As the chill of winter sets in, I find myself drawn to this recipe. Vibrant and flavorful, healthful yet comforting, it is excellent at combating the cold weather, warming both your body and your kitchen at the same time. Winter urges me to bake anything and everything bread more than any other season. There’s nothing more wonderful to me than the aromas of freshly baked bread from a hot oven in contrast to the snow and howling wind outside. For this bread, I baked, tweaked, and baked again, ultimately landing on a mixture of white, spelt, rye, and whole wheat flours that produced a very craveable, satisfying sourdough bread that I cannot stop baking.
Part of this loaf’s abundant flavor is due to a little more sourness than you find in my typical recipe: a welcome addition that elevates the wholesome character of the crumb and crust. Sure, it has all the usual zest that comes with increasing the whole grain percentage, but it also has something more.
But what? What is that “something”? Is it the crust’s texture or the crumb’s tenderness altering my taste, or is it the perception of the loaf itself? Sometimes I wonder if the full range of textures, colors, and flavors I experience are genuinely there–visible to my eyes, present on my palate–or if I manufacture them when I see something mouthwatering. Perhaps this is the same way a barista might salivate at the sight of a properly pulled espresso, the aroma conjuring that recent summer strawberry, the allusion of toffee or black licorice. That “something more” seems to evolve as the loaf cools, hardens, and matures—an ever-changing kaleidoscope of flavors and textures.
Baking a loaf of sourdough seems to be the only thing that has this effect on me. I think it has something to do with the art of the craft, the work that goes into it, and the satisfaction that results. It’s like a woodworker sitting in their precisely constructed no-nail design chair, corners fitting just so and pieces curved where they’re to be curved, straight where they’re to be straight. The pleasure of a well-executed bread is undoubtedly more than the aesthetic of it; it is also in the culmination of a detailed, devoted process that amplifies everything. Tasting how every piece is in the right groove, how the flavors and textures shift like fragments of colored glass from one bite to the next, is exhilarating.
Of course, it’s likely all of this is simply a result of my obsession with baking naturally leavened bread. But! I do proclaim that this is a great recipe that will make those who eat it smile, and you may even spy a split-second closing of their eyes as they savor the moment. This little, often overlooked token is what I look for when my kids are eating, indicating they deeply enjoy something. And I imagine that this bread will push its way to the top of your baking priorities more often than not.
Flour Selection
I love the small addition of rye flour in this recipe–it’s something you also see in my Beginner’s Sourdough Bread recipe. Even in a small percentage, rye seems to bring loads of flavor and color to the crust. And this loaf is all about flavor.
I use whole grain Red Fife for the whole wheat part of this recipe, which adds significant character to this already flavorful bread. If you have Red Fife, I’d recommend it, but if not, any whole wheat variety will also work very well.
Whole grain spelt brings a nutty, almost sweet character to the flavor profile. I use spelt often because of this addition, and in this bread, even though it’s in small quantity, it’s still a significant contributor to the overall complex flavor profile.
The white flour I use in this recipe is medium protein at around 11-12%. This would be a typical all-purpose flour or a base white flour used for bread-making. If you wanted to increase the strength of this dough and bring additional flavor and nutrition, you could substitute this white flour for a high-quality type 85 flour.
Baking Schedule
This sourdough bread recipe is made over two days, which gives the dough plenty of fermentation time, which results in a deeply complex and flavorful bread.
It’s also possible to bake this loaf all in a single day by allowing the dough to proof on the counter, shaped and covered, until the dough is puffy, relaxed, and passes the dough poke test.
Spelt, Rye, and Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread Recipe
If you want to make only a single loaf or scale this recipe up to make many more, see my guide to baker’s percentages to modify this formula.
Vitals
| Total Dough Weight | 2,000 grams |
| Pre-fermented Flour | 5.3% |
| Levain in final dough | 16.6% |
| Hydration | 85.0% |
| Yield | 2 x 1000g loaves |
Total Formula
The desired dough temperature for this recipe is 78°F (25°C).
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s Percentage |
| 520g | White flour (about 11.5% protein; Central Milling Artisan Baker’s Craft Plus) | 50.0% |
| 260g | Whole spelt flour (Central Milling Whole Grain Spelt) | 25.0% |
| 208g | Whole-grain wheat flour (Flourist Whole Grain Red Fife) | 20.0% |
| 52g | Whole-grain rye flour (Central Milling Whole Rye Flour) | 5.0% |
| 781g | Water 1 (levain and autolyse) | 75.0% |
| 104 | Water 2 (mix) | 10.0% |
| 20g | Fine sea salt | 1.9% |
| 55g | Ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration | 5.3% |
Additional ingredients
Instant or rolled oats, for topping (optional)
Spelt, Rye, and Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread Method
1. Prepare the levain – 9:00 a.m.
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s percentage |
| 27g | White flour | 50.0% |
| 27g | Whole spelt flour | 50.0% |
| 55g | Water 1 (levain) | 100.0% |
| 55g | Ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration | 100.0% |
Mix the above ingredients in a jar and leave them covered at a warm temperature, 74-76°F (23-24°C), to ripen for 3 hours.
