What I love about this bread
- It’s so easy to make. This dough can be made in less than 5 minutes.
- The basic dough recipe can be enhanced with many different flavor varieties.
- Very little hands-on time.
- Crusty bread never ceases to impress family and friends.
- My 12-year-old grandson can make it.
Let’s make No-knead crusty bread:
- In a large mixing bowl, add flour, kosher salt, and yeast. Whisk together.
- Add water. Mix just until all of the flour has combined with the water. The dough will look like a shaggy mess. That’s ok.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 12 – 18 hours on the countertop. DO NOT REFRIGERATE. This is not optional. It takes that much time to proof the dough. The reason why you need a large bowl is that the dough will start to rise.
- After 12 hours the dough will look like this. It’s pretty sticky, but that’s ok it’s supposed to be.
Shaping and baking the bread:
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. As soon as it has heated to 450 degrees place your pot with the lid in the oven and preheat the pot for 30 minutes.
- Right after you put the pan in the oven to pre-heat, dump the dough out onto a HEAVILY floured surface. Shape it into a round ball and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Parchment makes it so easy to transfer the dough into a hot pot and then remove it after baking. The parchment paper stays in the pot. This will rest for 30 minutes while the pan is heating. Cover with plastic wrap. Note: Use silicone coated parchment paper. The regular non-coated paper will stick terribly. Don’t chance it.
- Remove pot from the oven and carefully pick up the parchment and drop dough into the pot. Be careful the pan is HOT. Put the lid on the pot and return it to the oven for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes remove the lid from the pan. Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until nicely browned. You can test with an instant-read thermometer to make sure the bread is fully cooked on the inside. The temp should be between 190F and 200F degrees. Remove from the oven and carefully remove bread from the pot by lifting the edges of the parchment paper.
Holy cow! Can you believe how gorgeous that is? It’s best to wait for the bread to cool before slicing. Because I love warm bread I sliced it right away.
FAQ’s
Q: Do I have to use an enamel covered cast iron pan?
A: NO. You can use anything that can take the heat. The following have been used that I know of:
Clay pots with lids, Pizza stone with a bowl to cover the bread, insert from a crockpot, pyrex baking dish with a lid, stainless steel pot with a lid, baking dish covered with aluminum foil, old cast iron dutch oven.
Q: Do I have to use unbleached flour?
A: I always use unbleached flour. You can try bleached flour.
Q: Can I use self-rising flour?
A: I don’t know. I would just stick to all-purpose.
Q: What size is my pan?
A: My smallest pan is 5.5 quart. You can use as small as a 3 quart.
Q: What type of yeast do I use?
A: I use SAF instant yeast. Any yeast should work.
Q: Why is my bread turning out flat?
A: You could try using less 1/4 cup less liquid. Or add 1/4 cup additional flour. Make sure your dough appears to be dry when you first mix it. It will have more moisture during the rising time.
Q: Can my dough sit out longer than 18 hours? Does it HAVE to be between 12-18 hours?
A: I have let some dough sit as long as 24 hours and the bread was beautiful.
Q: Have you tried Gluten-free?
A: No. I’m still waiting for someone to venture into the realm of Gluten-free. If you try it, let everyone know.
Q: Do I have to grease or oil the pan? Will my breadstick?
A: No you don’t need to grease the pan. I have never had the bread stick when using a cast iron pot. I haven’t tried anything else. The best way to be certain that the bread won’t stick is to form the loaf on a sheet of parchment paper and lift the bread into the pan using the sides of the parchment. Leave the paper in the pan. It’s won’t burn. When the bread has baked, just lift the sides of the parchment out of the pan. Voila! HOWEVER: Not all parchment paper is created equal. I use a silicone coated parchment paper. Regular parchment paper can stick something terrible. Don’t chance it.
No-Knead Crusty Bread
Wonderful yet easy artisan bread with a crisp crust. Prep takes just a few minutes with an overnight rise. Baked in a pot with a lid to create a steam oven. Bread can be made with many flavors and variations.
