When looking for sourdough toasters, we must pay attention to one crucial aspect: generally, sourdough loaves are baked in the shape of a boule.
That’s why our focus for toasters should be on two main types: long slot toasters or countertop toaster ovens. If we get one of these, we won’t have to halve our slices.
The bread is round and quite big since we usually bake sourdough loaves in Dutch ovens or in a bread cloche. Moreover, most of us use proofing baskets to shape the dough for baking.
These methods of baking sourdough in the form of a boule means that when we slice the loaf, we get longer and wider slices to be toasted.
We must also consider that, if you don’t use a bread slicer, then your slices might come out on the thicker side.
When we look for the best toasters for sourdough bread, we must look for those that will fit our bigger, wider and maybe thicker slices of sourdough. Those are usually called long slot toasters. But I also think that countertop toaster ovens are amazing, too.
Moreover, the toaster should deliver perfectly toasted slices, uniformly toasted on each side, without char or burns on one end of the slice or on the crust.
Contents
Best Sourdough Toasters: Top 5 Picks
Sliced sandwich bread, the type we buy in a bag from the corner store, will fit without problems in any toaster. We can’t say the same about the wonderful, delicious sourdough slices that we slice from a boule.
I definitely love sourdough as a sandwich bread, although some people think that the tartness is a bit too much for their tastes.
There are also recipes for sourdough sandwich bread that is baked in a loaf pan and has a very soft crust. If you’re baking it like that, those types of slices will have the dimensions of our childhood sandwich bread and they will fit in any toaster without any impediments.
However, if like me, you prefer baking your sourdough in a Dutch oven or bread cloche or even on a pizza stone, then you’ll need a bigger sourdough toaster that will easily fit your big, long slices without you having to force the slices into the slots.
I use my toaster to reheat most of my bread. I find that it’s the easiest and most delicious method. Just leave it in for under a minute, if you don’t want it to turn crunchy and toasted. If you leave it in the toaster just for a bit, the bread will be warm enough and absolutely delicious, even if it was baked or bought 2-3 days ago.
Without any more talk, let’s review some of the best sourdough toasters on the market so that you know exactly what I’m talking about.
1. Hamilton Beach 6-Slice Countertop Toaster Oven: Best Sourdough Toaster
Most people buy this Hamilton Beach 6-Slice Countertop Toaster Oven for toasting large slices of bread that don’t fit in the classic toaster or for toasting hamburger buns and large bagels.
It’s an excellent choice as one of the best sourdough toasters, there’s no doubt about it.
Since it looks like a regular countertop oven but on the smaller side, you also get a big glass door that lets us monitor the progress of our slices being toasted. You don’t have to push a button, like we do with classic toasters, to check on the progress of your slices, making sure that you get them just right.
Even if you cut your slices quite thick because your bread knife is not as sharp as it used to be, you can still get it right because there’s a big glass door that enables you to monitor the progress of your slices.
Sourdough Toaster + Oven
I definitely love how this Hamilton Beach performs as one of the best sourdough toasters. That’s the main reason for recommending it as my first choice.
But what I love even more than that is that you can actually use it as a regular countertop oven. To better understand, let me tell you that I reviewed it in two other articles that I spent a lot of time doing research for: my post on the best countertop ovens for baking cakes and another article on the best countertop pizza ovens.
Hamilton Beach 6-Slice Countertop Toaster Oven is the definition of versatility.
You can use it to toast slices of sourdough bread, toast bagels and buns that are too large to fit in a regular, classic toaster with slots of a certain size.
You can use it to bake pizza, whether they’re freshly made at home or frozen.
Simply put, it also works as a smaller countertop oven, whether you’re baking desserts or cooking meat, roasting vegetables, baking shrimp or whatever other oven dish you have in mind.
It works as a regular oven and as a fantastic toaster for multiple slices at the same time, even if they’re long, thick and wide sourdough bread slices.
Features
First thing first, you have to decide if you can fit it on your countertop.
This toaster oven measures 15.24 x 18.74 x 9.41 inches.
It manages to bake a 12 inch pizza without taking up too much space.
It also weighs 11.4 pounds. That’s really light.
There are 3 functions: bake, broil and toast.
Temperature range: between 150 and 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
We get a 30 min timer with auto shutoff and the stay on option.
This Hamilton Beach 6-Slice Countertop Toaster Oven also comes with: baking/broiling pan, oven rack, crumb tray, and 1 year warranty. I appreciate these accessories and I think they’re perfect for completing the whole package.
The price might be a bit too much for some people. Since it’s not just a toaster, it’s a bit more expensive. It still costs under $100 but it might still be a bit too expensive for your budget.
Or you might simply think that you don’t need another oven in your house. That’s why, I’ll also review other toasters for sourdough bread. I’m definitely not done. There are plenty of options to choose from.
2. Black+Decker 4-Slice Toaster Oven
If you think that the Hamilton Beach toaster oven is a bit too pricey but you’re still a bit intrigued by the idea of a toaster that can also be used as a small countertop oven, then let’s see what this Black+Decker has to offer. After this one, we’ll move on to those classic long slot sourdough toasters.
This Black+Decker toaster oven is considerably cheaper, with a price of around $50. The price difference is accounted for by the fact that it’s smaller.
Smaller sourdough toaster oven
It’s a 4-slice toaster oven. Indeed, it has the capacity to perfectly toast 4 slices of sourdough bread.
The feature that greatly interests us is its capability to uniformly toast our slices. This Black+Decker is certainly capable of doing that without problems.
You’ll be able to toast your slices exactly as lightly or darkly you want them to look. Each of us have their own preferences in terms of how brown we want our toast to look.