2. Autolyse – 11:00 a.m.
| Weight | Ingredient |
| 493g | White flour |
| 233g | Whole spelt flour |
| 208g | Whole wheat flour |
| 52g | Whole rye flour |
| 726g | Water 1 (autolyse) |
Warm or cool the autolyse water so that the temperature of the mixed dough meets the FDT (final dough temperature) of 78°F (25°C) for this recipe. Place all of the flours and water 1 in a large bowl. Use wet hands to mix until no dry bits remain; the dough will be shaggy and loose. Use a bowl scraper to scrape down the sides of the bowl to keep all the dough in one area at the bottom. Cover the bowl and place it near your levain for 1 hour.
3. Mix – 12:00 p.m.
| Weight | Ingredient |
| 104g | Water 2 (mix) |
| 20g | Fine sea salt |
| 164g | Ripe levain (from Step 1) |
Add the salt and levain to the top of the dough in autolyse, and use a splash of water 2 to moisten. With wet hands, mix thoroughly. Add the remaining water if the dough feels cohesive and it can handle the rest. Next, knead the dough for a few minutes using either the slap and fold technique or folds in the bowl. For this dough, I kneaded for about 5 minutes until the dough smoothed and became elastic.
Transfer the dough to a bulk fermentation container and cover.
4. Bulk fermentation – 12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (3 1/2 hours)
At a warm room temperature, 74-76°F (23-24°C), bulk fermentation should take about 3 1/2 hours.
This dough will require 3 sets of stretches and folds during bulk fermentation. After the first 30 minutes, wet your hands, grab one side of the dough, and lift it up and over to the other side. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and repeat. The rotate the bowl a quarter turn and stretch and fold that side. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees again and finish with a stretch and fold on the last side. The dough should be neatly folded up in the bowl. Cover and repeat these folds every 30 minutes for a total of 3 sets of stretches and folds. Then let the dough rest, covered, for the remainder of bulk fermentation.
5. Divide and preshape – 4:00 p.m.
After 3 1/2 hours, the dough should be well-risen in the bulk fermentation container and puffy to the touch. The edge where the dough meets the container should be domed downward, showing strength and rise.
Fill a small bowl with water and place it next to your work surface. Scrape the dough onto a clean counter. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and prehsape each into a tight round.
Let the dough rest, uncovered, for 20 minutes. This is a shorter bench rest because the dough will be looser and slacker than most breads, spreading faster than usual.
6. Shape – 4:50 p.m.
I like to top this spelt, rye, and whole wheat sourdough bread with instant or rolled oats, but this step is optional. Spread an even layer of rolled oats on a clean kitchen towel or sheet pan.
I love to shape this recipe as a long, tapered batard (oval). See my process for shaping a batard or watch me shaping below for a quick tutorial.
Flour the top of each preshaped round and your work surface. Using your bench knife, flip one round over onto the floured area and shape it into a batard. Using two hands, transfer the dough top-side down to the oats, gently rocking the dough back and forth so that the oats stick. Then, flip the dough and place it seam-side-up into a prepared proofing basket.
Repeat for the other preshaped round.
7. Proof – 5:15 p.m. to 9:00 a.m.
Cover the baskets with a large, reusable plastic bag and seal shut. Let proof overnight in the refrigerator.
8. Bake – 9:00 a.m. (the next day)
Due to the large size of these loaves, they may not fit inside of a typical Dutch oven or Combo cooker. I prefer to bake them directly on a baking surface and steam my oven. See my guide to steaming a home oven for bread baking for instructions.
Place an oven rack in the bottom-third of the oven. Preheat your oven with a baking surface inside to 450°F (230°C).
Take the proofing baskets out of the fridge, uncover them, and put a piece of parchment paper over the basket. Place a pizza peel or inverted baking sheet on top of the parchment and, using both hands, flip everything over. Gently remove the basket and score the dough. I like to score these long ovals with a single long slash or a double slash.
Slide the dough into the oven. Steam the oven by pouring ice into the preheated pan at the bottom of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Vent the oven of steam by removing the steaming pans. Continue to bake for 35 minutes more. When done, the loaf should have an internal temperature of around 204°F (95°C), and the crust should be deeply colored.
