Chocolate Sourdough Bread With Rich Cocoa

If you love a crusty homemade loaf with a little bakery-style drama, this chocolate sourdough bread is such a treat. It has the tangy depth of sourdough, the rich color of cocoa, and tucked-in pieces of semi-sweet chocolate that melt into the crumb as it bakes. The process is slow, but the hands-on work is simple: mix, fold, ferment, shape, chill, and bake. That long rest is what gives the loaf its beautiful flavor and crust. I love this kind of bread because it feels special enough for dessert, but it is still right at home on a breakfast plate with coffee. Slice it thick, let it cool properly, and you’ll have a loaf that feels deeply satisfying without being overly complicated.

What Makes This Chocolate Sourdough Bread Special

This loaf stands out because it balances deep cocoa flavor with the gentle tang of sourdough. The chopped chocolate stays tucked inside the dough, giving you soft, rich pockets in every slice. It is a wonderful project loaf when you want something impressive, but still made with familiar sourdough techniques.

Chocolate Sourdough Bread with Semi-Sweet Chocolate

This loaf is dark, tender, and full of rich chocolate flavor. The long cold ferment helps build a deeper sourdough taste, while the Dutch oven bake gives it that gorgeous crust and oven spring.

Ingredients

• 500 g Bread Flour
• 360 g Water (can increase by 20 to 30g if you wish, especially if you increase the amount of cocoa powder)
• 100 g Sourdough Starter (or chocolate sourdough starter)
• 10 g Salt
• 50 g Sugar (white sugar)
• 150 g Semi-Sweet Chocolate (dark chocolate, chopped or grated)
• 30 g Cocoa Powder

Optional Ingredients

• 10 g Dark Malt Powder (for darker color)

Instructions

1. Weigh out your sourdough starter, sugar, cocoa powder, and water into a large ceramic or glass bowl. Mix until everything is dissolved in the water. Add the flour, dark malt powder if using, and salt, then mix the whole lot to form a shaggy dough. Cover the bowl with cling film or a damp tea towel and let it sit for around 1 hour.
2. After the dough has been through autolyse, bring it together into a ball. Work around the bowl, grabbing the dough from the outside, stretching it up and over itself into the center, until a smooth ball forms. You should not need more than about 20 to 30 stretches. The dough will be fairly sticky, but as you bring it into a ball, it will become smoother and shinier. Cover again and let it rest for 30 minutes.
3. Over the next few hours, create structure in the dough by stretching and folding. Aim to do around 4 to 6 sets of stretches and folds. For each set, stretch the dough up and over itself 4 times. Leave around 15 minutes between each set. You do not have to be exact with time, but you need to do at least 4 sets over 2 hours.
4. Once you have finished your stretch and folds, place the cling film or damp tea towel back over the dough and let it rest and ferment at room temperature. A plastic cover is a better option for this stage. Let the dough double.
5. Once the dough has finished its first ferment, shape it and add the chopped chocolate. Before you start, grab the banneton you are going to use and sprinkle rice flour or semolina on the bottom. Use a dough scraper to gently ease the dough out of the bowl. You want it to land upside down on your counter so the smooth top is on the countertop and the sticky underside is facing up. Pull it into a rough rectangle. Sprinkle some chopped chocolate over the dough. As you shape it into a batard or boule, keep sprinkling chocolate on every fold. When you have finished shaping, the chocolate should be neatly tucked inside the dough.
6. Once the dough is shaped, place it into your banneton smooth side down, so the seam is on top. Lift the dough around the edges to add a little more rice flour if you feel it needs it. Handle the dough as little as possible and be very gentle so you preserve the gases and air bubbles formed during bulk ferment.
7. Cover the dough loosely with a plastic bag or a damp tea towel and place it in the fridge. Leave it in the fridge for a minimum of 5 hours and up to a maximum of around 36 hours. The longer you leave it, the better the bread will be. A longer cold ferment creates beautiful blisters on the crust, a deeper sourdough flavor, and a skin that makes the dough easier to score.
8. When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 230 °C/450F. Place your Dutch oven into the oven when you turn it on so it gets hot. Try to preheat for around 1 hour to ensure your oven is super hot, adjusting this time if needed. Leave the dough in the fridge until the very last minute. Placing cold dough into a hot oven will give you great oven spring.
9. When the oven is at temperature, take your sourdough out of the fridge. Gently place it onto a piece of baking paper, making the paper large enough to use the edges as handles to lower the dough into your Dutch oven. Score the bread with a lame, clean razor blade, or knife. At a minimum, a large cross is sufficient, but you can get as artistic as you like. Carefully take the Dutch oven out of the oven. Place the sourdough into the pot using the baking paper as a handle. Put the lid on and place it into the hot oven. If you want to, spritz the dough with extra water before putting the lid on. Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on at 230C/450F, then bake for 10 to 15 minutes with the lid off at 210C/410F.
10. When you remove the dough from the oven, carefully remove it from the Dutch oven as soon as possible and place it on a wire rack to cool.

