Pan loaves are where sourdough stops being a performance. The tin holds the shape, the crumb is fine, and the only things that can go wrong are tunnels, a domed top, and a gummy centre. This is a 70% loaf with 8% whole wheat for colour, baked in a 23 x 13 cm tin, and it is the bread that disappears fastest in this house.
Fine crumb is a shaping decision, not a hydration decision
Most people try to get a sandwich crumb by dropping the water. That gives you a dense loaf with tunnels, because a dry dough traps air in big pockets when it is rolled. The crumb here comes from rolling the dough out flat, pressing out the gas with the palms, and rolling it up tightly twice — a process that deliberately removes the big bubbles rather than trying to prevent them from forming.
| Stage | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bulk | 4 h at 25 °C to 50% rise |
| Cold retard | 9 h at 4 °C |
| Shaping | Roll flat, degas, roll tight, roll again, seam centred |
| Pan | 23 x 13 cm, lined, dough fills 60% of the height |
| Bake | 220 °C, 12 min steam, 38 min total |
Why the top comes out square
The dough is shaped to about 3 cm shorter than the tin on each end. A pan loaf that fills the tin before baking will mushroom over the rim and split at the sides. If the shaped log springs back when you press it, it is too tight — rest it 15 minutes and re-roll gently. After 38 minutes the internal temperature reads 96 °C and the loaf slides out of the tin without sticking.
Toast, croutons and the day-three loaf
This is not a loaf for the first day. It slices cleanly 12 hours after baking, toasts better on day two, and makes croutons on day three that hold their shape in soup. The 8% whole wheat is doing real work here: without it, the crust is thin and papery and the loaf tastes flat at 70% hydration.
A sourdough pan loaf with no commercial yeast needs the full 4-hour bulk. Shortening it to 3 hours produces a loaf that rises in the tin but collapses 10 minutes after it leaves the oven.