Let the loaf cool on a wire rack for 3 to 4 hours before slicing. This bread will keep well for a week or more if stored properly.
Print
Spelt, Rye, and Whole Wheat Sourdough Bread
- Prep Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 25 hours
- Yield: 2 loaves
- Category: Sourdough, Bread
- Cuisine: American
Description
A flavorful—and wholesome—loaf of sourdough bread with whole spelt, whole rye, and whole wheat.
Ingredients
Levain
- 27g white flour (about 11.5% protein)
- 27g whole spelt flour
- 55g water
- 55g ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration
Autolyse
- 493g white flour
- 233g whole spelt flour
- 208g whole wheat flour
- 52g whole rye flour
- 726g water
Mix (final dough)
- 104g water
- 20g fine sea salt
- 164g ripe levain
Instructions
- Levain (9:00 a.m.)
In a small bowl or jar, mix the Levain ingredients. Cover the jar and keep it at a warm temperature for 3 hours. - Autolyse (11:00 a.m)
In a mixing bowl, add the autolyse ingredients until no dry bits remain. Cover the bowl and let rest for 1-hour. - Mix (12:00 p.m.)
Add the salt and levain to the top of the dough in autolyse, and use a splash of water to moisten. With wet hands, mix thoroughly. Add the remaining water if the dough feels cohesive and it can handle the rest. Next, knead the dough for a few minutes using either the slap and fold technique or folds in the bowl. For this dough, I kneaded for about 5 minutes until the dough smoothed and became elastic.Transfer the dough back to the bowl or to a container for bulk fermentation and cover. - Bulk Fermentation (12:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
This dough will require 3 sets of stretches and folds during bulk fermentation. After the first 30 minutes, wet your hands, grab one side of the dough, and lift it up and over to the other side. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and repeat. Then rotate the bowl a quarter turn and stretch and fold that side. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees again and finish with a stretch and fold on the last side. The dough should be neatly folded up in the bowl. Cover and repeat these folds every 30 minutes for a total of 3 sets of stretches and folds. Then let the dough rest, covered, for the remainder of bulk fermentation. - Divide and Preshape (4:00 p.m.)
Use water and a wet hand or lightly flour your work surface (whichever you prefer) and scrape out your dough. Using your bench knife, divide the dough in half. Lightly shape each half into a round shape. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes, uncovered. - Shape (4:50 p.m.)
Lightly flour the top of your preshaped rounds and using floured hands, shape the dough into an oval (batard) shape, then place the dough in proofing baskets, seam side up. - Proof (5:15 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the next day)
Cover proofing baskets with reusable plastic and seal. Then, place both baskets into the refrigerator and proof overnight. - Bake (The next day, 9:00 a.m.)
Preheat your oven with a baking surface inside to 450°F (230°C). When the oven is preheated, remove your dough from the fridge, score it, and transfer it to the preheated baking surface. Bake for 20 minutes with steam. After this time, vent the steam in the oven and continue to bake for 35 minutes longer. When done, the internal temperature should be around 204°F (95°C). Let the loaves cool for 3 to 4 hours on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
If you want to bake only a single loaf, divide all the ingredients in half.
What’s Next?
If you love the nutty, almost sweet flavor of spelt flour as I do, check out my whole grain spelt pan loaf which is 100% whole spelt.
If you want to use some more rye in your baking, check out our Light Deli Rye which uses a scalded rye porridge to bring even more flavor.
Buon appetito!
335 Comments
Hi Maurizio, I know how busy you must be! Using your recipes, I’ve made 3 loaves of bread so far and we are certainly enjoying them! Here is my situation – I want to make 2 loaves of really rye-tasting bread. I have a mature all-rye starter, as well as a mature AP starter. I just started yesterday to add “Four Star Special Flour,” from Bakers Authority to the AP starter, because the description said, “the 4Star Special Flour is a carrier for mixing with specialty flours like pumpernickel, rye, whole wheat and spelt to improve the rise and texture of flours by balancing the gluten.” So, my questions are 1 – to make the most rye-tasting bread, which starter(s) would I use? and 2 – which recipe of yours should I use? PS – We also love pumpernickel bread, would that be easier? Thanks in advance!
“This literally melts in my mouth!” my wife exclaimed. This is a solid recipe that I’ve made a few times now. Definitely a looser dough as some have pointed out, but it is a fairly high hydration and therefore needs special handling. It is a great balance of sweetness, nuttiness, and a nice tang. Crust is great, but the crumb is amazing! Tender with a bit of chew. Great loaf! see my stories for pics https://www.instagram.com/stories/joshuameierart/
So glad to hear that, Joshua! Your bread is beautiful. Happy baking and thanks for reporting back!
