Easy No Knead Bread

Author: Jessica Milnes

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Easy No Knead Bread

Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 40 MinRise Time: 1 H & 15 MTotal time: 2 Hour

One of my go to breads that I make almost every week. Fresh homemade bread doesn’t have to be an all day project. This simple no knead bread uses just a few basic ingredients and gives you a beautiful golden crust with a soft, tender center. In about two hours, you can have a fresh loaf on the table with very little fuss.

Ingredients

• 3 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour, aerated before measuring (about 360–390 grams)
• 2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups hot water, about 120–130°F
• About 2 tablespoons additional flour, for shaping

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the hot water and stir until everything is well combined and a shaggy, sticky dough forms.
2. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
3. After the dough has been rising for 40 minutes, place a 3 to 6-quart Dutch oven with its lid into a cold oven. Preheat the oven, with the Dutch oven inside, to 450°F.
4. Once the dough has rested for the full hour, turn it onto a generously floured surface. Sprinkle a little flour over the top. Using a bench scraper or spatula, fold the dough over itself about 10 to 12 times, then gently shape it into a rough ball. No kneading needed.
5. Place the dough onto a sheet of parchment paper and set it into a bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
6. Carefully remove the hot Dutch oven from the oven. Using the parchment paper as a sling, lower the dough into the Dutch oven. Cover with the lid and bake for 30 minutes.
7. Remove the lid and carefully pull out the parchment paper. Return the bread to the oven, uncovered, and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until deeply golden brown.
8. Transfer the bread to a cooling rack and allow it to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Notes

When measuring flour by cups, I like to aerate it first instead of scooping it straight from the container. Flour can settle and become compacted, which means you can accidentally add quite a bit more than you intended. If you have a kitchen scale, weighing your flour will give you the most consistent loaf.