Rúgbrauð

Medium·40 min active + 23 hours 20 min resting

Iceland's traditional dense dark rye bread — sweetened with molasses and traditionally steam-baked underground in geothermal heat for 24 hours, modernly baked in a covered milk-carton or pot at low temperature for 6-8 hours.

Rúgbrauð (also called hverabrauð when made in geothermal vents) is Iceland's traditional sweet dark rye bread.

Cut a thin slice of rúgbrauð — deep dark-brown crumb almost black, slightly sticky-moist texture, intensely sweet aroma. Bite: dense and sticky-moist, intensely sweet from molasses, the rye's deep earthy depth, slight orange citrus brightness. Spread with salted butter; top with pickled herring. With a glass of brennivín (Icelandic schnapps), this is the Icelandic bread tradition unchanged for 1000 years.

Long low-temperature baking is essential for the unique sticky-moist texture. Steam baking via water bath simulates the geothermal-vent original method. Molasses provides color and intense sweetness.

Variations

Traditional geothermal-vent baked (hverabrauð). With caraway. Without molasses (lighter). With added raisins. Quicker oven version. With dark beer instead of buttermilk.

On the Palate

Where Rúgbrauð sits in the Icelandic flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 12

600 ml buttermilkMilk

1 zestOrange

1 tspSalt

How it's made

8 steps · 40 min active + 23 hours 20 min waiting

1
10 min
Combine 500 g rye flour + 200 g wheat flour + 1 tsp salt + 2 tsp baking soda + 200 g molasses + 100 g brown sugar + 600 ml buttermilk + 1 tbsp orange zest in large bowl.
Watch out
Mix just until no dry flour shows — this is a batter, not a dough, so don't work it or it goes tough.
2
4 min
Mix to a thick wet batter.
3
4 min
Pour into a buttered milk-carton-style metal tin (or 1 L glass jar) — fill 2/3.
4
1 min
Cover tightly with foil.
5
482 min
Place in a water bath in a pot; bake at 100°C for 8 hours (or use Dutch oven on lowest setting).
Watch out
Keep it at the barest simmer for the full eight hours — creep the heat up and the crust dries and cracks instead of staying sticky-moist.
6
242 min
Cool completely (4 hours minimum).
Watch out
Let it go stone cold before slicing — cut warm and it smears and crumbles.
7
4 min
Unmold; slice thinly.
8
1 min
Serve with salted butter, smoked salmon, or pickled herring.