TOURTE DE SEIGLE (100% RYE BREAD)

Tourte de Seigle (100% Rye Bread) image

Tourte de Seigle is a deep and earthy flavored whole grain rye bread from the Alps areas of France, Switzerland, and Germany. It's delicious with butter and paired with hearty stews, also dry white wine, as per [Baking History|https://baking-history.com/tourte-de-seigle/]. This Pain de Seigle recipe uses a relatively simple process and I've included beer for enhanced malty flavors and aroma, and plain yogurt to boost the crumb texture with additional lactic acid.

Provided by Melissa Johnson

Categories Recipes

Time 1h35m

Number Of Ingredients 13

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Ingredients

Levain / Sourdough Starter Build
10g sourdough starter
45g whole grain rye flour
45g water
Dough
100g ripe rye levain from above (1/2 cup)
390g whole grain rye flour (3 cups)
120g water (1/2 cup)
120g beer (1/2 cup)
115g plain yogurt (1/2 cup) [If you have thick Greek yogurt, use 100g yogurt and 15g water]
25g barley malt syrup or maple syrup or honey (1 Tbsp)
8g salt (1 1/2 tsp)
2-3 Tbsp additional whole rye flour for dusting the countertop and proofing basket

Steps:

Levain (the night before)
Mix the ingredients for the rye levain and let ripen overnight. In a cool kitchen, this may take 8-10 hours. In the summertime, use cool water to prevent the starter from ripening in the middle of the night. 100% hydration rye starter is fairly stiff so you may see no expansion for the first few hours (likewise with the dough).
Dough (the next morning)
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until everything is incorporated. Different yogurt brands have different hydration, so feel add a smidge more flour or water if needed.
Let the dough rise until it has expanded by about 75% (see photo in the gallery below). In a very cool kitchen (63-65°F), this took 14 hours. A subsequent dough at 68°F took 10 hours. The beer and yogurt are cold additions, and the dough is relatively stiff, so it doesn't ferment very quickly.
Shaping (early evening)
Sprinkle your work surface with whole rye flour and scrape the dough out of your bowl or bucket.
Using a floured bench knife, fold the dough into a ball. Adding flour as needed, flip over the ball and shape the dough into a boule with your hands. Oval and oblong shapes are fine too, but not the traditional tourte.
Flour your proofing basket and flip the dough into it, seam side up. You'll flip the dough again into your baking vessel with the smooth side up, but the crust will still crack nicely.
Cover and let the dough proof for 1-2 hours, depending on your ambient temperature. The dough will expand a little and look slightly puffier (see photo gallery).
About 30 minutes before the end of the final proof, start preheating your oven and baking vessel to 425F.
When the preheat is complete, flip the rye dough out of the proofing basket and onto a sheet of parchment paper or the base of your hot baking vessel, cover, and return the vessel to the oven.
Bake for 60-65 minutes (late evening)
10 minutes at 425F lid on
30 minutes at 415F lid on
20-25 minutes at 415F lid off (leave the lid on longer or the entire time if you prefer a softer crust)
When baking is complete, the bread should have an internal temperature of at least 208F and it should sound hollow when you knock on the bottom of the loaf.
Cool and Set (cut the morning after the next)
Wait 24-48 hours before cutting into this bread so that the crumb can set and isn't gummy. Store cut-side down on a cutting board and cover with a bowl, towel, or bag.