warm water to feed a 50g portion of my starter with a 1:1 of just regular AP flour. The rest of the recipe is KA AP unbleached.
Obviously I’m not making your recipe. This time; but I’m truly grateful you’re a genius with sourdough. So I’m going to make this recipe. I’ve just fed my starter, and will feed it again tomorrow. My home is a little frosty so no dough rises speedily here. But I’ll be ready by Monday to make some good sandwich bread for my son to take to work, I hope.
Thank you again, for the inspiration that rescued the other guy’s recipe. 😉😂
I’m curious why such a long period to create levain. My levain is usually at peak at 6-8 hours depending on temp. At 78 degrees proofing it seems it wil be well beyond pea. Is that intentional? I’m trying recipe as written but am curious.
The longer levain will theoretically allow for more flavor accumulation, which takes time. That said, use your levain when it’s ripe!
Hi Maurizio! I am about to try this recipe in the morning! It looks amazing and I am looking forward to eating it! I cant find lava rocks anywhere. Is there anything I can substitute with? Also, I generally bake with a Dutch oven but my pans wont fit in it. How do I create steam?
Got mine at Home Depot.
Hi,
Thank you very much for the recipe. Can I use my mixer with a dough hook to knead the dough until it develops the window pane instead of doing a stretchy and fold by hand?
I have a nonstick bead loaf pan that comes with lid, can I use the lid while baking the bread so it produces a flat top instead of a dome top? If so, should I bake it at 350F for longer time the same way a regular sandwich bread recipe calls for?
Thank you very much for you time. Can’t wait to try.
Yes, you can absolutely use a mixer, just look for the same signs of dough development as described above.
If you use the lid to your pan, which you can certainly do, be sure not to put too much dough in there so that it spills out the lid—you’ll have to determine this based on your pan’s dimensions. Yes, I’d bake this at 350F for 45 minutes or longer until the internal temp is around 204F.
Hi Maurizio,
I recently baked this recipe and both my wife and I really enjoyed the wonderful bread. I had a couple of post bake questions. My loaf had some slight separation at the top. Would that be expected if I overproofed? I definitely pushed the bulk ferment and final proof. One more thing. How much rise above the pan top should I target for final proof in a 9 x 5 x 2.75 loaf pan?
Thanks for the wonderful recipe and your help.
Glad to hear that, Bruce! Usually a separation like that indicates a slight over proof, but it could also have been something in shaping (gasses coalescing up at the top there is a possibility). Super hard for me to say with that pan, Ive only baked this in a 9x4x4 Pullman.
I made this and it came out amazing! I have tried 3 other sourdough sandwich loaf recipes and they were all a failure. This is an awesome recipe! I have a question. would I be able to make it with only the bread flour. my daughter really doesn’t like whole wheat anything.
So glad it worked out well for you guys! You can certainly do that. I’d probably keep the hydration the same but you might need to leave the dough longer in bulk fermentation and/or proof depending on how much ww you substitute out.
Maurizio, Is it possible to cold proof the dough for 6 hours and then bake or is that too soon.Thank you for your help!
It’s hard to say, you’ll have to check the dough before baking. My feeling is, it will be enough time if you let it sit out 15 to 30 minutes before sticking it in the fridge. You can always skip the cold proof, too, and proof it at room temp until very soft to the touch.
Hey @maurizioleo:disqus !
I needed to bake some sandwich bread for my busy week ahead so I decided to give this recipe a go, also because it uses the pre-cooked flour method. Well, it was just perfect! I did a 16 hours cold proof; the dough didn’t rise too much while in the fridge but I got an amazing spring in the steamed oven. The bread came out just right, super fluffy, slightly tangy and light. Delicious!
My starter is half whole wheat, half bread flour, but I used 100% bread flour as suggested. Would it make any difference to use my regular flour mix to build the levain?
Other than that, another excellent recipe, thanks for everything!
Mathieu.
Hey! Sorry for the delay. Amazing, glad to hear it worked out so well for you! I think this is one of the softest breads I’ve made as well, that tangzhong really helps! If you use some ww in the levain you might see a little additional sourness in the final loaf, but it depends on other factors as well. I would say give it a try and see how you like it! You can always just use part of your starter as well if it’s used at the right time.
Happy baking, Mathieu!
Hi. Can I make this with regular loaf pans, not Pullman? They have been sold out everywhere I look for a while.
Yes, absolutely!
Hi Maurizio – I have made this recipe a few times and it has always come out well. My 7 year old loves it. As does hubby. Quick question …is there a way to incorporate seeds into this? If so, would you mix in the seeds at the start in the KitchenAid or later when doing the folds? Also, how much seeds should I add in weight?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge with all of us.
Glad to hear that, Aarthi! Yes, I’d sad seeds at the very end of mixing in the KitchenAid. I would start with 15% seeds to total flour, depending on the seed.
This turned out wonderful. It is wonderfully soft, with a faint tang, great flavour. I messed up and did not mix it for long enough, but did not seem to effect the final product.
Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and recipes. Making my first starter and then learning to bake sourdough bread was one of the things that kept me sane last year. And your detailed timeline, videos and description are hugely helpful for newbies.
You’re so very welcome! Sorry for the delay and thanks for the comments. Happy baking!
