Recipes · Scalded rye

Sweet-sour scalded rye

magushapu leib

A dark, glossy loaf made with a scald of flour, malt and boiling water. Sweet at the first bite, sour at the end.

Makes
1 loaf in a large tin
Hands-on
About 40 minutes
Start to finish
About a day and a half
Oven
200 °C, then 170 °C

Scalding means pouring boiling water over part of the flour. The hot paste turns thick and glossy, holds far more water than raw flour, and if it is kept warm for a few hours it slowly turns sweeter as some of the starch breaks down into sugars. Add dark rye malt (linnased) and the colour goes deep brown and the sweetness takes on a taste close to coffee.

This is the style Estonians call sweet-sour, magushapu. Bought versions are often heavily sweetened; at home you can keep the sugar low and let the scald and the malt do most of the work.

Method

  1. Put the flour, malt and caraway in a heatproof bowl and pour over the boiling water, stirring hard so that no lumps form. You will have a dark, smooth, glossy paste.
  2. Cover the bowl and keep it warm for 3–4 hours: wrapped in a towel, or in the oven with only the light switched on. It cools slowly and should taste distinctly sweeter at the end than at the start.
  3. When the scald is no warmer than your hand, about 30 °C, stir in the starter and the sponge flour. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight.
  4. Next morning, add the dough flour, salt and syrup and mix to a heavy, sticky paste. Add warm water only if there are dry patches. Save two spoonfuls for the starter jar, as for every rye loaf.
  5. Fill a well-greased tin, smooth the top with a wet hand and leave it to rise for 2–3 hours, until the surface is domed and just starting to crack.
  6. Bake at 200 °C for 15 minutes, then at 170 °C for another 70–80 minutes. The long, gentle bake is what turns the crust almost black and the crumb a deep brown. Brush with hot water, or water with a spoonful of syrup, as soon as it comes out.
  7. Wrap it in a cloth and let it rest at least overnight. A scalded crumb is moist and stays slightly sticky for the first day.

Notes

  • Dark rye malt is sometimes sold as “fermented rye malt”. It is there for colour and flavour; it does nothing for the rise.
  • Coriander seed instead of caraway is common further east and works beautifully in this loaf.
  • If the loaf comes out pale, the malt was probably old or the bake too short. Next time give it another 15 minutes at the lower heat.
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