Ingredients
- 3 cups + 2 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Instant or Rapid-rise yeast
- 1 1/2 cups water cool
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.
Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12 - 18 hours. Overnight works great.
Heat oven to 450 degrees. When the oven has reached 450 degrees place a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven and heat the pot for 30 minutes. OR pot can be placed in cold oven while oven is preheating leave in oven for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating.
Remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough. Cover and return to oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes remove the lid and bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
FAQ's
Q: ย Do I have to use an enamel covered cast iron pan?
A: ย NO. ย You can use anything that can take the heat. ย The following have been used that I know of:
Clay pots with lids, Pizza stone with a bowl to cover the bread, insert from a crockpot, pyrex baking dish with a lid, stainless steel pot with a lid, baking dish covered with aluminum foil, old cast iron dutch oven.
Q: ย Do I have to use unbleached flour?
A: ย I always use unbleached flour. ย You can try bleached flour.
Q: ย Can I use self-rising flour?
A: ย I don't know. ย I would just stick to all-purpose.
Q: ย What size is my pan?
A: ย My smallest pan is 5.5 quart. ย You can use as small as a 3 quart.
Q: ย What type of yeast do I use?
A: ย I use SAF instant yeast. ย Any yeast should work.
Q: ย Why is my bread turning out flat?
A:ย ย You could try using less 1/4 cup less liquid. ย Or add 1/4 cup additional flour. ย Make sure your dough appears to be dry when you first mix it. ย It will have more moisture during the rising time.
Q: ย Can my dough sit out longer than 18 hours? ย Does it HAVE to be between 12-18 hours?
A: ย I have let some dough sit as long as 24 hours and the bread was beautiful.
Q: ย Have you tried Gluten-free?
A: ย No. ย I'm still waiting for someone to venture into the realm of Gluten-free. If you try it, let everyone know.
Q: ย Do I have to grease or oil the pan? ย Will my breadstick?
A: ย No you don't need to grease the pan. ย I have never had the bread stick when using a cast iron pot. ย I haven't tried anything else. ย The best way to be certain that the bread won't stick is to form the loaf on a sheet of parchment paper and lift the bread into the pan using the sides of the parchment. ย Leave the paper in the pan. ย It's won't burn. ย When the bread has baked, just lift the sides of the parchment out of the pan. ย Voila!ย HOWEVER:ย Not all parchment paper is created equal.ย I use a silicone coated parchment paper.ย Regular parchment paper can stick something terrible.ย Don't chance it.
More Notes:
Regular active yeast can be used in place of the instant or rapid rise yeast. ย It will need to be activated in 1/4 cup warm water. ย Stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes. ย However, most of the comments I have received state that the rapid raise works the best. ย You choose.ย ย Whisk the flour, salt, and yeast together.
I am going to make this bread today. I am a sourdough novice, but have baked a fair bit of bread. How can I incorporate a bit of starter in this recipe?
I have never made sourdough, but I have received several comments from others who have. They add 1/2 cup sourdough start in place of the yeast and a little less water.
You used ToTo have posted with this recipe different ingredient combinations that would taste good in the bread. But I donโt see that anymore. DoDo you think you could email me the different combinations that go good together as examples. WeWe absolutely love this bread and love the samples of ideas that you had like create Craisins and sunflower seeds and garlic chunks so I want to make it again but I donโt see those listings anymore!
Thank you!
I have used this recipe for years aftEr seeing a similar recipe on youtube. ABSOLUTELY lOve it!
Thank you so much for your positive comment. It IS a great recipe.
I have made many times.. my question is, can you convert this recipe to cook in the ninja fooDie? It is to hot here to turn oven on..
Hi Karen, I agree that summer is not a time to heat your oven up to 450โ. I have never used a Ninja Foodi. I assume it would be like using an instant pot??? From what I have researched it is completely possible. Here are two links you can follow to bake bread in a pressure cooker. Please let me know if you try baking in your Ninja.
https://www.chatelaine.com/food/how-to/instant-pot-bread/
This recipe was so easy – prepped last night and baked it this afternoon. it was the perfect rustic bread with fresh pasta!
