Ruisleipä leivottu ruisjuureen

We bake rye and oat breads loved by Finns

It has always been a matter of honour for us to bake exactly the kind of bread that Finns want – fresh, healthy and delicious. Our bread is made with love and care, and we have a strong desire to maintain and renew the rich Finnish bread culture.  

We are constantly sniffing out new winds, but we hold on to good traditions. The most important of these for us are our expertise in rye and oats, our familiar recipes and our ways of baking, which are passed down from generation to generation. 

RYE 

Rye bread is our national dish, which is an essential part of Finnishness. We eat the most rye bread in the world. The health benefits of rye bread are undeniable; It is rich in fiber and nutrients, which support weight management and reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Rye bread is our most important source of fibre and whole grains. 

The heart of rye bread is the dough sourdough, which is also called sourdough, bread sourdough or just sourdough. Without it, rye bread will not have the beloved sour taste, wonderfully crispy brown crust or juicy mouthfeel. 

Vaasan is committed to baking all the rye bread it makes in Finland from one hundred percent domestic rye flour. As the baker of Finland's most popular rye bread, Vaasan Ruispalot, it is important for Vaasan to ensure the vitality of rye cultivation in Finland and the sufficiency of domestic rye in the future as well. 

The journey of rye bread from seed to plate takes more than a year 

On the journey of rye from field to table, each step affects the quality and freshness of the bread.  

  • Rye is sown in the fall. After wintering under the snow, rye begins to grow again in the spring. Summer is the time of ripening, and in the autumn, the finished crop is harvested. 
  • The rye harvest is dried and ground into flour in a mill. 
  • At the bakery, the flour that arrives from the mill is stored in silos before it is transferred to the production facilities.  
  • The most important element in making rye dough is raski, i.e. the root. Raski is every rye baker's treasure, and it is carefully cherished to ensure that the taste and texture of the bread remain the same year after year, regardless of where it is baked. Thanks to its acidity, bread baked in a bag can be stored without preservatives. 
  • The dough is made in large pots of 300–400 litres. The most important thing for success is to control the mixing time and temperature of the dough, which are closely monitored during preparation. The dough also needs rest: sufficient rest has a beneficial effect on the structure of the bread. 
  • The breads are lifted as they travel along the production line towards the oven. 
  • At the beginning of baking, the breads are given a little steam to give them a beautiful brown color. Rye breads require more heat at the end of baking. The frying temperature is monitored all the time, because it is frying that brings out the right flavor aromas. 
  • The finished rye bread is cooled before splitting. The robot bundles the split loaves into a stack and bags them. The weighed breads are delivered in bread boxes to the dispatch centre. 
  • Delivery trucks take fresh rye bread to the shops in the area. The first delivery truck starts early in the morning at two o'clock, and the last deliveries leave before noon. Bread deliveries depart six days a week so that fresh bread is always available in the shops. 

Make Your Roots 

Although sourdough is the most closely guarded secret of many bakers, making it is not rocket science in the end. You can get started by just crumbling the rye bread baked in the sourdough, decorating it in a container with a lid and adding water and rye flour to it. 

See the dough sourdough recipe here! 


OAT 

Oat bread is the fibre queen of white bread. The soluble fiber in oats, beta-glucan, balances blood sugar levels after a meal and, when consumed regularly, helps lower high cholesterol. In addition, oats provide good vegetable fats and protein, and they are also suitable for people with sensitive stomachs, as they do not contain FODMAP carbohydrates. 

Oats are a challenging grain for bakers. As the oat content increases, the bread becomes moister and more crumbly. Wheat flour is often used to improve toughness and bakability, as well as to achieve the right softness and fluffiness. At Vaasan, the secrets of oat bread dough have been solved for more than 10 years, and in the hands of our skilled bakers, both 100% oat breads and other oat favorites are created. In Finland, we always bake from Finnish oats.