Soaked-Grain, Whole Grain Bread

Bread-baking day is today!  The process began yesterday when I mixed the ground whole wheat and rye flour with a mixture of water and raw apple cider vinegar.  I know it sounds weird, but soaking the whole wheat flour before using it for baking makes the finished bread soft and chewy!

When I first began baking bread a few years ago, I was curious about how to make a whole grain bread that would still be soft and chewable.  In searching, I learned about soaking whole grains before baking them.  You can read about this discovery here. 

I adapted Sally Fallon's recipe for "Yeasted Buttermilk Bread."  Her recipe calls for soaking the grains in buttermilk.  Although I always have kefir around and fermenting, I don't really want to use it to make bread.  To lower the cost of the final product, I decided to soak the grains in a mixture of water and raw apple cider vinegar.

Soaked Grain Bread
Make one large loaf or two small loaves.

4 cups of whole grain flour (wheat, rye, spelt, kamut, or a blend)
2 Tbs. of raw apple cider vinegar mixed with 1 1/2 cups of water
1/4 cup of very warm water
2 1/4 tsp. of active dry yeast
2 Tbs. of honey
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup of unbleached white flour

Combine the whole grains and mix with the apple cider water mixture.  Cover with a plate or a towel and let soak for 12-24 hours.

Combine warm water, yeast and honey and let the yeast dissolve for about 5 minutes.  Add the salt and the baking soda.  Combine this mixture with the soaked grains.  Knead until a smooth ball forms, adding white flour as necessary.


Cover and let rise until doubled in size, for about two hours.  Punch down dough, stretch and fold and place in a colander lined with parchment paper.  Let rise until doubled, for about one to two hours.

Place a covered cast iron dutch oven in the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees (with the covered dutch oven heating, too). 

When the dough has doubled in size and the oven is preheated, carefully remove the dutch oven and the lid.  Carefully lift the dough from the colander and place inside the dutch oven.  Cover the pot and put into the oven.  Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Remove the lid for the last 5-10 minutes of baking to brown the top.  Cool on a rack. 

For more information about how and why to soak grains try these resources:

• Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon
• The Passionate Homemaker