Pain de campagne is the classic French country bread. It's essentially a sourdough, but it's that bit special with a touch of rye and whole wheat. It needs a little patience, but not much effort, and the wonderfully flavorful loaf is most definitely worth it.
This post may contain affiliate links, where we earn from qualifying purchases. See more details in the policy page.
Some countries are incredibly passionate about bread, and France is most certainly one of them. My sister has a house in a small village in the South of France and while other shops gradually closed their doors, thanks to a hypermarket not too far away, the bar and the bakery were the last to hold out.
When we visited Paris last year, you could be sure to find a bakery not too far from almost anywhere. For most French people, buying Fresh bread to accompany meals is a part of the daily routine. I imagine while some is habit, it's also partly that one of the most popular breads, the baguette, really doesn't keep very well.
What is pain de campagne?
The name translates as "country bread" and it's a bread you'll find across France. It used to be made in large loaves, baked in a communal bakery to then feed a family over a number of days. Over time, baguettes took over in popularity, but it has made a comeback with the interest in artisan baking.
This bread is a little heartier, with a more complex flavor and rustic appearance. It's not always, but often, made with a sourdough base which helps add to the wonderful flavor.
The main flour used in this is bread flour (or you can use all purpose), but it also has a little whole wheat and rye flour. Some only use one or the other, but I think both add that extra something.
In other words, it's an everyday loaf with a bit of character.
Now, you may look at the method for making it and think it seems way too much but believe me, it's not as drastic as it seems. And thanks to the great method of resting overnight in the fridge, it's really easy to make this pretty much when suits. You just need a little planning ahead.
A suggested timeline
Evening day 1:
- Prepare the sourdough base, also called the 'levain'. Mix some active sourdough starter with some of the flour and water to make a relatively thick paste. Leave it for 20-24 hours at room temperature.
Evening day 2:
- The levain might not look like much from above, but if you have a clear bowl you should see bubbles from the side, as in picture above. Mix together the levain with the other ingredients, knead the dough then leave it on the counter, covered, for an hour.
- Fold in the sides of the dough tightly to form a loaf and transfer to a floured banneton (proving basket) or bowl, join side up. Cover and place in the fridge to rise slowly overnight.
Morning day 3:
- Preheat the oven with a Dutch oven in it. Take the bread dough from the fridge and ease it away from the sides gently. Turn the dough upside down, onto a piece of parchment.
- Once the oven comes to temperature, slash the top of the dough, and carefully use the sides of the parchment to lower it in to the warmed Dutch oven.
- Bake part of the time covered, part open, until hollow sounding when tapped. Allow to cool at least 20-30 minutes before slicing.
One of the things I love about this timeline is that there is minimal time needed before you bake. You don't have to try to fit in a second rise before baking - ie getting up at the crack of dawn if you want bread for lunch.
I also find that the slower overnight prove leads to a lovely even shape in the bread.
What pan should you cook this loaf in?
The best way to cook this is in a Dutch oven or other large, heavy lidded pan/dish. This allows you to cover the loaf for part of the cooking time which lets the bread steam. Then, you remove the lid to allow the top to crisp up.
I also highly recommend pre-heating the pan in the oven as it comes to temperature. This means it's already hot when you add the loaf, helping it to give the bread a nice crispy bottom.
You do, obviously, just have to be careful as you put the loaf into the hot pan. I suggest measuring the parchment in the pan before you put it in the oven to make sure it's long enough to line the bottom and go up the sides a bit. This then means you can use the parchment as a kind of sling to lower the loaf into the pan.
This bread has a lovely flavor that's that bit more interesting than a plain white loaf, even other sourdoughs, thanks to the different flours in there. However it's not strong or overpowering.
Between the gentle flavor and the relatively tight crumb, this bread is a perfect everyday bread. Fresh, gently warm bread needs minimal toppings on it - just a touch of butter or soft cheese is perfect. However this is also great to use for sandwiches, to make toast or as a side to a meal.
This is probably our favorite bread for lunch at the moment, and my younger son in particular is always happy to see me baking it.
Pain de campagne may seem like it's a bit of work, since it takes a little bit of planning, but it's really not that hands on and worth every bit of effort. This country bread has such a wonderful rustic appearance and rounded flavor, you really should try it soon.
Try these other delicious bread recipes:
- Caramelized onion sourdough bread
- Japanese milk bread (so incredibly soft!)
- Herb fougasse (another tasty French bread)
- Sourdough rye bread
- Spelt rolls
- Plus see more bread recipes in the archives.
