Homemade Kvass - Fermented Rye Bread Drink

Ingredients:

For the Rye Sourdough Starter:

  • 50 grams of rye flour

  • 50 grams of cold water

  • Additional daily feed of 1 tablespoon rye flour and 1 tablespoon water

For the Bread - Day One:

  • 75g rye starter

  • 140g cold water

  • 100g rye flour

For the Bread - Day Two:

  • 175g rye flour

  • 6g sea salt

  • 1 teaspoon of molasses (or honey)

  • 130g cold water

For 1L of Kvass, multiply ratios for greater volumes:

  • 30g rye starter

  • 70g toasted rye bread sourdough cubes

  • 1 tablespoon molasses (or honey)

  • 1/4 liter of boiling water

  • 3/4 liter of cold water

Instructions:

Creating the Rye Sourdough Starter:

  1. In a mason jar, mix 50 grams of rye flour and 50 grams of cold water.

  2. Cover the mason jar with a lid.

  3. Add 1 tablespoon of rye flour and 1 tablespoon of cold water to the starter daily. Stir well.

  4. Continue this feeding process for 5-7 days until the starter develops a funky smell, indicating readiness.

Making the Bread - Day One:

  1. Combine rye starter, cold water and rye flour in a bowl to create a pre-ferment. Mix into a loose mixture, cover, and let sit for 12-24 hours at room temperature.

Making the Bread - Day Two:

  1. On the following day, add to the pre-ferment the day two ingredients: 175g rye flour, 6g sea salt, 1 teaspoon of molasses (or honey), and 130g cold water. Mix well and let rest for 10 minutes.

  2. Lightly oil a loaf tin and line it with baking paper.

  3. Dust your countertop with rye flour and roll the dough in the flour. Place it in the prepared tin, dust more flour on top, and let it rise for 2-3 hours until cracks appear on the flour top.

  4. Preheat the oven to 230°C and spray water inside. Bake the bread for 40 minutes. Then, remove it from the tin and place it directly on the oven racks for another 5 minutes.

  5. Allow the bread to rest for several hours before cutting.

  6. Once the bread is cooled, cut it into cubes and dry them out, for example, in a dehydrator until they become like breadcrumbs.

Preparing Kvass:

  1. Add the breadcrumbs into a ceramic fermenter and pour the boiling water into the fermenter. Let the bread steep for 15-20 minutes.

  2. Add 3/4 liter of cold water to cool down the bread tea.

  3. Add the rye starter and molasses.

  4. Fill the fermenter moat with water and seal with the lid.

  5. Wait up to a week, tasting every couple of days, to achieve your desired level of sourness/funkiness.

  6. When ready, strain the kvass through a fine mesh into bottles and refrigerate.

  7. For different flavor notes, consider adding herbs such as mint or coriander seeds.

Enjoy your homemade kvass, a slightly alcoholic and flavorful fermented rye bread drink! Good for you and tastes good too!

Kvass