Name: Matcha sourdough milk bread recipe
Prep time: 1440 min
Cook time: 27 min
Total time: 1467 min
Ingredients: 20 grams all-purpose flour (11.7% protein); 5 grams matcha powder; 100 grams whole milk; 73 grams whole milk; 50 grams granulated sugar; 57 grams unsalted butter (sliced into thin pats); 260 grams all-purpose flour (11.7% protein); 6 grams kosher salt; 1 large egg (about 50 grams, room temperature); 100 grams sourdough starter (100% hydration); Neutral oil for dough handling; Extra milk for wash

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If you’ve ever wished your morning matcha latte came in bread form, then you’re in luck today cuz I made this matcha sourdough milk bread just for you 😏. It has everything you love about soft, fluffy Japanese milk bread, but with a gentle earthy flavor of matcha and the subtle tang of sourdough.

A section of sourdough matcha milk bread on a wooden board.

The vibrant green color makes every slice feel a little extra special, whether you’re enjoying it toasted with butter, turning it into French toast, or simply sneaking a slice straight from the loaf (I highly recommend this, as soon as it’s cool enough to slice open!)

If you’re looking for a fun way to use your sourdough starter beyond a classic loaf, this matcha sourdough milk bread is one recipe you’ll definitely want to try!

Key ingredients and notes

Ingredients for matcha sourdough milk bread.

🍵 You can’t make matcha milk bread without matcha powder! One thing I have mentioned before is that I’m not super particular about my matcha powder. I’ve used a few different brands over the years: Maeda-en (from Tokyo Central), Jade Leaf (from Amazon), Sencha (from Costco) and now the Costco Kirkland brand matcha.

If you’re buying matcha for drinking, the quality certainly matters, but for baking I think it’s a lot more forgiving. You don’t need any thing fancy, just use what you have and love.

Other key ingredients…

I increase the amount of sugar in this recipe to 50 grams compared to 30 grams in my signature sourdough milk bread recipe. This makes the bread a little bit sweeter balancing out the slight bitterness of matcha.

You can make this bread with a regular sourdough starter or a matcha sourdough starter. I tested this recipe both ways and I can’t say which I prefer but of course it is more fun with a green starter 😏.

Sample baking schedule

This baking schedule was designed for a weekend bake that you can start Friday night after work in between dinner and bed time routines, and bake on Saturday afternoon/night. Or if you have a flexible work-from-home schedule, you can start the dough on a week night, and bake it the next day with minimal activities during the day so it doesn’t interfere with your work schedule and/or kids’ activity schedule.

Day 1
7:00 AM	Feed your sourdough starter
7:00 PM	Scald milk + make tangzhong
7:30 PM	Autolyse
8:00 PM	Knead
8:30 PM	Bulk fermentation
9:00 PM	Stretch and fold #1
9:30 PM	Stretch and fold #2
10:00 PM	Stretch and fold #3 + cold fermentation
Day 2
9:00 AM	Finish bulk fermentation at room temp
11:00 AM	Divide dough + shape into balls
11:15 AM	Shape into logs + proof
6:30 PM	Bake

Let’s make matcha sourdough milk bread!

If you find process photos helpful, follow along visually as we walk through this recipe step-by-step, take note of the suggested time stamp for each step. Otherwise, you can skip ahead, detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.

Day 1

My sourdough starter typically peaks within 12 hours, so I will make sure to feed it in the morning (around 7-8 am ish) if I know I’m going to start a batch of dough at night (around 7 pm ish). So make sure you build this into your schedule to ensure your starter peaks at the right time.

If you’re using the matcha starter, it peaks a little bit earlier. But if you’re not home yet to starter the dough, it’s fine. You can still use the starter after peak, your dough will still rise. Don’t stress about it!

Scald milk with melted butter in a saucepan.

1. Scald the milk (7 pm)

You’ll want to heat the milk in a small saucepan over med heat until just simmering at the edge, stir as you go until the sugar dissolves. You can take it off the heat, then add the butter to the hot milk to let it melt while cooling the mixture down. If the butter doesn’t melt completely, no big deal, you can put it back on the heat for just a bit. Immediately, transfer the mixture to your stand mixer bowl to cool – this will take about 20-30 minutes or so.

NOTE: I incorporate the butter right at the beginning instead of at the end of kneading because I’ve tested both ways and didn’t see significant differences.

Add matcha powder and flour to milk to make matcha tangzhong.

2. Make the matcha tangzhong

You can cook the tangzhong in the same saucepan without washing. Be sure to sift the flour with the matcha powder over the milk before cooking to minimize clumps. Once done, you can transfer it to a plate and spread into a thin layer to cool.

Mix flour with milk mixture and let rest in the stand mixer bowl.