Pain de campagne (French country bread)
Ingredients
For the levain (day 1)
- 75 g sourdough starter (active)
- 75 g rye flour
- 25 g whole wheat flour (wholemeal)
- 25 g bread flour or use all purpose/plain flour
- 100 g water
For rest of loaf
- 225 g bread flour or use all purpose/plain flour
- 50 g whole wheat flour (wholemeal)
- 25 g rye flour
- 200 g water
- 7 g salt
Instructions
Evening day 1:
- Prepare the sourdough base, also called the 'levain'. Mix the active sourdough starter with the flours and water listed in the levain ingredients to make a relatively thick paste. Cover the bowl with cling wrap/film and leave it for 20-24 hours at a cool room temperature.
Evening day 2:
- The levain might not look like much from above, but if you have a clear bowl you should see bubbles from the side. Add all of the other ingredients to the levain and mix to combine.
- Lightly flour a work surface, tip the dough out and knead the dough for around 3-5 minutes, adding a little extra flour if needed. It will be soft and a little sticky, but shouldn't be so sticky that you can't handle it.
- Leave the dough as a ball on the counter and cover with an up-tuned bowl for an hour (if the bowl is only slightly larger than the dough, lightly oil it so it doesn't stick).
- Prepare a round banneton by dusting with flour, or else either line a relatively large bowl with a clean towel and dust with flour, or simply dust a large bowl with flour, turning so it covers up the sides. Fold in the sides of the dough tightly to form a round ball and transfer to the prepared banneton/bowl, join side up. Cover and place in the fridge to rise slowly overnight.
Morning day 3:
- Preheat the oven to 450F/230C. Cut a rectangle of parchment paper large enough to cover the bottom of a Dutch oven ad come up the sides slightly - I typically test it as I'm about to cut. Then put the Dutch oven in the oven to warm as the oven heats up.
- Take the bread dough from the fridge and ease it away from the sides gently, if needed. Turn the dough upside down, onto the middle of the piece of parchment (so the join side is now down). If the top of the dough doesn't look a little floured, dust it with a bit more flour.
- Once the oven comes to temperature, slash the top of the dough with a lame or sharp knife, and carefully use the sides of the parchment to lower it in to the warmed Dutch oven. Bake the loaf for 20 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid and cook for a further 20-25 minutes, until it has an even brown color and is hollow sounding when tapped. Allow the bread to cool at least 20-30 minutes on a cooling rack before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store.
Adapted from a few sources including The Bread She Bakes recipe, particularly re the timeline.
Baking Bloggers August: French Baking
- Alsatian Bacon and Onion Tart (Tarte Flambée) from Making Miracles
- Blueberry & Cream Cheese Croque Cake from Sneha's Recipe
- Broyé du Poitou (Shortbread from Poitiers) from Tara's Multicultural Table
- Chocolate-Covered Cherry Bon Bon Cookies from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
- Crème Brûlée from Karen's Kitchen Stories
- Easy Cauliflower Gratin from Cook with Renu
- Fraisier - French Strawberry Cake from Veg'n'Bake
- French Breakfast Puffs from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Gratin aux Courgette from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
- Pissaladière - Bacon Onion Anchovy and Olive Tart from Food Lust People Love
- Poulet à la Normande from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Remember to pin for later!
Eliya
Is a stretch and fold not necessary for this type of bread? You just mix the flours, kneed a little and it’s ready to prove? Going to try making it this weekend but I’ve only made traditional loaves that require a stretch and fold period as well as a bulk rise before shaping and proving over night.
Caroline's Cooking
You give it a bit of a stretch and fold as you form the loaf before the second rise, but it's not the repeated stretching and folding that you do with some loaves. This is a pretty slow rising bread, and the result has less air pockets than some breads, but it has a wonderful flavor and doesn't taste 'heavy'. Hope you enjoy!
Debbie
I would like to double this to make 2 loaves - can I simply double everything including the levain? I wasn’t sure if additional levain would be needed or if I should only increase the remaining ingredients. Thanks!
Caroline's Cooking
Yes, double everything - this recipe has been worked through so that you use all of the levain rather than just part with some leftover, so if you double the recipe, you'll need double the levain as well. Enjoy!
Tsengkong Hu
Question about first step. It's very warn in my area. I can't find anyplace in my house that is cool. Hence, I let the sourdough base in room temperature for few hours. I am sure it's very different than leave it for a day. Do you mind to comment on this?