The advantage of these countertop toaster ovens is that we get a big glass door/viewing window through which we can monitor how it’s going.
Moreover, since sourdough takes longer to toast than the usual white loaf, having a glass door to see through is perfect for everyone.
Features
We already established that it works beautifully as one of the best toasters for sourdough. Now, let’s see what else it can do.
Dimensions: 16.9 x 9 x 11.6 inches.
It’s definitely small but you should still make sure that you have enough space for it in your kitchen.
Being on the smaller side, it can only bake 9-inch pizzas, while the Hamilton Beach 6-slice can bake 12-inch pizzas.
There are 4 functions that we can use: warm, broil, bake and toast.
It also has natural convection technology. The interior is designed to precisely manage airflow, naturally cooking food for all these 4 functions in a uniform and fast manner.
The temperature ranges from warm, 200 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
It also includes a 30-minute timer with stay-on for longer baking dishes.
The accessories for this Black+Decker are: bake pan, rack, removable crumb tray and 2 year warranty.
All in all, this Black+Decker 4-Slice Toaster Oven is a relatively affordable product that can toast uniformly and can cook pretty much anything you want, from pizza to meats to everything else that a regular oven can bake, as long as you find the trays that fit inside.
3. Dash Clear View Toaster
I absolutely admit that the first thing that intrigued me about this model is the fact that it has a clear view design. We can actually see the slices getting toasted, which is amazing.
I mentioned that toaster ovens have this amazing advantage that they offer a glass door. Well, Dash decided to offer that feature, too, but it’s in a classic toaster. I love that.
It’s also a long slot model, otherwise it wouldn’t qualify as a pick for the best sourdough toasters.
We can actually choose from a few different colors: aqua, black, gray, red, and white. The aqua looks interesting but the white is beautiful, too. All come with a see through window.
Features
Dash Clear View Toaster is a long slot model. You can toast 4 smaller slices or 2 longer sourdough slices.
We get 7 browning levels, which is awesome. And you can determine which one you like the most by watching the slices through the viewing window.
There are also 3 functions to choose from: defrost, reheat, and bagel.
The crumb tray is easy to remove and makes cleaning a breeze.
All in all, this long slot model is not the cheapest but it’s great. It offers long-enough and wide-enough slots for sourdough.
Many users have mentioned in their reviews just how uniform their toasts are baked. It’s the perfect choice for artisan and homemade loaves.
It’s definitely one of the best classic toasters on the market.
Surprisingly, Dash also manufactures a stand mixer that’s only just a bit more expensive than their toaster. That’s a bit funny.
4. Elite Gourmet Long Slot Toaster: Cheap Sourdough Toaster
Although this long slot model from Elite Gourmet has its fair share of negative reviews, I still want to recommend it.
That’s because the reviews from users who are using this model for sourdough praise it for how well it can handle long slices. That’s more than enough for me.
However, you should be aware that there are users who complain about uneven toasting. You’ll be taking a bit of a risk if you decide to buy this one.
However, if you’re on a budget, I don’t think there’s a better long slot model out there.
Features
You can toast 4 slices of bread at once or 2 slices of artisan or sourdough.
We get 6 variable toast shade settings.
There are 3 functions: reheat, defrost, and cancel. It’s completely basic, exactly like the models some of us grew up with. The difference is that this one is a long slot.
It also includes a slide-out crumb tray for easy cleaning.
5. Cuisinart TOB-260N1
We reviewed 2 toaster ovens and 2 long sourdough toasters. As my final choice, I actually decided to recommend another toaster oven.
Why did I decide on another countertop toaster oven as one of the best sourdough toasters? Because, as one user review put it, it toasts bread better than any toaster you have ever owned. But, more than that, it’s a fantastic oven, the biggest on this list.
I know that the Cuisinart TOB-260N1 is expensive and that not everyone will be interested in paying so much money on it. This is the perfect toaster for those who equally want a fantastic countertop oven just as much. Otherwise, there’s no point in spending so much money on it.
Another reason that made me decide on the Cuisinart TOB-260N1 is the fact that there’s a long slot toaster that costs about $200. It’s called the Breville BTA830XL. I mean, I love Breville but they’re crazy with that thing. Plus, it has a huge amount of negative reviews.
I much prefer the Cuisinart TOB-260N1, which is so much more complex and interesting as a toaster + oven combo.
Features
Dimensions: 20.87 x 16.93 x 11.42 inches.
The number of possible slices you can toast in this toaster oven is up to 9 slices. That’s a huge number of slices you can toast at the same time. It can be great for bigger families.
It’s a much bigger oven that can bake a 13-inch pizza. It even includes a pizza stone for this activity. By just knowing this little fact, you can see why the price is worth it.
To further prove how complex it is, you should know that there are 11 cooking functions: toast, bagel, waffle, dual cook, bake, broil, roast, pizza, sandwich, keep warm, leftover.
The user manual comes with a table that includes the necessary info for all these cooking functions. You can cook absolutely everything in this Cuisinart TOB-260N1.
There are also a number of buttons: selector (for the cooking functions), +30s (add 30 seconds cooking time to any function), oven light, conv (convection button), speed conv (eliminates preheating), dual cook (combines 2 cooking functions or 2 temperatures), Start/Stop.
The components included are: 2 oven racks, baking/drip pan, broiling pan, round pizza stone, crumb tray and 3 year warranty.
Overall, I love the Cuisinart TOB-260N1 as one of the best sourdough toasters but it’s only worth that expensive price if you also want to take complete advantage of how good an oven it is.
