Wholemeal-ish Crusty Bread

Lately I have been endeavoring to work more wholemeal grains into my baking. It is a bit daunting as the bran from the wheat is detrimental to gluten development and rise in general, leading to sad, dense loaves. Fermentation can help, and I’m working on my sourdough (who isn’t), but maintaining the starter is like caring for a goopy pet. So I wondered if I could adapt my crusty loaf to be wholemeal. And it was successful! It uses 50% wholemeal flour, which is better than nothing in my opinion. It still has a good amount of rise with a fluffy texture and a good, nutty flavour. I recommend using strong bread flour for the white flour portion as it will help with gluten development, but regular all-purpose will do fine. The loaf pictured was made with all-purpose if you’re worried. I definitely recommend using a dutch oven (casserole) for baking this. The steam will do wonders for the bread’s texture.

Ingredients:

225g (1 cup) warm water

7g (2 ½ tsp) yeast

6g (1 tsp) salt

150g (¾ cup + 1 tablespoon) wholemeal flour

150g (¾ cup +1 tablespoon) all-purpose or bread (strong) flour, plus a little extra for dusting surface

Optional- a little oil for your hands

1. Mix salt, yeast, and water in a mixing bowl and let sit for a few minutes to ensure your yeast is active.

2. Add in flour and mix until flour is incorporated completely, and stir for an additional minute. The dough will be a sticky mess. Cover with a clean tea towel and let rest for 1 hour in a warm place.

3. Move the bowl (still covered) to the fridge for at least two hours.

4. When ready to bake oil your hands if you choose (I recommend as this is a rather sticky dough!) and remove the dough from the bowl forming it into a rough ball shape on a lightly floured surface. I like to take hands and sort of scoop the sides under as I twist the bread about 45 degrees a few times. The point is to get some surface tension happening so it forms a nice tight ball. Place onto a well floured surface to rest for 1 hour. The dough will flatten out a bit so make sure there is room for it to spread somewhat.

5. In the meantime place a dutch oven (if using) into the oven and set to the highest setting.

6. When the loaf is ready remove the hot dutch oven and open. Oil your hands if you wish and quickly transfer the loaf to dutch oven. Cut an X into the top with a sharp knife or bread lame and top with coarse sea salt. Return lid and place back into the oven.

7. Bake with lid on for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove the lid and check the colour of your loaf. If extremely pale you may need about 7-8 minutes longer, if already getting somewhat golden you may only need 5. When the loaf appears crusty and golden, remove from the oven and knock on the bottom, it should sound hollow when done. Let cool on a wire rack.