Sourdough Rye Bread
Here is another delicious and super healthy bread from my childhood. Sourdough Rye bread is very delicate and has everything perfectly balanced: it is moderate in salt, a bit sweet, sour, a bit dark, dense and soft at the same time, with a bright and clearly expressed aroma and taste.
Not only rye bread tastes great it can also help you control or lose weight. A research, published in Nutrition Journal, concluded that rye bread can be used to decrease hunger feelings both before and after lunch when included in a breakfast meal.
Are you ready to bake your most flavorful and delicious rye bread?
Here is a list of what you need:
Rye sourdough starter
• 10g ripe sourdough starter
• 70g water
• 70g rye flour
Soaker
• 130g rye flour
• 160-200g hot boiling water
Main batch
• 140g rye sourdough starter
• Soaker
• 100g rye flour
• 290g all purpose flour (or I like to substitute it with 145 whole wheat flour + 145g AP flour)
• 220g water
• 9g salt
• 18g sugar
Directions
Day 1
Starter
- 10 pm add starter to the water and whisk together, add flour, mix well, cover loosely, let it sit at room temperature 74-78F until in about 8-10 hours starter reaches its peak (doubles or triples in volume). You can learn how to make starter from scratch here.
Soaker
- 10 pm add hot boiling water to the flour and whisk together. You should get thick paste. If feel there is a need for more water, go for it.
- Cover it with plastic and keep it for the night in the oven with light on. Perfect temperature 80-90F.
The reason for keeping soaker in the warm environment is to help accumulate simple sugars that have a positive effect on the moisture of the crumb, give the crust a rich color, and also reduce the rate of bread staling.
Day 2
Sponge
- 8 am mix rye sourdough starter with all the soaker. It might take some time, because the soaker might get harder overnight. Mix it until everything is well incorporated.
- Cover, let it ferment at 74-80F for 2-3 hours until it becomes puffy and gets bigger.
Main dough
- 11 am dissolve sugar and salt in the water.
- Add all the sponge and flour, start mixing on low speed for 2-3 minutes.
- Increase the speed to medium and continue mixing until the dough comes up together. Make sure the dough doesn’t get overheated. Total mixing time is about 15 minutes.
Sometimes it depends on the temperature of the dough, it doesn’t want to come up together. Don’t worry. Oil your hands oil the bowl, try to round up the dough.
- Let it proof for 2-3 hours until doubles in volume.
- Keep monitoring the surface of the dough, as soon as it starts to crack on top it means it’s time to shape.
Shaping
- 2 pm generously sprinkle counter top with flour.
- Dump the dough on the counter.
- Shape as desired. I prefer a round shaped loaf. Pull all edges to the center, flip it over, try to round the dough with your hands.
- Transfer the shaped loaf into proofing basket.
- Let it proof for 1 hour until it almost doubles in volume.
- Meanwhile preheat your oven to 500 F, place a cast iron pan with the lid or a baking stone inside for 45 minutes – 1 hour.
- 3 pm flip the dough over on a parchment paper. Rye type of bread doesn’t require scoring.
- Transfer the dough on to the hot cast iron pan, cover with the lid (to create steam for a beautiful and crusty crumb).
- Bake at 500F for 10 minutes with the lid on.
- Remove the lid, lower the temperature to 430F.
- Bake for 35 minutes more minutes until dark brown.
