No Knead Bread
By Amanda Scali

7/03/2023 8:16pm

No Knead Bread

So, the big bakery buzzword is Sourdough. But who can wait a week while you create a Sourdough starter? Here’s a proven and simple recipe for No Knead Bread* (kinda like a homemade Ciabatta) that’ll blow the socks off your family and friends and takes very little time and effort to make.

No stand mixer, no kneading, no worries!

 

Preparation time: Around 5mins
Rest and rise: 18-24 hours
Cooking time: 40-45 mins


INGREDIENTS:

  • 3¼ cups (425g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsps fine sea salt
  • ½ tsp active dry yeast
  • 1½ cups warm water (about 45°C)
  • Cornmeal or wheat bran, as needed
  • A Dutch oven or heavy cast iron pot


METHOD:

  1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast, and salt. Add warm water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature (about 22°C).
  2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
  3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran, or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it’s ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
  4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 235°C. Put a 7.5 litre heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex, or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that’s OK. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake for 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack. Serve and enjoy!

 

*With thanks to New York Times Cooking. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11376-no-knead-bread