LÜBECKER - LUEBECK RYE

This is a milder, less tangy version of a typical German rye/wheat everyday bread, made without sourdough. I called it "Lübecker", because this was one of my first successful adaptions of an old German recipe to American ingredients, and the medieval Hanse town Lübeck is one of my favorite cities. 

I changed the technique from a 1- to a 2-day process, working with pre-doughs to achieve a much better taste (with less hands-on work).

(Of course, this bread can be also made with sourdough).

LÜBECKER - LUEBECK RYE

SOAKER
80 g rye flour
136 g whole wheat flour
3 g salt
92 g buttermilk
83 g water
 
BIGA
216 g whole wheat flour
1 g instant yeast
160 g water
 
FINAL DOUGH
all soaker and biga
48 g whole wheat flour
9 g salt
5 g instant yeast
15 g honey
45 g sunflower seed oil (or other vegetable oil)
1 tsp. caraway seeds, ground
¾ tsp. fennel seeds, ground
1 tsp. coriander, ground
1 tsp. coriander, whole, for topping

DAY 1 morning:

In a small bowl, stir together all soaker ingredients. In a second bowl, mix all biga ingredients at low speed (or with a big spoon) for 1-2 minutes, until they come together. Knead at medium-low speed (or by hand) for 2 minutes, let rest for 5 minutes, then resume kneading for another 1 minute. Place in oiled bowl, cover, and refrigerate.

Remove biga from refrigerator 2 hours before using to de-chill. (Cutting biga into small pieces helps to distibute preferment more evenly in final dough).

In the evening: prepare final dough. Mix all ingredients at low speed (or by hand) for 1-2 minutes, until coarse ball forms, and all flour is hydrated. Knead at medium-low speed for 4 minutes. Let dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead for another 1 minute. Place in oiled container, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

DAY 2:

Remove dough from refrigerate 2 hours before using to de-chill.

Preheat oven to 425 F/220 C, including steam pan.

Shape dough into sandwich loaf, place in greased loaf pan, mist with water and sprinkle with coriander. Press seeds gently into dough. Slash. Cover, and let rise at room temperature for 45 - 60 min., or until dough has grown to 1  1/2 times its original size.

Place bread into oven, and pour 1 cup of boiling water into steam pan. Reduce heat to 400 F/200 C, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove steam pan, rotate bread 180 degrees, and continue baking for another 20 - 30 minutes. (Internal temperature: at least 195 F, bread should sound hollow when thumped on bottom).

Remove bread from loaf pan, and let cool on wire rack.

Lübecker Crumb