Bravo! I love hearing success stories. Thanks so much for commenting.
Thank you so much for this recipe, it has given me confidence to bake breads
So great to hear. Thank you, Stacy.
I love th crusTy bread!
Iโm DEBATING on GETTING an Insta Pot vort, air FRYER,
Cou this be ma in there? And if so, how wo i alter
The HEATING TIME and TEMPERATURE?
THANK You in advance
Dawn larson
I so happy you love crusty bread. I have never used an instapot or air fryer to make the crusty bread. I’m sorry I’m not much help. I’ll google it and see what I can find.
I tried this recipe with gluten-frEe Flour. The outdide was lovely With a golden crust. But the interior stayed doughy even agter baking it longer.
I called King Arthur Mills and Bobโs Mill to get help. Both said gluten is required for The success of this Recipe.
Iโm gluTEn free but make this for others because itโs soooo good!
Interesting. I have received some comments below about success with certain types of GF flour. There are over 2,000 comments, so it takes a while to scroll through them. I’ll take a look to see if I can find a successful GF recipe. However, I trust King Arthur and Bob’s completely. They are the experts.
Pro tip. After you finish mixing it dump it into another bowl with the parchment paper already in it. Then the next day just plop the whole thing in the baking pan and you don’t have to deal with the sticky mess.
Bless your heart, Stanley. Best pro tip ever! I will do that from now on. Now why didn’t I think of that?
So, if after mixing you plop it into another BOWL WITH parchment paper.
does that mean you don’t need to do the shaping on a heavily floured surface step ?
Sorry if it seems obvious, but I am a novice baker and so far this recipe as is working for me.so i don’t want to mess up
That’s correct. Once the bread is on the parchment there is no need to reshape on a floured surface. However, I must say that not all parchment is the same. Make sure you use a silicone coated parchment paper. I used parchment paper from a roll and the paper stuck horribly. I had to cut the bottom of the bread off because I could not get the parchment off. I hope this helps.
I lOve this recipe- i have been using it for years. I give the bread as gifts often and eveyone loves it!! I have tried it with so many added options- always wIth grEat results. My question is- how long can i leavE the dough out? Can i make a Triple batch and just cook Part each day for a few days? We prefer it fresh.
Hi Heather, Thank you so much for your kind comment. I’m so happy that you are gifting your bread. I agree with you, it is much better fresh. In the book Artisan bread in 5 minutes a day, they make a large batch of the dough and refrigerate the dough for up to 2 weeks. Portions of the dough are pulled out of the large batch and formed int a loaf, let rise, bake. I think if the dough is left out longer than 24 hours the dough will begin to taste too “yeasty”. You can read more information from their site: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/ I think refrigerating the dough is a good idea. I hope this helps.
Great bread,had it with homemade clam chowder.Perfect
Yum! Thank you so much for your comment. I love hearing success stories.
Does the bread freeze well after baking?
The bread freezes very well. After the bread has cooled, wrap in plastic wrap then in a layer of aluminum foil. Freeze for 2-4 weeks. To thaw, unwrap the bread and let stand a room temp. To reheat place in a 300 degree oven for about 10 minutes. This will warm the bread and re-crisp the crust.
Can you use whole wheat flour instead of the white flour or perhaps use 1/2 n 1/2?
hi.3 questions…First, I noticed you put all the water in at once. my dough looked a little too wet when i did this. Should I incorporate it a little longer so it feels more dry before i proof? 2. The bottom of my bread was too crispy that it was hard to cut. Any suggestions? 3. If i wanted a slightly softer crust, should i take the lid off at the end for a shorter period of time? will that help my too crispy bottom crust? Thank you!
You can try adding 1/4 cup more flour so the batter isn’t so wet. For the hard crust on the bottom, place the pot in the oven when you first turn it on to preheat. As soon as the temperature reaches 450F degrees, add the dough into the pot. Skip the 30 minutes preheat on the pot. That just might help with the tough crust.
