Dark Rye Sourdough
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To me, the dark rye sourdough, La Tourte de Seigle Auvergnate, is one of the world's best breads. It refers to a type of rye bread hailing from Germany known as Urbrot. A secret held close by the hills of central France, it remains largely unknown outside the European peninsula. This is not mere bread; it is a taste of the ancient Auvergne—a landscape of volcanic rock and resilient green, captured in a loaf. Its appearance tells the story first: a rugged, blistered crust the color of a forest at twilight. Within lies a dense, moist crumb. The aroma is an echo of a stone mill—nutty, earthy, with a faint, haunting whisper of malt, like distant, sun-warmed hay. The protocol defies the orderly world of white flour. There is no supple, smooth dough to cradle here. Instead, you work with a warm, slack, and stubbornly sticky mass, more like a dark, primordial clay than bread dough. It resists. It clings. It seems, frankly, ugly and uncooperative. To the uninitiated, it feels like a mistake. Yet this is where the alchemy lies. Within that cold, sourdough fermentation—a slow, patient rise that spans hours in a cool corner—the coarse rye transforms. The sharp, raw tang mellows and deepens. The sugars slowly caramelize, not into sweetness, but into something profound: a complex, rounded flavor with a finish of dark honey and a hint of bitter chocolate, lingering on the palate like a memory. This is the lesson of the Tourte de Seigle: that from the most unlikely, unlovely beginnings—from patience and respect for an ancient grain—comes a loaf of extraordinary character.
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The ultimate dark rye sourdough: "Tourte de Seigle Auvergnate"
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- The rye flour used is categorized by extraction rates: 70, 85, 130, and 170. The higher the number, the darker and more whole grain the flour. A unique hot water technique is used to achieve the bread. During mixing, the dough has the consistency of sticky cement.
Fermented Dough
- Make a day or two before. Fermented dough, known as pâte fermentée, can be made intentionally or reserved from leftover white bread dough from daily production. Mix the water, fresh yeast, flour, and salt on low speed for 3 minutes, then on medium-high speed for 7 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Shape the dough into a tight ball, place it in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 48 hours.
Refreshed Starter
- Take the amount of starter required for the recipe, then refresh and store the remainder for future use.
Dark Rye Sourdough
- In the mixing bowl, combine the hot water with salt.
- Add the flour, and mix on low speed for about 2 minutes, until just combined. Add the natural starter and the fermented dough. Mix on low speed for 10-12 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. The dough will be very sticky, so use wet hands and wet tools when handling or scraping it. After mixing, the dough should reach a temperature of approximately 90-95°F (30-35°C).
Bulk Fermentation
- Wet your hands and dough scraper with water. Transfer the sticky dough in the large bowl. Smooth out the surface of the dough with a wet dough scraper.
- Cover and let it undergo bulk fermentation at room temperature for 60-80 minutes until it begins to crack on the surface.
Dividing
- Flour proofing baskets with bread flour. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and divide it into three equal portions (1230g each).
- Lightly flour the dough, then fold it over a few times to form a loose round. Because the dough is fragile and tears easily, be sure to handle it gently.
- Only add extra flour when necessary. Use your dough scraper to lift the round from the work surface.
- Place the round seam-side down into the floured basket. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Proofing
- The proofing time will take about 40 minutes. Dark rye sourdough wont rise that much, just about 1.5-inch (4cm). It should look bubbly and begin to crack on the surface.Since we can only bake one loaf at a time at home, leave one basket out to proof and refrigerate the other two. If they seem to be rising too quickly, you can freeze them (2 hours max) to slow down the fermentation more rapidly. Meanwhile, about 30 minutes before baking, preheat your conventional oven to 250°C (480°F) with a pizza stone placed on a rack in the lower third.
Baking
- Flip the proofing basket onto the preheated pizza stone. To create steam, immediately spray water into the oven, then reduce the temperature to 205°C (400°F). Bake for 70 minutes. The internal temp should be at around 97.5ºC. Turn off the oven, prop the door slightly ajar, and let the bread rest inside for an additional 10 minutes. Dark rye bread must be baked until very deep brown and well done. Finally, remove the loaf and let it cool completely on a wire rack for at least 4 hours before slicing. For the best flavor and texture, it is ideal to enjoy the rye bread the next day. Once baked and cooled, a dark rye loaf will lose about 23% of its original weight.
Storage
- Properly stored, dark rye bread will keep for up to a week when wrapped in a linen bag, parchment paper, or plastic wrap. For longer storage, it can be sliced, portioned, and frozen for up to three months.
The Best Pairings for Dark Rye Sourdough
- Dark rye bread is superb both toasted and untoasted, perfect with salted butter, ham, prosciutto, cheeses, eggs, tapenade etc... Historically, and even now, it is used to make croutons that darken and enrich soups. Its flavor also creates a beautiful pairing with oysters and a classic mignonette (red wine vinegar and minced shallots).
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