CARAWAY SEED BREAD WITH RYE

This Bread uses 15% rye flour and 85% wheat flour. As long as the rye flour does not exceed 30% of the loaf, it’s does not qualify as a rye bread. The original recipe called for 500ml cold water, 250g fermented dough, 250g starter, 750 plain flour, 85g rye flour etc. which was too much for our consumption, and the preparation was too complicated. So I simplified the recipe and modified it to bake a smaller loaf. Here’s what I did.

345g water (75% hydration)
8g sea salt.
1/2 tsp dry yeast
​1 1/2 Tbs caraway seeds

Method:
Mix both flours, caraway seeds and salt in a bowl. In a separate jug, measure in the water and the yeast and stir till homogenous. Then add the liquid to the dry mix and stir for a few minutes till you get a round sticky ball of dough. Leave this covered, overnight in the bowl. Next day, transfer the risen dough gently on to a floured mat and fold the dough a few times to form a loaf. ​

Let this proof further for 2 hours.  About 1 1/2 hours into the proofing, start up your oven and heat this to 235˚C or 240˚C. Have a shallow metal tray in the oven for steaming. When the dough has risen, and does not bounce back when you depress the surface with your finger, slash the dough surface 4 to 5 times with a bread knife to make 1/2 inch deep cuts and then transfer the dough to the oven and place in 1/2 cup of hot water on the tray for steaming. Bake at 230˚C for 25 to 30 minutes or till golden brown. I spritz once with water in the first 10 minutes.

Remove the hot loaf to cool on a metal rack. Best eaten same day with strong cheddar cheese.