Growing up I did not like rye bread. My grandparents would have it at their house and when we would visit, I would always hope for a loaf of good ol’ white wonder bread. Funny how your tastes change as an adult.
I took a little bit of a break from making bread lately but now that the weather is cooler and we are moving into winter, my desire for bread products has increased. I recently stocked up on my favorite flours from 1847 Stone Flour Milling. If you haven’t checked out their products, I suggest you do. Their stone ground flours are amazing and their customer service is fantastic!
Naturally for this recipe, I used 1847 Rye Humor flour and Daily Bread flour.
The rye flour from 1847 Stone Milling is what I use to keep my sourdough starter alive.
Check out my post on making sourdough bread for more tips on bread making.
This recipe does take time but most of that is proofing the bread. The actual hands-on time is minimal and is very easy with your mixer. You should plan on approximately 3 hours and 15 minutes for the entire process from start to finish. That said, depending on the temperature of your home when you are proofing the dough, it might take longer or go quicker. You will need to keep an eye on your dough and what is happening.
Delicious Caraway Rye Bread Recipe
Cuisine: Bread30
minutes40
minutes2
minutesRecipe inspired by Better Homes and Gardens
Ingredients
2 Cups Warm Water (110 Degrees Fahrenheit)
200 Grams Rye Flour
3 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
2 1/4 Tsp. Active Dry Yeast
460 Grams Bread Flour (may need more or less)
2 Tbsp. Sunflower Oil
1/2 Tbsp Caraway Seeds
2 Tsp. Salt
Directions
- In your mixer bowl, add the water, rye flour, brown sugar and yeast. Mix just until there is no dry flour. Let the mixture rest for 20 minutes.
- Turn on your mixer and add the sunflower oil, salt, caraway seeds and bread flour. Knead the dough with your mixer. At a low speed, I set my timer for 8 minutes.
- Add more flour if the dough is too wet. The dough should be elastic but still a bit tacky.
- Shape your dough into a ball and place it into a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let it rise until it doubles in size. This can take approximately an hour in a 70 degree Fahrenheit room.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and lightly flatten it. Cover and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Shape the dough into a ball and place the seam side up in a lightly floured banneton (see the description below for other options). Cover and let rest until double in size again.
- After approximately 30 minutes, place a 5 qt cast iron dutch oven with the lid into your oven. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Fold two 18-inch pieces of parchment paper into long strips lengthwise. Cross these two strips on top of your dough and place a cutting board on top of this. Gently turn everything upside down so now your dough is on the strips, on the cutting board with the banneton upside down. (see pictures for more details)
- Gently remove the banneton and using your lame or a very sharp knife, score the top of your dough.
- Using the parchment paper, lower your dough carefully into the hot dutch oven. Return the lid and bake for 25 minutes.
- Take the lid off and turn the heat down to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes. The bread is done when you tap the underside and it sounds hollow.
- Allow to cool completely on a rack before slicing.
Notes
- You can make this bread in a traditional loaf pan. You would proof your dough in the loaf pan and skip the dutch oven. To help with the steam that you get from a dutch oven, I add a shallow pan of boiling water to the oven beside the loaf pan when the dough is placed into the preheated oven.
Additional photos for the rye bread recipe directions
I took a lot of pictures during the process to help you understand what is going on and what you should be seeing while making the bread.
This is after step 1. Add the first 4 ingredients and let it rest for 20 minutes.
This is what the mixture will look like after 20 minutes. Doesn’t look good but does smell like yeast. If you don’t have a smell or bubbles/clumps, your yeast may not be alive.
After you have added the last ingredients and mixed for about 8 minutes. You can continue to use your mixer to knead the dough, but sometimes I like kneading the dough myself to get a feel for the texture.
Add your dough to a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm location until it doubles in size. Approximately 1 hour.
This is after an hour of resting. It’s pretty much doubled in size.
Remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten it slightly, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rest for 15 minutes while you prepare your proofing basket.
I have a circular banneton that I line with linen and dust liberally with flour. If you don’t have a banneton, you can use a mixing bowl lined with a clean dishcloth and dust it with flour. Just make sure you pick a bowl that is about the same size as your dutch oven. Don’t go bigger than your dutch oven or the dough won’t fit.
If you want a sandwich loaf-size rye bread, use a loaf tin for this step.
I buy my parchment paper from Costco. It’s a wide roll so I cut the strip in half lengthwise then fold each half into thirds, lengthwise. You are basically trying to make a hammock so that you can lower your bread into your very hot dutch oven without burning yourself.
You can also just use a solid piece of parchment that covers the entire bottom but you may need to remove it part way through the baking process to crisp up the bottom.
Gently shape your dough into a ball and place it seem side up in your prepared proofing basket or bowl. Cover and let rest in a warm place for approximately an hour.
30 minutes into your final proofing time, take a dutch oven with a lid and place it into your oven. Preheat your oven (and the dutch oven) to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
This is after an hour.
Place your parchment paper hammock diagonally across your bread.
Place a cutting board on top of the entire thing and gently turn it upside down.
Gently remove the banneton and using a bread lame or a very sharp knife, score the top of your bread. If you don’t score your bread, you may end up with blow outs in very odd locations. The score lines allow the bread to expand.
Using your hammock, gently lower the dough into the very hot dutch oven. Place the lid back on and bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, take the lid off and reduce the heat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 10 to 15 more minutes. You can tell the bread is done by tapping the bottom with your finger. If it sounds hollow, it’s ready. Place on a wire rack to cool.
As tempting as it is, don’t cut into your bread until it’s completely cooled!
Do you like Caraway-Rye bread? If you make this recipe, I would love to see your results. You can tag me over on Instagram @heidiswhatsburning.