Sour Dough

The best way to eat rye flour is by making a "Sour Dough" with a mixture of rye and wheat flour. Rye flour adds a stronger flovour to bread compared to wheat. Rye flour needs to be mixed with wheat to make bread because of it's low glutonous protien. I've perfected a method over the last couple of years which I'd like to share.
The more rye flour you have in the mixture the more heavy and dense the crumb structure will be.
Sourdough is a dough containing a lactobacillus culture, usually in symbiotic combination with yeasts. The bacteria break down the starch by anerobic fermentation the byproduct being the acidic taste in sourdough. The yeast break down the starch a byproduct being CO2, this strain of yeast is different to the common bread making yeast in that is can tolerate more acidic conditions. They then work together not allowing other microbes in.
The first place to start is by making whats called a starter. To make a good starter take about a week but it can also last a life time. if you know someone who's got one it's easy to borrow a bit and build from there.
There are many sites on the net explaining this so I'll just do it briefly.
In a jar place a heaped desert spoon of rye or wholemeal flour and some water to make a runny paste. Leave for a couple of days outside. After this time there will be some small bubbles. Add another spoon of flour and water again then again after 24hours. Keep going for about a week emptying half as the jar gets full.

Once you've got your starter going keep it in the fridge and feed it roughly every week to keep it alive.

So to the bread. Sourdough takes time I only have to do very little but combine it with my schedule over the whole day. Before you go to bed take the starter out of the fridge and add a tablespoon of flour and leave it over night to revive. At this time I also add 1/2 a cup of whole wheat to a cup of water to soak and soften.


In the morning add the starter to the bread machine with 1/2 cup of rye flour. Using a blender or some kind of mixer break up the wheat with water and also add to the bread machine. Now just let it go for 4 hours at a temperature of around 23 degrees.



After that time add some salt and some olive oil and 2-2 1/2 cups of strong bread flour,
knead the dough in machine on dough setting and let it knead for about 6 minutes, adding water or flour to form a dough ball
Let the mixture prove in the pan for 2 hours.
alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5378222134129772866" />


After 2 hours take a pillow case and rub flour into it and place it in a basket and place the dough mixture in that - let is rise for and hour.




Put the oven on the highest setting turn the bread out on a tray with some baking paper on it slash the top with a knife a few times and put in oven on high for 15min then turn down to 180 degrees for 30 min take out and allow to cool.