Rye Bread

Ingredients

• For the sour (sourdough starter — begin several days ahead)
• 200 g rye flour, for feeding the starter over several days
• 200 ml water, lukewarm; for feeding the starter
• For the dough
• 300 g rye flour
• 600 g bread flour (strong white wheat flour)
• 250 g active rye sour (sourdough starter), ripe and active, from above
• 7 g instant dried yeast
• 18 g fine salt
• 500 ml water, lukewarm
• 15 g caraway seeds, mixed into dough; reserve a little for the crust if desired
• For the base and crust
• 30 g fine cornmeal (polenta), for dusting the baking surface — the traditional deli corn rye method

Method

1. 1
   Several days before baking, prepare the rye sour. Combine equal weights of rye flour and lukewarm water in a clean jar. Stir well, cover loosely, and leave at room temperature. Each day, discard half and feed with fresh rye flour and water in equal weights. The starter is ready when it is visibly active, bubbly throughout, and smells sharply tangy with a pronounced lactic-acetic sourness.
2. 2
   In a large bowl, combine the bread flour, rye flour, salt, and caraway seeds. In a separate vessel, dissolve the instant yeast in the lukewarm water. Add the active rye sour and the yeast water to the dry ingredients. Mix until a cohesive, slightly tacky dough forms. The dough will be stickier and less elastic than a pure-wheat dough — this is the rye content inhibiting full gluten development. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8–10 minutes until the dough is smooth, cohesive, and pulls away from the board cleanly, though it will remain somewhat tacky to the touch.
3. 3
   This is where the bread lives or dies. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow a long, cool fermentation — either several hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator. The dough must more than double in volume and develop a pronounced, sour, yeasty aroma before it is shaped. A rushed or insufficient fermentation produces a loaf that rises adequately but lacks the specific lactic-acetic tang that defines Jewish rye. The sour does the flavour work here; the commercial yeast provides only structural insurance.
4. 4
   Turn the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into two equal pieces. Shape each into an oval (batard) form, pulling the surface taut. Dust a baking sheet or peel generously with cornmeal — this is the traditional corn rye base: it prevents sticking and imparts a fine, sandy texture to the bottom crust. Place the shaped loaves on the cornmeal-dusted surface, cover loosely, and prove until noticeably puffed and the surface springs back slowly when pressed with a fingertip.
5. 5
   Preheat the oven to 220°C with a heavy baking vessel, stone, or steel inside. Place a roasting tin on the floor of the oven. When the loaves are proved, score their surfaces with a sharp blade and slide them onto the hot surface. Immediately pour 250 ml of boiling water into the roasting tin to generate steam. Bake for the first 10 minutes with steam: the steam delays crust formation, allowing maximum oven spring. After 10 minutes, remove the roasting tin to allow the steam to dissipate. The crust will begin to colour and firm.
6. 6
   Continue baking at 200°C for a further 25–30 minutes. The loaves are done when the crust is deeply and evenly brown, the bottom sounds hollow when struck firmly with a knuckle, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the centre reads between 93°C and 96°C. A pale or soft crust indicates under-baking. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing — the crumb continues to set as the loaf cools.