Hi all, I've been making high percentage rye breads recently, finally got to the horst bandel pumpernickel this past weekend. Having read some of the warnings here, I was very stingy with the soaking water for old bread (I used some 100% rye) and rye berries. I didn't add any extra water at first after mixing everything together, it was actually pretty dry, with lots of dry flour at the bottom, so I added water one TBSP at a time, until the "dough" is a paste that felt like the 100% rye I made successfully a few times. Shaped and put it in the pullman pan (even double checked to make sure it's the right size), after 50 minutes it rose some, the top domed probably 3/4inch below the pan edge, not as high as I had expected, but I didn't want to over proof, so it went into a 370F oven for an hour, then 275F for 3 hours, then the oven is off. Everything went smoothly, imagin my disappointment when I open the lid this morning and found that the bread didn't rise at all in the oven, still the same dome shape. What could be the problem? The sourdough start I used has been reliably effective for months, and the starter dough rose and matured properly in the 14 hours. The instant yeast I used is from the same batch used for another bread, which rose successfully, what what can it be? Did I leave the dough too dry? Should I have baked it longer/at a higher temperature? I am eager to try again and get it right, but need to figure out what went wrong first! Oh, the high gluten flour I used is Sir Lancelot from KA, about 14% protein. Thanks!
I actually kept track of the water absorbed by the old bread/rye berries, with those, plus the water I added during mixing, I'd say it's between 75% to 80%, so a tad low considering there're also 25% rye berries, 25% rye chops, in addition to the 30% pumpernickel and 25% high gluten flour. So I guess I need more water... Yout got a handsome loaf there BTW!
It doesn't sound too unusual to me. Wait a day (so it can set well) before cutting it and before judging. Patience! The waiting just makes it better...
I know that is easier to say than to do.
Mini
But I think this bread is supposed to fill the pullman pan, forming a square loaf... It seems that I need a bit more rise out of the dough. I am waiting to cut and see the crumb though...
The only thing I can think of is maybe you could have waited to let the dough rise more. There was instant yeast to handle it, but 50 minutes is a short time even for instant yeast.
Is that what you were thinking?
Mini
I am thinking more water and longer rising time. I may have over-corrected after reading all the "too wet" comments about this bread.
I have also made this bread and found that I did not have to add all the water called for in the formula but I still had to add a good deal of water.
Did you check your dough temperature when fermenting? I find dough temperature to be most important when making rye doughs.
When I made the bread it did reach the rop of the pan but not in the ends, I made 1+1/3 of the weight he specifies for a 3litre pan because I have a 4litre pan.
Thanks for the information, it's really helpful. My pan size is the same as the one used in the recipe, I will check the dough temperature next time, I was approximate it using a lamp etc., maybe it wasn't warm enough, especially with the lid on.