Baking with a rye starter means converting a wheat starter to rye before making rye bread but with a dehydrated rye starter you will be in business in no time.
A powdered starter made by Alaskan Wild Teas and Cocoa

For some time now I have wanted to make rye bread, but that means converting my sourdough starter from a wheat starter to a rye start. Luckily my brother returned from an Alaskan cruise with this gift; a Sourdough Goldrush Greeting Envelope. He knows I bake artisan bread and has received several of my Sourdough Saturday trial loaves, (maybe he wants more).

So rather than toss this into my collection of dried starts I have been keeping in food storage, I decided to make it a rye starter. My curiosity has been driving me to know if it tasted any different than my Abigail’s Oven start.

But if I activated this, I knew I would soon be caring for “twins.” By caring I mean feeding, watching over, using, and storing two unique starts. I hope to be up to it—instructions with the envelope suggested I combine


I keep active starters in separate Ball Pour & Measure capped wide-mouth quart jars and store them in the fridge with back-ups in the freezer.

  • 2 cups of flour
  • 2 cups of water
  • dry culture starter

Their instructions also explained:

“Use a wooden or plastic spoon to stir the mixture until smooth. (Metal does not work.) Cover the container with plastic wrap and a towel and place in a warm area for 36 to 48 hours. Gently stir several times a day.  Your starter should give a slightly yeasty aroma. Cover your container (after two days) and let it rest in the refrigerator. To use your starter simply remove the amount called for in the recipe and add to the other ingredients.”

Okay, I did all that, but after 72 hours not much was going on so I added 1/3 cup whole-wheat flour and 1/4 cup water, just like Martha Levie had trained me to do. Wow! That jar filled with a sponge right away.

Happily, since then, I have just added rye flour and have a good starter going now and I will be making rye bread soon.

“Sourdough is thought to be the oldest form of leavened bread. Prospectors in the Klondike gold rush in Alaska brought it with them as treasured family heirlooms and passed them from generation to generation. Start your own heirloom or send to friends or family as a unique gift. “

Alaskan Wild Teas and Cocoa

Abigail’s Oven Jewish Sourdough Rye Bread Recipe


Light Rye is easy to incorporate into your diet in place of regular white or wheat breads and can easily be made at home, by skipping the caraway seeds, molasses, and cocoa in this recipe

Directions

  1. Activate the start: 4–8 hours before you make the dough, activate a whole wheat flour starter by mixing ¼ cup (56 g)* start, with ½ cup (120 g) water and one scant cup (120 g) of bread flour. Let it sit covered until it has doubled (4–6 hours), but watch it; whole wheat makes this rise much quicker. When your start floats in water it is ready to use. 
  2. Mix: In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer combine 3 cups +1½ Tbsp (740g) cool water, ¾ cup (170 g) starter, and 9 cups of light rye and bread flour combined (1000g), with caraway seeds, molasses, and cocoa. Do not knead the dough, mix it to combine. Let it rest for 30 minutes covered. Then add 2 Tbsp (34 g) salt and ¼ cup (60 g) water. Mix the water and salt into the dough, cover, and “turn” your dough (see next step).
  3. Fold Dough: “Turn” your dough by first dipping one hand in water, then reach in, grab the bottom edge of the dough and pull up, stretching it, and folding it on top of itself. Do this four times all around the bowl. Together this is one full “turn.”  Let it sit covered for 30 minutes. Then turn the dough again.  Let it sit covered for another 30 minutes. Turn it one final time.
  4. Bulk Rise: Next, let the dough sit for its bulk rise for 8–12 hours, long is better.
    (Tip: warmer temperatures will result in a dough that is ready sooner, and colder temperatures will require the dough to sit longer. )
    During the bulk rise, the dough may double in size.  Test by poking it with your finger; if it springs back just a bit and leaves a slight dent the dough is ready to bake. But if it springs back without a dent, it needs more proofing. If it leaves a dent and doesn’t spring back, it is over-proofed. 
  5. Bench & Shape: Dump your dough onto a floured or oiled surface. Using a bench knife, cut dough in half to form two loaves. Let sit for 30 minutes for a bench rest.  Fold the dough to create tension and shape into a boule by starting at one edge and folding the dough over itself toward the center. Then roll the dough up like a jelly roll, turn and repeat several times until the dough tightens up. Then using a dough blade or your hands, turn the dough in a flat circle until it shapes into a ball.
  6. Proof the Dough: Place on a floured towel or oiled parchment paper and set in a bowl.  Cover bowl with a lid and let rise until doubled (45 min to 1½  hours depending on temperature).  The dough is ready when it is puffy but has not yet doubled in size.
  7. Score & Bake: 20 minutes before it’s time to bake place your dutch oven in the oven to preheat at 475°F (246°C). When the oven is preheated, score the top of each loaf with a serrated knife. Place the dough in a dutch oven and splash water in it with your fingers before covering it with the lid. Bake for 30 minutes in the dutch oven, until the bread is golden brown. Remove the bread and allow it to cool completely before cutting (1-2 hours). Enjoy! 
    *Most bakers measure by weight rather than volume. If you have a kitchen scale we suggest weighing your ingredients. This is an online calculator that you can use: http://historicbread.colonialheritage.org/p/recipe-calculator.html

Conclusion

I have succeeded with both Mischbrot and Marbled Rye and now I am the proud owner of both a San Francisco and Yukon Sourdough start.  Personally, I cannot tell a taste difference. Let us know how you make Roggenbrot, Graubrot, Mischbrot, or anything else you call rye bread. 

If you are looking for a good dehydrated rye starter you can order one from Alaskan Wild Teas and Cocoa or Cultures for Health. You could even grow your own fresh and dehydrate it for a backup.