Roasted garlic adds deliciously intense flavor to classic sourdough bread. But without complicating things too much! We’ve elevated our easy overnight sourdough bread recipe to include fresh garlic, plus shredded cheese and dried herbs, for an aromatic loaf that smells and tastes absolutely incredible. The eggless and dairy-free dough is simple to make with your discard and add-ins, and practically foolproof – even for beginning bakers! So you know you’ll be making a soft, tender, and tangy garlic sourdough bread every time. This is a very good thing because once you give this recipe a try you’ll be making it often!
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Roasted Garlic Sourdough Bread
Garlic lovers, this one’s for you! Here we have the ultimate garlic sourdough bread recipe, made with a whole head of freshly roasted garlic.
Roasting garlic not only adds mouthwatering flavor to the bread, but it doesn’t add any time to the basic overnight sourdough recipe used as the basis for this garlicky version.
Simply chop off the top of the whole bulb, wrap in aluminum with some oil, and pop in the hot oven until it reaches caramelized perfection. Then it’s good to go when the rested dough is ready to knead!
We also love to add melty shredded cheese, like Gruyere and asiago, plus a pinch of dried herbs, for an extra flavor boost to this cheesy garlic bread. Including a bit of all the goodies is my favorite, and I highly recommend you give at least one if not all a try, too!
You can of course skip the cheese for an eggless, dairy-free, and completely vegan garlic sourdough recipe.
Roasted garlic sourdough bread tastes elevated and more on the refined side. However, it is truly super simple and practically foolproof to make with sourdough discard and your choice of ingredients.
All of the add-ins are kneaded right into the dough. Then proof, and bake in a dutch oven (or other heavy pot) to crisp golden brown perfection.
Serve warm crusty pieces of bread at dinner, or use slices to make sandwiches. Or, better yet, go ahead and bake two loaves so all of your sourdough garlic cheese bread needs are covered!
Ingredients For this Garlic Sourdough Bread Recipe
The foundation of this recipe is a standard overnight sourdough recipe, which is made with only 5 simple vegan ingredients.
There are no eggs and the bread is dairy free. You do, however, need a sourdough starter that is active and ready to use.
Here is our fantastic Homemade Sourdough Starter recipe to get you started!
To make fluffy and tender bread with sourdough you need:
- Garlic – whole head, or see notes for substitutions
- Sourdough starter – unfed or discard
- Warm filtered water – if it’s too cold or hot the bread will not rise properly
- Bread flour – I typically use King Arthur Bread Flour
- Sea salt – a pinch to bring together the flavors
Optional (but highly recommended) ingredients:
- Shredded cheese – Gruyere or asiago cheese are our favorites
- Dried herbs – rosemary and/or thyme are great to pair with roasted garlic, but you can use any dried herbs you like
Kitchen Tools Needed
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How to Make The Perfect Sourdough Roasted Garlic Bread
Preheat your oven, toaster oven, or air fryer to 400ºF. Cut the top off of the garlic bulb, place it on a piece of foil, and drizzle oil over the garlic bulb. Seal the foil and bake or air fry for 30 minutes.
Start on your sourdough bread dough while the garlic is roasting.
In a large bowl, add the sourdough starter and water, stirring until dissolved. Add flour and salt and stir until a thick, shaggy dough forms. Finish mixing dough by hand, then cover the garlic sourdough and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
Once the garlic is done roasting, let cool for 5 minutes. Then mash or squeeze out the roasted garlic. Set aside 2 tablespoons to use for the sourdough garlic bread recipe.
Lightly flour your countertop and pull the dough from the bowl. Add the roasted garlic and cheese (if using) and knead in to mix for one minute. Return the sourdough to the bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise overnight in a warm space (70º-85ºF) for 8-10 hours. Overnight on the countertop or in the oven (turned off) is a good place. Do not refrigerate the dough.
Sprinkle flour on your countertop and shape the dough by stretching and folding for one minute. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
Prepare a bowl or banneton by flouring. If using dried rosemary or herbs, spread them across the flour before adding the dough over them. Add dough to the bowl and let rise for 30 – 60 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 450º (without the Dutch oven pot). Cover the dough bowl with a long piece of parchment paper, and turn it over onto the countertop. Slash the top of the loaf with a lame or sharp serrated knife.
Gently lower the baking sheet or parchment paper dough into a heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the lid. Do not preheat the pot.
