Craving crackly crust (Sour rye bread)
Norm (nbicomputers), in response to my question in his introduction topic, suggested I start a new topic. The question is: How do you get a crackly crust on a sour rye bread?
The sour rye I bake is based on George Greenstein's formula in "Secrets of a Jewish Baker." The formula below is what I actually made, though. The changes from Greenstein are: 1) I used instant yeast rather than active dry yeast, 2) I used whole rye rather than white rye to feed my rye sour, 3) I used 1T rather than 1/2 T of caraway seeds and 4) I used 2 1/2 tsp rather than 3 tsps of salt.
Sour rye bread loaf
Sour rye bread crumb
Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
2 tsps instant yeast
< span class="caption">3 cups rye sour
4 1/2 cups (maybe a bit more) KA first clear flour
2 1/2 tsps salt
1 T caraway seeds
(Note: I usually brush the loaves with cornstarch solution before and after baking, but I didn't this time.)
Ingredients were mixed and kneaded in a KitchenAid Accolade until well-developed, then hand stretched and folded until smooth but still quite tacky. The dough was rested in a covered, oiled bowl for 20 minutes. I formed the loaves and proofed them on floured parchment until doubled in size. I baked with steam for 5 minutes at 375F, then with convection at 350F for another 45 minutes.
The crust was very hard when the loaves came out of the oven but was soft by time they had completely cooled. I have never achieved a crust that stayed crackly on this bread.
Okay, Norm. How do I get a crust that stays crackly?
David