We all know how important turmeric is for our health. So what can be better than a turmeric loaf made with some sourdough starter and love. This is a simple sourdough bread and all you need to have are time and patience. It takes around a day to make it but it is worth it, especially since you don’t need to be hands on the entire time. Just a little time here and there and you have a lovely homemade loaf ready to eat.

What is so awesome about this Turmeric Loaf

I am not going to sell this as some health trick. Yes, turmeric is said to have multiple properties which are beneficial for our health. I am neither qualified to approve or disprove this. But I can tell you turmeric gives a beautiful flavour and colour to this loaf. If you want to eat more turmeric this will be a nice way to have some. I am sure it is easier to get kids to eat a bright yellow coloured loaf as compared to turmeric in other forms.

Sourdough is also a healthy way to consume bread. Its slow rise gives the bread an amazing flavour and a lovely texture. Though sourdough breads take longer to ferment and proof, the actual effort involved in making the bread is minimal. You do not need to knead the dough till you get the gluten to form. All you need to do is to leave it alone and guide it a little along the way to get a beautiful airy loaf.

Key points for a good Sourdough Loaf

I must have written it in nearly every post that the most important thing for a good sourdough loaf is Autolyse. Autolyse lets the water and flour meet first and get comfortable before adding the pressure of salt and sourdough starter. Like an arranged marriage scenario when the potential bride and groom meet before adding the pressure of family to them. Autolyse ensures that the dough is relaxed and is better prepared for the starter. So it leads to a better loaf with a more open crumb.

Another key factor is the time. The taken for the dough to proof makes a huge impact on its flavour. Two things impact time – how much time you have and the weather. The good part about sourdough baking is that you can adapt it to suit your schedule. If you don’t have time to bake in the morning, leave the dough in the refrigerator and bake later. The other important factor is the weather. If it is cold (i.e. less than 24C or 75F) then it will take longer. If the temperature is above 30C or 86F, then it will take lesser time and can also become more sour.

There are many ways to develop gluten in the dough. Usually we follow a high intensity kneading for yeast breads. But sourdough breads are to be handled in a gentler manner. The most popular method is the stretch and fold method. But I find that the coil fold method gives better gluten formation and a lighter dough. See this video for the method of coil fold.

Can we replace the flour?

The most common question I get for every bread recipe I post is if the bread can be made with whole wheat flour. I usually use all purpose flour because I love the open texture and light airy feel of it. But you can use whole wheat flour to make bread too. I would recommend to use around 40% of the total flour as whole wheat. If you want to use only whole wheat flour then be warned that the bread will be quite dense. Especially, if you are in India I will not recommend using whole wheat flour entirely to bake breads. If you are using flours like oats, millet, etc then use only upto 25% of the total flour weight. These grains are gluten free. So if you use any more of them then the loaf won’t rise and become flat and dense.

For other sourdough bread ideas, check out this detailed post on Coil fold Bread, Sourdough Sandwich Loaf and Rewena Paraoa

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