This was the first sourdough bread recipe I ever came up with. I loved the idea of Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough Bread because as I've mentioned before, everyone in my family loves spicy food. The cheese is just an added bonus! Once I had mastered this, I went on to a more traditional sourdough bread recipe.
Why This Recipe Works
Over the years, I've tried many sourdough bread recipes. Some were great, some left a lot to be desired. Taking some hints from the good recipes, and adding a few ideas of my own, I came up with this Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough recipe.
Although it's not a "true sourdough" since I add yeast along with sourdough starter, I like the fact that it doesn't take as long as most true sourdoghs take to develope.
Making bread is not an exact science, there are so many variants that can affect the outcome. My advice is to have fun with it and give it time. If the bread isn't perfect, you can easily use it to make bread crumbs, croutons, or even garlic bread.
Worst-case scenario, you can feed it to the ducks! Just make sure you remove the jalapeños first. 😉
What Goes Into This Recipe
Recipe Ingredient Notes
- Butter — If you don't have butter, you may use olive oil.
- Jalapeños — The jalapeños can be replace with Serranos, or your favorite peppers.
- Sourdough Starter — Be sure your starter is active and bubbly before using. Take a small portion and plop it in a glass of water. If it doesn't float, it's not ready to be used.
How to Make Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough
- Place one cup of flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add sugar, salt, and yeast, and mix to combine.
2. Add water and butter to a measuring cup. Microwave for approximately 30 seconds and pour over the other ingredients in the bowl, along with the sourdough starter. Mix on medium until combined.
3. Continue to add flour, ½ a cup at a time. Mix after each addition. The dough should to be slightly sticky. Knead for five minutes.
4. Add cheese and jalapeños to the bowl, and mix on low. Over mixing will cause the cheese to disintegrate, which is not your goal.
5. Remove the dough and shape into a ball. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to oil the surface. Cover and allow to rise for 2 hours, or until doubled in volume. After a few hours, the dough should have risen significantly.
6. Punch down the dough, and form into a loaf. Place on a baking stone, or a baking tray that's covered with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Cover the dough loosely and place it in a warm location for one hour.
7. After an hour has elapsed, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. When the oven is ready, make a few slits into the top of the loaf. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until nicely browned. If you used a banneton basket, carefully invert the basket over a lined tray to release the loaf from the basket, then follow the steps mentioned above.
8. Allow to cool completely before cutting.
Recipe FAQs and Expert Tips
It's easy to find sourdough starter recipes on the internet. However, if you don't want to deal with the hassle of making your own, you can purchase it pre-made online; some claiming to be over 100 years old!
Being adventurous, I decided to make my own starter, which was in January of 2017. As it has matured over the months, it has developed that classic sourdough flavor.
In this recipe, we're adding cheese and jalapeños to our sourdough, but what are some other ingredients that can be added to your sourdough bread?
Olives are a great addition to sourdough, Kalamata olives are a great option! Or you can add herbs like basil, chives, oregano, or rosemary. Or how about some roasted garlic? You can also add seeds, for example, pumpkin or sunflower seeds.
- Start with a good starter. Before you can make amazing Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough Bread, you need a good sourdough starter; an equal mixture of water and flour, left in a warm environment to capture wild yeast. The starter is then fed more flour and water at regular intervals to help it develop further. The longer the starter is maintained the better it gets and the deeper and more complex the flavor becomes.
- You might consider purchasing a banneton proofing basket for the second proofing. This basket helps the dough to keep its shape, instead of spreading.
- Since the dough has jalapeños in it, you might want to wear some latex gloves for the next part, or you can be like me, and live on the edge!
- The cheese and peppers are not going to want to easily incorporate into the dough. This means you might have to poke them in with your finger and work the dough a bit to shape it, as you push the peppers and cheese inside the loaf.
Related Recipes
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Easy Jalapeño-Cheddar Sourdough Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups white flour
- 1 T. sugar
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 ½ tsp. yeast
- ½ cup warm water
- 1 T. softened butter
- ¾ cup sourdough starter
- ¾ cup sharp cheddar cheese cubed
- 2 jalapeños chopped
Instructions
- Place one cup of flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add sugar, salt, and yeast, and mix to combine.
- Add water and butter to a measuring cup. Microwave for approximately 30 seconds and pour over the other ingredients in the bowl, along with the sourdough starter. Mix on medium until combined.
- Continue to add flour, ½ a cup at a time. Mix after each addition. The dough should to be slightly sticky. Knead for five minutes.
- Add cheese and jalapeños to the bowl, and mix on low. Over mixing will cause the cheese to disintegrate, which is not your goal.
- Remove the dough and shape into a ball. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to oil the surface. Cover and allow to rise for 2 hours, or until doubled in volume. After a few hours, the dough should have risen significantly.
- Punch down the dough, and form into a loaf. Place on a baking stone, or a baking tray that's covered with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Cover the dough loosely and place it in a warm location for one hour.
- After an hour has elapsed, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. When the oven is ready, make a few slits into the top of the loaf. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until nicely browned. If you used a banneton basket, carefully invert the basket over a lined tray to release the loaf from the basket, then follow the steps mentioned above.
- Allow to cool completely before cutting.
Notes
- Start with a good starter. Before you can make amazing Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough Bread, you need a good sourdough starter; an equal mixture of water and flour, left in a warm environment to capture wild yeast. The starter is then fed more flour and water at regular intervals to help it develop further. The longer the starter is maintained the better it gets and the deeper and more complex the flavor becomes.
- You might consider purchasing a banneton proofing basket for the second proofing. This basket helps the dough to keep its shape, instead of spreading.
- Since the dough has jalapeños in it, you might want to wear some latex gloves for the next part, or you can be like me, and live on the edge!
- The cheese and peppers are not going to want to easily incorporate into the dough. This means you might have to poke them in with your finger and work the dough a bit to shape it, as you push the peppers and cheese inside the loaf.
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