Russia: Rizhsky Khleb

 Russia spans over 6.5 million square miles. Due to it's sheer size, Russia's climate is pretty varied, ranging from humid subtropical to frozen tundra. Much of the country exists in colder climates that is not conducive to a super wide rang of crops. Maybe the caveat 'historically' needs to be added and modern agricultural technology allows for every manner of crop to be grown, on some level. 

Traditionally, rye wheat fares better in colder climates than other types of wheat, so it is not surprised that rye bread is celebrated in Russia. Any list of traditional Russian breads will likely have several varieties of rye bread listed.

Rizhsky Khleb is a type of rye bread made popular in the "Please to the Table: the Russian Cookbook", by Anya Von Bremzen. I tried to find more is a history on this specific bread, to no avail. There is a lot written on the popularity of rye bread in Russia. It is a grain that saw many a Russian family through harsh winters and they adopted a variety of ways of baking rye bread.

I used the King Arthur recipe, which came from the above mentioned cookbook.

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/russian-rye-bread-rizhsky-khleb-recipe

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups (283g) lukewarm water (105°F to 115°F)
2 tablespoons (43g) barley malt syrup or dark honey
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 cup (156g) medium rye flour or pumpernickel flour
2 teaspoons (12g) salt
1 tablespoon (11g) caraway seeds
3 tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter, melted
3 cups (361g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1. To make the dough manually, or with a mixer: Pour the warm water into a mixing bowl and add a teaspoon of the malt extract or honey. Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.

2. Stir in the yeast and rye flour. Let this sponge work for at least 20 minutes, until it's expanded and bubbly.

3. Add the remaining barley malt extract or dark honey, the salt, caraway seeds, butter, and enough of the unbleached flour to create a dough that begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. At this point, cover the dough with a towel or plastic wrap, and let it stand for about 5 minutes.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured or lightly oiled work surface, and knead until it's smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Halfway through, give the dough a rest while you clean out and butter your mixing bowl.

5. Shape the dough into a ball, place it in the buttered bowl, turning to coat, and cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise for about 1 1/2 hours, or until it's not quite doubled in bulk.

6. To complete the bread: Punch the dough down, and divide it in half. Shape each half into an oval, place them on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise for about 30 minutes.

7. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

8. Bake the bread for about 45 minutes, or until the crust is dark brown, and the interior temperature of the loaves measures 190°F to 200°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the bread from the oven, and cool it on a wire rack.

9. Store, well-wrapped, on the counter for 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

Note: the recipe linked above includes additional steps for bakers using a bread machine. I also could not find medium rye flour or malt barley syrup. Instead, I rolled the dice and used dark rye flour and molasses.

Result:

I was a little unsure how this would turn out as I have read that rye flour is difficult to work with. It turned out pretty good. I may have overproved the bread slightly, but just slightly. The flavor was wonderful: slightly sweet, hint of bitter from the caraway seeds, with an earthiness from the rye. I will be making this again.