Hey, thanks for the recipe and guidance, it’s super useful and easy to follow.
I’m baking loaves to this spec semi regularly now, but without fail they (both on this recipe and similar ones I’ve followed) will come out of the fridge in the morning and not hold any of the shape of the proving basket from the night before. I’ve shaped them like mad, tried both boule (I even did the extra tightening you mention when in the bowl) and batard style but without fail they lose about 50% of their height and end up basically taking the shape of the inside of the combo cooker by the time they’re out of the oven. The bread is still great inside but rarely has much height on it, I assume because it’s spread out so much relative to its original shape. Every other step looks identical to yours pics and wording and feels right based on my limited experience, and the bread looks great going in to the fridge at night, just when it comes out it basically loses any shape, which is so frustrating! I don’t suppose you have any ideas or pointers on ways to keep the dough better shaped out of the fridge?
Thanks again!
James
I’m similarly having trouble with the dough spreading, even already after bulk fermentation. I slapped and folded my dough today for 10 mins and followed that up with 3 sets of stretch and folds during bulk fermentation. But the dough was still difficult to shape. I also struggled a bit with the slap and fold. The dough would begin to take shape and then stick to my clean counter and hands, so I’d water my hands and unstick the dough from the counter, but then the additional water required more slap and folds, but then the dough would eventually stick to the counter again, etc. Any additional suggestions for how I can improve the strength of my dough at these high hydrations would be appreciated! I’m looking forward to getting this down so I can try 100% whole grain recipes. Thanks again for your wonderful site, Maurizio! It got me started and hooked on making this amazing bread!
i’ve given up on slap and fold after the first time with this recipe took me FORTY minutes to get the strength pictured! i do stretch and fold in a nice big bowl for about ten minutes instead and it’s worked well for me. i’ve made it about 4 times now. SO good. i pre-shape aggressively, make it nice and tight, and then also stitch it up once it’s rested in the banneton for 10 minutes or so. you can pre-shape more than once, just be careful to not over-ferment on the bench.
Thanks for the suggestion, Emma! I’m also considering trying my stand mixer too. Thanks!
Sounds like a good approach, Emma! Slap/fold is very effective but it’s not for everyone and it can be challenging with some doughs. This is a good one to strengthen in the bowl as well. Thanks for reporting back!
Hey Drew! I’ve found with the slap and fold that at some point, like you said, the dough will become sticky and feel almost unworkable, but that if you persist and ignore the stickiness (without adding any water or trying to peel it off the work surface) it will eventually come together. It feels counter intuitive as you’re doing it, as obviously you don’t want the dough to spread out and stick everywhere, but maybe next time try just slapping in the same area and see if it comes together by itself. Hope that helps 🙂
Thank you Lilly, I will try your suggestion as well! Happy bread making! 🙂
I love your recipes and especially videos on shaping – but I’m really struggling with recipes with 50% or more whole grain. I just can’t the oven spring right (in my Lodge cast iron dutch oven) and they end up with minimal (if any) rise in the oven.
The crust is even, the taste is delicious, and a pop in the toaster does wonders – but I really want that oven spring that I’ve been able to achieve with the plain and simple 10% whole wheat recipes.
Any tips?
Generally, the more you increase whole grains the less rise you’ll get — to a point. That’s the nature of whole grain baking, and while you may not get a super tall loaf, what it lacks in height you gain in flavor (and nutrition)!
Thanks for another fantastic recipe! I have baked your Beginner’s Sourdough, My Best Sourdough, 95% Whole Grain Sourdough, 100% Whole Wheat Sourdough, 100% Einkhorn Sourdough, and Rye Sourdough. I loved the complex, rounded flavor of this one. It feels/tastes healthy without sacrificing taste. I SO appreciate your wisdom and guidance! You truly have a gift!
I found this after making a recipe for German Dinkelbrot with a rye stater and lots of add-ins and yeast and minimal instructions. I’d made it several times before and the first time I was lucky and it was the best bread I’d ever made (the crust was to die for!), but more recently it’s been hit or miss, so I went looking. I love how detailed this is! I actually had on had the same bread flour and dark rye from Central Milling. My spelt was a sprouted spelt that I bought locally and it turned out that I didn’t have any wheat flour, so I used some einkorn flour that I found in the back of my cupboard (play the dun dun dun music here).
