Sourdough Sandwich Bread With Fresh Milled Flour- Tangzhong Method!
This Sourdough Sandwich Bread With Fresh Milled Flour is made using the Tangzhong Method. I have really been enjoying using this method in my breads lately. I think is makes them softer, and last longer on the counter. So, this small extra step is very much worth it to me! Let me show you how I make it.
You do not HAVE to use the Tangzhong method to get a wonderful sourdough sandwich bread with fresh milled flour, HERE is my video on how to make a nice FMF sourdough sandwich bread without the Tangzhong method.
FMF=Fresh Milled Flour for reference.
What Is The Tangzhong Method?
The Tangzhong Method is a Chinese method of making bread softer, hold together better, and can last longer on the counter. The method involves cooking a small amount of the fresh milled flour in a bread recipe with some milk or water into a paste, then allowing it to cool to room temperature. After it has cooled, you knead the paste into your dough, and wow what a difference!
How Does The Tangzhong Method Work?
Cooking the small amount of flour before hand, allows the starch in the freshly milled wheat flour to gelatinize. This allows the flour to be able to absorb more liquid than normal, which results in the softer, fluffier bread. Also, this tangzhong method allows the bread to last longer after baking. So, it is a method of preservation without adding artificial preservatives.
When To Use The Tangzhong Method With Fresh Milled Flour?
I have been experimenting with this method for a while, and I recommend using the Tangzhong method for your fresh milled flour breads, rolls, and buns. But, I do think just about any FMF recipe could benefit from this “paste.” So, basically, any dough you want to be softer and fluffier.
Ingredients To Make Soft Fresh Milled Flour Sandwich Bread With The Tangzhong Method
- 3/4 cup Sourdough Starter 170g (Active and bubbly works best)
- 6&1/8 cup fresh milled flour, divided 735g (Hard wheat for this. I use 615g hard white wheat and 120g of Kamut.) *See notes for alternatives
- 1 cup milk 250g (can sub for water if needed)
- 3/4 cup water 180g (May need more if dough seems stiff or dry)
- 4 TBSP softened butter, unsalted 57g (can sub for oil)
- 4 TBSP Honey 84g (can sub for 4 TBSP sugar (36g))
- 2&1/2 tsp sea salt (If using salted butter, decrease to 2&1/4 tsp salt)
- 1 egg 50g
Instructions To Make Soft Fresh Milled Flour Sandwich Bread With The Tangzhong Method
Make The Tangzhong Paste
- Firstly, mill the flour. I mill 735g total of wheat berries to get my fresh milled flour. But, this flour will be used in two different places in the recipe.
- So, let’s use part of the flour to make the Tangzhong paste.
- Put 1/2 cup of fresh milled flour (60g) and 1 cup milk (250g) into a sauce pan, stir to combine.
- Heat this mixture on medium-high heat until it forms a paste. This should only take about 3-5 minutes. Once it forms a paste, remove from the heat, and allow it to cool at room temperature. Allow it to cool while you work on the rest of the dough.
Make The Dough
- While that mixture is cooling, put the water, softened butter, honey, salt, and an egg, into your mixer.
- Mix these ingredients to incorporate.
- Then, add the remaining flour into the mixing bowl, and mix to combine until no flour is left.
- Add the sourdough starter and mix to combine.
- Cover, and let this mixture sit for about 15 minutes. This is the autolyse period and it allows the fresh milled flour to absorb the liquid and the bran to soften.
- After the autloyse period, then add the paste (make sure it is not hot to the touch first, or it will kill your sourdough culture and will result in an uprisen dense loaf), mix to incorporate.
- Once the paste is added, Start the kneading process. Make sure not to knead the dough with the cover on your mixer, this will overheat your dough, and cause it to break down.
- Knead until the dough is nice and stretchy. Typically, 6-8 minutes in a Bosch style mixer, 16-20 minutes in an Ankarsrum style mixer, or 25-30 minutes in a Kitchen aid mixer (allow extra time for a Kitchen Aid style mixer to have breaks in between kneading to prevent overheating of the mixer.) These kneading times will vary for everyone, this is just the most common times for these style of mixers.
- Once the dough is nice and stretchy, and doesn’t easily tear. Then, cover and allow it to rise until almost double. This can take somewhere between 3-6 hours. (In a warm area the dough will rise closer to 3 hours, in a cooler area it will take longer to rise. If the area is too cool (under about 75*F it will take a very long time to rise if it rises at all.)
- While the dough is rising, prepare your bread pans with parchment paper, or softened butter.
Shape & Bake The Loaves
- Once the dough has almost doubled in size, lightly flour a clean work surface. Then, divide the dough in half.
