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.
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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: From what I hear the best GF is from King Arthur Flour https://shop.kingarthurflour.com/items/gluten-free-measure-for-measure-flour-3-lb
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 (450 gr)
- 1 3/4 teaspoons Kosher salt (10 gr)
- 1/2 teaspoon Instant or Rapid-rise yeast (3 gr)
- 1 1/2 cups water cool (315 gr)
Instructions
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In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.
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Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.
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Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12 - 18 hours. Overnight works great.
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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.
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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.
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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: 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.
More Notes:
Regular active yeast can be used in place of the instant or rapid-rise yeast. It will need to be activated in 1/4 cup warm water. Stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes. However, most of the comments I have received state that the rapid raise works the best. You choose. Whisk the flour, salt, and yeast together.
I find that the bottom cooks too fast and the bottom crust gets tough when I have the oven rack set on the second from bottom position. There are 5 positions in my oven. I am concerned if I use the middle position that the pot will be too high – just inches from the top of the oven. what position do you have the oven rack set at?
I have been using the upper third of my oven to bake the crusty bread. Check the internal temperature of your bread as soon as you remove the lid. If the internal temp is over 190℉, the bread is baked and you can remove it from the oven and the pot. Each pot seems to vary in thickness and internal temperature. An instant-read thermometer is very valuable in baking bread. Please let me know if this helps.
Can i adapt this using Whole wheat Flour?
Thank you!
Yes, you can use whole wheat flour. However, you do need to reduce the amount of water because whole wheat flour just doesn’t absorb the water as all-purpose flour does. The bread works best when adding whole wheat flour as well as bread flour. Using 2 1/4 cups bread flour + 3/4 cup whole wheat flour. Please let me know if you have any other quesions.
I aI apologize if somebody already asked this question. I have traditional active dry yeast. It Is not instant yeast. WoUld thIs be OK for the recipe?
Yes, you can use the active dry yeast. Just dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup of the water and let it sit for about 5 minutes before adding it to the flour mixture. I hope you love the bread. Please let me know if you have any more questions.
Thank You! I will be trying your recipe very soon
I love this recipe and make it all the time for gifts. The neighbor thinks I’m awesome. Lol. (why is this all caps…?) I was wondering though, if you’ve ever tried substituting almond flour or something for part of the flour? I don’t care about gluten, I just want to lower my carb intake. I was thinking the long rise, and perhaps adding some vital wheat gluten, would still have a good rise. thoughts?
I’m sorry about all CAPs. The caps do not come through on the comment. 🤷🏼♀️ The bread does make awesome gifts!
I have not tried adding almond flour. My guess is it could be quite dense. I generally use vital wheat gluten when I make whole wheat bread. I have received comments using gluten-free, but not using almond flour. I’m sorry I’m not much help. Let me know if you have any other questions. Happy baking.
Do you have any suggestions for adapting this bread to gluten-free flour? I tried my usual gluten-free blend (cup For Cup) and it didn’t come together or rise properly.
I personally have never attempted a GF loaf. I do trust King Arthur Flour and they have a post making GF Crusty Bread. Here is a link: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/no-knead-crusty-white-bread-recipe. I sure hope this helps. I have received comments that GF bakers have had great success using King Arthur GF Flour or Bob Redmill GF. Please let me know if you have any luck.
Thank you for your advice and insights. I will be trying the recipe with King Arthur GF flour, and i will let you know the results.
Thank you so much. Good luck!
Can you bake more than 1 loaf at a time? (I’m assuming if you have 3 Dutch Ovens)
Absolutely! You do need to bake them in individual dutch ovens. So if your oven will fit more than one dutch oven, you’re in luck. I have used the same dutch oven to bake multiple loaves. I just remove the cooked bread and drop in another one and bake in that same dutch oven. I do leave the lid in the oven while the first loaf is baking with the lid removed. I hope I’m making sense. Please let me know if you have more questions.
I’ve been making a variation of this recipe for several years now. From my experience, i can add a few tips.
Use a 3 quart or 3 litre dutch oven. Your loaf will take on a perfectly round shape.
Next, you should shape the dough more so it’s not a sticky mess that you need to put onto parchment paper. To do this, generously cover your counter with flour and flour your hands. Pull a chunk of the dough up from the back and push into the centre of the loaf, turn a quarter turn, and repeat. Keep on doing this at least 8 or 10 times, turning each time until you have a loaf that has formed a tight skin on it. Flip the seam side down and leave it under a towel while the oven is warming (at least 30 minutes) with dutch oven inside. After the 30 minutes, uncover the loaf, give a very quick slash (X) with a sharp knife. I like to add coarse salt on top so next I would spritz the loaf with water and then sprinkle on salt. Salt, of course, is optional. The water spritz makes for a crunchier crust. I take the dutch oven out of the oven and using a bench scraper, I loosen the loaf from the counter. NOW HERE’S THE TRICKY PART: Then I quickly pick it up and drop it into the hot pot (no parchment paper, it will not stick!), put it back in the oven and put the lid on. Be very careful. I generally drop the bread from a good height so I don’t accidently touch the hot pot and burn myself. It doesn’t matter if it goes in crooked, it will be fine! Don’t try to straighten it! Bake for 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Wait at least a ½ hour to cut into it. It needs to rest. If you cut into it too soon, the crumb will be gummy.
