This recipe makes use of fermented pickle brine and caraway seeds to give you a classic Eastern European rye bread flavor without the need for sourdough starter. (If you want to make my classic sourdough rye bread recipe, check out my recipe here.)
This bread has a wonderful consistency, including a delectable crust. Its tight crumb will hold up to heavy, juicy meats like corned beef. One note of caution is making rye bread can feel unfamiliar if you’re otherwise experienced in bread-making. The low gluten of rye flour can make for a tacky and unwieldy dough. It took me a couple tries to feel really comfortable making my first sourdough rye breads, but if you trust in the process and keep going, I think you’ll find too that this is one epic bread.
This recipe originally appeared in Insane in the Brine: The Official Cookbook (available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble). There are 100 recipes in the book not available anywhere else!
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Yield:
1 loaf (26 oz.)
Shelf life:
5-6 days (stored in a cool, dry location); 3 months (sealed & frozen)
Equipment:
- Stand mixer
- Large mixing bowl
- Cling wrap
- 5X9 loaf pan
- Small bowl and whisk (for egg wash)
- Basting brush
- Baking Thermometer
Ingredients:
- 1.25 cups lukewarm water
- ¼ cup sour dill pickle brine, room temperature (do not use vinegar brine); you can buy ferment pickles for your brine or make your own
- 2 cups bread flour, 240g (+ around 1/3 cup or more as needed to remove dough from mixing bowl & reduce tackiness when handling)
- 1.75 cups rye flour (light or dark rye; I prefer dark coarse), 180g
- 1 packet instant yeast (7g or ¼ oz.)
- 2 TBSP molasses (can sub w/ sugar)
- 2 TBSP sunflower oil, can substitute with shortening or melted butter
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 egg, room temperature (optional)
- 1 TBSP caraway seeds (or ½ TBSP caraway and ½ TBSP dill seeds); suggested: lightly toast in pan then coarsely crush with mortar & pestle
- 1.5 tsp sunflower oil (or other neutral vegetable oil), separated into 1 tsp + ½ tsp
- 1 egg white, beaten (or 1 whole beaten egg for a darker glaze)
- ~2-3 cups ice
Directions:
1.) Combine the water, pickle ferment brine, sugar, 2 TBSP oil, instant yeast, bread flours and (optional) egg in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Beat on medium-low for 3 minutes. Add the salt and caraway seeds. Beat at medium/high speed for 7-8 minutes until it forms into a ball. (If it is not taking shape or is too sticky, tilt the bowl and start to sprinkle flour around the bottom where the dough is stuck to the bowl.) Continue sprinkling flour, working it under the bottom if the dough and pulling the dough away from the bowl until it will do so in one cohesive piece. It may still be very sticky.
2.) Generously sprinkle a working surface and roll the dough on the flour into a ball. Continue to add flour on surface and/or on hands as needed to manage the dough, but do not use more than what is necessary. (It is normal for rye to feel tackier and less dense than regular dough.)
3.) Lightly oil mixing bowl (1 tsp sunflower oil) and place the dough inside, turning it on all sides to oil it. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and poke a few holes with a knife. Set in a warm location (or place on heated baking mat) until it nearly doubles in size (typically within 45 minutes to 2 hours).
4.) Generously flour the working surface again and invert the dough onto it. Press down into a square then fold the two furthest corners towards you to form a point (shown in the pic). Roll the point towards you, tucking in the dough as you go, in effect forming a log. Finally, pull down ends over the sides and fluff the dough to form an oval loaf. (The seam will all be on one side, which should face down in the loaf pan in the next step.)
5.) Grease the 5×9 bread pan (use the remaining ½ tsp oil). Gently place the dough log into the bread pan, seam side down. Cover again with the cling wrap with holes. Allow to rise until it reaches the surface of the bread pan (typically within 1-2 hours).
6.) Preheat the oven to 375F. Once heated, beat the egg white. When the dough has reached the top of the loaf pan, liberally coat the surface of the bread with the egg wash. Before placing the loaf in the oven, you can drop a couple cups of ice into the bottom of the oven for steam. (Alternately, you can put a cast iron skillet in the oven when you start to preheat, and then drop the ice into the pan just before placing in the dough-filled oven pan. Place the loaf pan in the bottom 3rd of the oven. Bake at 375 for about 32-35 minutes. When the bread has fully risen, crust is golden brown and well cooked, check the internal temperature, aiming for 205-210F.
7.) Remove from oven and allow to cool for about ten minutes in the loaf pan. Then remove from the loaf pan and place on an elevated wire rack to cool for another 10-15 minutes.
Notes: Warm bread can feel like a real treat, and it is! On the other hand, for a loaf you want to eat throughout the week, to allow the steam to escape evenly and maintain the integrity of the rise and texture, it is best to allow the bread to sit overnight or for at least 6-8 hours.
I never have found this recipe to require scoring (the rye flour results in a somewhat humbler rise), but you can do so as desired.
If you liked this recipe, it can be found – along with over 100 others that AREN’T available on this site or anywhere else – on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
Check out the Insane in the Brine Facebook Group for all your ferment advice and posting your creations!