the quest for the perfect sandwich bread

There is a reason the local population eats rice with every meal.

The commercially available bread tastes terrible.

Ha ha. Of course, that isn't the real reason. But it is a major deterrent for anyone who might consider making the switch from rice to bread.

An entire grocery store aisle devoted just to bread - sandwich loaves, hamburger buns, English muffins, dinner rolls - is unfathomable here.

Instead there are little bakeries, and some of the stuff they sell looks tantalizing. But it isn't. Trust me. I'm pretty sure I have not met a single westerner who likes the bread from those shops.

When we lived in the city I frequently bought sandwich bread from a western-run bakery. I liked it okay. But the baked loaves were either too large or too small, and it was sliced too thick. Plus there was something a little funky about the texture.

After moving out to the suburbs, getting bread from the bakery was more and more difficult. So I started making more of our own bread. Yeast rolls, batter bread, beer bread, cinnamon rolls, oatmeal bread.... I made it all. Just a few weeks ago I finally got a recipe for bread bowls that I really like. I served them filled with spicy chicken chili. It was just like being at Panera. Except I did all the work :)

So a few months ago I decided to work on a good, basic bread that would be perfect for toast and sandwiches. Loaves perfectly sized for our toaster. Just the right texture. Easily sliced thin. And a fairly simple recipe.



And after a few fits and starts, adjustments and alterations, I've landed on a winner!
I made three more loaves yesterday.


It is SO GOOD! And our house smells so wonderful when it is baking. Doesn't it make you want to make up a sandwich and head out for a picnic?