I had trouble with the slap and folds because I’ve never done them before and my counter is tile so I did them on my kitchen table and it wasn’t sticking well, but I persisted and it changed, but was still very wet and I didn’t add much of the held back 200 g of water. I had noticed that there was a 2 hour loaf recipe on the back of the bag of Einkorn and figured I should use it because I had no idea how long that flour had been there. I made it while the dough was bulk rising and we cut it after lunch – it tasted musty 🙁 I started to worry about this bread.
I had a hell of a time shaping but I’ve never been very good at shaping and it seems to depend a lot on my mental state which was about as down in the dumps as I get, I got them into their proofing baskets and went to bed to recover! I baked them one at a time as I was worried about space on my pizza peel and the one in the bigger basket had gotten pretty big. The first one I baked for 20 min with steam and then 30 minutes at the same temperature but the top crust came out looking burnt so the second loaf after the 20 minutes when I removed the steam I dropped the temp to 400 F – I think I took it out at about 20 minutes after that. both are fully cooked, both taste great – absolutely no mustiness!
I’ve been having issues with the inside being a bit gummy (not just this bread), I test them with my instant read thermometer so I know they’re fully cooked. Still fully edible, just a little wet (and we wait until they’re fully cooled).
Thank you!!
I’ve made this recipe several times now. It’s been my favorite so far, and I keep coming back to it with variations, but with the ratios the same. Last week I experimented with replacing the whole wheat portion with Central Milling Barley flour, and the spelt portion with King Arthur Whole White Wheat. This week I’m doing the same thing, but replacing the spelt portion with Central Milling whole Khorasan. Even with with the barley flour, I get an incredible oven spring in the Dutch oven, in fact, that might have been my highest risen bread. I’ve not made an all white bread yet, so there is that… Anyhow, just encouraging folks to bake this bread, and feel free to substitute different varieties of flour, and different brands. First time I made this was with King Arthur flour for the white and whole wheat, and Bob’s Red Mill for the spelt and rye. A lot of flavor for sure, and great crust and structure. I’ve been using a Camaldoli starter, but it’s been going here in Colorado for a couple of years, so who knows what it is now. So much more flavor that traditional yeast breads, and super vigorous.
So glad to hear all this, Doug! I haven’t tried using their barley flour but I do have whole barley here I’ve been meaning to mill. Thanks for the feedback!
Hi, I have just finished baking these loafs and they did not rise in the baking process but are super soft and airy on the inside as expected. The dough proofed amazingly well but I think the problem was that the dough was not firm enough before baking. I wasnt able to shape it easily because it was still so soft but I did the flip and fold for long and I didnt want to over knead it? My initial instinct was to add more flour but I didnt in the end – but now I am thinking I should’ve? Also I didnt flour my workspace (it wasnt specified and I was nervous about adding more flour) and during the flip and folding method I think I added more water just by having to water my hand to make the dough not stick? I didnt even add all the required water to the dough in the end… please advise 🙂
Hi, I just made this loaf and, this being my very first attempt at sourdough, it cause me a sleepless night but ended up quite nice. First, I over hydrated the dough and could not stretch it as you recommended, and it ended up with, in my opinion, too hard crust. I baked in a dutch oven, temp, time, and method exactly as specified.
My question is: anything I can do to make the crust thinner and less “crusty”? Thanks!
Steam that oven super heavy! I find more steam during that first 20 minutes of baking really helps to get a thin crust.
I have a 100% rye starter. Will it work in this recipe?
Yes!
I would like more rye flavor and propose decreasing the white flour 10% and increasing the rye flour 10%. I will be milling the rye berries to get the best flavor and nutrition. Your thoughts on the suggested percentages? Thank you. geo
That’ll work, just be sure to keep an eye on the fermentation progress of the dough, it’ll likely move faster.
I don’t have any all purpose or bread flour, is it possible to use the spelt, rye, and whole wheat?
he’s got lots of recipes that are 100% whole wheat or non-white/bread flour 🙂
I baked my 2 loaves today and they came out amazing, however next time I am going to preheat the oven a bit lower and bake after the 20 min a bit lower. I found the crust on the black side when I took them out yet the inside was too moist for me even after waiting hours of cooling. If I lower the temperature and bake it longer will this fix the moisture locked inside and allow the inside of the bread to be a bit drier? The taste is amazing, I happen to prefer a drier crumb and found this too moist. Or perhaps you might suggest something else. I used 2 baking steels, one on top and baked the loaves on the bottom one. Preheated oven to 500, set up steam in the oven (which game the most delightful crusty crunchy crust. I left the oven on convection bake. After 20 minutes I removed the steam source and continued to bake for 20 min on convection and at that point they were extremely dark, especially the bottom of the loaves. I am extremely happy with the result except for the internal moisture. I just toasted the slices for 90 seconds in my toaster oven and that made all the difference to me. Any suggestions?