Add the covered pot with your bread dough to the oven and bake the bread Place the covered pot with your bread dough in the oven and bake the bread covered for 30 minutes. Remove the lid from the pot and bake for 20 more minutes.
Then remove the bread from the pot (this is why we use parchment paper) and bake it directly on the oven rack for 5-10 minutes to crisp the exterior.
Let cool for 1 hour before cutting and serving.
Frequently asked Questions
Keep the loaf stored in a bag at room temperature for up to 5 days. Avoid refrigerating to keep the crust soft and chewy.
Sourdough bread does freeze very well. Place the cooled loaf in an airtight zipper bag, making sure to release as much air as possible from the bag. Keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost on the counter at room temperature before slicing and enjoying.
If you prefer a stronger sourdough taste to your sourdough bread, there are a few ways to do this. One is to feed your starter less frequently to make it more acidic in flavor. Another is to let your sourdough bread dough rise longer. This works well during cooler months when you can let it rise for up to 14 hours. During warmer months, let it rise in the fridge for up to 8 hours, then room temperature for 6-8 hours.
The Best Sourdough Garlic Bread Recipe
Garlic Sourdough Bread
Equipment
- Aluminum foil - (12" x 12" sheets)
- heavy pot with with lid, like a dutch oven cast iron pot - (4 or 5 quart pot)
- 30" sheet of parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 head garlic (see notes for substitutions)
- ¼ cup (60 grams) sourdough starter, unfed or discard
- 1½ cups (350 grams) filtered water (95º to 100º F)
- 4 ¼ cups (500 grams) bread flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon (9 grams) sea salt
optional
- 1 cup (4 ounces or 100 grams) Gruyere cheese or asiago cheese, shredded (cheddar cheese can be substituted)
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary (use your favorite dried herbs)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven for 400ºF (this works well in a toaster oven or air fryer, too). Turn the garlic bulb on its side, and cut the top off of the garlic bulb with a sharp knife. Add it to the center of the piece of aluminum foil and drizzle oil over the top of the cut garlic bulb. Twist the top of the foil to completely seal the foil, and bake it in the oven for 30 minutes. Start your sourdough bread while the garlic is roasting.
- In a large bowl, add the sourdough starter. Mix in warm, filtered water, stirring until dissolved. Add bread flour and salt. Stir with a dough whisk or wooden spoon until a thick, shaggy dough forms. Wet your hands, and finish mixing dough by hand. Cover the sourdough with a clean, damp kitchen towel and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Once the garlic is done roasting, use scissors to cut the top of the foil. Using tongs, remove the garlic to a cutting board or a plate. Turn the garlic on its side and mash the garlic with a large fork to squeeze the roasted garlic out. Use 2 tablespoons for the sourdough garlic bread recipe.
- Lightly flour your countertop or surface then coax the dough from the bowl. Add the roasted garlic and cheese (if using) to the top of the dough, then knead them in for about 1 minute. The fillings should be evenly distributed in the dough.
- Return the sourdough to the bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise overnight in a warm space (70º-85ºF) for 8-10 hours. On the countertop or in the oven (turned off) is a good place. Do not refrigerate the dough.
- After fermentation or bulk rise, lightly flour your countertop and shape the dough by stretching and folding: pull an edge of the dough 5" and tuck it into the middle of the dough, then rotate the dough 1/4 of a turn and stretch and fold again. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
- Line a medium bowl with a floured towel, or use a banneton bowl with a linen cover and dust heavily with flour. If using dried rosemary or herbs, spread them across the flour before adding the dough. Add dough to bowl and let rise for 30 – 60 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 450º (without the Dutch oven pot). Cover the dough bowl with a long piece of parchment paper, and turn it over onto the countertop. Slash the top of the loaf with a lame or sharp serrated knife. Gently lower the parchment paper dough into a heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the lid. Do not preheat the pot.
- Place the covered pot with your bread dough in the oven and bake the bread covered for 30 minutes. Remove the lid from the pot and bake for 20 more minutes. Then remove the bread from the pot (this is why we use parchment paper) and bake it directly on the oven rack for 5-10 minutes to crisp the exterior.
- Let cool at least one hour before cutting and serving.
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Martha says
This sounds delicious, I hope you can share the recipe to make the sourdough
Renae says
We have a homemade sourdough starter recipe: https://thefeatherednester.com/homemade-sourdough-starter/. If you scroll down to the recipe in this post, you’ll see that the recipe is linked where it says: sourdough starter, fed or unfed