Easy Millet Sourdough Bread (Gluten-Free)

This millet sourdough bread is gluten-free, lectin-free, and better than anything store-bought. Light, airy, and perfectly sliceable, this artisan millet bread is easy to make with just a few clean ingredients — no gums, no fillers, no fuss.

It’s the kind of everyday, all-around artisan bread that’s as versatile as it is delicious — ideal for toasting, layering with toppings, or simply enjoying it with your breakfast. Made with a wild gluten-free sourdough starter, it’s nourishing, gut-friendly, and approachable enough even if you’re new to sourdough baking.

Introduction: One-Flour Bread

This Millet Sourdough Bread is part of my One-Flour Bread Series, where I showcase individual recipes using each of the three main flours in my gluten-free sourdough method: millet, sorghum, and teff.

For all my gluten-free sourdough loaves, I use my active starter, Rosie, which I regularly feed with a mix of millet, sorghum, and teff flours. When developing recipes, I work with a preferment (or levain) — a blend of active starter, water, and the flour featured in the recipe. 

In this case, the preferment is made with 10g of starter, 30g of water, and 35g of millet flour. It takes about 6–7 hours to reach peak activity, and it should be used within 10 hours for best results. You can speed up fermentation by placing it in a gently warmed (but turned-off) oven or on a heating pad, reducing the proof time to as little as 3 hours. 

A ready-to-use preferment will double in size, form a dome, and develop cracks on the surface — signs that it’s airy and active.

If you’re new to gluten-free sourdough, I highly recommend starting with my Beginner’s Guide to Baking Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread. You can also learn how to build a strong, versatile starter like Rosie in my Gluten-Free Sourdough Starter Guide.

Why Millet?

Millet is one of the oldest cultivated grains — a resilient, drought-tolerant crop that has sustained civilizations across Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe for thousands of years. In fact, before wheat and corn took over, millet was the main staple grain in my home country, Romania, where it was used in everything from rustic polenta and bread to nourishing porridges.

Millet’s importance is now being rediscovered — so much so that the United Nations declared 2023 the International Year of Millets to highlight its climate resilience, nutritional value, and role in food security.

As a flour, millet is soft, pale, and finely ground, creating breads that are light in color and pleasantly fluffy. Its mild flavor does come with a slightly bitter edge, which makes it ideal for toasting and pairing with sweet or savory toppings.

It’s lovely toasted, with butter and jam, a drizzle of honey, or a swipe of homemade nutella. It also holds up beautifully as a base for breakfast eggs or everyday sandwiches — a perfect gluten-free option if you’re after the look and feel of a traditional white loaf.

This is the first recipe in my one-flour series. If you’re curious about other combinations, I also recommend:

• My multigrain open-baked sourdough, which uses millet, sorghum, and teff
• My fluffy sourdough with whole hemp flour, for extra protein and fiber
• And my millet and sorghum loaf, a great white bread alternative

Let’s get baking!

Basic Tools

• Digital kitchen scale (a must!)
• 2 mixing bowls (glass or plastic)
• Silicone spatula or wooden spoon
• Flexible dough scraper (plastic is good)
• Proofing basket (Banneton) or a small bowl lined with a clean cloth
• Dutch oven or heavy cast iron pot with a lid
• Heavy-duty parchment paper
• Razor blade or scoring knife

Ingredients for Millet Sourdough Bread

Just six simple ingredients — plus water — are all you need to make this artisan sourdough loaf with millet flour. You’ll find the full ingredient list with exact measurements in the step-by-step guide below and in the recipe card at the end of the post.

For the best results, use fresh, organic millet flour and mineral-rich bottled water. I don’t recommend reverse osmosis water unless it has been properly remineralized, as the minerals play an important role in fermentation.

Step by Step Guide with Photos

Step 1: Prepare the Preferment (The Night Before Baking, or 6-8 hours before)

You need:

• 10g active sourdough starter
• 30g filtered water
• 35g millet flour

Instructions:

Do this in the evening, or 6-7 hours before mixing the dough. In a small clean jar, mix all ingredients thoroughly until no dry flour remains. I make the preferment the same time I feed my starter. 

Cover lightly and leave to ferment at room temperature (21–23°C / 70–74°F) overnight. If you want to make the preferment in the morning, it will take about 6-7 hours for it to reach peak activity. To speed it up (to about 3h), you can use a heating pad or a gently heated oven (make sure the heat is OFF). 

When at peak, the preferment should be bubbly, almost doubled, cracked on top, and have a light, pleasant aroma. For best results, please use it within 10h.