I am brand-new at attempting to make sourdough bread. We love rye bread, so I decided to go with that recipe for the starter…but, I noticed that after a few days, you seem to add whole wheat flour. I have some but it is 2 years old – still seems fresh but is it ok to use for bread? Would you throw it away? And, when it comes to AP flour, I could only find gluten-free, so I used it. Is that okay to use in place of the WW flour? I am on day 4, and so far I have a lot of activity, but no rise and fall yet.
The usual benchmark for whole grain flour is about 6 months, I’d be hesitant to use it! You can keep feeding your starter rye flour if you’d like, totally up to you. You won’t see much rise/fall with gluten free flour, there’s no gluten structure to trap gasses created during fermentation. It might still be suitable for fermentation, though!
Thanks! Now that I’ve added GF flour, should I discard ALL my starter and start over with fresh WW flour and rye?
No, just keep going with it — change to whatever flour you’d like, it’ll be just fine. 🙂
Hi Maurizio,
I’ve really been enjoying using your recipes and guides to help me rediscover my interest in naturally leavened baking with all of my newly found free time. I’ve made a number of your recipes, and today I have this one (spelt, rye, and whole wheat) in the oven. I have a question about shaping – I give each loaf a good shape before putting into the banneton for overnight refrigerator proofing, but when I go to take them out of the basket to bake, they spread out. This happened again this morning, and the loaf currently in the oven has had a nice rise to it during the initial baking phase, but I’m wondering if the loaves should be shaped again before baking? Since the overnight proofing doesn’t result in a ton of rise, is it possible I could handle it gently enough to reshape the Batard in order to control the bake a bit more? Or would the folds ruin it?
Thank you for your help and thanks for keeping up with everyone during this time!
To follow up I’ve included pictures of the loaf here (both the overall bread and a cut in half to show the crumb. I should have taken a picture of the spread, but I think you can get an idea based on what the loaf looks like. Hopefully that will help!
https://imgur.com/gallery/NyBlveF
I don’t typically like to reshape bread before baking unless it’s absolutely necessary — if you think they’re going to spread significantly then by all means, go for it. If they’re spreading too much you might need to shape tighter or adjust your shaping method to impart more strength to the loaf. Thanks for sending the photos also, it looks like they’re likely over hydrated and this would also cause excessive spreading. I’d cut the water in this recipe by 10% and give it another go, you should see significantly more strength to the dough and it should hold itself better in the oven (with a tight shape of course)! Let me know how it goes, I hope this helps.
Thank! I’ll give it another go later in the week and see how it goes. Thoughts on substituting out the whole wheat for whole wheat einkorn?
Would be an excellent flavor addition. You might end up with a slightly more compact loaf, but I don’t think it would be a bad bread at all!
Hi – I gave it another try (stuck with the original recipe) and it turned out much better. I tried giving the bread more structure by kneading it from the outset. I still need to work on scoring correctly since I have some blowouts along the bottom, but it’s definitely much closer!
https://imgur.com/gallery/9cEJrIk
Definitely on the right track!
Hi – just wanted to say that even pre-isolation times your website is invaluable and the recipes a life saver, even if it did take me too long to realise your insane hydration levels can’t always be matched 😉
Also I made this loaf and it’s one of my faves – but I’m totally out of white flour! (Damn you corona) I’m going to have a crack tomorrow at making up some solution using this recipe unless you might know of how to best adjust for an intense problem such as this? Appreciate if so!
Mike
Thanks for the comments, Mike, much appreciated. It’s always best to pair the hydration of your dough with the flour you’re working with! Glad you liked this formula, it’s seriously one of my favorites (ever?). Just use the flour you have, you’ll have to adjust things depending on what you’re using, though. If you’re going with a high percentage of whole grains be sure to watch the dough during bulk, it’ll move quite fast.
this loaf is DELICIOUS. i was over ambitious and put all the water in, as a result my slap & fold took about, oh, 40 minutes. ha! but – very worth it! and this comment section is a gold mine. i will be trying it again tomorrow and slowly adding the water in between S&F. cheers.
Whoa, now that’s a workout! Well, I’m glad to hear things worked out well in the end 🙂 Hope all is well and enjoy!
