Rye Beer Bread

This is a great recipe. Simple to make and great flavour. I did one loaf on a sheet in an electric oven and the other in a crock pot in a gas oven. Preferred the electric. Would suggest an edit to the recipe… DON’T USE TABLE SALT or reduce the measurement… use kosher or sea salt.

Followed to the letter, this recipe makes a really great loaf of rye bread. I left a previous review about the type of beer used and how it can vary the taste. Since I have made this recipe several times, here’s the recipe variations that make my best version: 1. I use a dark stout beer, a good one is a local craft brewed coffee stout. 2. Add 1 tablespoon vital wheat gluten to the bread flour for better rising. 3. Increase caraway seeds to 2 tablespoons. 4. For a crispier crust, place a shallow pan of water in the oven while baking. 5. Ten minutes before the end of baking, brush the loaves with an egg white/water mixture for a nice shiny finish.

Delicious. Next time I will try maple syrup instead of the sugar.

Love this recipe, I’ve been using different IPA’s and lagers and it makes for differing and delicious tastes.

This is a excellent recipe! Thank you for sharing it. The texture was great and it kept for days in the fridge. It sliced beautifully thin for toast or rye crisp. With herbed cream cheese it was rye bread breakfast heaven! I just finished it and I’m going to start another batch today. I made two long loaves and used IPA and a corn starch glaze. This time I’ll reduce the time just a bit since I feel my long thin loaves were slightly over baked.

We loved this bread. I made it for luncheon with friends. One of them suggested ham and Swiss sandwiches and this was the perfect bread for it. We used a German wheat beer (what we had on hand) and I’ll definitely make this again. It was such a hit with our friends that they talked us out of the second loaf. It is now traveling south with them.

So far, I made it checked internal temperature with thermometer, and it’s cooling. I like letting it ferment overnight. I liked splitting up the work. I might update after tasting. I brushed on beaten egg and sprinkled with everything bagel seasoning before baking.

I had no problems with rise as others said, I heated oven just a bit and the dough rose in there great. I only had a light beer so I did add some molasses like others said. Liked it a lot!

Awesome!

I made using a dark stout beer the first time around, and it was super! The next time, I ran out of sugar and didn’t realize until after proofing the yeast, so i substituted molasses for the white sugar. It was still super! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

no changes. not a favorite

I loved the flavor of this bread! The only change I made was that I baked it on a baking stone instead of a cookie sheet. I was disappointed, though, that the bread split along the side while it was baking. Would cutting “relief” lines in the top before baking eliminate this?

I have tried about 20 rye bread recipes over the past 5 years, all results very disappointing. When I found this recipe I wasn’t expecting much, but had hope due to the positive comments left. I followed the recipe with a couple exceptions. I used 1 Tbsp sugar and 1 Tbsp molasses. I used a Honey Lager, next time will use a stout. All I can say is THANK YOU! Finally a rye bread that turned out great! First rising time about 2 hrs, the second about 90 minutes. I had a nice soft and workable dough, but only used about 2 1/3 cups of the white bread flour. It came out of the oven at 2:00pm, and it is now 7:30 pm, and I have only 1/4 of my bread left. AWESOME. You won’t be disappointed…….UPDATE! 1 week later and Ive made it again using Alexander Keiths Red Amber. DELICIOUS!

I LOVE making bread, & STILL, after 55 years of baking bread, if I have an even “slight” problem with rising, I HAVE to look at the yeasts, and or baking powders or baking soda! Even if you “just bought it” consider the turnover in the store you purchased it from. If it’s a large market, the turnover is likely to be better. AND, don’t be afraid to look in the back for the freshest possible. Your time & ingredients are too important to feel you can’t look there ! I throw out spices & powders & soda pkg.s much more often than most, and I can’t remember the last time I had a problem with rising yeast breads OR quick breads. HTH & blessings!

This bread is truly strange. The really odd thing is it had such a strong beer taste! I used a Boston lager beer. I also had to double the rise time on the second rise. My yeast was new, but this bread did not get a spring in the oven.

ahhh no big deal, I dont think its worth the extra calories from the beer. 😉

I’ve now made this bread several times and it has turned out very well. I use Guinness Draft or Stout as the bear for a nice flavour.

The first rise (in the bowl) was OK, but once in the pans it took 1.5 hrs to rise to a barely acceptable loaf size. Then they “shrank” during baking and came out small & dense (like a quick bread. Flavor was good, but won’t make again because of the rising trouble (even after so much yeast!)I am at high altitude, but haven’t had this problem with other breads.

I really enjoyed this recipe. I used a dark oatmeal stout, mixing a tablespoon or so of molasses along with the remaining sponge ingredients to sit overnight. To raise, I heated my oven to 200′ then turned it off and put the bread in the oven loosely covered with parchment to double. I divided the dough into two bread pans to bake. Before placing in the oven I slashed the top of the loaves with a very sharp knife, to allow the bread to rise better. The resulting bread is chewy, beery, and yeasty– awesome!

Delicious crusty rye bread. This dough was not easy to work with, and I was concerned it was going to come out of the oven as hard as a hockey puck. But it baked up beautifully, and although not what I’d consider super soft in texture, I certainly wouldn’t call it dense either, and it’s suitable for sandwiches. Will make again.

I’m sure the flavor is greatly affected by the beer one chooses to use. I used a home brewed nut brown ale, and the bread was delicious. We sliced it while still warm to use for some pastrami sandwiches, and it was dense enough to hold up to the slicing, but not ovely heavy. I had not read through the recipe beforehand and didn’t see that it required an overnight rest. So be forewarned that this is a two-day project. It’s well worth the extra time. Thanks for a great recipe.