No Knead Bread

I blatantly stole this recipe from my cousin Erik, who deserves much of the credit for perfecting the technique. This recipe is EASY, and on a given batch you probably do 15 minutes of actual work; the rest is just rise time, temperature and equipment. The bread has the good, springy texture of artisan bread complete with the big gas bubbles. I have had great results letting the dough rise 24 hours (my house is about 65 degrees F) and you could let it rise for up to 36 hours, depending on the the temperature. A longer rise time will typically yield stronger flavors, and this is part of the reason the bread is tastier than plain ol' white bread. I baked mine in a dutch oven and sprinkled on cornmeal, which makes for a spiffy crust. The recipe doesn't mention, but I usually wet the towels to hold in moisture. I also like a bit crispier crust so I bake the bread out of the dutch oven and right on the rack for the last 5-10 minutes. Think that's it. Enjoy!



Recipe: No-Knead Bread
Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street BakeryTime: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups 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 70 degrees.

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 is 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 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart 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 is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.


Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.