Jeffrey Hamelman

Rustic Bread

Preparation info

  • Difficulty

    Medium

  • Dough Yield: About 22 loaves at

    1.5 lb

    each

Appears in

top 1000Bread: A Baker's Book of Techniques and Recipes

Bread

By Jeffrey Hamelman

Published 2004

  • About

Rustic Bread Shares many of the visual and flavor attributes as the preceding Country Bread. With the inclusion of 20 percent whole-grain flour, however, it has a more robust and distinctive flavor. Since absorption levels vary considerably with whole-grain flour, check the dough carefully once the ingredients are incorporated and make adjustments to hydration as necessary. As with Country Bread, ovals or rounds are the shapes of choice, although small crusty rolls or sizeable boules can also be made.

Pre-Fermented Flour: 50%

Ingredients

Overall Formula

U.S. Metric Home Baker’s %
Bread Flour 16 lb 8 kg 1 lb, 9.6 oz 80 %
Whole-Rye Flour 2 lb 1 kg 3.2 oz 10 %
Whole-Wheat Flour 2 lb 1 kg 3.2 oz 10 %
Water 13.8 lb 6.9 kg 1 lb, 6.1 oz 69 %
Salt .36 lb .18 kg .6 oz 1.8 %
Yeast .12 lb, fresh .06 kg, fresh .06 oz, instant dry .6%
Total Yield 34.28 lb 17.14 kg 3 lb, 6.7 oz 171.4 %

Pre-Ferment

Bread Flour 10 lb 5 kg 1 lb (3⅝ cups) 100 %
Water 6 lb 3 kg 9.6 oz(1¼ cups) 60 %
Salt .18 lb .09 kg .3 oz (½ T) 1.8 %
Yeast .05 lb fresh .025 kg, fresh (⅛ tsp, instant dry) .5%
Total 16.23 lb 8.115 kg 1lb, 10 oz

Final Dough

Bread Flour 6 lb 3 kg 9.6 oz (2¼ cups)
Whole-Rye Flour 2 lb 1 kg 3.2 oz (⅞ cup)
Whole-Wheat Flour 2 lb 1 kg 3.2 oz (¾ cup)
Water 7.8 lb 3.9 kg 12.5 oz (1½ cups)
Salt .18 lb .09 kg .3 oz (½ T)
Yeast .07 lb, fresh .035 kg, fresh .06 oz, instant dry (½ tsp)
Pre-Ferment 16.23 lb 8.115 kg 1 lb, 10 oz (all of above)
Total 34.28 lb 17.14 kg 3 lb, 6.7 oz

Method

  1. Pre-Ferment: Disperse the yeast in the water, add the flour and salt, and mix until just smooth. At 60 percent hydration, it will be stiff and dense, but add water, if necessary, to correct the hydration. Cover the bowl with plastic and let stand for 12 to 16 hours at about 70°F. When ripe, the pre-ferment will be domed and just beginning to recede in the center.
  2. Mixing: Add all the ingredients to the mixing bowl except the pre-ferment. In a spiral mixer, mix on first speed for 3 minutes in order to incorporate the ingredients. As the dough is coming together, add the pre-ferment in chunks. If necessary, correct the hydration by adding water or flour in small amounts. Finish mixing on second speed for about 2½ minutes. The dough should be supple and moderately loose, with moderate gluten development. Desired dough temperature: 75°F.
  3. Bulk Fermentation: 2½ hours.
  4. Folding: Fold the dough twice, once after 50 minutes of bulk fermentation and again 50 minutes later.
  5. Dividing and Shaping: Divide the dough into 1.5-pound pieces. Preshape lightly into rounds and place on a lightly floured work surface, seams up. Cover the rounds with plastic. When the dough has relaxed sufficiently (10 to 20 minutes), shape into round or oval loaves, place them either into floured bannetons or between folds of floured baker’s linen, and cover with plastic.
  6. Final Fermentation: Approximately 1¼ to 1½ hours at 75°F.
  7. Baking: Invert the risen loaves onto the loading conveyor or peel. Slash the desired scoring pattern with a blade. Presteam the oven, load the bread, and steam again. Bake at 450°F. Open the oven vents after the loaves show color, in order to finish the bake in a drying oven. Loaves scaled at 1.5pounds should bake for 35 to 38 minutes.

© 2004 All rights reserved. Published by Wiley.