Czech Rye Bread (Chleba)

Nothing brings back memories of the Czech Republic like the smell of freshly baked bread! This is a recipe for wheat rye bread made with yeast and spiced with caraway. Let’s dive into a world of real flavor and get baking!

➜ What is Czech rye bread

Bohemian bread is a staple in many Czech families, used for breakfast, snacks and light dinners. The classic bread loaf is either round or oblong in shape. It is characterized by a soft crumb and a crispy, golden-brown crust.

It is usually baked with a combination of wheat and rye flour, often with the addition of crushed caraway seeds, which make the bread smell amazing. Simple breads have a yeast dough base, while more complex breads require sourdough.

The bread in my recipe is made with yeast dough in two stages. First the yeast starter is prepared, then the complex dough. Expect the bread to take about half a day to prepare, with most of that time spent rising the dough and then baking the bread in the oven!

How do you say bread in Czech? The Czech name for Bohemian rye bread is chléb or chleba.

➜ Bread ingredients

To make homemade Czech bread from scratch, you will need:

According to professional bakers, malt is the best sugar to feed yeast because it contains a wide range of nutrients, including a high amount of simple sugars that yeast requires to reproduce and ferment the dough.

➜ How to make Czech bread

STEP 1: First, prepare the yeast starter. Sift the rye flour into a bowl and mix it with the dry yeast. Dissolve the honey or sugar in lukewarm water and pour it into the bowl of flour. Use a wooden spoon to make a thick dough.

Let the dough rise in a warm place for 60 minutes.

TIP: I let the dough rise in the oven with a pot of hot water in the bottom.

STEP 2: Add all-purpose flour, crushed caraway seeds, salt, shredded boiled potato (or mashed potato puree), and lukewarm water to the fermented starter.

Stir with a wooden spoon, then turn the mass onto a floured work surface. Knead the dough well by hand.

Be warned! The dough is quite sticky, so expect to end up with some dough on your hands.

STEP 3: Return the dough to the bowl and let it rise for another 45–60 minutes. I put the dough back in the oven to proof.

STEP 4: Prepare a round bowl and a clean tea towel. Dust the cloth evenly with flour and line the bowl with it. Carefully transfer the raised dough to a bowl lined with a floured tea towel. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel or plastic wrap and let it rise for another 30-45 minutes.

TIP: In this case, I don't put the dough in the oven to rise because it needs to be preheated before the bread is baked, including the container in which you are going to make the bread.

STEP 5: About half an hour before the bread is proofed, turn the oven to 450°F (230°C). Place the Dutch oven, including the lid, in the preheated oven and let it heat up.

TIP: If the dish in which you bake the bread is not heated sufficiently beforehand, the bread will stick to the sides of the dish and cannot be tipped out after baking.

STEP 6: Prepare a cooling rack and heat-resistant oven gloves on the table next to the oven. Open the oven and, if it has telescopic rails, slide them and the pre-heated dish out. With gloves on, carefully remove the lid and place it on the cooling rack. 

Put the raised bread into the pot. Cover it with the lid, slide the rails back in, and close the oven door.

Bake covered for 30 minutes, then remove the lid, reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C), and bake for another 10 minutes or until a crusty skin forms.

STEP 7: Turn out the bread and place it on a cooling rack. Leave to cool for at least two hours before slicing with a knife.

➜ Serving

Bohemian rye bread is the staple of Czech cuisine. It is usually eaten sliced, spread with butter and jam, with honey, or topped with ham, salami, or cheese.

Enjoy a slice of fresh, buttered bread for breakfast, a snack, or dinner. Bread is also a great accompaniment to soups; this combo makes a great light lunch.

Ways to use stale bread: Pan fry the slices of bread on both sides until golden brown and you will get a popular Czech snack called "Topinka." Or cut it into cubes and make crispy bread croutons for soup.

➜ Storage

Like any homemade bread, this tastes best when fresh. However, adding a little shredded potato to the dough will extend its life by a day or two.

Wrap the bread in a clean tea towel and store in a bread bin. When completely cooled, the bread can be stored in a plastic bag.

➜ Can I freeze the bread?

Czech bread freezes great! Freeze it as soon as it cools after baking. I recommend cutting it into slices beforehand. That way you don't have to defrost the whole loaf when you want a slice for breakfast or a snack.

Let the bread thaw at room temperature or, if you're in a hurry, bake it in the oven. When thawed, it tastes just like fresh bread.

Bread will keep in the freezer for at least three months.

➜ What wessel should I use to bake bread?

I baked my bread in a 12-inch (28 cm) diameter Dutch oven, which is suitable for baking at high temperatures in the oven.

Dutch ovens are heavy pots typically made of cast iron and have lids that can tightly seal the bread dough inside, creating an environment perfect for baking bread. 

Baking bread in a dutch oven produces a crusty, golden-brown exterior and a soft, fluffy interior. The Dutch oven's thick walls and lid trap heat and moisture during the baking process, encouraging the formation of steam inside the pot and resulting in an even better crust. Furthermore, the Dutch oven's heavy lid creates a humid environment that keeps the dough from drying out too quickly while baking.

If you don't have a Dutch oven, put your bread in a clay pot, casserole dish, or any large oven-safe pot with a well-fitting lid. A round baking dish made of oven-proof cooking glass with a lid is also a good choice.

➜ Useful tips

• In this recipe, I describe how to make bread by hand, without any special equipment. If you have a bread machine and are used to working with it, grab it, it will save you labor!
• In the recipe, I combine two types of flour: finely ground whole-wheat rye flour and all-purpose flour. If you are comfortable with the basic recipe, feel free to play around with combining other flours or adjusting the ratio. The more rye flour, the less fluffy and dense the bread will be, with a more intense flavor.
• The Czech bread is a mainstay of the Czech diet and an important part of the country's culinary heritage. Its exceptional taste and texture make it a beloved food for people in the Czech Republic and around the world.

More Czech bread recipes:

• Rohlíky rolls
• Housky braided rolls
• Veka bread
• Onion rolls
• Dalamánky rye rolls
• Šumavská topinka