Grandpa Joe's
Kümmelweck Rolls

The key ingredient in a delicious Beef on Weck sandwich.

About this recipe

A Kummelweck Roll (or more correctly, a Kümmelweck Roll) is similar to a Kaiser Roll topped with kosher (or coarse sea) salt and caraway seeds. Kümmel is the German word for "caraway", and weck means "roll" in south-western Germany.  It is the basis of the iconic Beef on Weck sandwich.

Ingredients - Day 1:  Pate Fermente

  • 5 ounces King Arthur unbleached bread flour
  • 5 ounces King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon instant dry yeast
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 6 ounces water, at room temperature

Directions - Day 1:  Pate Fermente

  1. Combine all ingredients and then knead for 5 minutes (by hand, or using the dough blade in a food processor running at low speed).
  2. Remove the dough to a lightly oiled bowl.  Cover, at let stand at room temperature for 3 hours.
  3. Using your fingers, punch the dough down, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 15 hours.

Ingredients - Day 2:  Rolls

  • pate fermente from Day 1
  • 10 ounces King Arthur unbleached bread flour
  • 1 teaspoon diastatic malt powder
  • 1 teaspoon instant dry yeast
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • water, at room temperature
  • caraway seeds
  • coarse sea salt

Directions - Day 2:  Rolls

  1. Transfer the pate fermente to the bowl of a standing mixer with the dough hook attached.
  2. Using a kitchen scale, tare a mixing bowl, add the egg and olive oil, and then add sufficient water to bring the total weight to 8 ounces.  Add the liquids to the mixing bowl.
  3. In a separate bowl, weigh the flour and then add the yeast and malt powder.  Add the salt to the mixing bowl.
  4. With the mixer running on low speed, add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl in half-cup increments, allowing time for the added flour to become hydrated.  Repeat until all the flour has been added.
  5. Increase the mixing speed slightly and knead for 6 minutes.
  6. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl at least double the size of the dough mass.  Cover with plastic wrap, place the bowl in a draft-free area, and allow the dough to rise for two hours.  If the dough fills the bowl in less than 2 hours, punch it down a bit to allow it to rise for a full 2 hours.
  7. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into 9 equal pieces, about 4 ounces each.  Form each piece into a roll and place it on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan.  (See Notes.)
  8. Mist the rolls with spray oil, cover, and let proof until they are double their original size, about 60 minutes.
  9. Preheat the oven to 425° F.  Place a rack near the center for the rolls, and a second rack below the first to hold a steam pan.
  10. Mist the rolls with water, and sprinkle with caraway seeds and sea salt.
  11. Place the rolls in the oven and then carefully add a half-cup of hot water to the steam pan.  Bake for exactly 8 minutes, then remove the steam pan and lower the temperature to 400° F.  Bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the rolls reach 200° F.
  12. Remove the rolls to a cooling rack, and let stand for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Freshly baked Kummelweck Rolls.

Notes

  • The pate fermente also can be left at room temperature overnight.
  • I generally use two sheet pans; four on one, five rolls on the other.
Posted: September 2015.