Notes

• Bread Flour – I’ve used strong bread flour for this loaf. Using bread flour is really important when adding inclusions like chocolate because they add extra fat and oil to the dough, which can inhibit the gluten network from forming. If you want to, you could also add some vital wheat gluten to the dough for an extra boost.
• Cocoa Powder – you can use any good-quality cocoa powder or raw cocoa powder.
• Chocolate – Use any type of chocolate that you enjoy eating. I have used dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate that I have chopped into small pieces. You can use any type of chocolate or chocolate chips, including milk chocolate, dark chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, or even a combination of these.

Variations and Substitutions

You can keep this loaf close to the original while still making small, source-friendly adjustments. Use a regular sourdough starter or a chocolate sourdough starter, depending on what you have ready. If you want a darker loaf, add the optional dark malt powder. If you increase the cocoa powder, you can increase the water by 20 to 30g as noted in the recipe.

You can also choose the chocolate you enjoy eating most. Dark chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, milk chocolate, chocolate chips, or a combination can all work here, as long as you keep the same amount. The sugar can be left out if you wish, but it does bring sweetness and a softer texture to the dough.

Pro Tips for Perfect Chocolate Sourdough Bread

Use bread flour for the best structure. Chocolate brings extra fat and oil into the dough, so the stronger flour helps support the gluten network.

Do not rush the bulk ferment. The dough should double before shaping, and that rise helps create a lighter crumb. When shaping, be gentle, so you do not knock out all those lovely bubbles.

Keep the dough cold until the last minute before baking. Cold dough going into a very hot Dutch oven gives better oven spring and makes scoring easier. Let the loaf cool on a wire rack before slicing, even though the chocolate aroma makes it tempting!

Storage and Reheating

Let the loaf cool completely before storing. Keep it well wrapped or in an airtight container at room temperature for short-term storage, especially if you plan to enjoy it within the first couple of days.

For refrigerator storage, wrap the cooled loaf tightly so it does not dry out or absorb fridge odors. The fridge can make bread feel firmer, so it is best when you plan to toast or warm the slices before serving.

To reheat, warm individual slices gently until the crumb softens and the chocolate becomes a little melty again. This loaf is especially good toasted lightly, but keep an eye on it since the chocolate can soften quickly.

FAQ

Conclusion

This chocolate sourdough bread is a beautiful project loaf for bakers who love deep flavor, a chewy crust, and just enough sweetness to feel special. The cocoa gives it richness, the sourdough adds tang, and the chocolate pieces make every slice feel like a treat.

Try it this week, then leave a comment with how long you cold fermented your loaf and what chocolate you used. Share it with another sourdough baker who loves a rich homemade bread.

Brittany Harris

Chocolate Sourdough Bread

A dark, tender sourdough loaf packed with rich chocolate flavor. A long, cold ferment deepens the taste, while a Dutch oven bake creates a beautifully crisp crust and strong oven spring.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 4 hours hrs

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 day d 2 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Servings: 1 loaf

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Calories: 1933

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 500 g bread flour
• 360 g water
• 100 g sourdough starter
• 10 g salt
• 50 g granulated sugar
• 150 g semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
• 30 g cocoa powder
• 10 g dark malt powder (optional)

Equipment

• Mixing bowl
• Dough scraper
• Banneton basket
• Dutch oven

Method

 

1. Mix starter, sugar, cocoa powder, and water in a bowl until dissolved. Add flour, salt, and optional malt powder. Mix into a shaggy dough and rest for 1 hour (autolyse).
2. Form the dough into a ball by stretching and folding until smooth. Rest for 30 minutes.
3. Perform 4–6 sets of stretch and folds over 2 hours, resting about 15 minutes between sets.
4. Let the dough ferment at room temperature until doubled in size.
5. Shape the dough and incorporate chopped chocolate by folding it into the dough during shaping.
6. Place the dough seam-side up in a floured banneton. Cover and refrigerate for at least 5 hours or up to 36 hours.
7. Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F) with a Dutch oven inside for at least 1 hour.
8. Turn the dough onto parchment, score it, and transfer it to the hot Dutch oven. Bake covered for 30 minutes.
9. Remove lid and bake another 10–15 minutes at 210°C (410°F) until crust is set.
10. Cool on a wire rack before slicing.

Notes

Use strong bread flour to support added fats from chocolate. Any good-quality cocoa powder works. Use your preferred chocolate type, such as dark, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate.