The Fresh Loaf

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Whole Grain Rice and Buckwheat Gluten Free Bread (No Starch Added)

Angelica Nelson's picture
Angelica Nelson

Whole Grain Rice and Buckwheat Gluten Free Bread (No Starch Added)

This experiment worked out very well.  It's an everyday bread that I'll be using. It has no egg, only milk, and is suitably simple to use even if you're retired and aren't up for a kneading session.  Most Celiac diagnoses happen after mid-life, so my series is meant to empower everyone to make their own bread, even if they're limited in mobility.  My focus is on nutrition and simplicity.  Please comment and tell me what you think.  There is more detail in the article I'm linking to, but the recipe is reprinted here with a picture of the crumb. The texture is very similar to a classic rye bread.  Which shouldn't be surprising, I baked many a rye loaf when I was able to eat gluten.

Link:  https://www.nixgluten.com/2020/02/gluten-free-whole-grain-rice-buckwheat.html

The big surprise is that processed starches weren't needed to make a very nice bread machine bread that's gluten free. I always suspected that.  Now here's the proof. 

So far it hasn't lasted longer than two days, to check for staling. :)  It doesn't even stick tot he knife when you cut it.  I had a problem with that when I was using egg as a protein network. Not that those breads weren't delish, but this is more recognizably bread and less like a cake that tastes like bread.

Rice and Buckwheat Bread with Chia Seeds

A great tasting gluten free bread, equally good with stew or as french toast.
Allergens: Contains Milk

Equipment:
West Bend 1-3 lb Hi Rise Bread machine --  Whole Wheat Cycle 2.5 lbs, Dark Crust
Vitamix 5200 with Dry grind attachment


Baker's percentages and grams are used. Excluding soaker, 100% hydration.

Soaker:  30g chia seeds + 70g water (set aside for 5-10 min to thicken)

400g rice flour (I fresh ground mine,  this is a good one)
200g buckwheat flour (I fresh ground it, this is a good one)
600g whole milk  (100%)
15g vinegar (2.5%)
15g oil  (2.5%)
15g turbinado sugar (2.5%)
1 packet Rapid Rise yeast (or Bread Machine yeast, or Instant Yeast, these are the same)
    *that's 7g in a packet or around 1% also
6g guar gum (1%)  with the chia also, you don't need much of this
6g salt

Combine, flours, guar gum, and salt in a bowl and set aside.

In the Bread machine container, add milk, sugar and soaker.

On top of the milk mixture, put the flours mixture.  Don't stir.  Make a hole or channel in the top, and put the yeast there.

Along the side, slide in the oil and vinegar, just before starting the machine.  That is to say, set the settings for the machine, pour in the oil/vinegar, and press Start.  Since we're using milk and vinegar, I'd rather not take a chance at curdling the milk.

My machine takes 3 and 1/2 hours for the whole wheat cycle. Don't open it in the last stage of rising and baking, it can collapse, otherwise, feel free to scrape the sides down in earlier stages if you feel it needs it.  But it shouldn't need that. This dough works pretty well, hands off.

Important Note:  Using a thermometer I've noticed that the bread in a bread machine doesn't always get to fully cooked temperatures.  This is even more important when you're baking gluten free.  So either use a thermometer that can monitor the temperature and beep when it's at 210 degrees F in the center of the loaf, or do what I do....  leave it on Keep Warm after it's finished for another 45-60 minutes, then cool on the countertop for another 2-12 hours.  All this is before slicing. It will be worth the wait.  

Comments

clazar123's picture
clazar123

I have made gluten free and even low carb breads and to me the taste is the most important part. A nice texture on a GF or low carb bread will never be the same as a wheat based loaf and that is to be expected, BUT it should have a nicely fermented taste. Oddly, one of the ways I achieved that was not with yeast but with the addition of vegemite to the dough. I discovered this when I made low carb bread (which really doesn't have anything for the yeast to eat) and it made a big difference to me. I have added vegemite to other baked goods as a flavorant but when I do I reduce the added salt as vegemite is salty. Marmite is similar.

 

Nice, even texture on your loaf! It must taste pretty good if it lasts just a few days.

EDIT: Dang! I just checked to see if vegemite was GF and, sadly, it is not.      https://vegemite.com.au/faqs/  

EDIT: Good News! A GF vegemite is available!  https://theaustralianfoodshop.com/product/vegemite-spread-gluten-free-spread-235g/

Angelica Nelson's picture
Angelica Nelson

That's a very interesting idea.  There's certified GF miso available in most grocery stores so I may try it as a flavoring sometime.  Luckily, this bread has no flavorless starches in it so it tastes like rice and buckwheat with a bready yeasty tone.  I'm going to try some other combinations to see how the flavors change.  I've already identified that Chickpea flour tastes a bit like peanuts to me.  So I consider that better in cookies than bread.  Malt made from safe grains can be made at home or purchased from specialty suppliers.  A person could also make a sourdough starter and spike it with yeast before baking (if using a bread machine, you'd have to spike it). 

I agree, flavor is king. 

About Vegemite specifically, here's a list of mites a person with Celiac might try. http://www.aussiecoeliac.com.au/gluten-free-yeast-spreads/   So far, I haven't seen any indication of what GF Vegemite actually contains, only the claim that it's gluten free.  Based on their FAQ I'm not confident about Vegemite itself. https://vegemite.com.au/FAQs/  The production line FAQ in particular is telling.

