The Fresh Loaf

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Ruchbrot

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

Ruchbrot

Happy New Year everyone. I'm back in Switzerland after holidays and baked my first bread with the local Ruchmehl flour - a Swiss version of high extraction flour. I followed a very simple recipe from https://www.homebaking.at/ruchbrot/

It includes a white flour levain build over a few hours and then exclusively Ruchmehl in the main dough, with high hydration (80%). The main flour is autolysed for 3 hours before mixing in the salt and levain as well. After just a little hand kneading using just firm folding and Rubaud-style the dough was well developed, and a couple more stretch and folds later made a strong, although stretchy dough. After bulk the dough was preshaped and then final shaped. I proofed in a floured towel in a tray placed on the balcony overnight, with night temperature going down to 4°C - just like in the fridge.

Baked with steam on a tray at 230°C. I discovered the oven here has a special mode for "humid baking" - it doesn't let out steam this way (audibly noticeable that the fan doesn't come on, unlike the regular baking mode even without convection), and it's the recommended setting for baking bread. So I used that, and seemed to work. While the shaping wasn't very tight and in proofing the bread spread out quite a bit lengthwise, oven spring was really good, however the slash didn't open very nicely. Maybe I didn't have to score it at all? Interesting.

The crumb is amazingly open, custardy, soft and a little moist - just like in the pictures on the recipe page! It's very tasty, without very strong wheaty/grassy notes like in whole grain bread, but very flavourful.

Overall, very happy with this bake, and pleasantly surprised with the flour!

And just now after baking noticed that there is an English version of the recipe available, and I didn't have to resort to Google translate :)

Comments

Benito's picture
Benito

Congratulations on a very successful first bake with the Ruchmehl Flour Ilya.  Amazing open crumb you achieved, you just be pleased with this bake.

Benny

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

Thank you Benny! I don't generally aim for such open crumb, but can't say I don't like the look of it when I get it :)

albacore's picture
albacore

Nice looking bread Ilya! I'm glad the recipe worked for you.

I'm never sure if the open crumb comes from the ruchmehl or the recipe procedures - or both.

 

Lance

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

Thank you Lance, indeed I'm very happy with this bake.

Semi intuitively I "blame" the rather long autolyse for the open crumb. I think it made the dough stronger but extensible. And I think the flour is quite strong, and absorbs water well after a while, so the dough was nice to work with. However just to mention here, going a few slices deeper the crumb is not as open as in the picture above close to the end of the loaf. But still melted butter on a toasted slice drips through easily, so quite open anyway!

albacore's picture
albacore

Yes, I often get this effect, where the crumb is more open at the ends of the loaf. I've never seen a good explanation of it.

Are you tempted by Le Pain Authentique? I must say, I've never had a good result with such a long autolyse.....

Lance

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

I also often observe this... Perhaps outside areas somehow expand more than inside? I don't know.

I might try it! I've never tried such long autolyse, curious how it affects the result. At least it's with salt. The pictures show a very nice looking bread, I'm sure it'll be very flavourful with some whole grain rye. Doubt I'll make such a huge bread though, he suggests >2 kg dough for one loaf!

happycat's picture
happycat

Amazing crumb. I need to stop being so cheap and buy some decent flour. Gorgeous results there. And sounds like a good oven, too.