40% Rye by Hamelman
Hamelman's 40% Rye with Caraway
I'm starting a string of rye breads using Jeff Hamelman's Bread [1]. I just recently purchased this book and I can say "Bread" has had a huge impact on my baking. I strongly recommend this book for anyone who is a contributor here. Forget the comments that it is written for the commercial baker and ignores the home baker. Hamelman is clear in his writing and shares detailed information to help understand the handling techniques needed to produce beautiful bread. This is a great resource on so many levels you will never be sorry for adding it to your library.
Here is the recipe I used pretty much straight from the book. The details provided in the side bars give you more depth of understanding but this will get you close.
40% Rye Bread with Caraway [2]
From Jeff Hamelman's-Bread
Rye Sour
- 360 g Medium Rye Flour
- 360 g Water
- 20 g Sourdough Starter
Final Dough
- 545 g King Arthur All Purpose Flour
- 260 g Water
- 740 g (all of the above) Rye Sour
- 1 Tsp. Instant Yeast
- 15 g Salt
- 15 g Caraway Seeds
The evening before the bake, prepare the rye sour by mixing together the rye flour, water and mature sourdough starter until homogeneous. Cover with a light dusting of Rye which will show you the progress of the sour. As it cracks open you will know fermentation is causing it to grow. Let stand overnight for 12-16 hours at 75-80°F.
The next day, combine the all purpose flour, water, instant yeast and rye sour, adding additional water if necessary to obtain a dough of medium consistency. Turn the dough out of the mixing bowl onto your work surface and begin hand kneading the somewhat sticky dough until it just starts to come together. Add the salt and continue hand mixing until the dough reaches medium development, about 10-15 minutes. Add the caraway seeds and hand mix just until evenly distributed within the dough. Place the dough in a lightly oiled container, cover, and let ferment at 78-80°F for 1 hour. Divide the dough into 1 1/2 lb. pieces, lightly round and let rest under a plastic sheet for 10 minutes. Shape the pieces into batards, place the batards seam side down on a couche or in a banneton and let proof for an additional hour.
After an hour, turn the batards onto a peel or parchment, score and bake in a pre heated oven at 450F [3] for the first 15 minutes of baking. After 15 minutes, turn the oven down to 420F and bake for an additional 20 minutes. A robust bake is more flavorful. Under baked is gummy. I shoot for 205F internal temp.
This bread needs to be completely cool before slicing. Enjoy!