- Shape the dough into 2 bread loaves with some surface tension. I like to flatten each piece of dough, then fold two corners into make a triangle tip. Then, lightly pull (not so tight that it rips the dough) to create tension, and roll the triangle into the dough all the way up until it forms a loaf. You can pinch the ends together. After shaping, the top should have a tight tension on the top of the loaf, this helps with the rise also. *see video
- Put each shaped loaf into each prepared bread pan, cover, and then allow to rise a second time. 1.5-3 hours. (*Tip- usually the second rise time is close to half the the first rise time.)
- During the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 350*F.
- Once the loaves have risen, they should appear nice and puffy, then bake for 50-60 minutes. Check the center of the loaf to make sure they are done. The internal center of the loaf should be at 205- 210*F for sourdough breads.
- Once they have finished baking, remove from the oven, and carefully dump them out of the bread pans onto a cooling rack. I like to place mine on their sides as they cool.
- Once the loaves have cooled, you can slice and enjoy. If you slice into them while they are still hot, this can cause them to be gummy or crumbly the next day. So, try to resist cutting them while hot.
How To Store Fresh Milled Flour Sourdough Sandwich Bread Made With The Tangzhong Method
To store fresh milled flour sourdough sandwich bread made with the Tangzhong method, it will last a little longer on your counter than bread without using this method. However, we still love to allow the loaf to cool completely, then slice it and place it in a freezer safe container or bag. Freeze for up to 4 months. To thaw, just place however many slices you want on the counter to come to room temperature, usually about an hour or so.
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Checkout Some Of My Other FMF Recipes
FMF Sourdough Sandwich Bread (Non-Tangzhong Method)
FMF Soft Sandwich Bread (Non- Tangzhong Method, Yeast)
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Fresh Milled Flour Sourdough SandwichBread Tangzhong Method Video Tutorial
Tangzhong Method With Fresh Milled Flour Sourdough Sandwich Bread Printable Recipe
Sourdough Sandwich Bread With Fresh Milled Flour – Tangzhong Method
This Sourdough Sandwich Bread With Fresh Milled Flour is made using the Tangzhong Method. I have really been enjoying using this method in my breads lately. I think is makes them softer, and last longer on the counter.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Sourdough Starter 170g Active and bubbly works best
- 6&1/8 cup fresh milled flour, divided 735g (Hard wheat for this. I use 615g hard white wheat and 120g of Kamut.) *See notes for alternatives
- 1 cup milk 250g can sub for water if needed
- 3/4 cup water 180g May need more if dough seems stiff or dry
- 4 TBSP softened butter, unsalted 57g can sub for oil
- 4 TBSP Honey 84g can sub for 4 TBSP sugar (36g)
- 2&1/2 tsp sea salt If using salted butter, decrease to 2&1/4 tsp salt
- 1 egg 50g
Instructions
Make The Tangzhong Paste
- Firstly, mill the flour. I mill 735g total of wheat berries to get my fresh milled flour. But, this flour will be used in two different places in the recipe.
- So, let’s use part of the flour to make the Tangzhong paste.
- Put 1/2 cup of fresh milled flour (60g) and 1 cup milk (250g) into a sauce pan, stir to combine.
- Heat this mixture on medium-high heat until it forms a paste. This should only take about 3-5 minutes. Once it forms a paste, remove from the heat, and allow it to cool at room temperature. Allow it to cool while you work on the rest of the dough.
Make The Dough
- While that mixture is cooling, put the water, softened butter, honey, salt, and an egg, into your mixer.
- Mix these ingredients to incorporate.
- Then, add the remaining flour into the mixing bowl, and mix to combine until no flour is left.
- Add the sourdough starter and mix to combine.
- Cover, and let this mixture sit for about 15 minutes. This is the autolyse period and it allows the fresh milled flour to absorb the liquid and the bran to soften.
- After the autloyse period, then add the paste (make sure it is not hot to the touch first, or it will kill your sourdough culture and will result in an uprisen dense loaf), mix to incorporate.
- Once the paste is added, Start the kneading process. Make sure not to knead the dough with the cover on your mixer, this will overheat your dough, and cause it to break down.
- Knead until the dough is nice and stretchy. Typically, 6-8 minutes in a Bosch style mixer, 16-20 minutes in an Ankarsrum style mixer, or 25-30 minutes in a Kitchen aid mixer (allow extra time for a Kitchen Aid style mixer to have breaks in between kneading to prevent overheating of the mixer.) These kneading times will vary for everyone, this is just the most common times for these style of mixers.
- Once the dough is nice and stretchy, and doesn’t easily tear. Then, cover and allow it to rise until almost double. This can take somewhere between 3-6 hours. (In a warm area the dough will rise closer to 3 hours, in a cooler area it will take longer to rise. If the area is too cool (under about 75*F it will take a very long time to rise if it rises at all.)