Beverly the Inspired's picture
Beverly the Inspired

Plan on following your recipe Saturday. But! only have sorghum flour, brown rice, psyllium “flour” & chia seeds on hand. It’s worth an edible kitchen experiment =}.

Your tip of keeping the finished loaf on the “keep warm” setting is brilliant. Having under-baked GF loaves has been my bain using a bread machine. It seems even on “whole wheat” setting they’re calibrated for highly a processed flour mix.

One of my favourite kitchen toys is an old NutriBullet. Does well grinding things like instant brown rice & oats into rustic flours. More coarse yet adds some nice texture. I add any chia seeds while grinding, too.

Aah yes, waiting HaHa! DH wants to cut into loaves straight from the oven. Bread’s one of the things he’s missed most since Celiacs dx.

 

Angelica Nelson's picture
Angelica Nelson

I think the sorghum flour swap will work fine.  It might end up with a softer crust that way but still good.  From what I've read sorghum is like rice, there are varieties and it matters which variety.  So for instance a short grain rice has more amylopectin and often produces a a dough that is more elastic.  Sounds good for bread except the internal crumb gets too gooey for me.  That's why I use long grain rice. The crust is also very crisp this way. 

I wish I could say which brand has which variety of sorghum, but I'm only two years into my diagnosis and haven't had that much time to read up, ask manufacturers, etc.  Sometimes I still can't believe this is happening.

I did try this with both Fleishman's and Red Star and of the two, I prefer Fleishman's (rapid rise).  Red Star I had to hydrate and wake up the yeast with some sugar and warm it up much more (the dough didn't rise until I did that).  That's too fussy for a bread machine, I think. 

Another thing I've done with the bread machine is used one of those electronic instant digital thermometers, and had the probe in the bread, and restarted the bake cycle of the machine, until the temperature reached 205-210 degrees F.  It takes a surprisingly long time.  But that's again, too fussy for my goal of "insert ingredients, press start...  maybe scrape the sides a bit once, and just leave it to do its job." 

I hope you'll take a pic or two and blog about it, I'd be so happy to see how ti turns out!

Beverly the Inspired's picture
Beverly the Inspired

Celiacs is a beast :{. that requires constant vigilance. Had to retire the old bread machine (BM), bowls, utensils, tins to avoid cross-contamination. Took several years to replace everything... including foodstuffs. Not a lot of baking those years.

I’m just now venturing into GF yeast-raised & sourdough breads. That’s how I found TFL & your post =}.

Red Mill brand white sorghum is available in-town market. Found it plays nice with cornmeal for cornbreads & rice for sweet bread/coffee cakes. You’re right, very tender crust & crumb. I do add psyllium “flour” to give it a “little buckram”.

Experimenting with a sorghum sourdough starter, too. I’ve missed sourdough, rye, & pumpernickel breads the most. DH likes sandwich-style loaves so I’ll play around with both BM & oven/Pullman loaf tin.

Hopefully I remember to document (or is that  mockument *wink*) important weights & measures, steps, methods & madness. That’ll be a first for this pinch of this, palmful of that, Gramma’s blue bowl of the other thing old gal.

Angelica Nelson's picture
Angelica Nelson

Made me smile, I don't like to measure either.  I made rye for several years without measuring, just feeling. The hard part for me was believing that a pancake like viscosity of batter was going to turn out good.  If the batter thing will bother you, then the BM will be hard for you too. I can put less hydration in it if I use my mixer and bake in the oven, but I think this experiment with the BM is more important and will help more people, so I've disciplined myself to tackle it first.

A new book was written lately for gluten free sourdough baking, and it's a very good one I think with lots of techniques I hadn't seen before:  https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Fulfillment-formulas-without-gluten/dp/0648554902/  I'm still reading it but so far, it's very down to earth.

Beverly the Inspired's picture
Beverly the Inspired

It’s packed still, an old Fleischmann’s paperback breads cookbook has a section for “The Mod Baker” titled There’s a Need for No Knead. Learned how to beat by hand some gooy substances, HaHa. Still one of my fav books. Sadly no GF recipes.

Batter doughs I’ve found work beautifully in BMs. Spring/Summer/Autumn is prime bread machine time here. Louisiana is known for its Hazy/Hot/Humid Season. Since retiring, I’ve learned more about using one than years prior. It’s quite versatile.

Waiting until Tuesday or Wednesday to make your recipe as written. That may give us both an idea how it adapts to different machines & environments. This one’s CuisineArt, rectangular loaf version. Even put fresh batteries in the scale.

Angelica Nelson's picture
Angelica Nelson

Happy Mardi Gras :)  It will be fascinating to see how it turns out in a Cuisinart. 

Beverly the Inspired's picture
Beverly the Inspired

A dear lady-friend used to call Mardi Gras Panniecake Tuesday. Monday before, she’d use up all of her wheat flours & yeasts/sourdoughs. Everything during Lent was “unleavened” wheatless doughs; although baking powder/soda was allowed. Old World Acadian was she.


Today I’m fixing your Whole Grain Rice & Buckwheat Bread recipe. Only swap is cassava flour for rice flour. Buckwheat flour came in early this morning *WooHoo*

Did a blog post on an adapted KAF sourdough bread machine recipe yesterday. Pleased as was DH.