Sourdough starter vs. commercial yeast for sandwich bread. I'm team commercial now.

Been making bread at home for about 2 years now. I always thought sourdough was the holy grail for flavor and texture, so I kept a 3 year old starter alive and fed it twice a day like a pet. But last month I ran out of starter during a big batch for a church bake sale and had to fall back on a packet of Fleischmann's active dry yeast for 6 loaves of white sandwich bread. The commercial yeast loaves came out taller, softer, and consistent every single time with no guesswork on timing. Meanwhile my sourdough loaves taste great but they're denser, take 2 days to make, and sometimes collapse if I sneeze near the proofing box. Am I the only one who's given up on the sourdough hype for standard everyday bread? What's your go-to for reliable sandwich loaves?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_sean1mo ago

Yeah the flavor trade off is real but so is the convenience when you got kids to feed.

andrew_jackson1mo ago

Blind side by side taste tests with my kids are what convinced me. Made two identical loaves one just sourdough with a pinch of baking soda to cut the tang and one straight commercial. Every single kid picked the commercial loaf as better every time. The sourdough starter is just a decoration in my fridge now, I only break it out when I want that specific chewy crust for artisan stuff.