Cold Brew Sourdough Bread

If you love cold brew coffee and you have a sourdough starter, you’re going to want to make this cold brew sourdough bread! I discovered cold brew on a recent trip to the US and since I got back, I have been brewing it non stop. It got me thinking about how I could recreate my new found obsession in sourdough form. Voila! Cold brew sourdough bread … just wait until you try it!

Ingredients

• Bread Flour – Bread flour gives this loaf its strong structure and chewy crumb. The higher protein content helps develop the gluten needed for a good rise.
• Cold Brew Coffee – I have brewed my own cold brew coffee at a ratio of 1:12. It’s best to let your cold brew sit out at room temperature when you make this, unless you’re going to do an overnight ferment, in which case feel free to use it cold as it will slow down bulk fermentation. 
• Brown Sugar – Adds a gentle sweetness that balances the coffee and sourdough flavors. It also helps with caramelization in the crust.
• Sourdough Starter – Use an active sourdough starter that has been fed a few hours before mixing your dough. A bubbly, active starter will give your bread the best rise.
• Salt

How To Make Cold Brew Sourdough Bread

The easiest way to explain this method of making sourdough is that you simply replace water with cold brew coffee! Seriously, it’s that easy. Plus I added some brown sugar to the dough as well, just to give the dough a subtle sweetness.

This one is amazing plain, but can be made even better with some of these inclusions added in during shaping:

• Ground Coffee Beans sprinkled over the dough as well as 100g of semi sweet chocolate chips added during shaping.
• Cinnamon Sugar Swirl sprinkled over the dough (made by mixing 5g of cinnamon with 20g of flour and 50g of brown sugar). This is similar to how I make my sourdough cinnamon swirl loaf.

Let’s make this loaf!

Weigh out your sourdough starter, brown sugar and cold brew coffee into a large bowl. Mix together briefly. Then add your flour and salt and mix whole lot together to form a shaggy dough. Cover your bowl with a plastic bowl cover or damp dish towel and let it sit for around 1 hour.

After the dough has been through fermentolyse you need to bring it together into a ball and basically taking the dough from a shaggy mess, to something a little more structured. Over the next few hours you need to create some structure for your dough by “stretching and folding”.

Once your dough is strong and elastic from the stretching and folding, you’ll need to let it bulk ferment at room temperature until it’s doubled. The time it takes will really depend on the temperature of your home and the strength of your sourdough starter. You can see the difference in my dough from when I finished stretch and folds to when the dough finished bulk fermentation below.

Once your dough has finished it’s first ferment, it’s time to shape it into either a boule or a batard. I’ve chosen to shape this loaf into a batard. Make sure you give the dough plenty of tension before placing it into a banneton or shaping container.

Stitch the top of the dough together if you need to. Let the dough cold ferment in the banneton for at least 5 hours. I like the leave this loaf overnight in the fridge if I can.

Once you’re ready to bake your sourdough, you’ll need to preheat your oven to 230ºC/450ºF. When your oven is at temperature, take your sourdough out of the fridge. Gently place it onto a piece of parchment paper and score your dough with a bread lame or clean razor blade. 

Bake your cold brew sourdough loaf for 30 minutes with the lid on at 230ºC/450ºF plus 10-15 minutes with the lid off at 210ºC/410ºF. When you remove your dough from the oven, carefully remove it from the dutch oven as soon as possible and place on a wire rack to cool.

Baking Timeline

This is an example baking timeline you can follow when making this cold brew sourdough bread. Feel free to adjust the timing to suit your own schedule. You might also find my post on creating sourdough baking timelines helpful when planning your bake.

TIME	PROCESS
9 am	Premix and autolyse for around an hour, forming up the dough and leaving to rest for another 30 minutes before stretch and folds.
11 am	1st stretch and fold
11.30 am	2nd stretch and fold – add half the carrots, raisins and pecans.
12 pm	3rd stretch and fold – add other half of the carrots, raisins and pecans.
12.30 pm	4th stretch and fold
1 pm	Bulk fermentation at room temperature.
6 pm	Shape dough into a batard, place into banneton and then into fridge for cold fermentation.
9 am	Wake and bake! The next morning, you can get up, make a coffee and bake your sourdough cold brew loaf!

What To Serve with Cold Brew Sourdough Loaf

I love serving this delicious sourdough cold brew loaf with salted maple butter. It is also amazing toasted and topped with homemade nutella, cultured butter or whipped honey cinnamon butter. The possibilities are endless!

How to Store + Freeze

This cold brew sourdough loaf is best enjoyed fresh or within the first 24 hours while the crust is still crisp and the crumb is soft. You can keep the loaf at room temperature for a few days, but over time the crust will soften and the interior will begin to firm up.

For longer storage, slice the loaf and place the slices into a Ziploc bag or freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. The slices toast beautifully straight from frozen, making them perfect for quick breakfasts or an easy snack.

Share the sourdough love!