Soft Multigrain Sandwich Bread

Ingredients

The Scald (2 Hours Ahead, or the Night Before)

Boiling water poured over ground cereal and a small amount of flour. The starch gelatinizes and holds water through the bake, which is where the soft crumb comes from.

• 60g (⅓ cup) seven grain hot cereal, ground fine
• 40g (⅓ cup) bread flour
• 200g (¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons) boiling water
• 1g (⅛ teaspoon) fine sea salt

The Dough

Mostly bread flour with just enough whole wheat for flavor. This loaf is built for softness, so the whole grain stays low and the grain that's there has been ground and scalded.

• 360g (3 cups) bread flour
• 50g (⅓ cup plus 2 tablespoons) whole wheat flour
• 180g (¾ cup) whole milk, lukewarm (about 95F / 35C)
• 20g (¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon) nonfat dry milk powder
• 45g (2 tablespoons) honey
• 40g (2¾ tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 8g (1¼ teaspoons) fine sea salt
• 6g (2 teaspoons) instant yeast

The Top

Whole grains on the outside, since the grains on the inside have been ground smooth.

• 10g (2 teaspoons) whole milk, for brushing
• 12g (2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon) old-fashioned rolled oats

Total flour: 450g

Hydration: 65%

Pro tip: Grinding the cereal is the step that separates this loaf from the others in the series. Thirty seconds in a spice grinder, coffee grinder, or the dry cup of a blender takes it from cracked grain to a coarse meal. Ground cereal has far more surface area, so the boiling water gelatinizes it more completely and no hard bits survive into the finished slice. That's how you get grain flavor with zero grit, which is what wins over people who say they don't like multigrain bread.

Equipment

Method

Make the Scald

A scald is boiling water poured over starch. The starch granules swell, burst, and lock water into a gel that survives the oven. It's the same principle behind tangzhong, run on multigrain cereal instead of white flour.

1. Grind the Cereal. Put the seven grain cereal in a spice grinder, coffee grinder, or dry blender and pulse for about 30 seconds, until it looks like coarse cornmeal. A few larger pieces are fine. You're not making flour, just breaking the grain down so the hot water can reach inside it.
2. Combine Dry. Whisk the ground cereal, the 40g of bread flour, and the salt together in a medium heatproof bowl. Mixing them dry first keeps the flour from clumping when the water hits it.
3. Pour and Whisk Hard. Pour the boiling water over the mixture all at once and whisk immediately and hard for about a minute. It will thicken under the whisk into a smooth, glossy paste about the consistency of thick oatmeal. Lumps here become lumps in the loaf, so keep whisking until it's smooth.
4. Cover and Cool. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface so a skin doesn't form, then let it cool to room temperature. Two hours on the counter, or make it the night before and refrigerate it. If it's cold from the fridge, let it sit out for 30 minutes before mixing.

Wait: PT2H

Tip: The water has to be actually boiling. Hot tap water or water that's stopped bubbling won't gelatinize the starch, and you'll end up with a wet paste that behaves like plain water in the dough. Boil it in a kettle and pour it the second it stops rolling.

Mix the Dough

The scald goes in with everything else. It looks like it will make the dough sloppy and it doesn't, because the water in it is already bound up in gelatinized starch.

1. Combine Everything but the Butter. In the mixer bowl, add both flours, the milk, dry milk powder, honey, salt, yeast, and the whole cooled scald. Mix on low with the dough hook for 2 minutes until no dry flour remains. The dough will look pasty and slightly odd at this stage. It comes around.
2. Rest 20 Minutes. Cover and rest. A short autolyse gives the whole wheat time to soften and lets the scald finish distributing itself through the dough.
3. Add the Butter. Add the softened butter in three or four pieces with the mixer on low. It will look like the dough is separating. Keep the mixer running and it pulls back together within two minutes.
4. Knead to a Strong Window. Mix on medium-low for 9 to 11 minutes. This dough needs more development than the others in the series, because the scald has already given up some of its protein and the rest has to carry the loaf. Check the windowpane test: you want a thin, even, translucent film that doesn't tear. Keep going until you get it.
5. By Hand Instead. Mix until shaggy, rest 20 minutes, work the butter in with your fingers, then slap and fold on the counter for 12 to 14 minutes with three rests of 5 minutes in the middle. The rests do a lot of the work, and this dough is soft enough that hand mixing is genuinely pleasant.

Tip: This is the one recipe in the series where I'd tell you to chase a real windowpane. The scald buys you softness by giving up structure, so the gluten you build in the mixer is the only thing holding the loaf up. Underkneaded scald dough bakes into a short loaf with a damp streak near the bottom.

Bulk Fermentation

A short, warm rise. bulk fermentation moves quickly here with 1.3% yeast, honey, and milk sugars all feeding it.

