Canadian bread: the recipe

Name: Canadian bread
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 19 h 55 min
Yield: 2 pieces of 680 g
Ingredients: 100 g Wheat flour; 126 g Water; 20 g LiCoLi; 602 g Wheat flour; 79 g Rye flour; 416 g Water; 15 g Salt

The perfect everyday bread: a versatile, adaptable recipe inspired by the French "pain au levain" style, which has become a great classic of American bread baking.

The aromatic profile is well balanced: a small proportion of whole rye flour gives the bread its characteristic aroma and flavour.

You can replace the whole rye flour with whole wheat flour for a sweeter, more delicate flavour profile.

You can also push the proportion of whole grain flour (rye or wheat) up to 25% of the total flour, for a loaf with an even more rustic, robust character.

This recipe is freely inspired by, or adapted from, a formula by Master Jeffrey Hamelman.

At a glance

Method: Preferment, with autolyse (30 min)
Preferment: Liquid sourdough starter — 13% of the flour
Mixing: Stand mixer

Number of pieces: 2
Weight per piece: 680 g
Preferment weight: 246 g
Dough weight: 1113 g
Total dough weight: 1360 g

Want to change the number of pieces, their weight or anything else? The calculator redoes the quantities. Open the calculator

Ingredients

Quantities for 2 pieces of 680 g, kitchen at 21 °C

Preferment

Wheat flour (0, W320)100 g
Water126 g
LiCoLi20 g

Dough

Wheat flour (0, W320)602 g
Rye flour (Whole wheat, W80)79 g
Water416 g
Salt15 g

Want to change the ingredients or use your own flour? The calculator redoes quantities and timing. Open the calculator

Method

LiCoLi: make it and let it ferment (at room temperature) (14 hours)
- Weigh the ingredients
- Use water at 30 °C
- Mix the flour, water and starter until you get a smooth batter
- Transfer to a container, covered but not airtight
Weigh the ingredients and knead (55 min)
- Use water at 22 °C
- Hold back 6 g of water and pour it in gradually while it comes together
End of mixing, start of bulk rise (at room temperature) (2 h 30 min)
Reinforcement fold 1 of 1
Divide/shape: weigh and form the pieces (5 min)
Start of proofing (at room temperature) (1 h 45 min)
About 1h30 to 2h at 24 °C. Alternatively, retard in the fridge: Up to 8 hours at 10 °C, or up to 18 hours at 4-5 °C.
Ready to cook

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Baking

- conventional oven, with steam
- Overall temperature: 240 °C
- Time: 40 minutes
- Normal steam (round loaves take a couple of minutes longer than oval ones)

The calculator adapts baking times to the weight of your pieces. Open the calculator

Want to change something?

Open the calculator