Sun-Dried Tomato & Cheddar Sourdough

This is the loaf I make when I want the kitchen to smell like a pizzeria. Sun-dried tomatoes and sharp cheddar are a combination that shouldn't need a sales pitch, and folded into a tangy sourdough they turn a plain bake into something people ask me to make again before they've finished the first slice.

The tomatoes do double duty. Their oil tints the crumb a warm amber and carries flavour all the way through the loaf, while the pieces themselves stay chewy and concentrated. The cheddar melts into glossy pockets and crisps wherever it reaches the crust. It's a savory loaf through and through.

Formula

Ingredient	Weight	Baker's %
Bread flour	450g	90%
Whole wheat flour	50g	10%
Water	380g	76%
Starter (active)	100g	20%
Fine sea salt	9g	1.8%
Sun-dried tomatoes, chopped	80g	—
Sharp cheddar, diced	100g	—

Salt is dropped to 1.8% because both the cheddar and the sun-dried tomatoes bring their own salt to the party. Bump it back to 2% only if you're using unsalted, oil-free tomatoes.

The Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Use the oil-packed kind rather than the dry, leathery ones sold in bags. Oil-packed tomatoes are already soft and pliable, so they fold into the dough without tearing it, and the oil they carry is where a lot of the flavour lives.

Drain them well and chop into rough 1cm pieces before you add them. If all you can find is the dry-packed kind, soak them in warm water for 20 minutes and pat them dry first, otherwise they'll pull moisture out of the dough as they rehydrate during bulk.

Eighty grams per loaf is the sweet spot. It's enough that you hit tomato in most bites without the pieces weighing down the crumb or slowing the rise.

The Cheddar

A proper sharp cheddar, aged at least 12 months. The tomatoes are sweet and intense, so a mild cheese simply vanishes underneath them. Extra-sharp holds its own beautifully.

Cut into small dice, roughly 1cm, rather than grating. Grated cheese melts completely into the crumb and disappears; small cubes leave defined molten pockets that firm back into cheese as the loaf cools. Keep a small handful back to press onto the surface just before baking if you want those crisp, lacy cheese edges on the crust.

Mixing

Mix your dough as normal and let it complete autolyse before adding the starter and salt. Keep the tomatoes and cheddar aside for lamination. Mixing them in too early tears the gluten and bleeds too much oil into the dough before it has structure.

Lamination

30 to 45 minutes into bulk fermentation, stretch the dough into a thin rectangle on a lightly wet surface. Scatter the chopped tomatoes and diced cheddar evenly across the sheet, leaving a 2cm border on every edge so the seams still seal. Fold the dough over the inclusions, then return it to the bowl.

Expect the crumb to take on a faint amber tint as the tomato oil works through it over the next few hours. That's exactly right.

Bulk Fermentation

The oil and the cheese fat both coat the gluten a little, so this dough can feel slack and take slightly longer to build strength. Give it an extra coil fold if it isn't holding shape, and be prepared for bulk to run to 5 hours or a touch beyond at 76°F.

Shaping and Baking

Shape as you would any round. The dough will feel rich and slightly loose from the oil, so shape with a firm hand and let the bench rest do some of the tightening. Any cheese or tomato poking out of the surface will caramelize in the oven, which is a feature, not a flaw.

Standard Dutch oven bake at 500°F. The exterior takes on more colour than a plain loaf because the exposed cheese and tomato caramelize fast, so watch the final 10 minutes of the uncovered bake and pull it once the crust is a deep, blistered bronze rather than pushing it darker.

Serving

This loaf barely needs anything. Warm from a rested loaf with a smear of salted butter is already a complete thing. Beyond that, it makes a ridiculous grilled cheese, an even better base for a fried egg, and toasted alongside a bowl of tomato soup it borders on excessive in the best way.

It keeps well for a couple of days. The tomato oil keeps the crumb moist longer than a plain sourdough, and the flavour actually deepens overnight.