Combine the Following Ingredients in a Large Bowl
- 3, 1/4 Cup Bread Flour (I use King Arthur Flour)
- 1 + 2/3 cups Warm Water (~110F)
- 1/4 tsp Instant Dry Yeast
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
I just use my hands and mix for ~1 minute or so.
The dough should feel “wet” or “sticky” and likely won’t hold its shape – you WANT this.
BUT if your dough does hold its shape, you likely need more water; Incorporate 1 tbsp warm water until loose and sticking to your fingers.
Cover the Bowl with Saran Wrap or a Damp Cloth or Both
Leave the bowl covered for ~12-18 hours at room temperature to ferment.
Note: If you want things to go “Faster” – use 1 packet of Instant Dry Yeast or Active Yeast and ~ 1 tsp of sugar. Let the dough rise at room temp. for ~1 hour. Then continue with the rest of the recipe.
Optionally: After this first ferment (12-18 hours), you could cold ferment in your refrigerator for an additional ~2-5 days – this will result in a “tangier” flavor.
The Next Day, Flour Your Hands and Fold the Sides in
Take some parchment paper and line a baking sheet – lightly flour the parchment paper.
Take the dough ball and place on parchment paper, seam side down.
Cover with the same bowl to proof for 2 hours.
1 Hour Left into the Proof, Preheat Oven to 450F
While oven pre-heats, put your dutch oven in as well.
Let Dutch-oven preheat for ~1 hour.
After Proofing, Dust Some AP Flour and Slice Across the Top
This slice lets steam escape in a more controlled manner and creates a cool shape.
At this stage, cut off any excess parchment paper.
After preheating, take the Dutch oven out and then carefully transfer the parchment paper + dough into the Dutch oven.
Bake covered for 30 minutes.
Then bake uncovered for 15 minutes.
The time to bake uncovered really depends on your oven; I find ~15 minutes is long enough to darken the loaf without making it super crisp on top. The bottom being thicker/crisp is totally normal.
Then remove from the dutch oven, cool on a wire rack for 1-2 hours and then enjoy!
Basic, No Knead Dutch Oven Bread
Ingredients
- 3, 1/4 Cup Bread Flour I use King Arthur Flour
- 1 + 2/3 cups Warm Water ~110F
- 1/4 tsp Instant Dry Yeast
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine your ingredients.3, 1/4 Cup Bread Flour, 1 + 2/3 cups Warm Water, 1/4 tsp Instant Dry Yeast, 2 tsp Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt
- Note: If you're using AP flour, use 1 + 1/2 cup warm water instead.
- Mix with your hands. The dough should feel "wet" and "sticky" and shouldn't hold it's shape. If it does hold it's shape, you need more water. Add 1 tbsp of warm water at a time until it's sticky a sticky loose blob.
- Cover the bowl with saran wrap or a damp dish cloth.
- Allow to ferment at room temperature for 12-16 hours.
Proofing the Dough Ball
- Take the saran wrap or towel off and put some flour on your hands. Then fold the sides in to form a ball.
- Line a baking sheet with some parchment paper and lightly dust the surface with some AP flour.
- Put the dough ball onto the paper, seam side down.
- Cover the dough with the same bowl you just used to ferment in and allow to proof for 2 hours.
- After 1 hour of proofing, preheat your oven to 450F and put your dutch oven in.
Baking the Bread
- Remove the bowl from the top of the bread. Trim excess parchment paper and then carefully transfer the parchment paper + dough ball to the dutch oven.
- Put the lid on and back on the center rack for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes take the lid off and bake for 15 minutes uncovered.
- After 15 minutes take out of the oven and remove from dutch oven. Place on a wire rack to rest for 1-2 hours.
- Then slice and enjoy!
