Baking worksheet
R1-C2: Dark bread with 80% rye flour
Two schedule modes. "Starter already active" — when you have 70 g of starter at peak: start straight from the sourdough, the whole cycle in one day, no cold rest. "From the fridge" — the full cycle with three refreshments and an overnight sourdough retard (sharper sourness, ~3 days). In both, the main variable is starter activity and peak timing, not a large water increase.
Technical summary
- Course code
- R1-C2 — high-rye lesson; this working formula already includes scald and spices, so keep the other variables stable
- Lesson theory
- rye acidity, pentosan gel, dense crumb, scald, and 12–24 h crumb rest
- Process theory
- at 80% rye, density is normal; structure comes from acidity, scald, starch, pentosans, pan support, proofing, and full bake
- Starter
- Three refreshments: 1:2:2, then 1:3:3, then 1:4:4; peak matters more than the clock
- Sourdough
- 262 g rye flour + 210 g water + 70 g starter, 4 h at room temp, then fridge
- Scald
- 105 g rye flour + spices + 158 g boiling water, left covered at room temp
- Mix
- Kenwood KVC85.004SI, K-beater on Min for 1–2 min to homogeneity; do not knead like wheat dough
- Proof
- Two stages: 35 °C for 30–40 min, then room temp while the oven preheats
- Bake
- 250 °C 10 min steam → 200 °C 25 min → 170 °C 35 min → 130 °C 15 min
- Sensory
- acidity, spice, malt aroma, knife stickiness, density, moisture, and aftertaste after resting
Levain build
- Starter for the levain
- 70 g ripe starter
- Build
- 70 g + 262 g flour + 210 g water → levain 542 g
- Refreshes
- 1:2:2 → 1:3:3 → 1:4:4
- Reserve to fridge
- 18 g
- Ready when
- 4 h at room temperature, then fridge
Next bake: start from a ripe starter, or 3 refreshments from the fridge
Pick a starting style. The schedule and timers will update.
Enter the actual first-step time; the steps below will recalculate.
- Timer to next step: 4 h
Put the active starter to work right away: build the sourdough and leave it 4 hours in the warm (26–28 °C). In parallel, scald the rye flour with spices in boiling water and let it cool to room temperature.
Step ingredients
- Sourdough
- 70 g active starter + 262 g rye flour + 210 g water
- Scald
- 105 g rye flour + 158 g boiling water + 3 g coriander + 2 g caraway
- Target
- Sourdough up 1.3–1.7x, fruity-sour smell; scald cooled.
- Check
- The sourdough must reach a confident peak — in this short cycle it is the only source of gas and acidity. Cool kitchen: allow up to 5 hours.
- Evidence
- Start time, kitchen temperature, sourdough height.
- Timer to next step: 10 min–15 min
Combine sourdough, scald, and the final ingredients to homogeneity. Kenwood K-beater on Min; with cool dough this takes 3–5 minutes. Do not use the hook.
Step ingredients
- Sourdough
- all of it, about 542 g
- Scald
- all of it, about 268 g
- Rye flour
- 52 g
- Wheat flour
- 105 g
- Fermented red rye malt
- 15 g
- Salt
- 11 g
- Water
- 20–50 g by dough state
- Target
- Homogeneous dense sticky dough; temperature 26–28 °C.
- Check
- Do not add water beyond the range just because the paste feels stiff — at 80% rye this is normal.
- Evidence
- Dough temperature.
- Timer to next step: 30 min–40 min
Grease the pan with butter, transfer the dough with a wet spoon, smooth with wet fingers. Cover with film and place in the oven at 35 °C to warm the dough and start the rise.
Step ingredients
- Dough in the pan
- all of it
- Target
- Visible rise, surface smooth and slightly domed.
- Check
- If there is no rise at all after 40 minutes, give it another 15–20 minutes in the warm.
- Evidence
- Starting-height mark.
- Timer to next step: 1 h–1 h 15 min
Take the pan to the counter. Turn the oven to 250 °C (stone preheat ~75 minutes). The dough finishes rising under film while the oven heats.
Step ingredients
- Dough in the pan
- all of it
- Target
- Volume 1.7–2x AND small surface cracks — both signs together.
- Check
- Underproof (×1,3–1.5, no cracks) → dense crumb; overproof (×2,2 and more, sagging dome) → gummy crumb. Wait for both readiness signs.
- Evidence
- Height, cracks.
- Timer to next step: 1 h 25 min
Remove the film. Bake stepwise: 250 °C 10 min with steam, 200 °C 25 min, 170 °C 35 min, 130 °C 15 min. Target 98 °C internal.
Step ingredients
- Proofed dough
- all dough in the pan
- Steam
- 200 ml water in the steamer at the start; not part of the formula
- Target
- 98 °C in the crumb center.
