Sourdough bread with cheddar and spices – Amazing bread for food

For me, there’s nothing better than bread.. and cheese! So bread with cheese must be the ultimate bread. That’s what I set out to test with this bread. Here is my recipe for sourdough bread with cheddar, oregano, and smoked paprika.

Cheddar is one of the most popular cheeses in the world. It’s a pretty good cheese that fits perfectly with other foods and in a sandwich. Personally, I like cheeses with more taste, so I’ve used sharp cheddar in this recipe. If you don’t like sharp cheese you can substitute it with mild cheddar.

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Cheddar originates from the English village Cheddar in Somerset. Oddly enough it isn’t a protected title like many of the French and Italian cheeses (and a couple of Danish ones as well).

The topping has cheddar but also Parmagiano Reggiano. It gives both wonderful umami and saltiness to the bread, but also a sublime crunch on the top of the bread.

Opposite the cheddar cheese, the Parmagiano Reggiano is a protected title through PDO. That means that if you buy cheese by that name, it will be the original. Again, you can substitute with a generic Parmesan if you can’t get the original. You could use a Danish Rød Krystal, which is a Danish version of this type of cheese.

The formula in this sourdough bread with cheddar recipe

Vitals

Total weight	1730 grams
Pre-fermented flour	9.1%
Hydration	70%
Yield	2 loaves

The dough

The dough itself does not have any whole grain in it so the crumb will be extra soft. The salt is the common amount of 2%.

The amounts of oregano and smoked paprika have been precisely calibrated to not overpower but to accentuate the taste of the cheese.

Weight	Ingredient	Baker's Percentage
800g	bread flour	100%
536g	water	67%
20g	fine salt	2.5%
200g	cheddar	25%
10g	smoked paprika	1.3%
4g	oregano	0.5%
160g	sourdough starter (100% hydration)	20%

If you want to play around with the hydration or the formula, you can do it here in my bread calculator.

The conclusion on this sourdough bread with cheddar recipe

This bread is what you’d call a crowd-pleaser. Every time I make it, a line forms in front of my kitchen and people’s eyes light up when they hear I am going to make it.

The taste of this bread really works. The smoke and the sweetness from the paprika, the green earthy notes from the oregano, and the big hit of umami from the cheddar and the Parmesan. It all works in tandem.

The crumb is soft and lovely. A little bit stretchy like you know from other sourdough bread. The crust, oh my load. A fabulously crunchy crust with extra crisp from the melted Parmesan. It’s really great bread.

I’d recommend this bread for any hearty long-simmered dish. It goes great with a hot chili con carne. I think I’d be hard-pressed to find a dish that it wouldn’t be great with.

Please share on social media

This is my recipe for sourdough bread with cheddar, oregano, and smoked paprika. I hope you will try to bake it. If you make this recipe and post it on Instagram, please tag me as @foodgeek.dk so that I can see it. That would make me happy.

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