Hi! If iโm halving the recipe to make a smaller bread. What will my cooking time be?
I think I would start checking the bread after 15-20 minutes of baking. If the bread is browning, then you can remove the lid and continue baking until nicely browned. If you have an instant-read thermometer, you can test the internal temp of the bread. It should be 190-200F degrees. I hope this helps.
Thanks! I did 20 mins of baking and another 10 mins uncovered. The bread came out perfect.
This bread is incredible. Seriously, I can see why it has 1 million shares. Even I couldn’t screw this up!
Is anyone familiar with the Lekue silicone Baker? This recipe looks like it would work in it, but wondering if anyone has tried it???
To answer your question about the gluten free version. Why yes, yes you Can. I used 1c cup4cup wholesome gf flour 1c Pamala’s gf all purp flour & 1c cup4cup gf all purp flour (I used differeNt floUrs only because I didn’t have enough of one so I simply used what I had) I followed the rest of the reCipe & instructions.
HazzAh!!!! I had a fabulously goRgeously DELICIOUS gluten free rustic yummIness. I made 2 loaves in 2 days brought the second to work hot out Of The oven & it waS gone in about 20 mins & everyone said they would never had knoWn it was gf (i win when the “regulars” can’t tell).
Thank you so much for sharing this GF recipe. Fabulous!
PS: I forgot to ask you a couple of questions:
Does active dry yeast work for this recipe? I use this one: http://redstaryeast.com/products/red-star/red-star-active-dry-yeast/
Do you punch the dough down before making the ball?
THank you !
Hi Bea, Yes, active dry yeast will work great. Just dissolve the yeast in 1/4 c water prior to adding to flour. Should work just great. For your second question- no I do NOT punch down the dough. I like to retain as many bubbles as I can in the bread.
THANK you Janet and ha a love weekend ?
You are so welcome. Happy baking!
Good morning ๐
I looked at your picture and noticed your Le creuset lid. I thought they couldn’t go in the oven since the black handle seems to be made of plastic… Can you confirm please? Thank you !
This recipe looks really good and I can’t wait to try it. Thank you and happy new year!
B ๐
Hi Bea, I put my lid in the oven with the knob on it. I have not had a problem with it…yet. If you are concerned, I would definitely take the knob off. I think a heat proof knob can be purchased on Amazon.
I use a very fine water sandpaper for all my pots, works amazing( the sandpaper is black)
Hi Janet, I made a loaf the other day. Came out perfect. Today, I added a jar of Olive Tapenade. I will let you know how it turns out. The first bread turned out great and I did not activate the yeast, but then again, I store it in my refrigerator and not sure if I have fast activated or not. I used parchment paper and had not problems with the bread sticking to the cast iron pot.
Any suggestions for adding strawberry and rhubarb?
What if I wanted to make a sourdough version, anyone have any tips one this?
Hello and "Thanks -a-million" , I followed the instruction with one exception ,I used bleached flour as that is what I had on hand . The results were beyond my expectations.
I am a good cook and a horrible baker so I was skeptical.The loaf "fell " out of my old brick colored Le Creuset oval casserole.A miracle !
And the crust was fantastic. I was a little nervous when the dough was so stacky after i had floured it while waiting for pot to head. I may wait a little next time until 10 mins before placing in pot.
My loaf was deliberately oval to make small sandwiches.
My advice to anyone planning to try this. just follow step by step. watch oven temp , and set timer , take a deep breath and relax. Then enjoy some great bread.
All are saying the same thing repeatedly, but in your blog I had a chance to get some useful and unique information, I love your writing style very much, I would like to suggest your blog in my dude circle, so keep on updates.
Website for school uk
Has anyone tried this with Bread Flour?
YEs, bread flour works great.
One lady was concerned so she heated it from cold to 450 and it was fine….
