This no-knead bread recipe is a no-fuss recipe. With only four ingredients and no kneading, this bread is easy to make and delicious. The hardest part about this recipe is that it takes almost a day to make from start to finish.
Where Did This Recipe Come From?
I have been making this bread for years. I first heard about this recipe online from the NY Times. The recipe has been adjusted over the years and I am sharing the recipe for how I now make the bread. If you would like to read the original post from the NY Times, you can find it here.
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No Kneading
The kneading of dough is part of bread-making that I hate the most. So this recipe has become my go-to recipe for homemade bread, but only when I am not in a hurry.
How Long Does It Take To Make No Knead Bread?
This bread recipe is not a recipe to be rushed. It takes time to make this bread.
The proofing time of this recipe is a minimum of 12 hours, but I recommend 18 hours. Then the dough has to rest for 15 minutes after punching it down and working the dough for a minute or two.
You then have to allow it to rise again for 2 hours before baking.
From start to finish, this bread takes 21-24 hours to make.
What Temperature Should the Dough Be Proofed?
Room temperature is important for proper proofing of the dough. The dough should be proofed in an area free of drafts. And the room temperature should be about 70°F (20°C).
When I am proofing bread dough, I like to use a small electric blanket in the winter. It is harder to find no drafts in the older house we live in, so using an electric blanket on low over the dough while it rises, helps keep the temperature steady.
Baking The Bread
The original recipe calls for a 450°F oven, but I have been baking this bread at 400°F for a longer time and it works.
When I remove the bread from the oven, I place the lid back on the bread and allow it to rest in the covered pot for 15 minutes. This steams the bread during this time and it helps to keep the bread moist.
Cool The Bread Before Slicing
Cooling the bread before slicing it is important. If you try to slice the bread before cooling it, you may find the bread is doughy and mushy. The bread sets inside as it cools, so it needs to cool before slicing.
Hot bread is harder to slice. Trying to slice through hot bread will create a squishy loaf and has a less airy texture.
Equipment Used For Making This Bread
The only thing that is needed for baking this bread is a 5-6 quart heavy pot like a cast iron dutch oven. I use an enameled cast iron dutch oven.
Tea towels are used for proofing the bread. These have to be cotton towels, not terry cloth towels.
For proofing bread dough, I like to use a proofing basket. This is used for the last 2 hours of proofing instead of using tea towels.
Storing the Bread
This bread is best eaten within 24 hours. To keep the bread fresh, it should be kept wrapped in plastic wrap and sealed in a Ziploc bag.
I have not frozen this bread, mainly because it doesn’t usually last more than an hour or two after it’s baked.
No Knead Bread
Equipment
- Dutch Oven
Ingredients
- 3½ cups flour
- 1½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- 1⅔ cup room temperature water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast
- Stir in water until flour is blended in. Dough will be shaggy with no flour spots.
- Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm, draft free area for 12 hours minimum. 18 hours is best.
- After rising, flour a surface and fold dough over on itself two to three times.
- Let rest 15 minutes with a tea towel covering the dough.
- Shape dough into a ball
- Coat an tea towel in flour and place dough ball onto the tea towel.
- Place an additional tea towel over the dough and allow to rise in a warm area for 2 hours
- Heat oven to 400°F. Place a dutch oven in the oven while it preheats
- When oven is heated, remove the dutch oven and place the dough in it.
- Cover and bake for 40 minutes.
- Remove cover and bake additional 20 minutes.
- Remove from oven and cover with lid.
- Allow to rest in covered pot for 15 minutes.
- Remove from pot and allow to cool on a cooling rack before slicing.
So delicious and easy for bread!
Love this! Nothing beats a good homemade bread recipe!
I am definitely trying this. I love making bread but I’m not very good at it. This seems like a much simpler process.