Kūmara Rēwena Parāoa (Māori Sweet-Potato Sourdough)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1-quart glass jar with cloth cover or loose lid
• •9 by 5-inch loaf tin or heavy 4-quart Dutch oven
• •Instant-read thermometer for checking the loaf center
• •Dough scraper for handling sticky kūmara dough

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the kūmara

   Peel and dice the kūmara, then simmer it with 1 1/2 cups water until a fork slides through with no fight, 12 to 15 minutes. Save the cooking water, mash the kūmara smooth, and let both cool until just warm to the touch. Hot mash kills the life you are trying to wake up.

2. 2

   Start the bug

   In a 1-quart glass jar, stir 1/2 cup mashed kūmara, 1 cup lukewarm kūmara cooking water, 1 tablespoon raw sugar, and 1 cup flour into a thick batter. Cover with cloth or a loose lid. Do not seal it tight; the rēwena bug, the living starter, needs air and room.

   If you already keep a strong rēwena bug, feed it with a spoonful of mashed kūmara and use 1 cup once it is bubbly.
3. 3

   Wait for life

   Leave the jar in a warm spot for 24 to 72 hours, stirring once a day, until it bubbles through the top, smells gently sour and sweet, and lifts a little after feeding. If the kitchen is cold, wrap the jar in a towel and give it more time. No blame the bug. Feed it, warm it, wait.

   Fuzzy mold, gray film, or a rotten smell means start again. Sour is good. Rotten is not food.
4. 4

   Save the line

   Before you mix the loaf, spoon 2 tablespoons active bug into a clean small jar. Feed it with 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup lukewarm water, and a pinch of sugar, then refrigerate once it bubbles. That's how a rēwena line stays alive, not owned, just carried.

5. 5

   Mix the dough

   In a wide bowl, combine 1 cup active rēwena bug, 1 cup cooled mashed kūmara, 2 tablespoons raw sugar, oil or melted butter, and 1/2 cup lukewarm kūmara cooking water. Stir in the wholemeal flour, 2 cups of the bread flour, and the salt until a shaggy dough gathers. It should feel soft and a little tacky, not pourable and not stiff like clay.

6. 6

   Knead by feel

   Knead 8 to 10 minutes, adding the remaining 1/2 cup bread flour only as needed, until the dough smooths out and pushes back under your palm. The kūmara makes it tender and a little sticky, so don't bury it in flour. When the surface turns satin and the dough holds its shape, stop.

7. 7

   Let it rise

   Oil the bowl lightly, set the dough back in, cover, and let it rise 4 to 8 hours, until swollen, airy, and nearly doubled. Rēwena keeps its own time. In a warm whānau kitchen it may move fast; in a cold Aotearoa morning it may ask for the whole day.

8. 8

   Shape the loaf

   Press the dough down gently, shape it into a tight loaf, and set it seam-side down in a greased 9 by 5-inch tin or a floured cloth-lined basket for a round. Cover and proof 1 1/2 to 3 hours, until puffy and slow to spring back when touched.

9. 9

   Bake and cool

   Heat the oven to 375F. Bake the tin loaf 40 to 45 minutes, or bake a round in a covered Dutch oven 25 minutes covered and 15 to 20 minutes uncovered, until the crust is deep brown, the loaf sounds hollow, and the center reaches about 200F. Brush with butter if you like, then cool at least 45 minutes before slicing so the crumb sets instead of smearing under the knife.

10. 10

    Slice and share

    Slice it thick, not precious. Eat it with butter, honey, soup, stew, or whatever is on the table that day. This is comfort food and make-ahead food, good for a potluck, good for the lunch bag, good for the one more person who always seems to arrive when bread is warm.

Chef Tips

• •The bug is alive, so feed it like you mean it. It should smell sour-sweet and grainy, never rotten. If it looks wrong or smells wrong, start again and don't make shame about it.
• •No commercial yeast in rēwena parāoa. That doesn't make it fancy or pure; it just means the lift comes from the living starter, the way this bread is carried.
• •Wholemeal flour drinks water at its own pace. Start with less water, rest the dough a few minutes, then decide. A soft tacky dough bakes tender; a flour-heavy dough bakes tight.
• •Any good kūmara works. Orange gives a sweeter, softer crumb, gold gives a milder loaf, and red-skinned varieties bring that earthy Aotearoa taste.
• •This is Māori kai from Aotearoa. For the deeper tikanga of the marae or tangi table, go sit with Māori elders and tradition-bearers. They carry that knowledge.

Advance Preparation

• •Start the rēwena bug 2 to 3 days ahead. If you already keep a bug, feed it the night before and use it when it is bubbly and lifted.
• •Roast or steam extra kūmara the day before, mash it smooth, and chill it covered. Bring it back to room temperature before mixing the dough.
• •After shaping, the loaf can proof overnight in the refrigerator up to 12 hours. Let it sit at room temperature while the oven heats, then bake when it looks puffy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 85g)