- While the dough is rising, prepare your bread pans with parchment paper, or softened butter.
Shape & Bake The Loaves
- Once the dough has almost doubled in size, lightly flour a clean work surface. Then, divide the dough in half.
- Shape the dough into 2 bread loaves with some surface tension. I like to flatten each piece of dough, then fold two corners into make a triangle tip. Then, lightly pull (not so tight that it rips the dough) to create tension, and roll the triangle into the dough all the way up until it forms a loaf. You can pinch the ends together. After shaping, the top should have a tight tension on the top of the loaf, this helps with the rise also. *see video
- Put each shaped loaf into each prepared bread pan, cover, and then allow to rise a second time. 1.5-3 hours. (*Tip- usually the second rise time is close to half the the first rise time.)
- During the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 350*F.
- Once the loaves have risen, they should appear nice and puffy, then bake for 50-60 minutes. Check the center of the loaf to make sure they are done. The internal center of the loaf should be at 205- 210*F for sourdough breads.
- Once they have finished baking, remove from the oven, and carefully dump them out of the bread pans onto a cooling rack. I like to place mine on their sides as they cool.
- Once the loaves have cooled, you can slice and enjoy. If you slice into them while they are still hot, this can cause them to be gummy or crumbly the next day. So, try to resist cutting them while hot.
Video
Notes
Make sure you are using mostly a hard wheat for bread recipes. You can use all hard white wheat if you don’t have Kamut (Khorasan,) but I highly recommend using a little Kamut. You can sub hard red in for the hard white, or part of the hard white, but you may need to increase the amount of flour by just a bit if so.
*To store fresh milled flour sourdough sandwich bread made with the Tangzhong method, it will last a little longer on your counter than bread without using this method. However, we still love to allow the loaf to cool completely, then slice it and place it in a freezer safe container or bag. Freeze for up to 4 months. To thaw, just place however many slices you want on the counter to come to room temperature, usually about an hour or so.
*This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you! Also, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. But, I will only suggest items I actually Recommend!
Hi! What speed do you recommend for kneading on my kitchenaid stand mixer?
Generally level 2, but the kitchen aid mixers definitely do better with rest times in between kneading. I have some tips when using a kitchen aid mixer in this video that may help- https://youtu.be/tdnCrbOsVag?si=_PtXurQpLT9ZlEM-
This recipe worked so well for me. Thank you!
I do have a question. What do you use to cover your loaf pans? I’ve used oiled plastic wrap, but it seems to disturb the loaf and then it doesn’t have a nice rounded top.
Yay! So glad to hear that! I have used plastic wrap, but lately I have been using reusable thin shower caps. With my rolls and buns, I have a stainless steel pan that has a lid with it that I use for those. This is the pan- https://amzn.to/4r0Lfxi #ad
For what it’s worth, I use wet flour sack towels to cover my breads and it never sticks or disturbs the dough. No issues with the weight preventing them from rising either. Obviously just don’t let them dry out if your dough is taking a long time. Sometimes I have to spritz the towels to get them more wet.
Will do. Like many others, I’ve struggled with FMF breads. Always tasty but always more like the density of cake than a good sandwich bread(our main use for bread). But I never was very experienced with breadmaking in general beforehand so I kinda dove head first into the shallow end of the pool. Lol. Thanks for the reply.
PS-Sorry to ask about the bread pans as after I posted my comment, I saw you had them linked. Can’t wait to try this recipe though.
Finally!! Two delicious, soft, not crumbly loaves!! But how do I make them bigger? The pictures in this recipe look a lot bigger than mine. They still seem to be a bit small for what I like for sandwiches. My perfect size when we were buying store bought was a wide pan bread from Kroger. How could I adjust this for a larger pan? Thanks
Nevermind. After doing some digging I found that I just need a 5″ wide pan to get the size I’m looking for.
Yay! So glad to hear that! You can use a wider pan, and 1.5x this recipe to get 2 large loaves.
I made one loaf and the rest burger buns. The buns were perfect and amazing! The loaf burned on top while still showing not fully cooked according to its internal temperature. I took it out anyway and let it cool. The loaf, aside from the top, was good but it was way too soft.. it would tear easily if trying to use for sandwiches and it wouldn’t toast (get crispy and drier) at all. It wasn’t dense like it was undercooked. In a toaster or seared in a pan with butter. I’m new to fresh milled flour so I don’t know if it’s normal for it not to toast/get crispy or not. This will definitely be our go-to recipe for buns though!
If the loaf was dark on top and not fully to temperature, then it may not have baked evenly. I would recommend baking it on a lower shelf in the oven and see if that takes care of it.
