10May 12
by Serena Langley
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When I was a young girl, a friend of mine’s grandmother always used to invite us in for a slice of warm fresh rye bread with butter after playing. Â I remember instantly loving the nutty flavour and chewy texture the first time I bit into a slice. Â My friend’s grandmother was Ukrainian, but this Russian rye bread recipe is the closest thing I’ve found so far to what I remember. Â The recipe takes a fair bit of work and waiting for the dough to rise, but when you bite into a nice warm slice, it’s always worth the wait! (I also recommend this rosemary focaccia bread.)
What you’re going to need:
- 4.5tsp active dry yeast
- 250ml warm water (40 – 45°C)
- 85ml dark corn syrup
- 1.15 to 1.45 litres dark rye flour
- 2tsp salt
What you have to do:
- In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
- Stir in the corn syrup and set aside for 5 minutes, until the yeast mixture foams. If after 5 minutes the yeast mixture has not started to foam, discard the mixture and try again.
- Add 625ml of rye flour to the yeast mixture, a little at a time, and beat with a spoon until smooth.
- Stir in the salt.
- Set the bowl in a warm place, cover with a cloth towel, and let rise for 30 minutes.
- When the dough has risen, add 500ml to 750ml more of flour, about 150ml at a time, stirring after each addition.
- When the dough becomes difficult to stir, turn out onto a floured surface and knead in flour with your hands until the dough is stiff but still slightly sticky.
- Form the dough into a ball.
- Wash and dry the bowl. Place dough back in the bowl, cover with a cloth towel, and set in a warm place. Let it rise again for 2.5 to 3 hours, or until the dough almost doubles in size.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and, with floured hands, form into a loaf.
- Place loaf in a well-greased 23cm x 13cm loaf pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and return to a warm place to rise for 1 more hour.
- Preheat the oven to 175°C.
- Bake the loaf for 30 to 35 minutes. (Bread will not brown much.)
Â
Preparation Time:Â 45 minutes plus 4.5 hours rising
Cooking Time: 30-35 minutes
Serves: Â Makes 1 loaf
Difficulty: Medium
Tags: active dry yeast, bread, dark corn syrup, dark rye flour, Russian Rye Bread, vegetarian
This entry was posted on Thursday, 10 May, 2012 at 10:48 am by Serena Langley and is filed under Starters.
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I bet this would be good toasted as well.