Brimstone Bread (Dark Crust Bread)

Brimstone bread (dark crust bread) is 12 soft red buns under a black rice flour crust that cracks as it bakes, ready in about 3 hours 20 minutes. Most of that time is rising, and the cracks show the red dough underneath, so the buns look like glowing lava rock.

Why This Recipe Works

The red bun is a soft, lightly sweet dough made with buttermilk, butter and an egg. The buttermilk gives the crumb a gentle tang, and the butter and egg keep it tender, so it stays soft under the heavy black layer.

The black topping is made from rice flour, not wheat flour. Rice flour has no gluten to stretch, so the layer dries and sets into a crust while the bun below keeps rising in the oven.

The two doughs rise at different speeds, and that mismatch makes the cracks. The red dough pushes up under a crust that can’t stretch, so it splits open and shows the red. Spreading the topping thick is what makes this work.

Brimstone Bread (dark crust bread) Ingredients

For the red buns

• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup warm buttermilk
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon red food gel coloring
• 2 to 3 cups flour

For the black topping

• 1 1/2 cups rice flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup hot water
• 1/2 teaspoon black food gel coloring

How To Make Brimstone Bread (dark crust bread)

Make the red dough

1. Activate the yeast: Pour the 1/4 cup hot water and the buttermilk into a large bowl. Sprinkle the 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast over the top and leave it for 5 minutes, so it foams and you know it’s alive.
2. Mix the dough: Stir in the melted butter, egg, salt, sugar and the 1 teaspoon red food gel coloring until the color is even. Add the flour a little at a time until a stiff dough forms.
3. Knead: Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 to 3 minutes. Work in a bit more flour if it sticks to your hands.
4. First rise: Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover it, and leave it somewhere warm for 1 hour, until doubled. Punch it down and set it on a floured surface.

Shape and rise again

5. Portion the dough: Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 12 pieces of about the same size.
6. Roll and space: Roll each piece into a ball. Set them on the parchment an equal distance apart so they bake evenly.
7. Second rise: Cover the buns with a tea towel and let them rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes more.

Make the black topping

8. Mix the dry parts: While the buns rise, stir the rice flour, the 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast, sugar, oil and salt together in a large bowl.
9. Add the color: Stir the 1/2 teaspoon black food gel coloring into the 1 cup hot water. Beat that into the flour mixture until smooth.
10. Let it rest: Cover the bowl and leave it in a warm place for 30 minutes. The red buns should be ready by then too.

Top and bake

11. Heat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
12. Cover the buns: Put a generous spoonful of black dough on each red bun. Spread it over the whole bun with your hands. Keep it quite thick, since a thin layer won’t crack.
13. Bake: Bake for 12 to 18 minutes, turning the pan halfway through so the buns brown evenly.
14. Cool: Let the buns cool on the pan for 5 minutes. Then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe Tips

• Spread the topping thick: The cracks only form when the black layer is thick enough to set while the bun rises under it. A thin coat just bakes into a gray skin.
• Don’t skip the rest: Letting both doughs rest in a warm place gives you the rise the cracks depend on. If your kitchen is cold, the oven with just the light on works.
• Use gel coloring: Gel color is strong, so a small amount gives deep red and black without thinning the dough the way liquid color would.
• Keep the pieces even: Equal-sized balls bake in the same time, so none come out pale or dry.

What To Serve With Brimstone Bread (dark crust bread)

Serve them as a Halloween table roll or split one for a small sandwich. A bowl of tomato soup or a plate of pasta is a good Italian-style match.

How To Store

• Room temperature: Keep the cooled buns in an airtight container at room temperature until you need them.
• Freezer: These buns freeze very well. Wrap them tightly or use a freezer bag, and thaw them at room temperature.

FAQs

Why didn’t my brimstone bread crack?

The black layer was most likely too thin. Spread it thick so it sets into a crust while the red dough keeps rising underneath, and the crust splits as the bun grows.

Can I use all-purpose flour for the black topping?

No. The topping works because rice flour has no gluten. Wheat flour would stretch with the bun and you’d get a smooth dark skin instead of cracks.

Can I make these ahead?

Yes. Bake them, cool them completely, and keep them airtight at room temperature, or freeze them. They hold well, so you can bake them days before a party.

Are these buns vegetarian?

Yes. The ingredient list has no meat, fish or gelatin, but it does have egg, butter and buttermilk, so they are not vegan or dairy free.

Nutrition

Estimated per serving (1 of 12), worked out from the ingredients.

• Calories: about 210 kcal
• Total Fat: 6g
• Total Carbohydrate: 34g
• Dietary Fiber: 1g
• Protein: 4g

Brimstone Bread (dark crust bread)

Recipe by Paula

0.0 from 0 votes

Servings

12

servings

Prep time

40

minutes

Cooking time

2

hours 

40

minutes

Total time

200

minutes

Soft red buns under a thick black rice flour crust that cracks open as it bakes. Makes 12 buns that look like lava rock.

Ingredients

• For the red buns

• 1/4 cup hot water

• 1/2 cup warm buttermilk

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

• 1/4 cup butter, melted

• 1 egg

• 3/4 teaspoon salt

• 3 tablespoons sugar

• 1 teaspoon red food gel coloring

• 2 to 3 cups flour

• For the black topping

• 1 1/2 cups rice flour

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 2 tablespoons oil

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup hot water

• 1/2 teaspoon black food gel coloring

Directions

• Activate the yeast: Pour the 1/4 cup hot water and the buttermilk into a large bowl. Sprinkle the 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast over the top and leave it for 5 minutes, so it foams and you know it’s alive.
• Mix the dough: Stir in the melted butter, egg, salt, sugar and the 1 teaspoon red food gel coloring until the color is even. Add the flour a little at a time until a stiff dough forms.
• Knead: Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 to 3 minutes. Work in a bit more flour if it sticks to your hands.
• First rise: Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover it, and leave it somewhere warm for 1 hour, until doubled. Punch it down and set it on a floured surface.
• Portion the dough: Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 12 pieces of about the same size.
• Roll and space: Roll each piece into a ball. Set them on the parchment an equal distance apart so they bake evenly.
• Second rise: Cover the buns with a tea towel and let them rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes more.
• Mix the dry parts: While the buns rise, stir the rice flour, the 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast, sugar, oil and salt together in a large bowl.
• Add the color: Stir the 1/2 teaspoon black food gel coloring into the 1 cup hot water. Beat that into the flour mixture until smooth.
• Let it rest: Cover the bowl and leave it in a warm place for 30 minutes. The red buns should be ready by then too.
• Heat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Cover the buns: Put a generous spoonful of black dough on each red bun. Spread it over the whole bun with your hands. Keep it quite thick, since a thin layer won’t crack.
• Bake: Bake for 12 to 18 minutes, turning the pan halfway through so the buns brown evenly.
• Cool: Let the buns cool on the pan for 5 minutes. Then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.