Rye Sourdough

Note: This is a work in progress and will be refined over the next month or so. Changes will be dated and called out.

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Our Rye Sourdough is based on our House Sourdough recipe. It is a blend of four flours that work well together in the proportions given.

6/19/25: increased the water in the main dough

Yield: two (2) 450 gram loaves

Ingredients:

The Levain (Leaven)

• 52 grams King Arthur all-purpose flour

• 24 grams dark rye flour (Bob’s Red Mill)

• 3 grams potato flakes

• 76 grams water

• 60 grams rye sourdough culture (see notes)

The Dough

• 224 grams King Arthur bread flour

• 46 grams King Arthur Sir Lancelot high gluten flour

• 124 grams King Arthur all-purpose flour

• 90 grams dark rye flour

• 276 grams warm water

• 26 grams raw or unrefined sugar

• 8 grams RealSalt, Kosher, or fine sea salt

• 24 grams melted lard (preferred) or a vegetable oil

This is a multi-day process. We create the levain in the evening, assemble the dough first thing in the morning, manage the dough, split & form the dough, place into bannetons, room temp proofing, then overnight in a refrigerator before baking.

• Day 1 - Create the levain/leaven

• Day 2 - Assemble the dough

• Day 3 - Bake

 The method below is what we do.  Feel free to adjust it to your schedule and lifestyle.

Day 1 - Create the levain/leaven (8 hour fermentation)

• Mix together the flour, water and starter culture.

• Cover for the night, leave out at room temperature.

Day 2 - Assemble the dough

• Mix together the flours, sugar and warm water.  Cover and set aside for a 1-2 hour rest (autolyse).  This lets the flour & water fully combine.

• After the autolyse, pour the melted lard (or oil) on top of the dough.

• By hand, mix in the levain. Cover then set aside for 20 minutes.

•  Again by hand, blend in the salt.  As the salt blends in, expect to feel the dough relax and get silky.  Cover then set aside for 20 minutes.

• Hand mix again then cover and set aside for another 20 minutes.

• From here, perform a series of stretches & folds to develop the dough over the next several hours.  Grab the dough on one side, lift to stretch, pull it across the dough.

• Cover and let rest for 45 minutes.

• Repeat the stretch-and-fold, letting the dough rest for another 45 minutes, until you’ve done this 4-5-6 times. After a period of time, you may see some bubbles forming and may notice the dough is getting fluffy.  This is good.

• Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.  Using a dough knife, cut the dough in half.

• Gently form the dough into a rectangle.  Fold the left & right sides in as you would do for a letter.  Repeat for the top & bottom.  Roll the dough over and cover for 15-20 minutes.

• After the rest, gently form the dough into a rectangle again.  Fold the right and left sites in as before.  Starting at the bottom, roll up the dough, pinch off the edges and form the dough ball to fit your pan.

•  If baking in a Dutch Oven or on a baking steel or stone, place the dough upside down (seam side up) in a lightly floured banneton or a colander with a lightly floured cloth.

• If baking in loaf pans, spray the inside with PAM and place the bread in seam side down.

Let the dough sit covered at room temperature for several hours then place in your refrigerator overnight.

Day 3 - Bake

If Baking in a Dutch Oven

• Set the oven rack in the middle.

• Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of the Dutch Oven.

• Place the dough ball seam side down onto the parchment paper.

• Score the top of the loaf.

• Place the parchment and dough into the Dutch Oven.

• Put the cover on the Dutch Oven then put it into a cold oven then set to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Cook covered for 50-55 minutes.

• Carefully remove the (very hot) cover and set aside.  Cook uncovered for an additional 10-12 minutes.

• Place the bread onto a cooling rack.  Cool 30-45 minutes before cutting into it.

If Baking in a Loaf Pan

• Set the oven rack in the middle.

• After the dough has had a chance to rise for several hours, preheat the oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Slide the loaf pans into the oven then bake for 25-30 minutes.

• Place the bread onto a cooling rack.  Cool 30-45 minutes before cutting into it.

Check out this video:

Notes

You can start by creating your own starter from scratch or, somewhat easier as well as tried & true, getting a packet of dehydrated sourdough flakes chips from us.

Need some flakes?  Visit The Store

Rye Starter Culture: This is an offshoot of our day-to-day starter. If feeding with 20 grams of flour, your mix will be 12 grams all-purpose flour + 8 grams of dark rye flour - a flour ratio of 3:2. Maintain the same 3:2 ratio as you bulk up your rye starter for a bake.