A no-knead 100% rye bread recipe

No-knead bread is so easy and delicious that I can’t help but wonder why more people don’t make their own fresh bread instead of relying on store-bought options. There’s simply no comparison.

I’ve experimented with a variety of flours using the same basic recipe - find it here - and each one has produced a unique and delicious loaf with its own distinct characteristics. However, when I tried using rye flour, I noticed the dough behaved quite differently. The resulting loaf had a rock-hard crust and a gummy interior, signaling that some adjustments were needed to achieve the same level of success.

Rye flour behaves differently

Rye, like wheat and barley, is a grass crop whose grains (seeds) are ground into flour. However, rye flour has unique properties that set it apart from wheat flour, and these differences are important to consider when baking with it.

Rye flour contains fewer gluten-forming proteins and more soluble fiber than wheat flour. These properties inhibit the formation of the gluten network responsible for the elasticity and rise of bread.¹

Without a strong gluten network, the gas produced by yeast or other leavening agents cannot be effectively trapped. This limits the rise of rye dough, resulting in a denser loaf.

Rye flour’s high fiber content absorbs water readily. This absorbed water doesn‘t contribute to gluten formation and instead gives the final loaf a moist texture.

Adjustments to recipe

To account for these differences between rye and wheat dough, I made a few adjustments to my no-knead recipe to create an equally delicious loaf.

The ingredients remain mostly the same, with one key change: an increase in lemon juice from 1 mL to 1 teaspoon.

The method, however, requires more substantial modifications. For this rye bread, I extended the fermentation time to 24 hours. The baking temperature and timing were also adjusted to ensure better results. The oven and Dutch oven were preheated for 30 minutes at a lower temperature of 210ºC. When the dough went into the oven, the temperature was reduced to 200ºC for the initial 50 minutes of baking. Once the lid of the Dutch oven was removed, the temperature was lowered further to 190ºC for the remainder of the bake.

Finally, I let the bread rest overnight before slicing it. This step is crucial for allowing the crumb to stabilize and ensuring the texture isn’t too gummy.

Ingredients

• 2 ²/₃ cups 100% rye flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fresh yeast
• 350mL warm water
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Method

1. Combine the flour and salt in a bowl.


2. Put the yeast into the warm water and mix until dissolved. You should notice some bubbles form as the yeast starts to produce small amounts of carbon dioxide.


3. Combine the flour with the water.


4. Finally add the lemon juice and mix all ingredients together. The dough will appear less runny than if plain wheat flour was used.


5. Cover the bowl of dough with cling-wrap or something else that makes a tight seal. This is to ensure that moisture can’t escape and prevent the dough from drying out.


6. Leave the dough to ferment for 24 hours at room temperature.


The rye dough before fermentation.



Rye dough after 24 hours having risen a bit.

7. Prepare a Dutch oven (or alternative like a pot and lid) and preheat the oven to 210ºC with the Dutch oven inside. Leaving enough time (~30 minutes) for it to preheat ensures the bread doesn‘t stick to the bottom of the dutch oven.


8. Shape the dough and cut some slashes into the top. One can also sprinkle some seeds and extra flour on top too. Try to put it in the Dutch oven as fast as possible. Bake it inside the Dutch oven for around 50 minutes at 200ºC.


9. Take the Dutch oven lid off, lower the temp to 190ºC and cook it for another 10 minutes to brown the top.


10. When the bread is done, leave it overnight before cutting.

References