Spicy Sriracha Bread

You probably recognize sriracha from the red-squeezie bottle on every Thai restaurant table. I actually didn't buy this iconic version, from Huy Fong foods, because it contains sugar. Not to worry - other brands are available! Sriracha is actually a generic name for hot chili sauce (named after a seaside city called Si Racha in Thailand), so any sauce of chili peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt fits the bill. I bought the hot chili sauce from a company called Bali Spice, whose sugar was listed as 'raw cane sugar'.

Aside from the spicy kick, this is a simple bread to make. In a large bowl, combine 3/4 cup warm water (use a thermometer to check that the temperature is between 100 and 110 degrees), 1/4 cup sriracha, and 1 packet (about 2 and 1/4 teaspoons) of yeast. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Stir in 2 and 3/4 cups bread flour (I use the white flour from Bob's Red Mill), along with 3/4 tsp. salt and the equivalent of one egg using egg replacer (such as Ener-G). Stir until a soft dough forms, then turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 8 minutes. It's been a while since I last made a yeast bread, so here's a refresher of the simple steps for kneading: press dough down with the heel of your palm, fold in half, turn a quarter-turn on the work surface, and repeat! Add up to 1/4 cup more flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.

Coat a large bowl with cooking spray, and place the dough in the bowl, turning to coat the top of the dough as well. Cover and let rise for 1 hour - ideally some place about 85 degrees and free from drafts.

After an hour, punch the dough down and let it rest 5 minutes. Transfer to a work surface and shape into a 14x7 inch rectangle. Tightly roll up the dough jelly-roll fashion, starting from one of the short ends, and pressing out any air pockets as you go. Pinch the ends and the seam to seal. Place the loaf, seam-side down, in an 8x4-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray; coat the top of the dough with cooking spray too, then cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove the loaf from the pan and place on a wire rack. Brush the top with one teaspoon melted vegan butter (such as Earth Balance), then let cool completely on the wire rack.

Slice into 14 slices of 120 calories each - this makes delicious sandwich bread!

Cost:
sriracha $3.99
yeast packets $2.69
bread flour $5.99