Hi there! First of all thanks for such a handy website 🙂 I’ve a few specific questions now that the loaf has finished baking, cause it hasn’t risen as much as it should, the crust is quite thin and it’s a bit raw in the bottom (so I left it in longer with temp off and door open), since when transferring from the proofing bowl to a cutting board I realised it was once again loosen and sadly it didn’t hold the shape when I threw it into the Dutch oven (ceramic one tho)… Also I did 11h fridge rest and additional 10h outside rest, cause only then it started doubling size and when pressing the finger it would spring back a bit slow (until then it was very quick so I assumed it wasn’t ready). Then making a taut round (something I had to google lol) was such a challenge with such stickyness, and once I did the boule I kept repeating the last step of dragging the dough towards me hoping that would tighten it but at some point it got sticky again!
I’m very new to baking bread (thanks quarantine!), so here my beginners specific questions:
Slap and fold, should we stop when it gets too sticky or kept wetting our hands? Stretch and fold, for how long each, and should we also stop when it turns sticky again? Don’t we wait until the dough doubles size? I wonder what would have happened if after the 16g fridge rest I would have put it straight in the oven without waiting for it to rise! Also, does any kind of levain work or needs to be fed with same flour we’re gonna use? And biggest doubt: if after final proof I see it’s not tight anymore/enough, can I stretch it in the basket somehow again (like pinching/folding the top) or completely forbidden? Would I have to let it rest couple hours to readjust?
For 500gr loaf I used 90gr rye/white wheat starter and mix of millet grains instead of the rye flour, used oil once to work the dough and also in the dutch oven, and left 50gr of the water out (although wetting my hands every time I worked the dough), and sprinkled some water with my finger into the dutch oven (had no spray!).
Sorry for the million questions but I feel they’re so basic that I can’t keep learning till I’ve the basics very clear. Really appreciated your time and dedication, thank you Mauricio!
When doing slap/fold wet your hands periodically as needed to prevent excessive sticking and tearing of the dough — this helps quite a bit. For stretch and fold, I do basically 4 stretches per set, one at each direction (N, S, E, W). I stop doing sets of stretch and fold when the dough is strong and starting to smooth out and hold its shape after a set. Your levain doesn’t have to use the same flour as the rest of the recipe. If after proofing the dough just looks super slack and you know it’s going to spread, yes, give it a gentle shape to keep it in shape. Obviously this isn’t ideal, but will work in an “emergency!”
Hope this helps 🙂
What is the room temperature for this recipe? Mine did not rise much and as expected came out very flat, with a dense interior with some large holes. I’m thinking it was partially due to my cold house (63-66 F), but I even gave the bulk an extra hour.
Also, what should the FDT be for the bulk?
Yes, that’s very cold. As I list up in the recipe, the FDT is 78-80F for this recipe. Sounds like your dough was under proofed by the description!
Hi Maurizio I just place my loaf in the basket. It is still extremely wet and isn’t holding shape. It took 20 minutes of the slap and fold phase for the dough to become manageable as in the slap and fold phase in your video. I continued for an additional 5 minutes at that point but am thinking maybe I should have continued for a full additional 20 minutes? Your thoughts? I will let you know how it comes out when I bake it tomorrow
I’d say try dropping the hydration next time — sorry about that. Hold back another 100g of the water and see how the dough feels when you’re doing the slap and fold. I would probably not add it in.
More pressing, though: in the morning, if the dough just feels super, super slack and you’re sure it’s just going to spread in the oven, you could lightly shape it again then bake it. Alternatively, you could shape it and place it in a loaf pan to make sandwich bread.
Hope this helps!
Hey! I’ve been building up my Rye and Wheat starter and now I’m looking to bake my first loaf. I have all purpose, rye, and whole wheat flour. Just wondering what percentages should I use in proportion to my levain build? Also a lot of levain build’s I see are 1:2:2 but yours seems to be 1:1:1 which is how I currently feed my starter. Will that affect the end results of my loaf, I would like to have a higher hydration! Thanks so much for this!
You can increase the water of the levain if you’d like, but be aware this might make your dough more slack — in which case I’d likely hold back some of the mixing water I call for in this recipe, but that’s up to you and how the dough feels when you’re mixing!
Hello – I’d like to try this bread but do not have any rye flour. What would be a close alternative from what I currently have? I currently have white all-purpose, whole grain wheat, spelt, tipo/soft white wheat and a few pastry flours. I look forward to trying it with Rye when this comes back in stock. Many thanks, Gretchen
In place of the rye I’d go with more spelt or the whole grain wheat — either would be great!
Hi Maurizio, I haven’t tried this recipe yet. With the shortage of flours now a day I was wondering what are some substitutions I can make. I have some strong white bread flour, whole rye and also whole wheat but I cannot get my hands on spelt at this moment. What do you recommend I change in the recipe to make out for it. I also have Einkorn, some sprouted whole wheat, barley, and high gluten flours. Any suggestions? Thank you so much!!!