Step 2: Mix the Wet Ingredients

• 17g whole psyllium husk flakes
• 400g filtered water, divided (380g+20g)
• 10g raw honey (helps fermentation; if vegan, use maple syrup)
• 10g extra virgin olive oil
• All of the preferment

Instructions:

In a medium bowl, mix psyllium flakes, honey and olive oil with 380g of water. Stir until the honey dissolves. Let it sit for 3–5 minutes to allow a thick gel to form.

Add all of the preferment. Use the remaining 20g of water to rinse the preferment jar, making sure every bit of the preferment goes into the dough. Mix well until everything is fully incorporated and the mixture is smooth and uniform.

Step 3: Mix the Dry Ingredients

• 230g millet flour
• 70g tapioca flour
• 6g fine sea salt (non-iodized)

Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flours and salt together thoroughly. 

Step 4: Combine Wet and Dry Mixtures

Add the wet gel mixture to the dry flour bowl.

Start mixing with a spatula, then use clean hands to thoroughly mix the dough, until an homogeneous dough forms (about 1-2 minutes). Scrape down the sides with the dough scraper and fold the dough toward the center, rotating the bowl. Repeat the fold about 20 times. 

The dough will be thick, soft, and slightly sticky.

Cover the bowl with a lid and set in a draft-free, warm spot (room temperature is fine if not too cold). 

Step 5: Bulk Fermentation (First Rise)

Let the dough ferment at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, depending on the ambient conditions. This is something you’ll get a feel for with practice. As a general rule: in summer, 1 hour is often enough; in winter, when the house is cooler, it can take up to 2 hours.

I made this loaf in the summer and bulk fermented it for 1 hour at around 72°F (22°C).

Signs it’s ready: slight puffing, a smoother and lighter texture. If you are using a glass bowl (which I recommend), you will notice wholes on the bottom and on the sides of the dough.

Step 6: Shaping the Loaf

Lightly flour a clean surface.

Gently invert the dough onto the surface. Gently grab the side further from you, and fold it over to the center of the dough, then repeat with one more fold, toward you. You are basically tightly rolling the dough towards you.

Now the seam-side should be on the bottom. Use your hands to create a slight tension between the dough and the surface, by gently rotate it and round it into a smooth ball, and the seam is well sealed. Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour. 

Place it seam-side up into a lightly floured proofing basket or cloth-lined bowl. Dust some flour on top and cover with a cloth and a plastic cover. 

Step 7: Final Proof (Second Rise)

Proof for 1–2 hours at room temperature. At a temperature of 72°F (22°C), it takes about 1 hour.

In gluten-free sourdough baking, the signs that the dough is ready are not as obvious as in regular wheat baking. It’s something you will learn to recognize with practice. We are looking for a rise in dough of about 20-30%, a puffy appearance, and a slightly jiggly texture. If your dough has visibly increased in size, it is most probably overprooved. 

Step 8: Bake

Preheat your Dutch oven with the lid in the oven at 250°C / 480°F for about 40 minutes before baking. This ensures the pot is thoroughly hot and will create the right oven spring.

Carefully invert the dough onto a sheet of parchment paper. Score the top with a razor blade — a simple cross, to begin with, works well. You can expand your scoring repertoire once you have mastered the method. 

Using oven mitts, remove the hot Dutch oven from the oven and lower the parchment paper with the dough inside. Bake covered for 40 minutes, then uncovered for another 40 minutes (the lid remains in the oven), until the loaf is deeply golden brown. The timing might slightly decrease if your oven runs on the hot side (if you noticed the bread had a burnt bottom and crust). 

Remove the bread and place it on a cooling rack. Let it cool completely — at least 5 hours, but ideally overnight — before slicing. This allows the crumb to set fully. I know is tempting, but do not slice it before 5 hours, you will end with a gummy crumb. 

Proofing Tips

You can accelerate fermentation (of both preferment and dough) with a warmer environment, or slow it down by using a refrigerator. 

Overnight proofing

If you make the dough later in the evening, you can proof it in the refrigerator, overnight. However, to avoid overproofing, only bulk ferment on the counter for 15 minutes, then shape and place in the proofing basket and cover. Make sure you do this as late as possible at night, and bake first thing in the morning.

Storage & Serving Tips

• Short-term: Wrap the cooled loaf in a clean cotton towel or place it in a paper bag. It will keep well at room temperature for up to 3 days.
• Toast before serving: I recommend toasting the slices before serving — the heat helps bring back moisture, making the bread soft, fluffy, and even more delicious.
• Long-term: Slice and freeze the loaf with parchment paper between slices. You can toast directly from frozen or let it thaw at room temperature and then toast.

Estimated Nutritional Information

Based on 10 servings, one slice of millet sourdough bread (approximately one large serving) contains 124 calories, 2.9 grams of protein, 2.1 grams of fat, 1.8 grams of fiber, and 21 grams of net carbohydrates.

For full details, see the nutritional label below the recipe card.

Enjoy!

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