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Seriously, this crusty, rustic, no knead bread is THE easiest bread I think you can make. I used to be terrified of making bread, it always goes back to this one time a couple of years ago that I tried to make an Italian loaf and it turned out like a skinny rubber snake. An experience like that can scar you into just buying bread because store bought loafs won’t give you nightmares.

I came across this no knead bread recipe on Pinterest here, and she found it on a couple of other sites, but as far as I can figure out it originated from Le Creuset. Makes sense seeing as it bakes in a Dutch oven.

No Knead Bread Origin Update:

Hayley messaged me with the actual originator of this recipe. It’s Jim Lahey and his recipe was featured in The New York Time’s Minimalist column here. It’s definitely worth a read because there are some tips and tricks for working with the loaf that I hadn’t seen on the Pinterest versions. Great find Hayley, so thank you! And thank you to Jim Lahey, my husband is now your biggest fan!

Now Back The The No Knead Bread Recipe Making!

I was a little nervous as first. It seemed too simple, you know? But the pictures looked amazing and seeing as it was only going to use up 5 minutes of my time, I figured I’d be an idiot not to try.

Yes. You read that correctly.

This will only take 5 minutes of hands on time to make.

And there’s no kneading.

Seriously, it’s like magic or something.

Throw your flour, salt, and yeast in a large bowl. I really like glass bowls for rising dough, easier to gauge what’s going on.

Whisk it up.

Add the water (use room temperature water, you’re aiming for warm, but not hot).

Mix it up with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise. Now, directions say to let it rise for 12 to 18 hours. That doesn’t work for me who wants to prep it in the morning and eat it with dinner. I put this in the oven, with the oven light on. It works perfectly and rises in about 6 hours. Then just take it out and let it finish on the counter until you’re ready to bake it.

Beautifully risen dough.

This is the moment I started believing it was actually going to turn out.

Throw a bunch of flour down on your counter, put the dough on it, then put more flour on top of the dough.

Quickly shape it into a ball. This takes 1 minute. That’s it. At this stage, if you wanted too, you could mix some stuff in. Looking for ideas: rosemary, grated cheese (I’d go with an old cheddar), some roasted garlic, a combination of them, or anything else you can think of.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap and leave for 30 minutes. While this is resting put your Dutch oven, lid and all, into the pre-heated oven for the 30 minutes.

Put the ball of dough into the pre-heated Dutch oven, put the lid on it, and put it in the oven. I sprinkled some sea salt on top first. I suggest you do the same. Side note: this is one of the worst pictures I’ve taking in a long time, so sorry for the blur. I had a dog playing between my legs and was cooking dinner at the time too so no chance for a re-take.

After 30 minutes take off the lid; this is what the bread will look like at this point. Continue cooking for 15 more minutes. I’m new to the bread game, so I worry about the inside being done. There are two ways to gage this: first, when you knock on the loaf it should sound hollow. While a nice fact, I don’t trust myself to accurately gage “hollow”. I stick an instant read thermometer into the side of the loaf, if it registers 190ºF – 200ºF we’re good to go.

And this, my dears, is what I ended up with. I was just as amazed as you are. This is like, the perfect loaf of rustic artisan bread, only it’s a no knead bread. I didn’t know before this moment that could be possible! It was great too, a nice chewy interior and a super crisp exterior. Bo was in absolute heaven and his only comment: I wouldn’t be upset if you made this every night. On that note, I’ve got one rising in the oven for tonight as I type.

Want More Delicious Bread Recipes?

This Cheesecake Factory Bread copycat recipe is the most popular recipe on my blog, and one of the ones I’m most proud of! It’s definitely a couple notches up from this no knead bread, but you won’t regret giving it a shot (I mean, if you’ve eaten at the Cheesecake Factory before you understand that the bread is the best part of the meal!).

Here’s the printable:

Servings 1 loaf Crusty, Rustic, No Knead Bread (aka the easiest bread you’ll ever make) 5 minPrep Time 45 minCook Time PT8-18H50MTotal Time Save Recipe Save Recipe Print Recipe My Recipes My Lists My Calendar Ingredients 3 cups all-purpose flour

1½ tsp salt

½ tsp yeast

1½ cups warm water (not hot, think room temperature) Instructions In a large glass bowl whisk together the flour, salt, and yeast. Stir in the water with a wooden spoon until a shaggy looking ball forms. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise for 12-18 hours. Alternatively, you can place the bowl in the oven with only the light turned on. The dough should rise in about 6 to 8 hours like this. Pre-heat your oven to 450ºF with a rack in the middle position. Turn the dough out onto a well floured counter. Add additional flour to the top of the dough and quickly form into a ball. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.While the dough is resting, place a large Dutch oven, with the lid on, into the pre-heated oven to warm for 30 minutes. You can also use any large, lidded cast iron or pyrex dish, so long as it can handle 450ºF. Place the dough ball into the heated Dutch oven, put the lid on, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and return to the oven for an additional 15 minutes, until the loaf is golden brown, sounds hollow when knocked on, and an instant-read thermometer registers between 190ºF and 200ºF. Let cool on a wire rack before cutting. 7.8.1.2 107 https://www.kitchentrials.com/2012/04/03/crusty-rustic-no-knead-bread-aka-the-easiest-bread-youll-ever-make/ Copyright Kitchen Trials 2017