I’d say you can sub out the spelt for einkorn, just be cautious with the hydration of the formula, perhaps hold back a little more and add it in if it feels like the dough can handle it. Einkorn, as you probably know, is incredibly delicious but it can result in a stickier and more dense crumb — worth it for the flavor, it just means we have to alter our expectations. Happy baking and I hope that helps!
Maurizio, I could use a few suggestions. I’ve tried many of your formulas. All taste great. My biggest challenge is achieving oven spring. Everything seems to go according to plan until I open my oven to remove the steaming pan. I am frequently disappointed. What are the variables that contribute to oven spring? Perhaps I can work on addressing them one at a time. I do have much more success using a dutch oven…and I am working with a full size (accepts full sheet pan) oven. I’m not sure if that could be an issue. Thanks!
Generally I notice more oven spring with loaves that are on the less-proofed side: there’s more “gas in the tank” as they say. But in addition to this, you want to have sufficient dough strength to ensure the loaf springs up and doesn’t spread out. This might be your issue, especially if you’re seeing good rise in a Dutch oven, but not on a baking stone. The reason is the DO will help contain the loaf so it doesn’t spread excessively, whereas on a baking surface there’s nothing at the sides to stop it from spreading. You might want to try shaping the dough a bit tighter to see if that helps. Happy baking!
This bread is fantastic! I halved the recipe and made a sandwich loaf as opposed to a batard. I did not use all the water, I believe I ended up with a hydration level in the low 70s. I guess the types of flours available here in Norway act differently than the ones in the US. For one, we don’t actually have a brand of high protein “bread flour” here, so I am always searching for substitutes, which may or may not measure up. It certainly adds to the challenge.
As for the baking process itself: the dough was very sticky and I struggled a bit with the slap and folds, even with wet hands. The dough would come together, then stick to the counter (or me), and sort of “fall apart” again. I believe I struggled for almost 20 minutes. This may be due to my technique and lack of experience. Do you have any tips for how to deal with sticky and wet doughs when doing slap & folds? It seems like the strength of the dough breaks down as soon as it sticks to something and “rips”. Anyway, I stopped at a point when the dough was finally (somewhat) coming together again, and let it ferment. It seemed very slack during this time, so I gave it an extra set of stretch & folds. Still quite slack before shaping – I tried to preshape as tightly as possible. When scoring my blade kept sticking to it – it looked quite a mess before entering the oven – and I felt pretty sure it would just collapse. But the oven spring was great, and while it certainly looked clumsy (or lets just go with rustic for the sake of my self-esteem😝) it tasted divine! Lots of irregular air pockets, a soft interior and a thin, crackling crust. I shall continue to practice!
That’s great to hear, Marlene! I’m happy you made the modifications you needed for the ingredients you have on hand — great work.
When doing slap and fold, hold back more water from that first set of kneading on the counter. This should give you a stronger, more cohesive dough that will strengthen up faster. Then once you’re done with this initial strengthening, put the dough back in the bowl and you can add the water there. The dough will break apart again when you do this, but that’s ok, mix again in the bowl with folds until it comes back together and smooths out.
If the dough is too wet then I find slap and fold on the counter to really be a chore (it’s still possible, though!) 🙂
I hope that helps your next attempt — have fun!
I made the bread again, this time holding back water like you suggested. After a few slap and folds, I put the dough back in the bowl and mixed in some more of the water, returned it to the bench, did slap and fold until the dough felt cohesive as you said, then gave it a 5 minute rest. After this short rest, the dough seemed like it could handle more water (I think I am finally getting a feel for this!), so I repeated the process several times until all the water was mixed in (I even surprised myself!). The dough was very wet and sticky, but I think by gradually adding the water and the 5-minute rest intervals made it possible. I was surprised by how it still held most of its initial strength. I also watched your video where you do slap and folds, and I think I gradually got the hang of it. I tried to be gentle yet confident, and I felt like me and the dough were finally on the same team, haha. I guess I could have built up even more strength after all the water was added in, but at one point I decided to just stop as I didn’t want it to start tearing apart like it did the last time.
With such high hydration (and perhaps not enough strength built up?), the dough did spread out a bit, even after bulk. I shaped it into a batard and baked it in my dutch oven, and while I did pre-shape it as tightly as I could (this was very difficult), it expanded more sideways than upwards while baking. It did not look quite as tall as the loaves in the pictures, but still acceptable. The crumb was light and open with lots of irregular air pockets, the crust amazing, and the taste, as always, divine. I love this bread.
Thank you for your suggestions, I really feel that I am improving each time I bake.