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Sun-Dried Tomato and Herb Savoury Loaf (Bread Machine, 1kg)

Midweek dinners get a lot easier when a good savoury loaf is already on the counter. This Sun-Dried Tomato and Herb Savoury Loaf is the one I reach for when soup is simmering, salads feel too small, or I need something that makes simple eggs and cheese feel like a meal. I first started baking it during a busy stretch when I wanted “bakery flavour” without another project. The bread machine made it realistic: load the pan, let the knead do the work, and add the tomatoes at the beep. The crumb comes out soft but sliceable, with little pockets of tomato, gentle garlic, and a herby aroma that smells like dinner is handled. It is also flexible worldwide. If sun-dried tomatoes are hard to find, you can swap in well-drained roasted red peppers or even chopped tomato paste leather, and still get that tangy, savoury bite.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 1000 g loaf
Course: Bread
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

1kg loaf
  • 300 g water room temperature (about 1 1/4 cups)
  • 30 g olive oil about 2 tbsp
  • 12 g sugar about 1 tbsp
  • 10 g fine salt about 1 3/4 tsp
  • 1 tsp dried oregano about 1 g
  • 1 tsp dried basil about 1 g
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder about 1 g
  • 500 g bread flour about 4 cups, spooned and leveled
  • 8 g instant yeast about 2 1/2 tsp
  • 80 g sun-dried tomatoes drained well and chopped (about 1/2 cup packed) (oil-packed preferred)
  • 20 g grated hard cheese optional (Parmesan-style) (about 1/4 cup)

Equipment

  • 1 Bread machine (1kg loaf capacity recommended)

Method
 

  1. Prep the add-ins: Pat the sun-dried tomatoes very dry with paper towel, then chop into small pieces (roughly pea-size). If using, grate the cheese.
  2. Load the bread pan in this order (or follow your machine’s recommended order): water, olive oil, sugar, salt, oregano, basil, garlic powder, bread flour. Make a small well in the flour and add the instant yeast, keeping yeast away from the liquids at first.
  3. Select the program: Basic/White or Sandwich loaf, 1 kg size, medium crust (or your preference). Start the machine.
  4. At the mix-in signal (or 5 to 10 minutes before the end of the final knead), add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and optional cheese. If your machine has no beep, add them after the first 10 minutes of kneading once the dough has come together.
  5. Check the dough during kneading: It should form a smooth, slightly tacky ball. If it looks dry or crumbly, add 1 tbsp (15 g) water at a time. If it looks like batter or smears on the pan, add 1 tbsp (8 to 10 g) flour at a time.
  6. When baking finishes, remove the pan and turn the loaf out onto a rack. Let cool at least 60 minutes before slicing for the cleanest slices.

Notes

Program: Basic/White (or Sandwich) works best. For very mix-in-heavy loaves, a French program can overproof, so start with Basic.
Add-in timing matters: Tomatoes added too early can shred and tint the dough. Add at the beep or late in knead.
If using active dry yeast instead of instant: use the same weight (8 g) and place it in the flour well, or dissolve it in a small portion of the recipe water first if your machine allows.
Tips:
- Substitutes for sun-dried tomatoes: Use 90 g well-drained roasted red peppers (jarred or homemade), chopped small. Or use 60 g tomato paste spread thin and dried in a low oven until leathery, then chopped (a DIY “tomato leather”).
- For stronger herb flavour: Rub dried herbs between your fingers before adding, it wakes them up.
- For a softer sandwich-style crumb: Replace 20 g of the water with 20 g milk (dairy or unsweetened plant milk), keeping total liquid the same.
- To avoid a gummy line near the bottom: Cool fully on a rack and do not slice hot.
Approximate nutrition, calculated for the 1 kg loaf sliced into 14 slices. Values vary by brand, tomato type, and optional cheese.