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No-Knead Bread
No-Knead bread is justifiably popular due to its ease and good results. In side-by-side tests, we discovered that 90 seconds of extra work is all it takes to transform no-knead bread from good to great. Three simple folds, each taking about 30 seconds, will do the trick. We’ve also tweaked the ingredients to make a big improvement in the flavor of this simple bread.
Read more about our improvements to no-knead bread.
No-Knead Bread Recipe
Yield
One loaf
Timing
Start this bread at least 17 hours before serving time. While the exact timing of the folds isn’t important, it is good to space them out if possible. The long fermentation usually happens overnight, so it’s easy to do two folds before bed and then the third in the morning.
Ingredients
| Ingredient | U.S. Volume | Grams |
|---|---|---|
| All-purpose or bread flour, unbleached | 2¾ C* | 400 |
| Whole rye flour | ¼ C* | 30 |
| Instant yeast | ⅛ tsp | 0.4 |
| Salt, fine | 1½ tsp | 8.6 |
| Water, about 70°F (21°C) | 1⅓ C | 317 |
* Measured by dipping the cup into a container of flour, then leveling off. If desired, all-purpose or bread flour can be substituted for the whole grain flour.
Equipment
- Spatula
- Parchment paper
- 5 ½ quart cast iron Dutch oven with lid
Get Ready
Set the Proofer to 70°F (21°C) and put the water tray in the middle of the warming plate. Pour ¼ C (60 ml) water into the tray and place the rack on top of the tray.
Instructions
Mix the dough. In a large bowl, mix flour, yeast, and salt until well distributed, then add water and mix until dough is evenly hydrated. The dough will be very soft and sticky.
Ferment the dough. Cover the bowl and place in the Proofer to ferment at 70°F (21°C) for at least 12 and up to 16 hours. During this long fermentation, put the dough through three folding sessions, well spaced out. To fold the dough, use a wet hand or spatula to scrape a section of dough from the side of the bowl, then lift and stretch it a bit before folding it into the center of the bowl. Do this eight times for each folding session, traveling around the circumference of the bowl.
Shape the bread. After the long fermentation in the bowl and three folds are complete, our recipe follows the classic no-knead method for folding and shaping the dough. To shape the dough, scrape it out onto a floured work surface and give it a fourth eight-way fold, then cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes. While the dough is resting, prepare a sheet pan or plate with an oblong of parchment about 16″ / 41 cm long (the long ends will be used to lift and move the risen loaf).
Shape the dough into a round (one easy way to do this is with one last eight-way fold), brushing flour off as needed. If desired, stretch the outermost “skin” by brushing excess flour from the work surface, flipping the loaf seam side down and sliding the base towards you. Rotate the loaf and repeat to stretch the skin evenly (do not tear).
Proof the bread. Place the loaf seam side up on the parchment-lined pan or plate, cover with a generously floured kitchen towel and place the loaf in the Proofer, set to 72°F (22°C). Proof the bread until an indent in the side of the loaf springs back slowly, about 2½ hours.
Preheat the oven. About 20 minutes before you are ready to bake, place the bread steel in the lower ⅓ of your oven and preheat to 450°F (232°C). The steel heats quickly, and when the oven is ready, the bread steel will be too. There is no need to preheat the Bread Shell.
Bake the bread. When the loaf is finished proofing, use the oblong ends of the parchment to carefully lift the loaf and transfer it to a bread peel or a flat surface like an inverted sheet pan.
Slide your loaf (still seam side up) onto the hot steel and immediately cover it with the bread shell. Bake for 20 minutes with the shell on. Remove the shell, turn the oven down to 450°F (232°C), and continue baking for another 15 to 18 minutes until well browned and the bread sounds hollow when knocked gently from the bottom.
Cool on a rack before slicing.
Overall Bread Formula:
| Ingredient | Grams | Baker's % |
|---|---|---|
| Unbleached AP or Bread Flour | 400 | 93 |
| Whole Rye Flour | 30 | 7 |
| Instant Yeast | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| Salt | 8.6 | 2 |
| Water | 317 | 74 |
Leave a comment
13 comments
Thank you for sharing your recipe. I can’t wait to try this bread recipe.
Do you have any recommendations or suggestions for adjusting this recipe for high altitude? I live at around 7500 ft and I’m not sure what I need to change. Thanks in advance!!
Can I substitute my own sour dough starter?
Sara Rae – Yes! You absolutely can try using your own starter. The results may vary, but there’s no harm in trying!
Thanks for sharing, I had fantastic results! After many attempts, finally got a good rise for a no-knead by folding 3 times during the fermentation. This resulted in an outstanding soft and fluffy crumb! BTW on my final 3rd fold, my dough expanded aggressively, doubling in size, to the top of my bowl. When removing it from the bowl, many long sticky strands stuck to the bowl, and a lot of gas bubbles were probably broken. Was the yeast too active at this point, is this something i should avoid?
Kushal – Happy to hear you had good results! Some sticking to the bowl is unavoidable. If you were happy with the results, no need to make any changes. If you would like to experiment, I would suggest cutting the first proofing time by 30 to 60 minutes and seeing how the results compare.
I don’t have rye flour. What can I substitute? Or can I just use only bread flour?
Susan – Yes, you can use bread flour in place of the rye. Whole wheat would also work well.
I’ve used the No-knead method for many years. You can perform the 3 or 4 stretch/folds anytime prior to to the long rise (doubling) with great results. After the ragged initial mix let the dough rest 15 minutes to 1 hour and then perform 3 additional stretch/folds at 15 minute intervals. I usually complete the process the first hour and then let the dough double over the next 8-12 hours. Then I shape and pop into the frig for up to 12 hours to ferment and get that great sour tang. Also, there is no knead (pun intended) to pre-heat oven or use a stone or Dutch oven. Turn the oven on to 450/500F. Use an old stamping ware/speckle ware roaster pan. A chicken size will hold one loaf/boule, turkey size will accommodate 2 loaves. Line the pan with parchment paper, place 2 ice cubes under the paper at one side (gives that nice small bubbled crust). Flip the boule into the roaster, score it, place lid on and put in oven for 20 minutes. Remove lid and bake additional 20 minutes. If you like a lighter colored crust, turn the oven off after the first 20 minutes. Roasting pans are easy to find and cheap. No pre-heating saves energy. No heavy stones or cast iron to lug around. Less chance to burn yourself and the speckle ware cools quickly for clean up.
For those wanting to use sour dough starter for the No-Knead method use 40g (3 Tablespoons) of unfed starter. You should also use bread flour for more strength if using starter. Doubling time will depend on ambient temp and flour(s) used. Straight bread flour will have the longest double. Mixing whole wheat or rye will give faster doubling depending on ratio.
Bill G – Thanks for providing feedback about what works for you! Sounds like you’ve honed in on a successful approach over the years.
I live in the UK and am using a fan oven, what temp should I preheat the oven to? Thanks!
Jessica – We’d suggest using an oven temperature of 210°C. Your bread may bake a little faster using a fan oven. The recipe calls for another 20 to 30 minutes of baking after you remove the lid, but you may want to reduce that to 10 to 15 minutes.