IT is a lot safer to put the pot in the cold oven. THere is no need to put the pot in a preheated oven
I let my bread dough sit for 18 hours and it was still runny in the middle. It actually looked liquidy. Did I just not let it sit long enough? Or maybe I didn't stir it up enough?
Also, do not use a crockpot lid in the oven. I found out the hard way and the handle melted. This better be some amazing bread!!! ๐
Those Magic erasers work well on enamel cast iron pans. Looks like new
I have tried and failed countless times trying to make bread, pizza dough, cinnamon rolls, you name it… But T H I S, is, amazing! I let my dough proof for about 20 hours and it turned out so beautiful that I almost didn't want to cut it (almost). My husband ate half the loaf. I added thyme to it and paired the bread with a similar recipe to your lentil soup – the bread was perfect for soaking up all the delicious broth. Thanks for sharing this recipe – it is definitely bakery worthy and will 'wow' my family, friends, and neighbors! (I have a few pictures of it too that I can share with you!)
I tried this bread today out of curiosity. I had to improvise, but found that I easily made a mock Dutch oven by inverting my cast iron frying pan over my cast iron chicken fryer. Easiest bread I've ever made – it has a thick chewy crust on it as good as San Francisco French bread! And.. I was raised in SF so I know this! I would like a tiny bit more sour dough flavor, but if you're a baker you need to try this once. There are variations of this with cheese, and other additions that I'll for sure be trying. I used regular yeast… didn't even proof the yeast (that's the part I missed). According to the recipe if you're not using instant or quick rise yeast you should proof your yeast. Oops.. missed that… I set the bowl near the woodstove before going to bed (it's nice and warm there). And.. with almost no effort I produced a wonderfully rustic Artisan like bread! This will be my go to bread for soup for EVER.
I SO WISH I could post a photo… but I don't see an option for that.
What about using butter or olive oil on your hands while putting the dough into the pan? And I would liberally brush the top with butter after taking from the oven…this will taste so good,but it will also soften the crust too…some of us don't care for the very hard crust.๏ฟฝ๏ฟฝ looking forward to making this…thanks for sharing.
We made this today and are impressed – easy, good flavor, nice texture – but the bottom of the loaf is pretty thick and hard to slice through. That wouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker for my husband and me, but our kids won't eat that part. Any suggestions?
Just tried this and it was really easy. I ended up using organic flour. Even tho it was good I could barely cute it especially on the bottom so I am not sure was it the flour or what. I followed the receipe exactly so not sure. If anyone can help I would really appreciate it.
I love this!!! Last night we started 2 baked off in afternoon today, both gone. Started more tonight with roasted garlic
Just wanted to thank you for this "life changing" recipe for me! I've been a frustrated french guy living in Canada and complaining about the bread (everything else is great in Canada but not bread) for so many years but I've just tried it and it's A-MA-ZING! Wife and kids are so proud of me, I'm the hero today thanks to you! ๐
Just want to say that I made this bread this weekend and OMGOSH!!!!! I'm in love! I was planning on making this for Christmas gifts and wanted to try it out prior to gifting and am so glad I did. I will completely understand when the giftee slice it and butter it and then moan as they bite into it. So glad I found your recipe. Merry Christmas from Central New York!
Any suggestions for doing this low carb?
I clean all pots using Oxi-Clean. Just put a 1/4 cup or so in, fill with hot water and let it soak overnight, easy cleanup the next day. Works great on crockpots as well.
Hi Judy, Regular active dry yeast will work just fine.
i just used some dry, active regular old yeast I had in my cupboard. (The expiration was still good) Can I expect my bread to be as good as using instant or rapid yeast?
Hi Jen P: There are several comments regarding the use of a crockpot insert. I have not tried it, but it works according to all of the comments here.
Brain new probes are allowing them to track the Cerebrrin coordinated activity of hundreds of brain cells; and more precise brain implants are giving patients more control over artificial limbs. But there are still enormous technical challenges that must be overcome to meet the needs of the global neuroscience community.
For more ==== >>>>>> http://www.healthcaresups.com/cerebrrin-scam/