Description
This recipe delivers the world’s easiest artisan yeast bread with no kneading required. Using simple ingredients and a hands-off approach, you’ll create a rustic, crusty loaf with a soft, airy interior. Perfect for beginners or those short on time, this no-knead bread relies on a long rise and baking in a preheated Dutch oven to develop incredible flavor and texture.
Ingredients
Dough Ingredients
- 3 cups (450g) bread or plain/all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp instant or rapid rise yeast
- 1 1/2 tsp cooking salt or kosher salt (halve if using table salt)
- 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) very warm tap water (up to 55°C/130°F)
For Dusting
- 1 1/2 tbsp flour (to dust work surface and dough)
Instructions
- Mix Dough: In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, and salt. Add warm water and use the handle of a wooden spoon to mix until all the flour is incorporated. The dough will be wet and sticky—not kneadable, but thicker than batter. Adjust water or flour if necessary for the right consistency.
- Rise: Cover the bowl with cling wrap or a plate and leave it on the counter for 2 to 3 hours. The dough should double in volume, becoming bubbly and wobbly like jelly. If it isn’t rising after 1 hour, place it somewhere warmer.
- Optional Refrigeration: For enhanced flavor, you can refrigerate the dough for up to 3 days at this point. Otherwise, proceed to baking immediately.
- Warm Dough: If refrigerated, take dough out 45–60 minutes before baking to bring it to room temperature as cold dough doesn’t rise well during baking.
- Preheat Oven and Dutch Oven: Place a Dutch oven (26cm/10″ or larger) with its lid inside your oven and preheat to 230°C/450°F (220°C fan) for 30 minutes before baking.
- Shape Dough: Lightly flour your work surface with 1 tablespoon of flour and sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon on top of the dough. Using a dough scraper or similar tool, fold the dough sides inward about six times to form a rough round shape. This helps to deflate bubbles and create structure.
- Transfer to Parchment Paper: Slide a large piece of parchment paper next to the shaped dough, then flip the dough seam side down onto the paper. Push the dough towards the middle and reshape if needed. Imperfect shapes create more crusty ridges.
- Place Dough in Hot Dutch Oven: Carefully remove the preheated Dutch oven from the oven. Lift the parchment paper with dough and place it inside the Dutch oven. Cover with the lid.
- Bake Covered: Bake the dough covered for 30 minutes at 230°C (450°F).
- Bake Uncovered: Remove the lid and bake for an additional 12 minutes or until the crust is deeply golden and crispy.
- Cool: Remove the bread from the Dutch oven and cool on a rack for 10 minutes before slicing to finish setting the crumb.
Notes
- Use bread flour for a chewier crumb or plain/all-purpose flour for a softer texture.
- If using active dry yeast instead of instant, dissolve yeast in warm water and wait 5 minutes before mixing.
- Adjust salt quantity if using table salt, as it is denser than kosher salt.
- Water temperature should be warm but not hot (around 55°C/130°F) to activate yeast without killing it.
- Dough is very wet and sticky; do not add too much flour to avoid a dense loaf.
- Rising times vary depending on room temperature; warmer environments speed up proofing.
- If you don’t have a Dutch oven, bake on a preheated heavy baking sheet or cast iron skillet, placing a metal bowl or another oven-safe cover to trap steam.
- Refrigeration enhances flavor and texture but is optional.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 42 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Artisan, Western