Help!! You have two different recipes using the Tangzhong method. One calls for 2 eggs, the other 4 eggs. Can you clarify which one is better? Will they both turn out the same?
This Tangzhong recipe is the regular sandwich bread recipe. The other with more eggs and butter, is a more decadent Brioche style bread.
So fluffy and delicious! I am new to fresh milled bread making, and after many failed attempts, I am thankful to have found this recipe. Would you ever post a sourdough version of this bread? Also, I know you mentioned that I can add 1/2 cup of starter instead of yeast. Would I need to adjust any of the other ingredients too? Like the flour, water etc.
Yay! Nice job glad to hear that! Yes, I plan to share a sourdough Tangzhong recipe in the future. If you add the starter, just hold back some of the liquid in the recipe and only add it in later if the dough seems stiff or dry.
Hi! Can I replace the kamut with spelt? Thanks!
You can, however, you may need to leave some of the liquid out of the recipe and only add it back in later if the dough seems stiff or dry. This is because Kamut is a very thirsty grain and needs more liquid than most other grains.
Curious if anybody has tried this recipe using egg replacer, and which would be best?
You can try the flax seed egg trick, or lecithin. OR even omit the egg, and hold back some of the water in the recipe. Only add it in if the dough seems stiff or dry.
Thank you for this recipe! I accidentally made it into one HUGE loaf, I’m hoping the center will be baked because I had to take it out before the center reached the recommended temp. I did taste one little piece of the edge and quickly covered it up and the taste is AMAZING.
Awesome! Glad to hear it was a hit! Thanks! 🙂
12/10 ☁️🤤
Yay! Glad it was a hit! 🙂
Dairy free options? I’m assuming sub water for milk and oil for butter. But could be olive avocado or coconut. What do you think would be better to keep it soft and tasty or would it not really be possible without dairy?
Yes, you can sub olive oil or avocado oil for the butter and water for the milk. It will still be lovely and tasty! 🙂
This was the 1st recipe I used once I received my Mockmill. It turned out perfectly! We couldn’t believe how good it was!! It’s a keeper! I’m going to try your brioche recipe tomorrow! Very excited!
Yay! So happy to heat that! Thanks! 🙂
This was my first batch of FMF bread! And it turned out amazing! Thanks for the video and instructions. I ended up letting my dough autolyse for a little over 3 hours bc we had a busy afternoon. And I turned a little over half of the dough into rolls, and the other part into bread (8×4 pan). It is so soft and delicious! I measured everything with a scale and made no substitutions, other than I only used hard white grains. Super straight forward recipe! Thanks for sharing!
Yay! I am so happy to hear that! Thanks! 🙂
Hi Kara,
Have you used the tangzhong method to make FMF sourdough bread (not instant yeast)?
Is it just a matter of setting aside 50g of the flour and water from the total recipe, cooking the tangzhong on the stovetop, and adding it to the dough once it has cooled?
Any insights would help, thanks!
Yes, I have been playing with it for a while, and plan to share a recipe for that soon. Yes, you can do that, but I have found I need to decrease the liquid in the recipe as well to get better results.
This recipe turned out great! I used all hard white wheat and it was super fluffy and delicious. I underproofed it a tad so the sides broke when it rose in the oven but it still did have a great rise and browned up well. This is my first time trying the tanzhong method and it does make a difference. Thanks Kara for another successful recipe!
Yay! Glad to hear it was a hit! Nice job! Thanks! 🙂
This is such a good recipe. Make it all the time. Was wondering if I used more kamut would it make that much of a difference? Also my friend gave me a recipe for potato yeast. Have you tried it and would it really replace yeast?
Love your new home. Lots of work and lots of space.
If you use too much Kamut, it will be a bit more dense. I have not tried potato yeast, but that sounds interesting. Thanks so much! 🙂
Hello. Instead of splitting into multiple pans, could I add the whole recipe to a Pullman pan? Would baking times vary?
Yes, you can put all the dough into the long pullman pan with the lid off. If you want to bake with the lid on, I would do 3/4 of the dough in there, and make a few rolls or buns with the rest of the dough.
I really love the flavor of this bread—I’m following the directions to a T, but having a difficult time getting it to rise fully like I see in your pictures so it’s somewhat denser than I’d prefer—Any tips or suggestions? Thank you!!
A lot of my rise comes from an oven spring, so I will let it rise a bit, then bake and get more of a rise. If you let it rise too long, it will actually collapse, as the yeast will exhaust itself. Also, you may want to try with a new batch of yeast if there is a stalled or not great rise. Lastly, make sure the paste has cooled before adding the yeast, as too hot of a temperature can kill off some or even all of the yeast. Make sure the dough is nice and stretchy before the rise.