Homemade Rye Bread Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the ratio of rye flour to bread flour? ›

Still, if you want to use rye in your favorite yeast bread recipe, start small: replace 25% of the all-purpose or bread flour with rye and assess the results. If you're pleased, try a bit higher percentage next time.

Rye bread made with 100% rye flour will be dense and heavy; think some of those all-rye breads you find at artisan bakeries, the ones sliced off an enormous loaf and sold by the pound. If you're looking for a lighter, softer sandwich bread, bread or AP flours are your best friend.

Breads containing up to 40% rye flour are usually called “rye bread.” Jewish Sour Rye (New York Rye, Deli Rye) is a familiar example. The rye flour is in a large enough proportion so that it is advisable to add all or most of it as a rye sour.

All rye breads need some wheat flour in order to properly rise, because rye is low in air-trapping gluten, so the real question comes down to the ratio of rye to white all-purpose flour.

There's not much point in extensive kneading, because there's so little gluten to develop in a rye bread dough. Nevertheless, it's worth making sure everything is well mixed.

(Rye flour can't be directly substituted for all-purpose or bread flour because it has different gluten-forming properties.)

Rye flour is much more absorbent than wheat flour: it needs more water than wheat flour to make a great loaf of bread. 3. The more rye in the dough, the flatter the bread will be. Rye flour cannot “dome” the way wheat flour can.

It contains more fiber and nutrients — especially B vitamins — and has been linked to health benefits, such as weight loss, better blood sugar control, and improved heart and digestive health. What's more, it's easy to incorporate into your diet in place of regular white or wheat breads and can easily be made at home.

All it takes is a small amount of dough enhancer per loaf to create a much lighter and fluffier result. Using a dough enhancer like Vital Wheat Gluten works to improve the texture and elasticity of the dough and elongate the strands of gluten. Doing so allows more room for the gas in the dough to develop and rise.

The healthiest rye breads are made from 100% whole-grain sprouted rye flour, in addition to other sprouted grain flours. Since sprouting increases grains' fiber content, sprouted rye is higher in fiber and healthier than non-sprouted rye. One slice (28 grams) of sprouted rye bread provides : Calories: 60.

What type of rye flour is best? ›

If you have a choice, we recommend using medium or dark rye for the best balance of flavor and texture. COLOR DOES MATTER: Darker flours deliver stronger rye flavor and a denser texture.

It's hard to tell with rye sometimes. The very best thing to do is get a probe thermometer. Bread is around 98 degrees C on the inside when it is done.

If you cut into a bread with a high % of rye flour too early, it may be gummy and have an unpleasant texture. Therefore, recipes often recommend letting it rest 1-2 days so the crumb can set up[2] and moisture can distribute within the bread.

Rye flour absorbs more water than bread flour or all purpose flour, so you need to add more water to make the flour workable. If you feel the dough is too stiff after autolysing this dough, wetting your hands can be a good idea to gradually work extra water into the dough.

However, when used in baking, rye flour contains much less gluten than wheat and barley. Rye's gluten is much less elastic and less efficient at trapping bubbles during baking than wheat's, so rye bread is much less airy.

The pentosan level in rye flour is greater than that of wheat flour and is of more significance for successful rye bread baking. Rye flours differ from wheat flours in the type of gluten that they contain. Although some dark rye flours can have a gluten content as high as 16%, this is only gliadin.

To turn all-purpose flour into bread flour you just need vital wheat gluten. Measure out 1 cup of AP flour, remove 1 1/2 teaspoons of the flour, replace with 1 1/2 teaspoons of vital wheat gluten, whisk to combine.

Rye is more easily pulverized. Rye does not yield semolina. Gluten content in rye is not a significant dough-making factor. Starch is more important for bread making in rye flour than in wheat flour.