Enjoy🙏
Sourdough Rye Bread
2308kcal
Ingredients
Rye Sourdough Starter (Night Before)
- 10 g Ripe sourdough starter culture
- 70 g Water
- 70 g Rye flour
The Hot Soaker (Night Before)
- 130 g Rye flour
- 160 to 200 g Hot boiling water
The Main Batch
- 140 g Active rye sourdough starter (From the stage above)
- All of the prepared Hot Soaker (From the stage above)
- 100 g Rye flour
- 290 g All-purpose flour (Or substitute with 145g whole wheat flour + 145g all-purpose flour)
- 220 g Water
- 9 g Fine sea salt
- 18 g Granulated sugar
Equipment
- Cast Iron Dutch Oven (A heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid or a baking stone to capture steam during the initial bake)
- Stand Mixer (Recommended to manage the intensive 15-minute structural mixing phase)
- Proofing Basket (A standard round banneton lined with a heavily floured kitchen towel)
Method
Night Before – Starter Initialization & Hot Scald
- 10:00 PM – Levain Setup: In a small glass jar, dissolve 10g of mature starter culture into 70g of room-temperature water. Stir in 70g of rye flour until perfectly smooth. Cover loosely and let it ferment at room temperature 74–78°F (23–26°C) overnight for 8 to 10 hours until it triples in volume.
- The Hot Soaker: In a heatproof metal or glass bowl (avoid plastic), combine 130g of rye flour with 160g to 200g of hot boiling water. Whisk together vigorously until it forms a thick, smooth paste. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place it overnight into your home oven with just the oven light switched on to maintain a warm 80–90°F (27–32°C) environment.
Day 2 – Sponge Building & Intensive Development
- 8:00 AM – The Puffy Sponge: Add all 140g of your active overnight rye starter directly into the bowl with your sweet, gelled hot soaker. Mix thoroughly until the dense soaker is completely integrated into the active culture. Cover and let this combined sponge ferment at 74–80°F (23–27°C) for 2 to 3 hours until it becomes puffy and visibly increases in size.
- 11:00 AM – Water Element Activation: In your primary mixing bowl, fully dissolve the 18g of sugar and 9g of fine sea salt into the 220g of baseline water.
- Mechanical Mixing: Add all of your fermented puffy sponge along with the 100g of rye flour and 290g of all-purpose (or all-purpose/whole wheat blend) flour. Secure the bowl in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes until a cohesive mass forms.
- The 15-Minute Dough Build: Increase the mixer speed to medium and knead continuously for roughly 12 to 15 minutes until the dough gathers cleanly together. Monitor the heat closely to ensure the friction does not overheat the dough structure. *Note: If the dough remains loose or sticky due to rye flour traits, oil your hands and the container bowl to gently form it into a round ball.*
Day 2 (Afternoon) – Warm Bulk Proof, Crack Monitoring & Bake
- 11:30 AM – Warm Bulk Fermentation: Cover the bowl and let the dough proof undisturbed for 2 to 3 hours. Keep a very close eye on the surface of the dough; because rye expands differently than wheat, look for small cracks beginning to form on the top surface—this is your indicator that the dough is fully fermented and ready to shape.
- 2:00 PM – Round Tension Shaping: Generously dust your work surface with flour. Tip the fermented dough out and pull all the outer edges cleanly into the center. Flip the dough over so the seam faces down, and use the palms of your hands to round it into a tight, smooth boule. Transfer the shaped loaf seam-side down into a prepared proofing basket heavily dusted with flour.
- The Final Ambient Proof: Let the loaf proof in its basket for 1 hour until it nearly doubles in volume. Meanwhile, place your cast-iron Dutch oven and its lid on the center rack of your oven and preheat to 500°F (260°C) for 45 to 60 minutes.
- 3:00 PM – The High-Heat Steam Bake: Invert the puffy dough cleanly onto a sheet of parchment paper. *Note: Traditional rye breads do not require scoring.* Carefully lower the dough into the smoking hot Dutch oven using the parchment paper handles, seal the lid tightly to lock in the steam, and bake at 500°F (260°C) for exactly 10 minutes.
