Crispy Rye and Caraway Breadsticks

These crispy rye and caraway breadsticks will become your new favorite way to satisfy your crunchy snack cravings. 

These rye and caraway breadsticks, or grissini, are irresistable. You won't be able to stop yourself from grabbing one (or three) of these long sticks and crunching away. 

These crunchy rye and caraway breadsticks are great for dipping and perfect with any antipasto and dry wine or bubbly. Plus, they are super easy to make. 

You don't have to worry too much about how they look. In fact, the more irregular and knobby looking the better. 

These crispy breadsticks are similar looking to my Spicy Parmesan and Herb Grissini and my Crushed Red Pepper Grissini. The difference is in the rye flour and the overnight first rise. 

How to Make Crispy Rye and Caraway Breadsticks:

The rye flour in this breadstick recipe makes the dough behave differently. It is much less elastic, and won't snap back when you roll it out with your rolling pin. 

First, you mix all the dough ingredients together by hand until everything is moistened, and then you place the dough into an oiled plastic bag. After that, place the bag in the refrigerator overnight. 

The next day, remove the dough from refrigerator, divide it in two, and roll each piece out onto a floured surface and, using a pizza wheel, cut the dough into 3/8 inch wide strips. When you move the strips to baking sheets, they will stretch out, which is what you want. 

In fact, you can twist them or curl them into shapes or letters if you like. 

After stretching, some of the breadsticks might be a little thinner in sections. They will still turn out crunchy from end to end. 

Place the unbaked breadsticks onto parchment lined baking sheets and bake them, one sheet at a time, for about 15 minutes. For me, it took four baking sheets to bake all of the breadsticks. 

Finally, cool the breadsticks on a wire rack. 

About Rye Flour:

Rye flour adds a different dimension to the flavor of bread. Many people attribute the flavor of rye to the caraway seeds in rye breads from Russia and Eastern Europe, however, without the caraway seeds, the flavor is much more subtle. 

In addition, rye flour behaves very differently when kneaded. You'll feel it when you hand mix this dough. It can get pretty sticky very quickly. 

Rye is well-suited for sourdough baking. In fact, adding a tablespoon or two of rye is the perfect addition when refreshing your sourdough starter if it gets a little sluggish. 

You can find rye flour in three or four types: white rye, medium rye, and rye (or dark rye). You can also sometimes find rye flour labeled pumpernickel. White rye is just like white wheat, in that the bran and endosperm has been removed. Medium rye is partially sifted. Whole rye, dark rye, and pumpernickel can be interchanged, although they may have different grinds. P.S. Many dark rye breads, such as pumpernickels, and marble ryes have added ingredients such as unsweetened cocoa added to them for color. 

This recipe calls for medium rye, but whole rye will work just fine too. I only had whole rye, so I sifted out some of the bran with a fine mesh strainer. Just place the flour into the strainer and sift until you have a small amount of dark bran left in the strainer. 

One of the most comprehensive cookbooks on rye is The Rye Baker: Classic Breads from Europe and America by Stanley Ginsberg. This is a well researched book with an amazing amount of information for the bread geek. 

If you don't like caraway seeds, you can substitute another seed such as dill, fennel, or aniseseed. You could also try dried rosemary, dried thyme, or dried oregano. Or, you could just make them without seeds or herbs. 

They will still be just as crispy and "snacky." Plus, they will stay fresh for a long time. I've been known to have them for breakfast with a garlic infused olive oil for dipping. 

Welcome to this month's Bread Bakers. I'm hosting for February and chose the theme, Breadsticks. I'm very excited to see everyone's recipes. 

• Blueberry Crumble Sticks (Twists) from A Messy Kitchen
• Cinnamon Breadsticks from Passion Kneaded
• Crispy Rye and Caraway Breadsticks from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Crunchy Everything Bagel Breadsticks from Food Lust People Love
• Easy Biscuit Breadsticks from Palatable Pastime
• Heart "Beet" Sticks from Magical Ingredients
• Seeded Breadsticks from Sneha's Recipe
• Sourdough Grissini with Parmesan and Black Pepper from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Sourdough Soft Breadsticks from A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Crispy Rye and Caraway Breadsticks

Yield: 68 breadsticks

Author: Karen's Kitchen Stories

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 15 MinInactive time: 12 HourTotal time: 12 H & 30 M

These crispy rye and caraway breadsticks will become your new favorite way to satisfy your crunchy snack cravings.

Ingredients

• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 4 1/2 ounces (1 cup) medium rye flour
• 6 3/4 ounces (1 1/2 cups) bread flour, plus more for flouring your work surface while shaping
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for oiling the bag
• 2 teaspoons caraway seeds

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, mix together all of the dough ingredients by hand until combined.
2. Pour about two teaspoons of olive oil into a gallon zip lock bag and then add the dough. Refrigerate overnight.
3. The next day, line two baking sheets with parchment paper and heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and divide it in half.
5. Roll each half into an 8 inch by 14 inch rectangle. Cover the second rectangle with oiled plastic wrap and set aside while working with the first rectangle.
6. Using a pizza wheel, cut the first rectangle, width-wise, into 3/8 inch strips. Lift about half of the strips into one of the baking sheets, placing them lengthwise on the pan. Repeat with the second half of the strips. The strips will stretch and double in size as you move them to right about the length of the pans, about 16 strips per pan.
7. Bake the breadsticks, one sheet at a time, for about 15 minutes, until light brown.
8. Cool on a wire rack.
9. Repeat with the rest of the dough, re-using the two pans (cooled) and the same parchment paper.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

20.99

Fat (grams)

0.48

Sat. Fat (grams)

0.07

Carbs (grams)

3.62

Fiber (grams)

0.32

Net carbs

3.30

Sugar (grams)

0.15

Protein (grams)

0.57

Sodium (milligrams)

18.78

Cholesterol (grams)

0.00

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2022/02/crispy-rye-and-caraway-breadsticks.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

breadsticks, rye, grissini

Bread

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This recipe was adapted from Make-ahead Bread by Donna Currie: 100 Recipes for Melt-in-Your-Mouth Fresh Bread Every Day. I strongly recommend this book! Everything I've made from this book has been flawless.