GERMAN SOURDOUGH BREAD

ABSTRACT: The recipe describes the kind of German rye bread you would grow up with in Germany -- as I have. I got it from a German hobby baker who published it on the web. In its most orthodox form, the only ingredients are flour, water, salt, and sour dough culture (wild yeast). I have adapted the recipe and added some optional ingredients to permit for some variation.

If you start from scratch, the first step is to grow a culture. This will take about a week, depending on luck and talent. With the culture, prepare a sponge which usually sits overnight. From the ready sponge you can extract an "instant culture" for the next batch. Then prepare the dough. It should not need more than 2-3 hours of quiet-time to grow to twice its bulk. Finally from the risen dough, form the loafs, which sit for another hour or so before going into the oven for 40-50 minutes.

1. GROWING A SOUR DOUGH CULTURE

By providing an adequate environment, we help naturally occurring yeasts to grow to useful amounts.

Day 1: Take 2-3 heaped tablespoons of all-purpose flour and mix it with some warm water (100-110 degrees) to form an elastic dough ball. Put into a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let sit at a warm place (90-100 degrees Fahrenheit) for 24 hours.

Day 2: Remove a spoonful of dough from the center of the culture, mix with some warm water and another two tablespoons of fresh flour, enough to make another elastic dough ball. Let sit at the same warm spot for 12 hours.

Subsequent Days: Refresh culture every 12 hours. When the culture shows bubbles on the surface, has a spongy consistency, and smells of fermentation (the smell reminds me of butter milk), we have a viable culture.

ATTENTION: We are growing microorganisms. Make sure your tap water isn't treated to kill germs! If so, use bottled (cheapest store-brand) water instead.

OPTIONAL: Add a pinch of sugar to the water each time to provide some extra nutrition for the yeast.

2. PREPARING A SPONGE

Spoon the culture in a medium bowl. Add 1 cup of warm water (110-120 F) and 1 cup of bread flour. While stirring thoroughly, add more bread flour by the quarter cup until you get a very thick batter that is almost impossible to stir. Cover with plastic wrap and return to the warm place overnight.

OPTIONAL: Dissolve 1 tablespoon of honey in the water before adding it to the starter.

3. PREPARING THE DOUGH

3.1. Extracting the New Culture

On the morning of the next day, make sure your sponge shows plenty of bubbles and is of a spongy consistency. Take a tablespoonful of dough from the middle, place in a small bowl or an old jam glass and, while stirring and removing lumps, add flour until you get a dry, somewhat crumbly mass. Put in the fridge without covering. There it can stay for 2-3 weeks. When preparing the culture for the next sponge, add warm water (110-120 F) in the morning and stir until you get an elastic dough ball. Keep covered at a warm place as in 1., and by the time evening comes around, it should be ready for the sponge. If not, just continue as in 1. until the culture is viable again.

3.2. Mixing the Dough

Spoon the remaining sponge into a large dough bowl. Add 2 cups of warm water (110-120 F) in which you have dissolved 1-1.5 tablespoons (to taste) of salt. With a wire whisk, stir to create a homogeneous batter. Add 2 cups of rye flour, again creating a homogeneous batter. Slowly add about 2 cups of bread and/or all-purpose flour, one half cup at a time, to create a soft dough which can be kneaded on a floured work surface without sticking to it or your hands. Should to dough get sticky, sprinkle generously with more white flour.

OPTIONAL: There is no caraway in German rye bread. If you like it, add it now. If not, don't do it for the sake of authenticity. For a change of flavor, experiment with adding one or more of the following to the water before adding it to the sponge: 1-2 tablespoons of molasses, 1/2 tablespoon of cacao powder or 1 block of dark(est) baking chocolate, 1/4 tablespoon of instant coffee granules. Also, after adding the rye flour, add one cup of whole wheat flour before continuing with the all-purpose or bread flour.

3.3. Kneading

Knead the dough thoroughly and forcefully for about 10 minutes. To do so, push it with your hands away from you to stretch it to about twice its length. Fold it over, turn 90 degrees, and repeat, and repeat, and repeat. From time to time, slam it down hard onto your work surface. This, together with vigorous kneading in a warm environment, aids the production of gluten, without plenty of which you are about to bake a brick, as the dough would be unable to hold the carbon dioxide produced by the yeast.

4. RISING

Place the dough into a bowl with enough room to let it double in bulk. Cover with a plastic wrap, return to the warm spot. This time, 80-90 F should do the trick. After 2-4 hours, or when the dough has doubled, remove it from the bowl and return to the flowered work surface. Knead briefly and gently to remove large bubbles, and shape the desired number of loafs. With this amount of dough, 1-2 is reasonable. Put the loafs on baking trays and cover lightly with parchment paper. It has a lesser tendency to stick to the loafs than wax paper. Let the loafs rest for another hour or so at room temperature.

5. BAKING

Place an empty frying pan on the bottom rack and preheat your oven to 400 F. Five minutes before the loafs go into the oven, pour 2 cups of water into the pan to create a steamy environment. Remove the paper from the loafs and, with a (very) sharp knife or razor blade, slash them diagonally 2-3 times. This allows the dough to expand and prevents the formation of large bubbles under the upper crust. Besides, it looks pretty.

Place your loafs into the oven on the middle shelf. Reduce heat to 350 F. Work with aluminum foil to prevent the upper and lower crust from browning too quickly. After 30 minutes, remove the pan with the water to allow a nice crust to form. After 40-50 minutes, the loafs should be of light brown color, their bottom should be hard, and they should sound hollow when tapped. If so, they are done.

6. DECORATING

Brush the hot loafs with a glaze (for example, while stirring constantly, boil 1/4 teaspoon of corn starch in 1/2 cup of water until the mixture has a glassy appearance), and return them for five minutes to the turned-off (but still hot) oven. Remove the bread and let it cool on wire racks. Don't let them cool on the baking trays, or the bottom might get soggy from condensed moisture. Cut off your first slice not before the loafs have cooled down to room temperature.