My recent cheesy white sub recipe turned out super delicious, and that crispy cheesy crust was something extra special. But I need to step back sometimes and make equally as delicious healthy counterparts of those types of recipes. So, here we have seeded 50/50 white and whole wheat subs. They’re soft and bouncy and full of complex flavours.
You can customize this recipe to your taste. Swap the seeds for other ones or leave them out altogether. Change the ratio of flours if you want more whole-wheat (at the cost of softness). Shape the dough into buns instead of subs if you want to use them for some hearty burgers.
I went with cold bulk fermentation because it is the most convenient method for my schedule. If you want to make them on the same day, then do the bulk fermentation at room temperature for 1.5 hours giving the dough a fold halfway through. Continue as per recipe after that.
This recipe makes 3 large subs or 4 burger buns.
Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.
Ingredients
For the scald –
50g (1.75oz) whole wheat bread flour
20g (0.7oz) butter
15g (0.5oz) barley malt syrup or any other sweetener
6g (0.21oz) salt
30g (1oz) seeds
240g (8.5oz) boiling water
For the dough –
3g (0.1oz) instant dry yeast or 3.6g (0.13oz) active dry yeast or 9g (0.32oz) fresh yeast
1 egg yolk
100g (3.5oz) whole wheat bread flour
150g (5.3oz) white bread flour
For topping –
1 egg white
30g (1oz) seeds
My seed mix –
15g (0.5oz) black sesame seed
15g (0.5oz) white sesame seed
10g (0.35oz) poppy seed
5g (0.17oz) caraway seed
5g (0.17oz) dill seed
5g (0.17oz) fennel seed
5g (0.17oz) coriander seed
To learn more about no-knead bread dough temperature control click here.
The flour I use has a protein content of 13%. If your flour is weaker, then you may need to lower the hydration.
If you are using active dry yeast, then you may need to let it sit in the scald for 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients or else it could take a lot longer to raise the dough.
If you are curious about why the dough contains butter, egg, and sugar, click the links to learn more about the effects those ingredients have on bread dough.
Method
- Toast 30g (1oz) of the seeds for 2 minutes on high heat in a dry pan. They will be mixed into the dough. You can leave them untoasted if you like. Grinding them is also optional.
- Make the scald. Combine the flour, butter, syrup, salt, and seeds in a large bowl. Pour in the boiling water and mix until smooth. Cover and leave to cool down.
- Make the dough. Add the yeast, egg yolk, and whole wheat flour to the cooled down scald. Mix well. Add the white flour and mix to a dough. *Desired dough temperature around 23C (73F). If your dough is at this temperature, then chill it right away. If it turns out cooler, like mined did, then leave it at room temperature.
- Ferment the dough for 30 minutes.
- Fold.
- Cold ferment for 18 – 24 hours.
- Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces and shape into balls.
- Rest for 30 minutes.
- Shape, cover and proof for 1.5 hours. At room temperature it may take only 1 hour.
- Brush the subs with egg white and top with seeds.
- Bake at 170C (340F) fan on or 190C (375F) fan off for 25 minutes.
Leave to cool down and make yourself a delicious sandwich!
Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.
Your oven may be different too, so your baking time may vary.