- Check
- If the top darkens before doneness, cover with foil. Pull by probe, not by timer alone.
- Evidence
- Probe temperature, removal time.
- Timer to next step: 12 h–24 h
Remove from the pan, cool on a rack, wrap in a towel. Do not slice for at least 12 hours, ideally 24.
Step ingredients
- Finished loaf
- 1 loaf after resting
- New ingredients
- none
- Target
- Crumb stabilized, not smearing; flavor brighter.
- Check
- Slice after 12–24 hours, not after 4–5.
- Evidence
- Crumb photo, tasting note.
Enter the actual first-step time; the steps below will recalculate.
- Timer to next step: 10 h Base: 23 °C. Baseline is 23 °C. Dough readiness still decides the bake.
10 g starter + 20 g water + 20 g whole rye flour.
Step ingredients
- Starter inoculation
- 10 g
- Water
- 20 g
- Whole rye flour
- 20 g
- Yield
- about 50 g
- Target
- Wake the starter after refrigeration.
- Check
- Use dome, bubbles, and aroma, not the clock alone.
- Evidence
- Start and finish time, kitchen temperature.
- Timer to next step: 10 h Base: 23 °C. Baseline is 23 °C. Dough readiness still decides the bake.
Use 8 g from refreshment 1 with 24 g water and 24 g rye flour.
Step ingredients
- Starter from refreshment 1
- 8 g
- Water
- 24 g
- Rye flour
- 24 g
- Yield
- about 56 g
- Target
- Build culture strength and a cleaner peak.
- Check
- Use dome, bubbles, and aroma, not the clock alone.
- Evidence
- Kitchen temperature.
- Timer to next step: 8 h Base: 23 °C. Baseline is 23 °C. Dough readiness still decides the bake.
Use 10 g from the previous refreshment with 40 g water and 40 g rye flour.
Step ingredients
- Starter from refreshment 2
- 10 g
- Water
- 40 g
- Rye flour
- 40 g
- Yield
- about 90 g; use 70 g in the sourdough
- Target
- Use at peak activity.
- Check
- Record dome, bubbles, aroma, and rise.
- Evidence
- Temperature.
- Timer to next step: 4 h
Build the sourdough for 4 h at room temperature and scald rye flour with spices in parallel (3 h at ~65 °C, then cool).
Step ingredients
- Sourdough
- 70 g refreshed starter + 262 g rye flour + 210 g water
- Scald
- 105 g rye flour + 158 g boiling water + 3 g coriander + 2 g caraway
- Target
- Sourdough about 1.3–1.7x, scald cooled.
- Check
- Do not move to final dough until the sourdough is active and the scald has cooled.
- Evidence
- Timer, kitchen temperature.
- Timer to next step: 12 h
Refrigerate both sourdough and scald for 12 hours. No need to warm them up in the morning — cold sourdough and scald go straight into the final mix.
Step ingredients
- Sourdough in fridge
- all of it, about 542 g
- Scald in fridge
- all of it, about 268 g
- Target
- Sourdough matures in the cold; acidity builds; nothing active to do.
- Check
- Seal the containers so the scald does not dry on the surface.
- Evidence
- Time in and out of the fridge.
- Timer to next step: 1 h 30 min Base: 27 °C. Baseline is 23 °C. Dough readiness still decides the bake.
Mix with Kenwood KVC85.004SI and K-beater on Min for 1–2 min to homogeneity; do not knead like wheat dough. Proof in two stages.
Step ingredients
- Sourdough
- all of it, about 542 g
- Scald
- all of it, about 268 g
- Rye flour
- 52 g
- Wheat flour
- 105 g
- Fermented red rye malt
- 15 g
- Salt
- 11 g
- Water
- up to 50 g by dough state
- Target
- 1.7–2x volume and small surface cracks; dough temperature after mixing 26–28 °C.
- Check
- Do not add water beyond the range just because the paste feels stiff.
- Evidence
- Dough state after mixing and before baking.
- Timer to next step: 1 h 25 min
Bake stepwise: 250 °C 10 min with steam, 200 °C 25 min, 170 °C 35 min, 130 °C 15 min. Target 98 °C internal.
Step ingredients
- Proofed dough
- all dough in the pan
- New ingredients
- none
- Target
- 98 °C in the crumb center.
- Check
- Do not slice after removal; judge rye crumb only after resting.
- Evidence
- Probe temperature and removal time.
- Timer to next step: 12 h
Cool and rest at least 12 h, ideally 24 h, before slicing.
Step ingredients
- Finished loaf
- 1 loaf after resting
- New ingredients
- none
- Target
- Less firm crumb and brighter flavor than 16 Apr.
- Check
- Do not slice before the resting window; rye crumb is judged after maturity.
- Evidence
- Probe reading, crumb state, tasting note.
Journal export
After the bake, copy this text and send it to me so I can update the journal and conclusions.