Baking A Wholewheat Sorghum Loaf Using A Sourdough Starter

A couple of blogs ago I told you how I experimented with using Sorghum flour in a loaf I baked. Sorghum flour is what is used to make Maltabella Porridge. I fell completely in love with the taste that this flavoursome flour brought to the bread. Initially I thought the flour would be too heavy to use with bread flour, but I decided to try it anyway. I went all out and tested it with Brown Bread Flour, enriched with Wheat Bran. I loved the resulting bread so much that I decided to publish a blog about it. If you like wholewheat bread, you are going to enjoy this one!

In a large mixing bowl, measure 4 cups (4 x 250 ml) brown bread flour, 2 cups (500 ml) sorghum/maltabella flour, and 1 cup (250 ml) wheat bran.

Add 2 tablespoons (25 ml) sugar and 1 tablespoon (12,5 ml) salt. Mix the dry ingredients well.
Option 1: If using Instant Dry Yeast, add a packet to the dry ingredients.

Add one egg, 175 ml lukewarm milk, 175 ml lukewarm water and 50 ml cooking oil to the dry ingredients.
Option 2: If using Active Dry Yeast, dissolve a packet in the lukewarm water along with the sugar. Allow about 10 minutes for it to froth up.

Add 2 cups (500 ml) sourdough starter. A strong sourdough starter does not need added yeast to raise the dough. However, when I am pressed for time, I will add a packet of Instant Dry Yeast to speed up the rising process. I still add the sourdough starter, as this adds loads of flavour to the bread that yeast can not achieve. This is a general rule for all breads, not only this particular one.

Bring the dough together. You may need to add a little more water. Add this a tablespoonful at a time so as to prevent getting the dough too wet.

Knead your dough for about ten minutes. Prepare 2 small bread tins with non-stick coating and lightly flour the surface.

Divide the dough in 2 and shape according to the bread tins.

Place the dough in the bread pans.

Cover with plastic and allow to rise in a warm dry place.

Once risen, bake in a preheated oven at 200 °C for about 40 minutes.

When you knock on the bottom of the bread, you should hear a hollow sound to indicate the bread is done.

Turn out on a wire rack to cool. The sorghum creates a crisp crust. If you prefer your crust softer, you can cover the hot loaves with a damp cloth. The steam will soften the crust.

Does this not look delicious?

That is the picture of wholesome goodness. I cut my loaf when it was still too hot to touch and it crumbled a little, but everyone's mouths were watering and nobody wanted to wait any longer after having been exposed to the wonderful smells wafting through the house while the bread was baking. I barely managed to snap this photo before the hungry hoards descended.

Marietjie Uys (Miekie) is a published author. You can buy the books here:
You can purchase Designs By Miekie 1 here.

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