First I like to thank you for so selflessly sharing all your experiences and I have learned so much from you. I have made this great sandwich loaf once and it’s definitely a hit with my family. However the first time I made it I reduced the final water added to 300g and the dough was really sticky and doing the stretch and fold did not strengthen it to your dough, but I forged on and baked it and the outcome was great. Today on my second try I reduced the water to 275g still very sticky but better so far, I just finished my second set of stretch and fold. I guess I wanted to know is this normal to have such a big difference in the hydration. I am using KA all purpose and whole wheat. Thank you so much
You’re very welcome, Anne! Happy to help 🙂 Hydration is always very relative to the flour you are using that day in the kitchen. I live in an arid climate so sometimes my recipes are little higher hydrated than most, but I do account for this when I publish here to the site. That said, your instincts are right, you likely still need to reduce the water a bit if it’s still mixing up very sticky for you. If the dough doesn’t look like mine in the photos, keep dropping that hydration till your comfortable and like the outcome!
Happy to hear that, Angela! Great work adjusting based on the ingredients you have on hand—our flour is most likely very different! That’s ok, though, and that’s part of the beauty of baking 🙂 I bet your flour is very flavorful, I’m jealous of that! Thanks so much for the comments and happy baking, Angela!
Could you advise me on how to reduce the levain with white whole wheat. I am a novice baker at best although I have had great results with all of your recipes. My husband was recently diagnosed with diabetes so we’re trying to eat whole what as much as possible. Thank you!
I’d say try first going with the recipe as it is, just swap out your flour. If you’re doing for 100% whole wheat, though, I’d probably drop the levain down to about 15% and see how the dough progresses. Be sure to keep the dough a little cooler, tool, around 75F at the end of mixing 🙂
Can this be made with all white whole wheat flour with good results? Thanks!
I think that flour would work well here! But the loaf wasn’t designed with that much whole wheat, if you go that route, you might want to reduce the amount of levain in the dough.
Sorry to hear that, Denis! Did you give the dough plenty of time in the mixer? It really helps to get a super strong mix in the mixer before adding in all the ingredients. How did the bread turn out? In my experience, even if you don’t have a super developed dough, these pan loaves will still turn out wonderful.
Agh! I don’t have any olive oil! I have vegetable oil, coconut oil, and butter. Can I substitute with any of these? Would the swap be an even 1:1?
Veg oil, one for one!
That’s what my instinct told me and that’s what I went with. I’ve seen in previous comments that butter can be used, but not one for one. Would ever consider using coconut oil?
I don’t see why coconut oil wouldn’t work!
Hi Maurizio. I have read about this technique in various sites and books and I am curious to try in my next loaf. I am now experimenting with Spelt Flours (both white and whole) which do not tend to absorb water as well as other flours and hence the loafs tend to dry a bit faster than regular Wheat bread. Have you tried the Tang Zhong technique in loafs with spelt flour?
Hey, Maribel. No, I haven’t tried tangzhon with spelt, but it should work just the same! You’re right about spelt not handling as much water, that’s my experience as well. But the flavor… I love it!
This is a delicious bread, and when I stopped eating wheat flour I was very curious to see if it could work with spelt. After a few very wet and messy tries, I succeeded. Today I made it with all white spelt and oat milk for a non-dairy version. The amount of water must definitely be reduced, but how much can be different for everyone depending on the flour, weather, humidity, etc.) I reduced moisture content starting with the starter: from a 50-50 water-spelt to 40-60. For the tangzhong I reduced milk by 11% and increased flour by 5%. And finally the water, I reduce by about 25%. It sounds drastic but it works beautifully. Also, it’s very important not to handle the dough too much. Spelt is very fragile. I use a dough whisk to combine all the ingredients and let it rest while it’s still very shaggy. I add a coil fold or 2 at the end and it comes together really well. And…thank you Maurizio for your fantastic recipes and excellent advice!
So awesome to hear all of this!
Hi. Just need some clarification on the bread pan size. Your recipe uses a 9in x4 in pan. That is for a 900g loaf? Reason I ask is because I am looking to buy a pan but the descriptions for a 9×4 in seem to refer to a 450g loaf. Whereas most of the 900g loaf have pan dimension of 12x4in..
Yes, for this recipe I use a 9x4x4″ Pullman pan (this makes two loaves in two pans of that size).
Hi Maurizio, I did 3-4 attempts on this recipe the past few days, no matter what I did such as changing percentage of all purpose flour and bread flour, or increasing mix time, my final results were all pretty dense(with visible air bubbles) but rather on the short side. What can I do to increase the loaf final volume and reduce gumminess? It is very frustrating to struggle on this.
It sounds like perhaps your dough was slightly underproofed. Make sure to build your levain from a starter that’s strong and mature (meaning it’s risen to it’s peak height before you take some to use). From there, bulk fermentation is very important! Make sure your bulk fermentation goes sufficiently far, you want the dough to look smooth, it should have risen considerably, and have bubbles here and there — it should look alive. If you tug on the dough a bit it should offer resistance to your tugging, it’ll feel stronger. Give the dough the time it needs in bulk fermentation! If you have to give it another 30m or hour to see these signs, do so. It’s important for this step to go sufficiently far for the dough to have enough fermentation activity before its proof.
Hello Maurizio, I’ve been doing this recipe for months in a normal home convection oven, and I just got my rofco, will the temps change? O do I use the same baking method
205c for 20 min with steam, and another 20min 195c w/o steam..
Times and temps will definitely need to change in there depending on the setup! But generally, it should be close.