When most people think of sourdough bread, they think of it as a trendy, wholesome, more artisanal form of bread-making. And while it may be all of those things, this doesn’t tell the full story. Sourdough bread might be trending now, but it’s actually been around longer than your standard store-bought white bread. Let’s dive into the nature of sourdough bread and discuss what makes it so healthy and unique.
Wild Yeast vs. Artificial Yeast
What separates sourdough bread from store-bought bread is that it’s baked with wild yeast. This means that throughout the baking process, the baker must use something called a “starter”, which is essentially dough that has gone through multiple culture iterations, harboring natural, wild yeast.
In fact, this is the way bread was made for centuries until mass-produced bread came into the picture. This brings us to how most people make bread, using store-bought yeast. The reason that artificial yeast even exists is that corporations decided that the best way to mass-produce bread would be to implement artificial yeast—but this is significantly less natural and less healthy than wild, organic yeast.
A Healthier Experience
In fact, wild yeast provides beneficial bacteria that help break down gluten and phytic acid—which makes it much easier to digest the bread you’re eating. This is just one of the many reasons that sourdough bread is healthier than standard bread—so try it out if you haven’t yet!
