Pain de campagne calculator
French country bread — white flour with whole wheat and a little rye, 78% hydration, 20% levain.
1 × 800 g · 78% hydration
Type how much flour you have — the portion weight recalculates.
Pain de campagne — the French country loaf: white-flour bread made honest with a share of whole wheat and a little rye. The consensus center of respected formulas: 75/20/5 flours, 78% water, 2% salt and 20% levain.
How it works
The grain blend
The base splits into 75% bread flour, 20% whole wheat and 5% rye. That 25% whole-grain share is what separates campagne from a plain white sourdough — rustic flavor without the density of a full whole-grain loaf.
Levain and schedule
A 20% dose of 100%-hydration levain drives the loaf. Bulk with folds until airy, shape a boule (~800 g), and proof — an overnight cold proof is common and makes scoring easier while adding a gentle tang.
Baking
A dutch oven or strong steam, hot, until the crust is deep brown. The rye share colors the crumb cream-gray and keeps the loaf moist for days — campagne is famously a keeper.
FAQ
Why do published campagne recipes disagree on the flours?
The name describes a family, not one formula: Hamelman-style versions run 80/15/5, Breadtopia 75/20/5, and rye-heavier interpretations push rye toward 25%. All agree on the concept — mostly white, some whole grain, always a little rye.
Can I bake it with yeast instead of levain?
Traditionally campagne is a levain bread and the flavor depends on it. On yeast you will get a fine mixed-flour loaf — use the generic yeast-bread calculator with this flour blend.
What hydration should a beginner use?
Drop to ~72–75%: the whole-grain share absorbs unevenly and 78% can feel wetter than the number suggests. Work back up as your handling improves.