1. Round and Cover. Shape the dough into a smooth ball, drop it into a lightly oiled container, and cover it. Mark the starting height.
2. Rise Until Doubled. Rise at room temperature for 1¼ hours, until the dough has genuinely doubled. Unlike the whole grain loaves in this series, this one can and should double, because there's little grain interrupting the gluten and plenty of structure to spare.

Wait: PT1H15M

Tip: A scald dough feels tacky the whole way through and never stops feeling a little soft. Resist the urge to add flour to fix it. That tackiness is bound water in the gelatinized starch and it's the entire reason this loaf stays soft on day three.

Shape and Pan

One tight roll. A soft dough is easy to shape and just as easy to leave a tunnel in, so keep the pressure on.

1. Degas and Pat. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and press it flat with your palms to push the big bubbles out. Pat it into a rectangle as long as your pan and about ¾ inch thick.
2. Roll Tight. Roll it up snugly from the short edge, pinching the seam closed as you go. This dough rolls beautifully and holds its shape, so use that and roll firmly.
3. Pan It. Seam side down in a greased 9 by 5 pan, pressed gently into the corners so it rises level from end to end.

Tip: For the bakery look, divide the dough into three equal pieces, roll each into a tight log, and set them side by side across the pan. Three small logs proof into a loaf with three gentle domes on top and a finer, more even crumb than a single roll gives you.

Final Proof

About an hour, and this loaf goes higher over the rim than the whole grain versions do. It has the strength for it.

1. Proof Until Well Domed. Cover loosely and proof 50 to 70 minutes, until the crown of the dough sits 1 to 1½ inches above the rim of the pan.
2. Poke It. Use the poke test. A floured fingertip should leave a dent that fills back in slowly and stops just short of level. This dough is soft, so press gently and read carefully.
3. Brush and Top. Brush the top with milk, not water, then scatter the rolled oats over it. The milk sugars and proteins glue the oats down as the loaf bakes so they don't end up all over your counter.

Wait: PT1H

Tip: Start the oven 20 minutes before you expect the loaf to be ready. An overproofed scald loaf caves in the center as it cools, because the gelatinized starch is heavy and there's less gluten holding it up than in an ordinary dough.

Bake and Cool

Moderate heat. Between the honey, the milk, and the milk powder, this loaf browns fast and needs a lower oven than a lean bread would.

1. Bake. Bake at 350F (175C) on the lower-middle rack for 35 to 40 minutes. Rotate the pan front to back at the 20 minute mark.
2. Tent Early. Milk powder browns faster than anything else in this loaf. Expect to tent it loosely with foil around the 22 minute mark, and don't take deep color as a sign it's finished.
3. Check Internal Temperature. Done is 195F to 200F (90C to 93C) in the center. A scald loaf is the easiest bread in this series to underbake, because the gelatinized starch holds so much water that the crumb reads soft even when it's still wet.
4. Cool Completely. Out of the pan immediately onto a wire rack. Wait at least 2 hours before slicing. I know it's soft and warm and smells like the best idea you've had all week. Wait anyway.
5. Butter the Top. Brush the crust with a little butter as soon as it comes out of the pan. On this loaf that's not optional if soft is what you're after. It keeps the top crust tender instead of leathery.

Tip: This is the loaf that changes minds. If you've got someone at your table who says they don't like multigrain bread, hand them a slice of this without telling them what it is. The grain flavor is all there and the grit is completely gone.

Shaping Options

A soft, strong dough that takes any sandwich format you want to throw at it.

Single Tight Roll (Recommended) (recommended)

The simple version. One roll, seam down, in a 9 by 5 pan.

1. Degas and Pat. Press flat to push out the big bubbles, then pat to a rectangle as long as the pan.
2. Roll Tight. Roll from the short edge, pinching the seam as you go.
3. Pan. Seam side down, pressed into the corners.

Three Log Bakery Loaf

Three small rolls side by side across the pan. Finer crumb, and the three domes on top look like they came from a shop.

1. Divide. Three equal pieces of about 337g each.
2. Roll Each. Pat each piece flat, roll it into a tight log about the width of the pan.
3. Arrange. Set the three logs side by side across the pan, seams down, touching.

Nine Soft Rolls

Pull-apart dinner rolls in a square pan. The scald makes these the softest rolls you'll bake.

1. Divide. Nine pieces of about 112g each, weighed.
2. Round. Round each one tight and set them in a greased 9 by 9 inch pan in a three by three grid, barely touching.
3. Bake. Proof 45 to 55 minutes until they've merged, then bake at 350F (175C) for 22 to 26 minutes to 195F (90C). Butter the tops out of the oven.

Proof test: Press gently with a floured fingertip. The dent should fill in slowly and stop a little short of level. Press lightly on this one. It's soft enough that a hard poke leaves a permanent dent in the finished loaf.

