The Safest Way To Store Sourdough Bread

Unless your family devours whole loaves of sourdough bread, you’re going to need a safe way to store the leftovers. Otherwise, you could end up wasting whatever remains. And who wants to let even a crumb of sourdough bread go uneaten? Yet figuring out the best way to keep your sourdough bread from going stale or getting moldy can seem challenging, particularly if you’ve never had much success before. Rest assured that there are some proven strategies to keep your loaf delicious and edible.

You’ll be pleased to hear that sourdough bread may be more forgiving than other types of bread are when it comes to storage. As a 2020 study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry noted, the fermentation process involved in making sourdough gives every loaf the ability to last longer due to a delay of starch retrogradation, which is what causes bread to stale. Sourdough bread resists mold growth as well. A 2013 study in the American Society for Microbiology explains that this phenomenon comes from the bread’s antifungal nature. (Read about some fermented foods you should be eating.)

That said, sourdough bread won’t stay picture-perfect forever. Like all breads, it will start to lose its freshness if you leave it on the counter. Instead, you need to put measures into place to ensure that your loaf remains viable for several days.

The first suggestion to keep your sourdough bread from becoming too hard or moldy is to control the ambient humidity. Though you don’t want the environment your bread’s in to be too dry, you can’t expect it to stay edible in what feels like a rainforest. Aim for a place where the temperature is in the high 60s Fahrenheit and the humidity is less than 50%. 

One way to assure this kind of atmosphere is to invest in a bread box. Bread boxes are designed to provide a dark, room-temperature place where bread can rest, and can help you avoid common food storage mistakes that lead to waste and even food poisoning. In an interview with Food & Wine, food editor and podcaster Meghan Splawn explained just how functional and necessary a bread box can be. “Most folks don’t realize that a plastic or paper bakery bag won’t keep bread fresh, even if sealed up tight,” said Splawn. “A bread box is that extra layer of defense against air and moisture that can cause bread to spoil while keeping your counter tidy.”

What if you don’t want to invest in a bread box for your sourdough loaves? In that case, consider wrapping the bread loosely to encourage a little air circulation while discouraging staling and spoilage. A linen bag or towel can work for this purpose.

On the other hand, you can always go simple with the tried-and-true technique of just placing your sourdough loaf cut-side down on a wooden board or countertop. Though it may sound too easy to be true, experts say it works like a charm to keep sourdough bread safe. Drape a towel over it if you like or just leave it as it is. The cut-side-down bread should stay tasty for a few days in this position since the inside of the loaf won’t be exposed to air, and the outside crust should be thick and hearty anyway.

Of course, you might conclude that you can’t possibly eat your sourdough bread before it might turn stale or develop mold spots. (Side note: Toxic mold can look like unassuming white spots on bread.) In that case, consider putting it in a large, freezer-ready plastic bag. Be sure to push as much air from the bag as possible and then freeze the loaf or, better yet, individual slices from it. That way, you can have your sourdough bread on demand by thawing or toasting it.

Knowing how to keep your sourdough bread at its best for longer is better for your health and your budget. Plus, it ensures that you’ll be less likely to experience the disappointment of finding out that your bread isn’t butter-ready anymore.