For this Rye Sourdough Bread I used my active starter. A while ago I already baked a rye sourdough bread with discard. Honestly, it really doesn’t make much of a difference, either in texture or taste. Both breads are so delicious and quite easy to make.
With this bread, it is important that you take your sourdough starter out of the fridge the night before to prepare the levain. This way you can start right away the next morning and the beauty of this bread is that you can bake it the same day. However, I still suggest to wait until the next day to enjoy the bread, because it allows the full flavor to develop.
This bread needs less attention, because you do not have to fold it as often and no final proofing is required. The reason for this is the high rye flour content. This flour contains almost no gluten, which makes this bread easier to prepare than a regular sourdough bread.
Tools & Equipment
- Banneton
- Digital thermometer
- Kitchen towel
- Large bowl
- Large baking sheet
- Medium jar with lid
- Plastic wrap
- Scoring knife or razor blade
- Silicone baking mat
- Silicone spatula
- Wire rack
Recipe Tips
Texture: I used 20% whole wheat flour for this bread. Since rye flour contains almost no gluten, you can increase the wheat flour content to 40% if you prefer a rye bread with a less dense texture. It is also possible to make a bread with 100% rye flour. This is a great rustic bread – perfect if you want to reduce wheat in your diet or if you are gluten sensitive.
Fermentation: Rye flour contains hardly any gluten, so the size of the dough does not change as much as in other breads. Therefore, it is not necessary to complete a series of folds. Nevertheless, I like to do one fold. The dough will increase in size a bit at the end and you may see some air bubbles on the surface.
Slice the Bread: Make sure you slice the bread only when it has cooled completely. You will get an even better result if you slice and serve the bread the next day, for the best possible flavor.
Ingredients for Rye Sourdough Bread
Directions – How to Make Rye Sourdough Bread
Make the Levain
Place your sourdough starter, water and flour in a medium sized jar and stir until fully incorporated. Cover with a lid and let the sourdough sit at room temperature until doubled in size, preferably overnight.
Make the Loaf
Pour 350g of water into a large mixing bowl, add the levain and stir until evenly combined. Add rye flour and whole wheat flour. Mix thoroughly with your hands and/or a silicone spatula until no dry flour is left. Cover the dough and let it rest in the bowl for 40 minutes.
Add salt and the remaining 50g of water and work it in by squeezing the dough between your fingers. Fold the dough over on itself until the salt is fully incorporated. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
Fold the dough from the top to the center, turn the bowl 90°, then fold the top of the dough to the center again. Continue until you have folded the dough over 2-3 times. Cover and let rest for 3 hours.
The dough will increase in size a little and you may see some air bubbles on the surface. Make a 50/50 mixture of rice flour and rye flour. Dust the banneton with a thick layer of the flour mixture.
Lift the dough from the bowl and place it in the banneton. Dust the surface of the dough with the flour mixture. Cover and let rest for 1 hour. About 30 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 230°C/450°F. Invert the dough from the banneton onto a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat.
Score the loaf to let it fully rise in the oven. Bake the loaf for 50-55 minutes. It is done when the core temperature reaches about 98°C/208°F. Remove from the oven and place the bread on a wire rack to cool completely.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
Storage: You can keep the bread at room temperature for 3-5 days. A paper bag or kitchen towel are perfect to protect bread from drying out too much. Do not store bread in the fridge. If you do, it will get stale faster compared to keeping it at room temperature.
Freezing Instructions: Let the bread cool completely and freeze the whole loaf or slices of bread in a zipper bag for up to 3 months.
My Summary for Rye Sourdough Bread
Difficulty: Simple.
Taste & Texture: This rye sourdough bread has a crispy crust. The texture is more dense, due to the lack of gluten in the rye flour. It has a slightly tart flavor, but it’s not too overpowering. Overall, I can say that this bread has a great taste and texture.
Time: You should plan about 5 hours for making the dough, resting and folding. Afterwards you can bake the loaf directly, the baking time is 50-55 minutes.
More BREAD Recipes
- Basic Sourdough Bread
- Country Rye Sourdough Bread
- Pain au Levain
- Pumpkin and Sunflower Sourdough Discard Bread
- Rye Sourdough Discard Bread
