The Easiest Sourdough Rye Bread

As I am very very beginner when it comes to bread baking I was looking for a the simpliest and easiest recipe possible for a bread with sourdough. My taste preference is rye over wheat, and dark/ whole grain over white. Any seeds - sunflower, pumpkin - or nuts are more than welcome. I found a dream recipe for a novice like me on a fantastic Liska's blog (not surprising, is it?) :) Since that time, I've baked it at least 4 times and every time it was excellent (you can see it for example in the pictures of hummus).

Even though the bread is made purely of rye flour it's soft and delicate and toasted sunflower seeds add a nutty sweet aftertaste to it (which I love). As Liska's writing, the secret of a success with this bread is feeding your sourdough / starter / levain 10 to 12 hours before using it. I fed mine with 100g whole rye flour and 100g water.

The Easiest Sourdough Rye Bread

with Sunflower Seeds

Fits rectangular loaf  form 25cm long.

1 day before baking:
1 tablespoon rye levain/ sourdough (fed 10 - 12 hours before)
150ml water
150g rye bread flour, type 720*

*in Hungary 720 is not available (or at least I have't managed to find it yet). You can buy though and use with great results light rye flour - "vilagos rozliszt" RL-90.

All ingredients mix in a bowl, cover with plastic foil and put aside. I usually do it in the evening and use it for baking the next day in the morning.

After 12 - 18 hours I add:
380g rye bread flour, type 720
1 1/1 teaspoon salt
200ml water
50g toasted sunflower seeds**

Mix all the ingredients apart from sunflower seeds using a wooden spoon or a mixer. Don't mix too long. At the end add toasted sunflower seeds. Cover the pan with the vegetable oil and sprinkle with bran. Put the dough in the baking pan, sprinkle the flour onto the top or cover with a bit of oil . Cover with the plastic foil and the leave in a warm place to rise. Depending on the temperature it will take from 2 to 6 hours - it took 2 hours for me. The volume of the bread should double - only then it can be baked.
Put the bread into a cold oven and set the temperature to 230°C. After 30 minutes lower the temperature to 210°C and bake for 30 minutes more. If the bread's top is becoming too dark, cover it with aluminium foil.
Take the bread out from the pan immediately and let it cool down on the rack.

**Warm up the teflon frying pan - don't use oil. Fry the sunflower seeds till they're golden, stirring constantly. Should take around 3-5 minutes.  Let the seeds cool down before adding to the dough.