3. “Autolyse” (7:30 pm)

Mix together flour, salt and the cooled milk/butter mixture, cover and let this rest for 15-20 minutes.

NOTE: This is not a true autolyse since we are adding melted butter as well as salt to the mixture. However, I do find that this step, while short and non-traditional, helps with dough strength and extensibility in the stretch-and-fold steps. Without this “autolyse” step, the dough can break easily during stretch-and-fold.

Collage showing ingredients added to the stand mixer bowl, then get kneaded into a matcha milk bread dough.

4. Knead the dough (~8 pm)

Add egg, tangzhong and sourdough starter and knead with the dough hook for 20 minutes.

Matcha sourdough milk bread dough ball in a mixing bowl.

5. Start bulk fermentation (~8:30 pm)

Use a bit of oil on your hand and your bowl scraper to prevent sticking and scrape the dough out of your mixing bowl. Form a smooth ball, oil your mixing bowl before putting the dough back into it. You can use the same mixing bowl or a new bowl for bulk fermentation, either way is fine.

Collage of 6 photos showing how to stretch and fold matcha milk bread dough.

6. Stretches and folds (9, 9:30, 10 pm)

During bulk fermentation, you will perform 2-3 sets of stretch-and-fold to add strength to your dough at 30 to 45-minute intervals. Once you are finish with your last set, cover and refrigerate overnight.

NOTE: If you dough passes the windowpane test after kneading. You can totally skip this step. But I still find it beneficial especially if the dough is more slack than usual.

Day 2

I usually take the dough out of the fridge as soon as I wake up on Day 2 to let it come to room temperature. It likely hasn’t doubled in size yet but should have grown overnight.

The time line is flexible here, depending on what I have going on in the morning. I would typically let it sit on the counter for about 2 hours to finish rising while I do my morning chores, take care of the dogs’ needs, make breakfast for kids, etc. Then I would start dividing and shaping.

But if you need to go somewhere early, you can divide and shape it right away while the dough is cold. Your proofing period would just be a little longer. I haven’t quite decided whether I like shaping cold dough more or less, but it is a good option to fit baking in around your schedule.

Again, the time stamps on these steps are suggestions, you can move them around to fit your schedule.

Divide the matcha bread dough and roll into 3 balls.

1. Divide the dough (11 am)

Cut the dough into 3 equal portions. Roll them into smooth balls, cover and let rest for 10-15 minutes to allow the gluten to relax before shaping.

NOTE: The dough shouldn’t be very sticky anymore. You can use just a bit of oil to keep it from sticking to your surface and hand. I love using a silicone baking mat for this part and also I’ve recently started using vinyl gloves – they’re super nonstick!

Shape matcha milk bread dough into logs.

2. Shape into logs (11:15 am)

Shape each ball into a log like so and place them into your loaf pan.

Sourdough matcha milk bread dough in loaf pan: before and after rising.

3. Proof the dough (~11:30 am)

Proof the dough for 6 – 8 hours. The dough is ready when it is very puffy, has risen well above the rim of the loaf pan, and a gentle press leaves an indentation that slowly springs back (but not immediately).

NOTE: You can proof your dough inside your oven with the light turn on and a pan of hot water at the bottom of the oven to keep it warm and humid. Or place your loaf pan inside a 15-quart storage bin with a small tin of water as a make-shift proofing box. Proofing time is highly dependent on temperature so make sure to pay attention to visual cues.

Add cream wash and bake matcha sourdough milk bread.

4. Bake (6:30/7:30 pm)

Brush milk or egg wash (if you want shinier crust) generously over the surface of your dough and bake at 400°F (205°C) for 7 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350°F (180°C) and bake for another 20 minutes. Total bake time is about 27 minutes. The internal temperature of your bread should reach 190 – 200°F. Let cool completely before cutting into it.

NOTE: You want to bake your bread at 400°F briefly to give it some oven spring helping it rise taller during the first few minutes. And then bake it at a lower temperature to completely cook the inside. Don’t forget to lower the temp or your bread will be dry! (ask me how I know… 🥴)

Storage

Room temperature: you can store your matcha milk bread at room temperature for a couple days. Only slice off whatever you’re planning to eat to keep the moisture within the loaf. Store the bread in a ziploc bag. Since this loaf is homemade with no preservatives, I tend to keep it refrigerated to prevent spoiling.
Refrigerator: you can also keep your bread in the fridge for a couple weeks. Again, only slice what you need and keep it in a ziploc bag. It does dry out a bit the longer you store it, but it’s easily revived in the toaster.
Freezer: for the freezer, I recommend slicing and then freezing. This way you can defrost only what you need when you need. Or freeze and thaw the whole loaf. Your bread should last up to 3 months. To preserve the flavor, wrap the loaf in foil as well as plastic and then store in a freezer bag.