- The Mahogany Finish: Remove the lid to vent the steam, reduce the oven temperature down to 430°F (220°C), and continue baking uncovered for an additional 35 minutes until the crust turns a deep, rich dark brown. Let the loaf cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
Nutrition
Calories2308kcalCarbohydrates494gProtein67gFat8gSaturated Fat1gPolyunsaturated Fat3gMonounsaturated Fat1gSodium3525mgPotassium1433mgFiber44gSugar22gCalcium131mgIron21mg
Notes
– **The Chemistry of the Warm Hot Soaker:** Scalding rye flour with boiling water and keeping it in a warm 80–90°F (27–32°C) environment overnight initiates natural starch conversion. The warmth activates amylase enzymes that break down complex starches into simple sugars. This process gives rye bread its characteristic subtle sweetness, darkens the crust color, and significantly boosts the moisture retention of the internal crumb to delay staling.
– **Why Rye Bread Skips Scoring:** Unlike standard wheat-based artisan loaves which require deep expansion cuts to prevent wild tearing, high-rye doughs have limited gluten elasticity and expand much more slowly and uniformly. Omitting the scoring step allows the loaf to hold its shape naturally during the bake, resulting in a classic, rustic, crackled top surface.
– **Managing the Sticky Rye Matrix:** Rye flour contains high levels of pentosans (soluble gums) that absorb massive amounts of water and make the dough feel slick, sticky, and muddy compared to standard bread dough. Do not try to fight this stickiness by adding massive amounts of raw wheat flour; instead, lightly oil your hands and work surfaces to shape the dough smoothly without tearing its delicate structure.
– **The Crack Monitoring Metric:** Because rye dough does not puff up into an elastic dome during bulk fermentation, relying solely on visual volume can be misleading. Watching for tiny pin-sized cracks to fracture across the top skin of the proofing dough is the most reliable old-world metric to know that the wild yeast has filled the dense structure with gas and is ready for the oven.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
So mouthwatering! Can’t wait for black Borodino kind bread Recipe in your journal
Thank you for your feedback 🙏
I love all of your bread especially rye bread, I’ll try this one soon. Thanks to share it with us.
Shery, thank you so much for your feedback 🙏
Hello!
I have a question for you. You mention in the recipe that it is time to preshape when the surface of the dough starts to crack. In the later steps you shape the bread directly from the proofing point. Do I need to preshape the loaf or can I just shape it directly as described in this recipe?
Regards from Sweden!
Madeleine, great point!
It was my mistake.
As soon as it doubles, start to shape it.
Good luck 🙏
I made this today and it was delicious! One question: my loaf ended up being more spread out compared to the example in your post. Any tips to help it keep its volume? I used white bread flour for the non rye main batch – 9.6% protein.
Conrad, hi!
2 options here: 1) you didn’t mix dough long enough, even though it’s a rye flour, dough should be able to come together during mixing.
2) dough gets overproofed during warm fermentation. Try to bake it little earlier next time and it will keep the shape better.
hello from the other side of the world!! I’ve been following your sourdough Instagram tutorials and thanks to u, I finally had a decent non-sticky dough/loaf! so when my starter died, I did a new one with ur Rye starter recipe (love that discard is minimal – I whipped it all up in two batches after the starter got going). just tried this Rye Sourdough recipe ytd – Dough was wet&sticky for shaping (floured generously) BUT I still got a few loaves from it and the flavours are amaaaazing. Would appreciate any tips on why mine isn’t holding its shape (followed time U indicated, but I’m in warm tropics), thanks so much for helping me enjoy my favourite breads at home ❤️
Shu, hi!
Thank you. Sticky dough for rye bread is normal, but if you are talking about it not holding its shape during baking, most likely it gets overproofed.
Try to proof it little less.
If you bake this on the oven stone do you just put a Dutch oven over it upside down for the first part of the bake?
I put tray with hot water under, for first 10 min to create steam, then I remove the tray and continue baking.
Hi,
I’m in the process of making the bread and have a question –
Do we need to add 140g starter to the main batch on top of the one that was already mixed to make the sponge? We don’t, right?
We just add the sponge to the flours, etc?
You have to add starter to the sponge, let ferment, then add sponge to the main batch 🙏
I made this bread and it turned out amazing and very soft. Baking it again tomorrow.
