08/26/2025
Sourdough tech tip of the day. The term "sourdough" has become somewhat generic these days and the mega supermarket brands have profited by misleading the consumer toward an inferior product.
Sourdough is the oldest type of raised bread and implies NATURAL (vs commercially produced) levain. Vienna bread (still a nice simple low ingredient count product... our Italian or French are this type of bread) was introduced around the late 19th century. Its softer texture and flavor (still very flavorful and ye**ty tasting) immediately made it popular for sandwiches and essentially replaced what was at that time considered antiquated sourdough. In the early to mid 20th century, Wonder bread was introduced (full of dough conditioners and preservatives). Although it's mentioned for history's sake, this doesn't count as bread. It's soft and lasts a few weeks at room temperature, it tastes like the 75 ingredient names you can't pronounce.
Now to bring us to today. You WILL NOT find true Sourdough Bread in the majority of grocery stores. If you see YEAST listed in the ingredients of a quote "Sourdough" bread, move on. Sourdough should contain ONLY flour, water, salt (3 main ingredients). This is not criticizing the use of dusting cornmeal, rice flour, specialty flavors, etc. But if you are looking for true Sourdough bread, there should be no yeast, no dough conditioners, and no preservatives.
Sourdough doesn't need preservatives, since the natural acids produced in the fermentation process extend the product's shelf life without artificially produced preservatives.
TLDR short version... If you, as the informed consumer, want quality; true Sourdough bread, your choices are: 1. A farmer's market (biased... but it really is one of the best choices) 2. A quality local bakery 3. DIY. Everything else is a poor counterfeit of the real deal. Don't miss out on the great flavors and textures that make up REAL Sourdough Bread!