Enjoy!
Fabulous tips! Thank you so much.
No problem. I’ve been tweaking this recipe all along. I once happened upon a video on how to shape a loaf from a high hydration dough and everything clicked. Not that it was bad before, but it’s just so much easier this way and yields a nicer looking loaf.
WOndering if you could SUBSTITUTE kefir for the water to make it like a Sourdough Loaf?
It’s worth a try! I think it sounds delcious. Please let me know if you try it.
Do i need to sift the flour?
Nope! I never do.
QUESTION..WHEN PUTTING A COLD POT IN THE OVEN, DO YOU KEEP IT IN THERE 30 MIN AFTER THE OVEN IS PREHEATED OR DO YOU SET A 30 MIN TIMER WHEN YOU PUT THE POT IN COLD? tHANKS!
The oven is generally preheated to 450℉ then the cold pot is put into the oven and preheated for 30 minutes. I have had many comments stating that they just put the cold pot in the cold oven and preheat the pot with the oven at the same time to save on energy. Either way will give the same results. I always do the first method preheat the oven to 450 then add the cold pot and heat for another 30 min. I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
So far k have lnly accom a fully cooked bread with only white flour, it always seems pretty dry when i am mix it. I really want to add white wheat flour but even af a longer cooking time it is still mot tot cooked inside! HELP! 😊
Any sugg please!!!
Perhaps you need less flour?? I have found that not all brands of flour perform equally. After your first initial stir, if the dough seems too stiff, add a bit more water. The water should absorb the flour as it sits overnight and generally looks quite wet. Try baking the bread with the lid ON the pot for an additional 5-7 minutes then remove the lid. Raise the rack in your oven to the upper third. This will help so the crust doesn’t get so hard on the bottom.
An instant-read thermometer is quite valuable when baking bread. The internal temperature for the bread should be 195-200℉. If it’s lower than that, your bread isn’t fully baked. I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Can you use sour dough starter rather than yeast? Maybe less water is needed then?
Yes, you can use a sourdough starter. I have never tried it but there are comments that have been left saying that they used 1/2 cup starter. Let me know if it works out for you.
i’M NOT SURE WHY THIS IS ALL CAPS! bUT i’VE MADE THIS RECIPE PROBABLY 10 TIMES NOW. aLWAYS GONE IN A DAY! cAUGHT MYSELF A BOYFRIEND WITH THIS RECIPE! HAHAHA.
oNLY COMMENT (AND SORRY TO BE SHOUTING!) IS THAT 3 G OF YEAST IS 1 CLOSER TO 1 FULL TSP. wHICH HAS ALWAYS BEEN FINE, BUT i DID WONDER WHY i WAS GOING THROUGH YEAST SO MUCH FASTER WHEN i STARTED WEIGHING ALL MY INGREDIENTS.
I have no idea why the type appears in all caps but comes through in lower case. I have no idea why. I’ll see if I can fix it. So sorry about that. Thanks for letting me know the measurement for the yeast. You can decrease that by a gram if you’d like. I’m so happy your boyfriend had the recipe!
Ive never made bread before this recipe. I always Assumed I need a bread machine! I made this bread and added sesame seeds to the Crust before baking. It turned Out beautifully! It’s gone in one day so next time I’ll try sunflower seed crust!
Bravo! Sesame seed crusted sounds AMAZING!
Can you use wax paper instead of parchment paper?
No, I’m sorry you can’t. That would end up being a disaster. The wax would melt and stick to your pan and the bread. You are better off just dropping the dough into the pot. The parchment just makes it easier to lift in and out of the hot pot. I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.
This is fabulous!! So super easy! I just made a loaf with 1.5 + 2T bread flour and 1.5 cc King Arthur 1:1 flour and it turned out perfect! So yummy and aromatic adding rosemary and shredded asiago cheese! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Thank you so much for sharing your comment. You’ll love the asiago and rosemary.
Thank you so much for your time, Janet. I have just made this beautiful bread. People like you help to make baking more wonderful. My husband’s father was a master baker and my husband loves bread. This bread is now his favourite, airy, crusty, tastes and looks delish.We ate it immediayely, could’nt wait till it cooled.