Thank you! That’s my family’s favorite 🙏
Dear Natasha. Thank you so much for such a great recipe and detailed instructions. It turned out great. My family loves it. The only issue I had – it cracked during baking. It does not look as pretty as yours but taste is wonderfully. Спасибо большое пребольшое.
Karina, thank you for your feedback. Try to proof it less after shaping , before any cracks or holes appeared on surface.
Спасибо 🙏
We love this bread. I’ve been wondering if the sugar is necessary, wanted to make it without but afraid to try it myself…
Hi!
Sure, you can skip the sugar.
natasha dear- can we proof this overnight? if yes, how to modify the fermentation thankyou!
Hi!
Off course you can proof them overnight.
Let the dough proof for 3-4 hours, then transfer it to the fridge until around 10pm, then shape them and let them proof until morning.
They should be double or more in the morning, then bake.
1. Can you make this bread with any type of starter (90/10 bread/rye starter?
2. On your reply to Cynthia on 9-25, after final shaping, you proof dough until morning to 2x. Is that at room temperature or back in the fridge?
I prefer to bake this bread same day.
But if emergency happens then you can let it proof overnight in the fridge.
And for starter in this specific recipe I’m using rye flour, to lower amount of bread flour in the recipe.
Is there a specific brand of rye flour you prefer? Do you ever add caraway seeds to your dough?
I’m using rye flour from bob’s red mill.
And sure, you can add caraway seeds!
It will bring do much flavor to your loaf.
Hi, I just baked this bread today following your recipe. But my loaf came out flat… what could have I done wrong? I live in the tropics so my temp is between 29-31C… I tried to control the temp by putting the dough in an ice box with average temp of 25C. I followed the timing. Could it be the flours that I used?
Cathy, hi!
Usually this loaf is coming out kind of flat, because of the amount of rye flour. And when proofing rye bread it loves hot temperature (30C)
So it is totally fine to proof it in your climate 🙏
Do u let it rise uncovered for final proof in banneton after shaping? Afraid it will stick to the plastic when it rises but also concerned with get dry crust if left to rise uncovered.
Hi, I prefer to cover it with plastic bag to prevent drying.
I don’t have a dough mixer. If I were to use hand to mix the doubled sponge dough with main dough ingredients. How long will I have to keep kneading it? I’m in warm tropical climate (30-33’C)
Hi!
For final dough It should take about 20 -30 min with stops
I just kneeded the dough for nearly 45 minutes at a room temperature of 19 degrees, and it was still between image 1 and 2 of how it should look. Forming some ball, and getting of the sides of the bowl and off my hands, but not all together a real ball. @ Natalya, wouldn’t you say it is necessary to have a kitchen machine to do the kneeding?
Hi Natalya, this recipe looks amazing! Without a dough mixer, would it make sense to give a few folds to the dough during bulk or would that impair the rise?
Hi!
Just be ready to get messy, but it is fine to do folds instead of mixing.
Great recipe! Bread is really nice. But dough doesn’t form a ball after mixing, it stays very sticky. Room temperature 15-16 degrees Celsius. Can I do something to improve this? Or is it OK if stays really sticky?
For bread made with rye flour is normal to stay sticky.
Thank you for your feedback.
do you have a 100% rye soudough recipe?
Hi I would like to try this recipe but what would be the baking process if I wanted to use a loaf pan? Do I still need a baking stone? Would a cast iron pan work?(i don’t have a baking stone) do I need to place the loaf pan on it? Thanks
Did you figure this out? I would also like to know. Thx
Made this today, followed the recipe to the T and it turned out perfect, So good!
Hi Natasha,
My SIL family prefers rye SD. To me inthink it’s acquired taste. I used 60% rye flour 80% hydration, but as rye gas no gluten, how could I get a nicer airer crumb?
Nice, But….
It would be so much nicer to have the recipe in bakers percentage.
But nice…