Rye Bread
The bread that keeps. Dark, dense, caraway-perfumed, with a closed crumb that holds butter and cheese and slices of pickled herring with equal patience. Three hours from flour to crust, three days from oven to last slice.
Serves
12
Difficulty
Moderate, mostly waiting
Origin
Poland, with cousins across the Baltic
Best for
The whole week ahead
Caraway is non-negotiable. The seed defines this bread the way star anise defines pho. A loaf without caraway is a different bread wearing rye's clothes.
Honey, not sugar. The dark note feeds the yeast slower and gives the crust its deep walnut colour. A spoon of malt extract is the only acceptable substitute.
