Access to this page has been denied because we believe you are using automation sourdough bread bowl to browse the website. 20 Tips to Make Sourdough Bread Less Dense and more Airy! Sourdough bakers often complain about their bread having too dense a texture. It was certainly a problem I had when I first started to bake sourdough bread, especially when I was using whole wheat flour.

But as I became more experienced I learned a few tricks here and there that gave me a lighter and fluffier result. There are several ways to manipulate sourdough bread at different stages to encourage a lighter loaf with a less dense texture, from simple adjustments, to extra steps in the baking process. Here are my top tips to a lighter, less dense sourdough bread. The higher the water level, the more open the crumb will be.

The caveat to that is that a wetter dough is far more difficult to handle. See how well you are able to handle the dough, especially at the shaping stage. If you managed it like a pro, increase the hydration a little more next time until you find your limit. You will find that the bread is softer and lighter the more water you add. Continue to do this until you find a happy balance between a hydration of dough you can handle, and the density of the bread.

2: Switch up the Type of Flour you use to give Sourdough a Softer Texture The type of flour used in your mixture will make a massive difference to the end result of your bread. Gluten strands are what hold up the bread when the yeasts produce gases in the dough. This means using flour that has strong gluten in it will give you the best possible chance of getting a good rise in your sourdough bread. It’s also the easiest flour to handle when kneading and shaping your dough due to its elasticity. Using low gluten flours such as rye will make it impossible to get a good rise in your bread. A good way to get the added flavor of other flours such as rye, is to use a mixture of strong white flour with other flours.