Sourdough Bread Benefits and Nutrition Explained

Why sourdough? Discover the health benefits and nutrition of sourdough bread, and why it’s a favorite among home bakers and health enthusiasts.

In this blog I won’t cover any how-to’s or recipes but just learn the basics about how sourdough works and why it is all the rage these days. 

Baking with sourdough is such a satisfying process: one that brings joy to the home bakers and blesses everyone in the household as well, because of its potential health benefits. It is a skill that is worth learning, and I want to assure the new sourdough bakers that it is not difficult. It might be a little bit intimidating at first, but it is so rewarding and even therapeutic. I would say the most important skills you need to make your own bread as a sourdough baker are these two things: a healthy starter and patience. 

 I will cover and answer common questions like:

• What is sourdough?
• What are the health benefits of sourdough?
• Why is it better than conventional/ regular bread?
• Is Sourdough the healthiest kind of bread?
• What makes it sour?
• What can I make with sourdough starter?
• And also, who am I to be talking about sourdough as if I was an expert?

What is sourdough?

Sourdough is a slow fermented bread that doesn’t require commercial yeast in order to rise. In place of yeast, we use “starter” to naturally leaven(rise) the bread. Starter is flour and water mixed together, and fermented until it has a healthy amount of wild yeast and (good) bacteria.

The use of baker’s yeast as a leavening agent dates back less than 150 years, before that sourdough was the usual way to leaven breads. Knowing that was freeing to me, that this is how bread has been made for centuries and is not this new complicated process that only the talented or wise can master. I used to believe there was such a science behind it, that you needed to follow exact methods, use careful and precise measurements, but you truly don’t need to.

You can go down a rabbit hole of fiercely debated articles and videos on all the rules and “best ways” to do sourdough, but in my experience it was simply getting to know my starter and what makes it thrive that was the key to success. Another key was which flour and water I use, but I discussed that in this article, which also teaches you how to make and maintain your own starter.

What are the health benefits of sourdough?

Sourdough is most nutritious when it’s made with a portion of non-refined flour, like spelt, rye, or Einkorn flours. But the more of those flours you add to your loaf, the more dense or flat it may become.

But homemade sourdough made with only unbleached white flour is still better for you than conventional bread, for multiple reasons.

•  It is not a low-carb food by any means, but because of the sourdough fermentation process it goes through, it is lower carb than other types of breads.
• Sourdough bread is digested more slowly than other bread, and people experience less of a blood sugar spike after eating it. This can protect against insulin resistance, weight gain and diabetes.
• While sourdough bread isn’t considered gluten-free, it does have a lower glycemic index than yeasted breads or average wheat products. That means it won’t raise blood sugar levels as quickly as refined white bread. Something that’s key to understand is that gluten is not a bad thing, and for tall loaves and light results, gluten is vital. Gluten is simply a protein and what gives bread wonderful structure and texture. So you do want gluten in your bread, and without it you will have flat and dense results. The reason some people with gluten intolerance can tolerate sourdough bread, is because they do longer ferments which breaks down the hard-to-digest proteins and enzymes found in wheat, or they might use non-refined flours.
• Sourdough  bread is also good for gut health because it has more soluble fiber than regular bread which can act as a fuel source for gut microbes. 
• Homemade sourdough is also better for you than store-bought sourdough bread because it is less processed, and contains no artificial additives and preservatives. Most grocery store items marketed as sourdough products have not gone through the traditional long fermentation process. They use instant yeast, and artificially flavor it to taste sour- this is not real sourdough bread. 

Why is it better than conventional/ regular bread?

Sourdough can be healthier that other breads because of its fermentation process, which basically creates nutrients that aren’t in the ingredients in the first place. Sourdough is amazing for it’s ability to ferment plain nutrition-less white flour with natural yeast and lactic acid bacteria- which changes the chemical makeup of the mixture. This is the reason I am such a sourdough fan- I can’t yet afford all the fresh milled grains and mills, nor is it cost effective buying all the breads and buns my family needs. Using white unbleached flour and fermenting it to make homemade sourdough bread makes me feel like I am still feeding my family a healthier choice. 

Is Sourdough the healthiest kind of bread?

Sourdough bread can have health benefits that other breads don’t have, but the healthiest bread for you depends on your individual needs and preferences. What makes a bread healthy or unhealthy is the ingredients obviously. For example, for a person with Celiac Disease, a loaf of sourdough bread made with all purpose flour will not be the healthiest option. For them to eat sourdough, they would need to make it with gluten-free flours- which is a world I have not yet dabbled in. 

Here are 5 kinds of bread that aren’t sourdough but are a better choice because of the type of flour they are made with:

1. Sprouted whole grain bread
2. 100% whole grains fresh milled bread
3. Oat bread
4. Flax bread
5. Sprouted Rye Bread

What makes it sour?

Did you know sourdough gets its’ name because it’s fermented, and not necessarily because it’s sour tasting? Sourdough bread isn’t always sour. The flavor can be either mild or tangy, depending on how the starter is cared for and how the dough is made. But it can be sour, or tangy, and that comes from what’s called “lactic acid” or “acetic acid”. Those two are a byproduct of the fermentation process. The longer you allow the raw dough to ferment, the more lactic acid and acetic acid will develop, and the more sour, or tart, your bread will be.

The problem with loving the more sour taste, is that the dough can overproof and fail to rise after a very long ferment. But some people sacrifice some fluff and appeal for more of a sour and tangy flavor. I generally ferment my dough at room temp for 10-12 hours, and we love the mildly sour taste.

What can I bake with sourdough starter?

You can make anything from pasta to cupcakes, from dinner rolls to pie, from crackers to cookies. You can turn any recipe that involves flour into sourdough. Here’s a list of things I’ve personally made with sourdough starter:

• waffles
• pancakes
• scones
• cookies
• biscuits
• pie crust
• hoagies
• dinner rolls
• cinnamon rolls
• artisan bread
• sandwich bread
• muffins
• crackers
• pretzels
• english muffins
• tortilla shells
• naan bread
• donuts
• croissants
• bagels
• pizza
• focaccia
• brownies
• pasta

Who am I to be talking about sourdough as if I’m an expert?

With almost a decade of sourdough baking behind me, I feel like I’ve earned some sort of right to talk about sourdough as if I was an expert- although I am not one, haha. I have had many, MANY flops in the beginning of my sourdough journey, and honestly think through all those flops I learned all about the what to do’s and what not to do’s instead of just having success right off the bat. 

I think it’s important to know that you do not have to be an expert at all to do some successful sourdough baking. It isn’t all the sourdough lingo that made me a successful sourdough baker. And it wasn’t following instructions to the “T”, or measuring precisely. It wasn’t wisdom on all the thing like leaven builds or baker’s percentages. It was experimenting, and understanding that it is an art. Every person will have different results, and that is what makes sourdough a journey. Every loaf is unique and the result of personal expression.

Here are some delicious sourdough recipes to try:

• best sourdough crepes with strawberries and creme
• best pull apart sourdough monkey bread recipe
• how to make your own sourdough starter for bread-making

And here is a whole collection of discard recipes by one of my favorite sourdough bakers, farmhouse on boone.