No-Knead Rye Bread

I have been wanting to make bread for a long time. And when I saw an article about Sullivan Street Bakery in The New York Times a few years ago, my appetite increased ten-fold for making bread.

I combined Jim Lahey's basic recipe for baking the perfect loaf of bread at home with a rye-bread recipe I found on long-time blogger, Rebecca Blood's website, Rebecca's Pocket.

I recommend watching a few videos on YouTube. There is even one with Jim Lahey and Mark Bittman, who wrote the article about Sullivan Street Bakery which appeared in The New York Times!

Bruce's First Loaf of Rye Bread.

From Sullivan Street Bakery:

Formula: 

 

3 cups (430g) flour
1½ cups (345g or 12oz) water
¼ teaspoon (1g) yeast
1¼ teaspoon (8g) salt
olive oil (for coating)
extra flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal (for dusting)

Equipment:

 

Two medium mixing bowls (Note: I used only one bowl)
6 to 8 quart pot with lid (Pyrex glass, Le Creuset cast iron, or ceramic)
Wooden Spoon or spatula (optional)
Plastic wrap
Two or three cotton dish towels (not terrycloth)

Process:

 

Mix all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Add water and incorporate by hand or with a wooden spoon or spatula for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Lightly coat the inside of a second medium bowl with olive oil and place the dough in the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest 12 hours at room temperature (approx. 65-72°F).

Remove the dough from the bowl and fold once or twice. Let the dough rest 15 minutes in the bowl or on the work surface. Next, shape the dough into ball. Generously coat a cotton towel with flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal; place the dough seam side down on the towel and dust with flour. Cover the dough with a cotton towel and let rise 1-2 hours at room temperature, until more than doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 450-500°F. Place the pot in the oven at least 30 minutes prior to baking to preheat. Once the dough has more than doubled in volume, remove the pot from the oven and place the dough in the pot seam side up. Cover with the lid and bake 30 minutes Then remove the lid and bake 15-30 minutes uncovered, until the loaf is nicely browned.

From Rebecca's Pocket:

During Week 3 of Eating Organic on a Food Stamp Budget, reader John Desmond commented that he had developed recipes for whole grain breads using the no-knead method. He has kindly agreed to share them here:
He says, "The directions are the same for all the recipes. Here are the ingredients:"

Whole Wheat Bread

2 cups bread flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp yeast
2 cups water

Rye Bread

2 cups bread flour
2 cups rye flour
2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp caraway seeds
1/2 tsp yeast
2 cups water

Pumpernickel Bread

2 cups bread flour
2 cups rye flour
2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp cocoa
3 Tbsp molasses
1/2 tsp yeast
2 cups water

Susan and I actually bought a new pot for bread making (and for soups and stews); a KitchenAid Cast Iron Enameled Pot.

Bruce's First Loaf of Rye Bread Hot Out of the Oven.

Let me know if you make no-knead bread.
I would love to hear from you!

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