Soft, tender and rich, this jam Brown bread with molasses and sourdough is made with simple ingredients and it tastes even better than what you can get at Outback.

Why bake it?

I love baking with sourdough and love Outback brown bread. It took me a while to create a copycat version of Sourdough, but it’s finally here!

This bread combines white and whole wheat flour, with a hint of sweetness and a rich flavor. It’s perfect as a barbecue side dish and makes delicious soft sandwich bread that won’t fall apart.

ingredients

Active sourdough: Your starter must be active for this recipe to work.

Whole grain and all-purpose flour: Use both flours. No need for flour for high protein bread. I’ve tried both all-purpose and bread flour, and the first makes softer bread.

Molasses: Adds depth of flavor. I use fancy molasses, but blackstrap can be used for a less sweet bread. As a substitute for molasses, use an equal amount of honey. This will make the bread sweeter, with a lighter color and less caramel taste.

Oil: Use vegetable oil, avocado oil, canola oil or other unscented oil. You can also substitute melted butter (unsalted or salted).

honey: Choose your favorite honey. For a vegan version, substitute maple syrup or my vegan honey, which tastes very similar to the real thing.

cornmeal (optional): Cornmeal is optional, but I love the texture it adds to these rolls. If you don’t want to use it, no problem: just flour the baking sheet and top the buns with your favorite topping (I use oatmeal when I bake my factory brownie cheesecake rolls!), or skip it altogether.

How to do it

Start by making your sourdough starter. It needs to be active, so feed it 6 to 8 hours before you plan to use this recipe.

Step 01. In a bowl, mix water, yeast, honey, molasses and oil. I use a stand mixer to mix it all together, but a spoon will work too.

Step 02. Add wholemeal and all-purpose flour, cocoa powder and salt. Mix until a dough forms.

Step 03. Knead for about 8 minutes if using a stand mixer or 15 to 20 minutes if doing it by hand.

Step 04. Transfer the dough to a clean bowl, cover so the top doesn’t dry out, and let rise for 6 to 8 hours, or until the dough has risen to about 75% of its original size.

Tip 01: This dough is a bit tedious to knead by hand as it can be very sticky at first. If you have trouble kneading, try wetting or flouring your hands.

Tip 02: If you wish, grease the bowl so that the dough does not stick. I usually don’t; mine sticks a little on the side but i can easily remove it as you can see in the video.

Step 05. After bulk fermentation, you can choose to let it ferment cold for up to 48 hours or mold and bake. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Let them rest for 10 minutes before shaping.

Step 06. On a clean surface, roll out each piece of dough into a rectangle with your hands. Again, if you have trouble working with this dough, you can wet or flour your hands and/or flour the surface you will be working on.

Step 07. Roll the dough into a log and press the ends together to close the roll.

Step 08. Place each shaped roll on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and dusted with cornmeal. The cornmeal will prevent the dough from sticking to the parchment paper. Sprinkle cornmeal over the top of each roll and let them rise, covered, for 1 hour to 1.5 hours.

When done, they will look and feel puffy. Don’t worry if your rolls don’t rise too much; mine never do, but they develop quite well in the oven.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Uncover and bake the roll for 25 to 30 minutes. Let them cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Expert advice

Want to keep the crust softer for longer? You can copy what I do whenever I bake my Subway Bread and brush the top with butter when I take it out of the oven!

Do not add more than the specified amount of whole wheat flourotherwise the buns may not turn out so soft.

I add both cups and grams when I share my bread recipes, but I recommend getting a kitchen scale and sticking to grams if possible. This will give you a better result, especially if you are a novice baker and a beginner in baking bread and sourdough.

Questions you may have

Can I make sandwich bread from this recipe? Yes, you can make a sourdough brown bread sandwich with this recipe. If you do this when shaping, follow the instructions for my Sourdough Sandwich Bread.

Can I use the proofing function in my oven during bulk fermentation (first rise)? Yes, you can. I did it for this recipe, especially in the winter when my dough has a harder time rising, and it gave me good results. It usually takes 5 to 6 hours for the dough to rise when rising in the oven.

Can I make the dough in the evening and let it rise at room temperature overnight? Yes, you can let it rise overnight on the counter. Because of the honey and molasses in this recipe, the dough may take a little longer to rise, so it’s fine to let it rise overnight.

Can I make dinner rolls from this recipe? Yes, you can make dinner rolls with this recipe. If you do, follow the directions for shaping these Sourdough Dinner Loaves.

Storage and freezing

If these rolls are stored properly, they will keep for up to a week. After cooling, store in a bread container or bag, away from sunlight. You can store in an airtight container (make sure it’s clean, as high temperatures can cause mold to grow).

To freeze, wait for the rolls to cool. Then place each in a freezer-safe bag, seal and store in the freezer. They are stored for up to 3 months.

More sourdough bread recipes

Have you tried mine Brown bread rolls with kvass? Please leave a 🌟 star rating in the recipe card below, I’d love to know how it went!

📖 Recipe

Brown bread with molasses and sourdough

Tatyana Kamakura

Soft, tender and rich, this Sweet Sourdough Molasses Brown Bread is made with simple ingredients and tastes even better than what you can get at Outback.

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