🌾 Get Your Starter Ready

Start with an active, bubbly sourdough starter.

You want a starter that has been fed, risen noticeably, and is showing strong signs of fermentation.

Look for:

• Bubbles throughout the starter
• Noticeable expansion after feeding
• A pleasant fermented aroma
• A rounded or slightly domed surface
• Predictable activity after feeding

🌿 Wake Up the Caraway

This step is optional, but highly recommended.

Place the caraway seeds into a dry skillet over medium-low heat.

Toast them gently for approximately 1–2 minutes, just until they become fragrant.

Remove them from the heat and let them cool.

🥣 Mix the Dough

Add 100 g active sourdough starter to a large mixing bowl.

Pour in 400 g warm water.

Stir until the starter is mostly dissolved.

Add:

• 400 g bread flour
• 100 g rye flour
• 10 g sea salt
• 1 tbsp caraway seeds

Mix until no dry flour remains and a shaggy dough forms.

Don't worry if it doesn't look smooth yet.

The dough is just getting started.

⏰ Let the Dough Rest

💪 Build Dough Strength

Now it's time to develop the dough.

Perform 4 sets of stretch-and-folds, approximately every 30 minutes.

For each set:

1. Grab one side of the dough.
2. Stretch it upward gently.
3. Fold it over the center.
4. Rotate the bowl.
5. Repeat around the dough.

Cover the dough after each set and let it rest until the next round.

🌡️ Let Fermentation Do the Work

After your stretch-and-folds, leave the dough covered at room temperature and allow fermentation to continue.

Fermentation time will vary depending on your starter strength, room temperature, dough temperature, flour, and environment.

Instead of relying entirely on the clock, watch the dough.

You're looking for:

• Noticeable volume increase
• A smoother, puffier appearance
• Bubbles beginning to form
• A lighter, more elastic feel

🌀 Shape Your Loaf

Lightly flour your work surface.

Gently turn the dough out.

Try to preserve the air you've built during fermentation.

Shape the dough into a tight round loaf.

Use a bench scraper to gently pull the dough toward you, creating surface tension around the outside of the loaf.

🧺 Into the Banneton

Place the shaped dough seam-side up into a well-floured banneton.

Don't have a banneton?

A bowl lined with a generously floured kitchen towel works just fine.

Cover the dough.

❄️ Cold Proof Overnight

Place the covered dough into the refrigerator.

This is where the rye and caraway really start to shine.

🔥 Preheat Your Dutch Oven

When you're ready to bake, place your Dutch oven into the oven.

A properly heated Dutch oven gives your dough the intense burst of heat it needs for excellent oven spring.

✂️ Score Your Loaf

Take the dough directly from the refrigerator.

Turn it onto parchment paper.

Score the top with a bread lame or very sharp knife.

Keep It Simple

If you're new to scoring, one confident slash across the top is plenty.

🍞 Bake Your Rye Caraway Sourdough

Carefully transfer the scored dough into your preheated Dutch oven.

Cover with the lid.

Covered Bake

450°F / 232°C for 28 minutes

Uncovered Bake

Remove the lid and continue baking for:

10–12 minutes

You're looking for a deeply golden-brown crust.

🌡️ Let It Cool

Remove the loaf from the Dutch oven and place it on a cooling rack.

The crumb continues to set as the bread cools.

Slice too early and you can end up with a gummy interior, even when the loaf was baked properly.

Let it cool. Then grab the bread knife.

🥪 What Should You Do With It?

This loaf was practically designed for serious sandwich duty.

• Classic Reuben sandwiches
• Turkey and Swiss
• Roast beef and horseradish
• Grilled cheese
• Thick slices with butter
• Served alongside hearty soups

🚨 Sourdough Troubleshooting

My dough feels sticky.

Some stickiness is completely normal. Rye flour behaves differently from bread flour and doesn't develop gluten in the same way.

Resist the urge to keep adding flour. Dough strength develops through fermentation and folding.

My loaf didn't rise very much.

Start by checking your starter. If your starter isn't active enough, fermentation will be slower.

Temperature matters too. A cool kitchen can significantly slow the process.

My dough spread when I shaped it.

This can happen when the dough hasn't developed enough strength, fermentation has gone too far, or the final shaping didn't create enough surface tension.

My crumb is gummy.

Make sure the loaf was fully baked and allow it to cool completely before slicing.

The caraway flavor is too strong.

Reduce the caraway slightly next time. You can also skip the toasting step for a more subtle flavor.