Pain de Campagne

A country loaf built on a poolish fermented overnight with a third of the flour, which is where its sourness and its keeping come from.

Vegan.

Ingredients

For the poolish

• 200 g strong white flour
• 200 ml water
• 1 g fast-action yeast

For the dough

• 300 g strong white flour
• 100 g rye flour
• 250 ml water
• 12 g salt
• 2 g fast-action yeast

Method

1. A THIRD OF THE FLOUR IS FERMENTED THE NIGHT BEFORE AS A POOLISH, and that is what makes this loaf rather than the shaping. Equal weights of flour and water with a pinch of yeast, twelve hours at room temperature, and it arrives bubbled, slack and smelling faintly of beer. That is where the mild sourness comes from, and the keeping -- this loaf is still good on the third day, which a straight dough never is.
2. THE POOLISH IS USED WHEN IT IS DOMED AND JUST STARTING TO SINK IN THE MIDDLE. Too young and it has given nothing; collapsed and gone sharp, it has eaten its own structure and the loaf will be dense. Twelve hours at about 20C, less in a warm kitchen.
3. THE RYE IS A FIFTH AND NO MORE. Rye brings the flavour and the darker crumb, and it has almost no gluten -- past about a fifth the loaf will not hold the gas the poolish is making, and you get a close, damp crumb.
4. IT IS A WET DOUGH AND IS FOLDED, NOT KNEADED, as with the baguette on this site.
5. AND IT IS BAKED DARKER THAN LOOKS RIGHT. Almost mahogany. The crust is most of the character and a pale country loaf tastes of very little.
6. POOLISH, the night before: flour, water and the gram of yeast stirred to a thick batter, covered, left 12 HOURS at room temperature until domed, bubbled and just beginning to dip in the centre.
7. The dough flours, water and yeast added to the poolish and mixed to a shaggy mass. Rested 30 minutes.
8. The salt worked in with wet hands.
9. Four folds in the bowl at 45-minute intervals, 3 hours in all. It will become smooth and billowy.
10. Divided in two and pre-shaped loosely. Rested 20 minutes.
11. Shaped as rounds or long loaves, and proved seam up in floured cloths 1 hour 30 minutes.
12. Turned out onto a hot stone, slashed deeply three or four times.
13. Baked at 250C with steam for 15 minutes, the steam removed, then 230C for 25 to 30 minutes until very dark and hollow underneath.
14. Cooled completely. Better on day two, and good on day three toasted.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under France · All recipes