Rye and Indian Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Make the dough
Sprinkle the salt over the Indian meal in a large bowl.
Pour the boiling water over the meal and ensure it is thoroughly wet.
When the mixture is lukewarm, mix in the rye meal and yeast that has been soaked in warm water.
Add more water if necessary, as Indian meal absorbs a lot of water.
Rise and bake
Transfer the mixture to a large buttered pan and smooth the top with wet hands.
Let it rise in a warm place for about 2.5 hours, until it begins to crack on top.
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C) and bake for 3 to 4 hours.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Indian meal
- Forms the main body of the loaf and absorbs a large amount of water.
- Rye meal
- Adds flavour and a denser crumb than wheat flour would give.
- Yeast
- Produces gas that makes the dough rise during the warm rest.
- Boiling water
- Scalds the cornmeal, softening its starch so the dough holds together.
The step that matters
Adding the boiling water to the Indian meal. Cornmeal needs to be fully and evenly wetted; dry pockets stay crumbly, while the meal keeps absorbing water, so the dough may need more liquid added as directed.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.