Bake the Loaf

Standard oven, no steam. A low, steady heat that lets the center finish before the crust goes too dark.

Oven: 175°C / 350°F. Internal temperature when done: 90-93°C / 195-200°F.

Standard Oven Bake (recommended)

One pan, uncovered, tented partway through.

Equipment: One 9 by 5 inch loaf pan, lower-middle rack

1. Preheat. Preheat to 350F (175C) for at least 20 minutes, rack in the lower-middle position.
2. Bake. 35 to 40 minutes, rotating front to back at 20 minutes.
3. Tent. Tent loosely with foil at about 22 minutes. The milk powder browns early.
4. Verify. Pull at 195F to 200F (90C to 93C) in the center.
5. Butter and Cool. Out of the pan immediately, brush the top with butter, cool 2 hours on a rack.

Lidded Pullman Pan

For square slices and the tightest, most even crumb this dough can give you. Use a 9 by 4 inch Pullman pan.

Equipment: 9 by 4 inch Pullman pan with lid

1. Proof to Two Thirds. Proof until the dough reaches about two thirds up the side of the pan, then slide the lid on. Skip the milk wash and oats, since they'd stick to the lid.
2. Bake Lidded. Bake at 350F (175C) for 35 minutes with the lid on.
3. Finish. Pull the lid and bake 5 more minutes to set the top. Verify at 195F to 200F (90C to 93C).

Note: Tent early and bake to temperature. Between the honey, the milk, and the milk powder, this loaf will look done at 25 minutes and still have a wet center. The thermometer is the only opinion that counts.

Storage

• Room temperature: 4 days in a sealed bread bag or a lidded box, which is a day or two longer than most homemade loaves. The gelatinized starch in the scald keeps giving water back to the crumb.
• Refrigerated: Skip the fridge. Bread goes stale faster at refrigerator temperature than it does on the counter.
• Frozen: Up to 3 months. Slice the whole loaf first, freeze in a bag with the air pressed out, and toast slices straight from frozen.
• Refresh: Sprinkle with water and warm at 325F (165C) for 8 minutes. This loaf is soft enough that it rarely needs refreshing before day four.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between this and the Everyday Multigrain Sandwich Bread?

Same family, two different goals. The everyday loaf uses a plain soaker with whole cracked grain left intact, so you see and feel the grain in every slice, and it makes two loaves. This one grinds the cereal, scalds it with boiling water to gelatinize the starch, and adds milk powder. What you get is a much softer, finer, pillowy crumb with grain flavor and no texture at all. Bake both. The comparison teaches you more about soakers than either loaf does alone.

Do I really have to grind the cereal?

For this loaf, yes. Whole cracked grain has too little surface area for boiling water to gelatinize it properly, so you'd get a scald with hard bits floating in it and lose the whole point. Thirty seconds in a spice grinder or the dry cup of a blender does it. If you don't have a grinder, use the Everyday Multigrain recipe instead, which is built around whole grain on purpose.

Can I skip the dry milk powder?

You can, and the loaf will still be good, just slightly less soft and a shade paler. Milk powder adds protein and milk sugars without adding water, which is a useful thing when you're already carrying 200g of scald. If you leave it out, add 10g more honey and expect a lighter crust color.

Is a scald the same thing as tangzhong?

Close relatives. Tangzhong cooks flour and liquid together in a pan to about 149F (65C). Yudane pours boiling water over flour with no cooking. This scald is the yudane approach applied to multigrain cereal rather than white flour. All three do the same job, which is gelatinizing starch so it holds water through the bake and gives you a soft crumb that keeps.

My loaf came out gummy near the bottom. What did I do wrong?

Most likely one of three things. It got sliced before it fully cooled, which is the most common. Or it came out of the oven under 195F (90C). Or the kneading stopped short of a real windowpane. A scald dough is less forgiving on that last point than an ordinary dough, because the scalded flour has already given up some of its gluten potential.

Can I convert this to sourdough?

You can, with two adjustments. Replace the yeast with 150g of ripe 100% hydration levain, drop the milk from 180g to 120g to account for the water the levain brings, and count the levain's 75g of flour toward your total. Then expect a bulk of 4 to 5 hours and a final proof of 2 to 3, or an overnight cold proof in the pan. If you'd rather not do the math, the Sourdough Multigrain Sandwich Bread in this series is already worked out for you.

How long does this stay soft?

Four days on the counter in a sealed bag, and it's still soft enough for a sandwich on day four rather than only good for toast. That's the scald doing its job. Gelatinized starch holds onto water far longer than plain hydrated flour does, which is the reason commercial bakeries in Japan and Taiwan have been using this method for decades.

Nutrition

Per serving (1 slice (about 50g)): 155 calories, 27g carbohydrates, 5g protein, 3g fat, 1.5g fiber, 235mg sodium. Makes 16 servings.