Ciabatta or sourdough? These are two famous bread variations. While both are tasty, sourdough has a more complex flavor profile than sourdough. But is taste the only thing that differentiates these types of bread? And which of these two bread types will suit your tastebuds?
Ciabatta has a crispy crust and mild flavor, making it pair well with butter. Sourdough is tangy and chewy, making it ideal for sandwiches. Ciabatta uses commercial yeast for its leavening agent, while sourdough uses wild yeast.
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Ciabatta or Sourdough?
Who does not like bread? If there is one thing that people can agree with, it is that bread is delicious. Most bread variations contain the same ingredients – water, flour, salt, and yeast. Despite the similarity in its components, various bread types differ in taste and texture.
Two of the most popular bread types today are ciabatta and sourdough. But how do these two types of bread differ, and which would you like better? Ciabatta or sourdough?
Differences Between Ciabatta And Sourdough
Apart from the taste, there are differences between ciabatta and sourdough. However, you can only find these differences by deconstructing the bread and identifying the ingredients used. That said, we determined how ciabatta differs from sourdough to help you understand these two bread types:
Texture and Appearance
Texture can make or break bread. Knowing their texture may help you make a choice if you choose between ciabatta or sourdough.
Ciabatta has a crispy crust, regardless of whether you use biga flour. However, ciabatta made with biga has larger air pockets than the one made with regular flour.
Meanwhile, sourdough has a crispy yet chewy crust. This texture makes this bread perfect for sandwiches.
Leavening Agents Used
One of the significant distinctions between ciabatta and sourdough is the leavening agents used for making them. Leavening agents refer to the bread ingredients that cause the dough to expand. These agents produce gas, which causes the small holes that you see in bread when you cut it in half.
Ciabatta consists of a yeasted pre-fermented leavening agent. Such is a mixture of flour, water, and commercial yeast. After mixing the ingredients for the leavening agent, you need to let it mature for a couple of hours to a day.
Meanwhile, it would be best if you had a sourdough starter as a leavening agent for sourdough bread. A sourdough starter contains flour, water, and live yeast. Unlike ciabatta’s leavening agent, which only needs a day to ferment, a sourdough starter needs about two weeks until it is active enough to proof dough.
So, ciabatta or sourdough? Ciabatta is an ideal choice if you do not have enough patience to make a leavening agent.
Level Of Hydration
Ciabatta contains a higher level of hydration than sourdough. The dough prepared for making ciabatta is a high-hydration dough, requiring a longer time to mix. It is also a bit more challenging to shape than sourdough. For this reason, you need to fold it multiple times so the gluten can develop to keep the ciabatta dough from becoming flat.
Taste
Sourdough has a tangy-flavored bread that many know and love. The tanginess comes from the leavening agent’s fermentation period. This flavor may also vary depending on a place’s environment and the wild yeast used.
Meanwhile, ciabatta is crustier than sourdough in terms of texture. It also has a milder taste and a hint of olive oil added to its dough before baking.
Ciabatta Or Sourdough? The Healthier Choice
Suppose you are on a diet or simply taking your body’s health seriously. In that case, it is essential to understand the nutritional value of the bread you are eating. So, which is the healthier option? Ciabatta or sourdough?
Nutritional Value And Health Benefits Of Ciabatta
Calories | 140 per 57g serving |
Fiber | 1g |
Fat | 0.5g of monounsaturated fatty acids from olive oil |
Protein | 5g |
Carbohydrates | 29g |
Sodium | 320mg |
Vitamins And Minerals
Calcium is vital for bone health. The Food And Drug Administration recommends consuming up to 1300 milligrams of calcium daily. However, ciabatta only has 10.3 milligrams of calcium, which is only a tiny portion of the recommended intake.
Moreover, this bread also has 39.9 milligrams of potassium.
Ciabatta Is A Treat And Not A Nutritious Food
Considering the nutritional value found in ciabatta, you can consider it as a treat rather than food to get nutrition. It only contains a tiny portion of calcium, fiber, and protein, which is far from enough to provide you with your daily needed nutrition. It would be best if you also ate ciabatta moderately as it is high in gluten and carbohydrates.
Nutritional Value And Health Benefits Of Sourdough
Calories | 188 per 59g serving |
Fiber | 2g |
Fat | 1g |
Protein | 8g |
Carbohydrates | 37g |
Sodium | 424.8mg |
Sourdough Is One Of The Most Nutritious Bread
The fermentation process of the sourdough starter makes the bread highly nutritious. Sourdough starter has a lower pH due to the lactic acid bacteria found in it, thus reducing the body’s phytate. Notably, phytate limits the body’s absorption of nutrients.
With lower phytate in the body, you can better absorb sourdough’s nutrients, including
- selenium
- copper
- riboflavin
- folate
- niacin
- thiamine
- iron
- manganese
Sourdough Contains Prebiotics
The prebiotics found in sourdough make it easy to digest. The reason is that prebiotics improve your gut health by feeding the beneficial bacteria.
Sourdough also has a lower gluten content than ciabatta. The yeast’s fermentation process breaks down most of the bread’s gluten, thus reducing the content of the bread once baked. However, it is worth noting that sourdough still has gluten. (source)
The Takeaway
After breaking down ciabatta and sourdough, we found that the latter is much more nutritious than ciabatta. The main reason is that the sourdough starter’s long fermentation period produces good bacteria and lactic acid. Sourdough is also rich in vitamins and minerals, compared to ciabatta, which only contains calcium and potassium.
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