Thanks
Caroline's Cooking
I think if it's warm then a few hours is just fine. If it's left longer, it will develop more flavor, but I understand it may feel like it's too much/overly "sour". One alternative is to leave it a few hours out then transfer to the fridge for the rest of the day. But then you'd probably want to leave it out for an hour or so before making up the loaf to make sure it is a little more active. Either way, if it gets a little too bubbly in the first stage, it's not the worst, it's more once you add all ingredients that you want to be a little more careful. Hope it works out!
Ewa Deelman
Turned out great!
Caroline's Cooking
That's great, glad to hear!
Mark Lewis
I used a wholemeal starter (homemade) and buckwheat flour instead of rye, which wasn't available locally. The levain rose fine but the dough after a night in the fridge hadn't risen much. Is that normal? Tastes fine nevertheless. Next time I might try to leave the dough overnight in the pantry, rather than the fridge. It's winter here in New Zealand so it won't get too warm. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Caroline's Cooking
It doesn't rise hugely (this isn't a super-airy sourdough like some), but it should still rise some. Did you remember to leave it out for a little while before bringing it into a loaf shape as this does help? Even when cool, it might get a little over-proofed if left out at room temperature all night but would be interested to see how it goes. An alternative is to sit it out at room temperature an hour or two after being in the fridge before you bake. Glad you enjoyed either way, though!
Renu
Beautifully baked and wonderful texture of the bread. I love rye breads as they add a different taste and texture to the bread.
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you! I agree rye adds a lovely flavor.
Dana Therrian
I've made bread maybe 4x my entire life. 2 of the loaves are San Francisco sourdough using a 60+ year old recipe. This recipe reminds me of the one I have except it calls for all bread flour and uses volume instead of weight for measurement. I'm wonder if you'd be willing to share the consistency of your starter used in this recipe? I'm considering attempting to switch it to the metric system to see how it turns out but I'd also like to see if my starter would work for this recipe.
Caroline's Cooking
So I use the relatively standard 100% hydration starter for this ie fed equal amounts by weight of flour and water each time it is fed.
Najad Tuffaha
Where do I purchase the starter? Or must generate one over seven days?
Caroline's Cooking
I believe King Arthur flour and probably some bakeries may sell an active starter ready to use, but it's pretty easy to make yourself. I tend to find it's probably good to use after around 5 days.
susan locker
What Dutch oven do you use?
Caroline's Cooking
So what I have been using recently for this is not one I bought, as we are in temporary accommodation and it's what was in the apartment, so I'm not entirely sure what it is. But it does also show it's not necessarily that important! I'd say just make sure it's a relatively heavy base as that's the one thing that can make a difference, I think. At home I'd typically use my Le Creuset.
MarriedABaker
Do you have a link to your sourdough starter recipe? 🙂
Caroline's Cooking
I haven't actually ever written up on my starter, but I use the fairly typical formula of equal weights flour to water, feeding each day. I have always kept a smaller batch (so just use about 25-30g of each to start). If you are looking to start one, the principles in King Arthur's post are a good place to start: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/sourdough-starter-recipe
Francois
Love the look and texture. Will try out the recipe soon.
Caroline's Cooking
It really is a lovely bread, hope you enjoy!
Colleen - Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck
This makes me want to eat bread for days!!! It looks perfect!!!
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you, this has become one of our favorites recently, we all really enjoy it.
Tara
Such a gorgeous crust! I love all the flours incorporated into the bread.
Caroline's Cooking
Thanks, it does get such a lovely crust to it and the different flours do each add something to the flavor.
Lindsay
Followed the recipe precisely.
Great result using a pizza stone, no dutch oven to hand.
Use tray of water and liberally spritzed dough before baking.
Probably will be my go to recipe from now on.
Caroline's Cooking
So glad to hear you enjoyed it, and yes using a pizza stone and water is perfect if you don't have a Dutch oven.
Karen
I love pain de campagne! Yours looks seriously gorgeous. Love the crust and nice ear!
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you! It is a great bread and somehow I have been lucky, it always comes out looking lovely!
Sid
Beautiful bread and very similar to a no knead bread as well. I just happen to have a no knead bread rising in my oven at the moment. I'll have to try this the next time I make bread.
Caroline's Cooking
Yes I've made a no-knead a few times as well, it does have some similarities. I'd say I've had much better success with this coming out more evenly and I do love the flavor from the mix of flours.
Rebekah Hills
What an absolutely gorgeous loaf!!
Caroline's Cooking
Thank you!
Wendy Klik
This was my original choice Caroline but then I needed muffins. I am definitely coming back to this though. It is absolutely gorgeous.
Caroline's Cooking
It's funny how what you need can drive things! I'd definitely recommend giving this a try, it's a delicious loaf.