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French

Pain de campagne

Vegetarian

A big rustic French boule made with a touch of rye and wholemeal and an overnight pâte fermentée, giving a thick floury crust and a chewy, flavourful crumb without needing a sourdough starter.

Pain de campagne is a French bread from France, ready in about 18 hours and made with bread flour and rye flour. It serves 14 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep
30 min
Cook
45 min
Rest
4 h 45 min
Total
18 h
Serves
14
Level
Intermediate
Calories
141

Includes the pâte fermentée made the day before (1 hour at room temperature, then 12–16 hours in the fridge).

Ingredients

14 slices

Pâte fermentée

Dough

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Day before: mix the pâte fermentée ingredients and knead for 2–3 minutes into a firm dough. Leave 1 hour at room temperature, then refrigerate overnight (12–16 hours). It will roughly double and smell beery.

    • 5 min
    Hands kneading dough on a floured surface
    How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Take the pâte fermentée out of the fridge an hour before mixing. Tear it into pieces into the bowl with the dough water, then add the flours, salt and yeast. Knead 10 minutes by hand (6 in a mixer) until smooth and elastic and it passes the windowpane test, though rye keeps it slightly tacky.

  3. Step 3

    Cover and bulk ferment for 1½–2 hours at about 24 °C, with one fold after 45 minutes, until doubled.

    • 2 min

  4. Step 4

    Shape into a tight round boule and place seam-side up in a well-floured banneton or towel-lined bowl. Proof for 45–75 minutes until about 1½ times the size and a floured finger poke springs back slowly. While it proofs, put a baking tray or stone in the oven (opens in a new tab) with a roasting tin on the bottom shelf and preheat to 240 °C (fan 220 °C) for about 45 minutes.

    A tray of food roasting in the oven
    How it looks · Photo: locrifa on Pexels

  5. Step 5

    Turn the loaf onto parchment, dust with flour and score a cross or square 1 cm deep. Slide onto the hot tray, add a cup of boiling water to the roasting tin for steam and bake 15 minutes.

    Food safety: Pour water for steam carefully and stand back — the burst of steam can scald hands and face. Don't pour water onto a glass oven door.

  6. Step 6

    Remove the steam tin, lower to 220 °C (fan 200 °C) and bake 25–30 minutes more until very well browned; the base should sound hollow and the centre read 96 °C. Cool at least 1½ hours on a rack.

About this dish

Origin
France · Well documented'Country bread' is a broad French category; recipes vary by baker and region, and many use levain instead of yeast.Also popular in Belgium, SwitzerlandMore food from France
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
Cooking method
Oven-baked, Fermented
Taste
earthy, nutty, sour, savoury
Diet
Vegan · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-fat · DASH-style
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead · Freezer-friendly
Cook more with
Bread flour · Rye flour · Instant yeast · Whole-wheat flour
Techniques
Roasting · Baking · Boiling · Kneading · Fermentation

Allergens

  • Contains: Wheatfrom bread flour, rye flour, whole-wheat flour
  • Contains: Glutenfrom bread flour, rye flour, whole-wheat flour

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

141 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 59 g · recipe makes 14

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 14%
  • Carbohydrate 82%
  • Fat 4%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy141 kcal241 kcal
Protein4.8 g8.2 g
Carbohydrate28.7 g48.9 g
Net carbohydrate27 g46.2 g
Sugars0.2 g0.3 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre1.6 g2.8 g
Fat0.7 g1.2 g
Saturated fat0.1 g0.2 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium306 mg522 mg
Salt equivalent0.8 g1.3 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
61 mg
Calcium
10 mg
Iron
1.6 mg
Magnesium
16 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
0 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
100 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Save 150 g of today's dough in the fridge to act as tomorrow's pâte fermentée.

Common mistakes

  • Pale bakes — campagne should have a dark, almost russet crust for full flavour.

Serve with

  • With pâté, cheese and pickles, or toasted and rubbed with garlic for tartines.

Storage

  • Keeps 3–4 days in a bread bag or wrapped in linen. Freezes well.

Reheating

  • Refresh in a 200 °C oven for 8 minutes.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

Structure

Dough

Used in steps 1, 2

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 30 min

    Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).

  2. First rise (bulk) · about 15 h

    About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.

  3. Final proof · about 1 h

    Poke test: the dent springs back slowly and only partly. Springs back fast = needs longer; doesn't spring back = over-proofed, bake now.

  4. Bake · about 45 min at 240 °C

    Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).

  5. Cool · about 1 h 30 min

    Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.

  6. Start to finish: about 18 h 45 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
IngredientRoleWeightBaker’s %
Bread flourFlour450 g81.8%
Rye flourFlour50 g9.1%
Whole-wheat flourFlour50 g9.1%
WaterWater360 g65.5%
SaltSalt11 g2%
Instant yeastYeast3 g0.5%
Total flour
550 g
Hydration
65.5%
With milk, eggs…
65.5%
Wholegrain
18.2%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

  • Soft, slightly sticky dough (65–75%) — open crumb; most rustic loaves.
  • Salt 2% — normal for bread.

If something goes wrong

  • Dense, heavy loaf

    Likely causes

    • Under-kneaded (weak gluten)
    • Under-proofed
    • Old or dead yeast/starter
    • Too much wholegrain flour without extra water

    What to do

    • Knead to the windowpane stage
    • Proof by the poke test, not the clock
    • Test yeast in warm water with sugar; feed the starter and use it at its peak
    • Add 5–10% more water for wholegrain flours and give them a rest
  • Gummy or wet crumb

    Likely causes

    • Under-baked
    • Sliced while hot
    • Hydration too high for the flour

    What to do

    • Bake to 93–96 °C inside (cakes: clean skewer)
    • Cool completely on a rack before slicing
    • Reduce water by 3–5% or use a stronger flour
  • Spreads flat / no oven spring

    Likely causes

    • Over-proofed
    • Weak shaping (no surface tension)
    • Oven not hot enough
    • Too much water for the flour

    What to do

    • Shorten the proof; bake when the poke springs back slowly
    • Shape tightly so the skin is taut
    • Preheat fully (30+ minutes; with a stone or Dutch oven, 45)
    • Lower hydration or use bread flour
  • Pale crust

    Likely causes

    • Oven too cool
    • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
    • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

    What to do

    • Check the oven with a thermometer
    • Brush with egg wash or milk
    • Shorten the fermentation
  • Burnt bottom

    Likely causes

    • Tray too close to the heat
    • Dark tray absorbs more heat
    • Too much sugar in the dough

    What to do

    • Bake on the middle shelf
    • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
    • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
  • Crust too hard or thick

    Likely causes

    • Baked too long at too low a temperature
    • No steam at the start

    What to do

    • Bake hotter for a shorter time
    • Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
    • Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust
  • Dough didn't rise

    Likely causes

    • Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
    • Kitchen too cold
    • Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
    • Starter not active

    What to do

    • Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
    • Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
    • Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
    • Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
  • Over-proofed (sour smell, collapses when scored)

    Likely causes

    • Too warm
    • Too much yeast
    • Left too long

    What to do

    • Knock back, reshape and proof again briefly (yeast doughs)
    • Use less yeast or a cooler proof
    • Set a timer and check early with the poke test

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