Rustic Beer Bread

A recipe for Rustic Beer Bread! This yeast-based, artisan bread is made with a blend of bread flour, rye flour, and beer.

Secret Recipe Club

This month, I was assigned Kudos Kitchen By Renee for the Secret Recipe Club! In the Secret Recipe Club, each blogger is assigned a different blog each month. They secretly choose a recipe, prepare it, and post it on a designated day.

After looking through Renee’s blog, I was inspired to make Rustic Beer Bread!

Other recipes that I have bookmarked for a later date include White Chocolate Cinnamon Silk Pie (yum!), Homemade English Crumpets, and her Potato Pumpkin Pierogies from last month’s Secret Recipe Club. In addition to so many amazing recipes, Renee also features some beautiful artwork on her blog.

Rustic Beer Bread

This delicious Rustic Beer Bread takes some time to rise, but comes together with only a handful of ingredients and a little prep.

It is perfect as the base for sandwiches, for dipping in soup, or simply covered with a layer of butter or jam.

After bringing together the dough, cover and refrigerate overnight (12-16 hours) to develop the flavors with a final complex, chewy texture.

Bring the dough to room temperature, then form into a loaf and allow to rise for one last hour before baking in a 450˚F (230˚C) oven until golden brown.

When updating this recipe, I mixed in a bit of rye flour to add to the body and flavor of the bread. This actually happened by accident the first time when I grabbed a bag of German Bauernbrot flour by mistake which had that blend. I loved the results, so have continued using 3/4 bread flour and 1/4 rye flour.

If desired, you can simply make the Beer Bread with all bread flour (4 cups, 500 grams total). The amount of liquid required may need to be adjusted.

This bread is best the day it is baked, but will last for a couple of days in an airtight container at room temperature.

Once stale, it can be repurposed into homemade croutons.

A Few Bread Tips

Do not pack in the flour when measuring or you may end up with too much. To measure flour, gently spoon it into the measuring cup and level with a knife without pressing down. The most accurate way to measure is by weight.

When adding the yeast to the water, make sure the water isn’t too hot or it will damage the yeast. The temperature should be about 105˚F (40˚C)- just warm enough to activate. Allow to rest at room temperature until frothy, about 10 minutes.

If the dough is too crumbly and just won’t come together after mixing everything together thoroughly, add some more water or beer a splash at a time. Give it some time to blend fully with the flour before adding more.

After resting in the refrigerator overnight, bring the dough to room temperature for two hours before forming.

I shaped the dough into an oval about 10 inches (25.5 centimeters) long and 4 inches (10 centimeters) wide. You can also shape it into a round.

Try not to press out too much air as you handle the dough.

Dust the top of the bread with a thin layer of flour before making a couple of slashes (or a more decorative design) with a sharp knife. This will create a contrast between the floured top and interior color of the bread.

To get that crisp crust, I baked the Rustic Beer Bread on a preheated baking stone in a 450˚F (230˚C) oven with a baking dish of water on the bottom rack to create steam. If you do not have a baking stone available, you can bake the bread on a lightly greased baking sheet.

Looking for more beer-based recipes?

Try my:

• Beer Mac and Cheese
• Obatzda (Bavarian Cheese and Beer Spread)
• Beer Bratwurst with Caramelized Onions

Check out what everyone else made!

• Maggots on Meat from Shockingly Delicious
• Chicken Enchilada Soup from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Mozzarella-Stuffed Turkey Burger from Bewitching Kitchen
• Chocolate Gelt Pecan Pie Bars from Oh! You Cook!
• Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies from Making Miracles
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf from Without Adornment

This recipe was originally posted in October 2013 and updated in January 2024.

Rustic Beer Bread Recipe

Adapted from Kudos Kitchen By Renee

Print Pin

5 from 5 votes

Rustic Beer Bread

A recipe for Rustic Beer Bread! This yeast-based, artisan bread is made with a blend of bread flour, rye flour, and beer.

Course Bread

Cuisine N/A

Keyword beer, bread, rye

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 15 hours hours

Total Time 15 hours hours 55 minutes minutes

Servings 1 Loaf

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 teaspoons (7 grams) active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) lukewarm water 105-115˚F, 40-46˚C
• 3 cups (375 grams) bread flour
• 1 cup (120 grams) rye flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1 1/4 cup (300 milliliters) dark beer
• Cornmeal for dusting

Instructions

• In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir briefly to combine, then allow to sit at room temperature until frothy, about 10 minutes.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or a large bowl, combine the bread flour, rye flour, and salt.
• Slowly mix in the frothy water with yeast and beer to form a smooth, slightly wet dough.
• Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours and up to 16 hours.
• Remove the bowl from the refrigerator and place at room temperature, still covered, for 2 hours to bring to room temperature.
• Place a baking stone on the center rack of the oven and a baking dish 1/2 filled with water on the bottom rack.
• Preheat oven to 450˚F (230˚C).
• Sprinkle a baker's peel with a layer of cornmeal.
• Generously flour work surface. Scrape the dough onto the flour and form into an oval loaf about 10 inches (25.5 centimeters) long and 4 inches (10 centimeters) wide.
• Transfer the loaf to the baker's peel with cornmeal, cover with a towel, and allow to rest at room temperature until puffed, about 1 hour.
• Gently dust the top of the loaf with flour and make 2-3 slashes down the loaf about 1/4 inch (6 millimeters) deep with a sharp knife.
• Carefully slide the loaf onto the preheated stone and bake until golden brown, 30-40 minutes.
• Allow to cool to room temperature before slicing.