Danish Sourdough (RUGBRØD)

Nothing beats having freshly baked sourdough, the smell of hot, crusty and freshly baked bread just permeates in your kitchen. If you are looking for new things to experiment while in isolation, making your own sourdough will surely bring some joy.

Rugbrød is a staple of Danish cuisine, a seeded-sourdough which is typically served at lunch and dinner celebrations such as Christmas and Easter. It is a long-lasting dense loaf, with malty and slightly sour notes, with a ragged crust and moist but textured crumb.

We like this recipe because it is the easiest sourdough loaf to make, no kneading, stretching or folding is required. The key is to make sure that the starter has recently been refreshed and is active.

@Nordic Kitchen Stories

Preparation time: 25 mins

Cook: 40 mins

Proving Time: 14 Hours

Equipment: 900g loaf tin

Ingredients:

Day 1 – Pre-ferment

• 125 g active rye starter 100% hydration
• 230 g dark rye flour
• 290 g cold water

Seeds & chopped rye grains

• 50 g chopped rye grains
• 150 g seed blend ie. golden & brown linseeds, sesame, buckwheat, millet, sunflower & pumpkin seeds
• 200 g boiling water

Day 2

• Pre-ferment as above
• 330 g dark rye flour
• 12 g fine sea salt
• 2 tbls molasses
• 220 g warm water
• 2 tsp caraway seeds optional
• a few mixed seeds for sprinkling on top the loaf

Instructions:

Day 1

1. Place the starter in a large bowl, add the cold water and flour. Stir with a spoon to form a nice loose mixture and cover. In a separate bowl place the seeds and chopped rye, pour over the boiling water, cover. Leave both at room temperature for 10-12 hours. (Overnight).

Day 2

1. Uncover the pre-ferment. It should be nice and bubbly and have a pleasant, slightly fruity, alcoholic aroma.
2. Now add all the ingredients to the pre-ferment, including the soaked seeds (they will have absorbed all the water). With a large rubber spoon, bring the mixture together and continue mixing for a couple of minutes, until it’s fully combined. Leave for 10 minutes so the flour can fully absorb the water. The wet dough will become slightly firmer.
3. Lightly oil a 900g loaf tin and line the base with baking paper. Dust with rye flour.
4. Pour the loose dough in the tin. Smooth the surface with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with mixed seeds and heavily sprinkle with rye flour.
5. Leave to rise. This can take 1½-3 hours (this largely depends on the temperature of your kitchen). When the surface of the bread starts to crack. It’s ready to bake.
6. Pre-heat the oven 30 minutes before baking to 230°C fan°. Place a tray of water at the bottom of the oven. Put the loaf in the oven and bake for 40 minutes reducing the temperature half way through baking.
7. Remove from the oven and tip it out of the tin and cool on a wire rack.
8. Slice when the loaf is completely cold, it's important to let the crumb set. Best left for 4-5 hours or even overnight.

Notes:

If your oven doesn't go up to 230°C/fan, bake at 220°C instead and add 5 minutes to the baking time.

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Recipe Credit: Louise Nordic Kitchen Stories