My favorite rye bread is made using very few ingredients. Three in fact. Specifically, spring water, rye flour, and a pinch of salt. As a result, yeast is not necessary, at least the commercial kind.
In short, the combination of water, flour, and the air will ferment together to produce wild yeast you can then use to bake a fantastic loaf of bread.
Rye flour is the best flour for making a starter
To make an excellent starter I recommend using rye flour type 720 or rye flour type 2,000. Rye flour has a strong flavor and it will give your bread a wonderful nutty flavor.
It will take you about 3 days to make a strong and active starter, so you can bake your rye bread on the fourth day.
Make sure to feed your starter regularly
Once you have an active starter, you will need to feed it once every 24 hours by repeating the steps below, or leave it “dormant” for a maximum of two weeks in the fridge.
You can store your starter in the fridge
If you need to leave your starter to rest in the fridge, watch out for a black film forming on top. When you notice a black-colored film, your starter might have gone bad. Sometimes if you catch it in time and scrape it off the top, you might be able to salvage it.
Here’s how to make your own wild yeast, or as many call it, a Starter!
STARTER
Ingredients
- 3 cups rye flour
- 3 cups spring water at room temperature
Instructions
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Day one: Get a 1 liter jar. Pour a cup of spring water and add a cup of rye flour. Mix it well together, cover it with a cloth, and let the mixture stand for about a day (12 to 24 hours) on a counter, at room temperature.
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Day two: Pour out half the mixture, add another cup of water and another cup of flour. Mix it, cover it, and let it sit on the counter for another day.
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Day three: By this point you should see some bubbles forming at the top of the mixture. And once again, pour out half the starter mixture, add a cup of water and a cup of flour. Cover the jar, and let it sit on the counter for another day.
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Day four: Your starter should be good to use and you can begin using it to make a simple bread without commercial yeast.
Once you have your starter ready, you’re ready to make your rye bread!
SIMPLE LIGHT RYE BREAD
Once you have a starter that’s at least three days old, take a cup and a half, pour it into a mixing bowl and add the following ingredients:
Ingredients
- 1 cup rye flour
- 1.5 cups wheat flour type 550 or all-purpose flour
- 1.5 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup spring water
- 1-2 tsp salt (depends on your preference)
- 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil for greasing the walls of your baking dish
Instructions
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Combine the ingredients and mix them all together.
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Grease two loaf-pans with some olive oil and pour the mixture into the baking dish. Fill it only half way to allow for the dough to rise. If the dough is very sticky, wet your hands and gently brush the surface with wet fingertips.
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Cover the pans with a dish cloth. Let the dough raise until double in size. In some cases this might take 5-6 hours depending on the strength of the starter and temperature in the room.
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Warm up the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (about 200 Celsius) and bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes.
Also, if you want to make your rye bread even more nutritious, add some sunflower seeds, flax seeds, or even pumpkin seeds to the mixture. These seeds will not only add texture to your bread, but also add some crunch and extra flavor. Enjoy a warm slice with some butter.
