About this bread
Pain de campagne is a large, round, hearty loaf of flavorful bread characterized by an square shape on the top. Pain de campagne literally means “country loaf” and is super easy and inexpensive to make. I baked two loaves in between teaching and they both came out beautifully. These loaves are crusty on the outside and tender inside. This bread is perfect for sandwiches, with a ripe brie, for toast, or at the dinner table.
Paul Hollywood recommended adding a large bunch of fresh oregano, de-stemmed and chopped for a bold flavor. Honestly, I wasn’t up to all that work so I omitted the oregano altogether. The bread was still fabulous. I also added a bit more water (about 2 tablespoons) and the result was a lighter, crustier loaf.
What makes this bread different from a English farl or a crusty cottage loaf is the addition of rye flour. Just a small amount so that it doesn’t taste like a rye loaf.
Like most of my breads, there are only six ingredients, and the steps are simple:
- Combine all ingredients in a large mixer bowl
- Add water and mix until you have a slightly sticky but pliable dough.
- Knead for 6 minutes.
- Let rest for two hours.
- Shape and let rest for another hour.
- Bake.
That’s it! You’ll have a delicious pain de compagne that everyone will love.
Here are a few more breads you might like:
Pain de Campagne
Ingredients
- 2⅔ cups white flour
- 2/3 cup rye flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 teaspoons instant yeast
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1¼ cups water
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except water in a mixing bowl.
- Slowly add water and mix either with your hands or with a flat edge beater until all the flour has been incorporated and you have a pliable dough that is a tiny bit sticky.
- Knead for 6 minutes, then put back in the bowl to rise for 2 hours.
- Shape dough into a ball and flatten slightly. Cut a square shape on top of the loaf. Let rise for one hour.
- Preheat oven to 425°F. For a crispier crust, put a pan of boiling water in the bottom rack.
- Bake 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
