What is Sourdough—Why Do People Love It?

 

Loafing around? Here’s a crumb of information to yeast your boredom. Did you know? Bread is such a universal food that every culinary tradition has a form of bread. Today, there are numerous types of bread available across the globe that sometimes, choosing one for breakfast or tea break can have you rolling in a dilemma.

Of the many types of bread, one that has gained immense popularity in recent years is the sourdough bread. Imagine sinking your teeth into a slice of aromatic bread with an almost crunchy crust and a chewy inside, bursting with light tanginess. Love how it sounds? In this article, we find out more about this bread and the reasons for the love it receives. 

What is Sourdough?

Sourdough bread is a unique type of bread that only kneads three ingredients to make—flour, salt, and water. It is a naturally leavened bread, which means that unlike other bread types, it does not use commercial yeast to rise. Instead, it uses an ingredient known as a ‘starter’. The starter is a combination of flour and water left to ferment and cultivate for a few days. It results in a mixture filled with wild yeast and good bacteria. 

Typical sourdough breads produce a tangy flavour due to the natural acids in the starter, and a slightly chewy bite. However, depending on how long the bread is fermented, it can also contain a flavour ranging from mildly sweet to very sour. You might be wondering—why would anyone like sour bread?

Why Do People Love Sourdough?

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, sourdough bread has been a common sight in many bakeries, cafes and even on social media platforms, with many people ordering it in or even attempting to bake it themselves at home during the circuit breaker. Today, even as we return to our normal lifestyles, people are still loving sourdough bread. Why dough?

1. It’s Fun To Make

Slicing into a perfect homemade loaf of bread that you’ve made yourself is incredibly rewarding. You even get the chance of customising your loaf the way you like it, such as by adding raisins or chocolate chips for a hint of sweetness, or carving out an exquisite bread design. It is almost like a craft project, but with a delicious and fragrant result. Although sourdough bread only requires three ingredients to make, the process of creating the starter and then finally making the loaf is an interesting and enjoyable experience, almost like a kitchen science experiment.

2. It’s Instagram-Worthy

Sourdough breads are very aesthetically pleasing. The yeast used in them has a lot of time to properly ferment, which leads to a great-tasting dough filled with air bubbles. After baking, the bread then reveals a beautiful cross section much like those we see in well-made croissants. On top of that, intricate details can be carved onto the surface of sourdough breads to enhance their appearance. This makes for an a-dough-able bread for Instagram.

3. It’s Healthier

As one of the healthiest breads, sourdough is well-liked due to its nutritional benefits. The natural yeast in the sourdough starter breaks down a substance naturally found in wheat that can block our bodies from absorbing its nutrients. Once broken down, our bodies can absorb nutrients that we typically wouldn’t get from other types of bread, such as potassium, magnesium, folate, and zinc. Talk about an effective way of getting all the nutrients we knead!

Dough you want to try your hand at baking your own toasty and yummy sourdough bread? Enjoy a loaf-changing experience with Bespoke Bread’s sourdough workshop in Singapore today! Find out more about the class here.