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Everyone NEEDS an overnight, no knead farmhouse bread recipe in their arsenal because it’s just that easy and you can’t beat the aroma of freshly baked bread in your house!
For a quicker no knead bread recipe, check out my Dutch Oven Bread.
For years bread making has been my Everest. Always admired but never conquered. I am a pretty good baker and I make all kinds of baked goods, as you know if you follow me, but for some reason working with yeast has always scared me.
I come from a long dynasty of bread makers. Every woman in my family has made her own bread…except for me.
By nature I am an overcomer; I can’t bare the fact that there is a skill I don’t possess. It seriously drives me crazy. For example, I can only drive a car with an automatic transmission. Just not cool. It’s on my to-do list.
I’ve had some practice of baking with yeast through pizza dough making, which is no different from bread so I figured it’s time to overcome my fear and get right down to it.
Although this is a simple recipe and method, I did spend some time to practice and get it just right. I’ve made this no-knead bread a lot over the last weeks, which has brought nothing but happiness to my household.
A few tweaks along the way, and I think this recipe is pretty much perfect. Give yourself some time to practice as well. In no time you’ll be an expert as well!
How to make no knead bread
As the title suggests, this particular bread recipe requires no kneading, the integral part in successful bread making. Instead of kneading the bread dough, this recipe utilises a long, 12-hour fermentation time to develop gluten.
Not only does it achieve the same result as kneading, it also develops much better bread flavour. You will be quite surprised if you have a side by side taste test with a grocery store loaf. Your homemade bread will be miles ahead in terms of flavour and texture.
How it’s different
The best part for me personally is the thick and chewy crust that is the hallmark of any good European loaf. Unfortunately, in North America it’s not as easy as it should be to get bread with this sort of crust outside of an overpriced bakery.
This particular recipe reminded me of Pain de Campagne, a traditional French sourdough country bread that I buy as often as I can.
You might ask what sets this recipe apart from every other recipe out there. The main difference is the method of baking.
The magic comes when it’s baked in a blazing hot oven inside a preheated This is an affiliate link.Dutch oven with a lid on which does 2 things: it concentrates moisture (and therefore a thick, chewy crust), and allows the bread to rise quickly.
Can you just take a look at that loaf?! How can you not fall in love immediately! And that smell of a freshly baked loaf!
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Bread benefits from time for the dough to rise, but some days you may not have the time to wait. In that case, try my quicker version of Dutch Oven Bread. Still lovely and fluffy inside with a chewy crust, but with the rising time cut to 2 hours!
- I’ve used all white flour for my bread, but it’s a simple recipe that is easily adaptable. Use a portion of whole wheat flour if you would like to adapt the loaf, keeping the total amount of flour the same.
- All purpose flour will work, but bread flour will be a better choice. The difference is a higher amount of protein in the bread flour that creates more chew and structure in the loaf. You are likely to need to add a bit extra if using all purpose flour. If your dough seems a bit runny and doesn’t hold it’s shape, add some and mix it in as well as you can.
- Remember that dough will rise quicker or slower depending on the room temperature. 12 hours is a good average, but it may be different for you if your room is a bit colder or warmer.
- When it’s time to let the dough rise, give it a sprinkling of flour and cover with a kitchen towel. The flour is there so the cotton towel doesn’t stick.
- To limit mess and make the transfer of your dough easier, you can place your shaped dough on a piece of parchment paper, then pick it up by the opposite side of the paper and lower it into the Dutch Oven. That said, I don’t use parchment paper and my bread never sticks.
- Whether you use parchment paper or not, be sure to leave the dough to rise on a well floured work surface. This prevents the dough from sticking, which you’ll be grateful for later.
- I had a lot more success with baking bread once I started using an This is an affiliate link.oven thermometer. Oven temperatures can vary widely, so using one to check yours will make sure that you aren’t baking on a cooler or warmer temperature than you think.
- You are in control of baking times. If it looks like the crust should be a bit darker, leave it in the oven for 10-15 minutes longer.
- The bread can be easily adapted in all sorts of ways. One is to add seeds like sesame seeds or poppyseeds to the top of the dough before baking.
Serving suggestions
As tempting as it is to gorge on bread when it is steaming hot and straight from the Dutch oven, it’s actually better to give it time to cool. Cutting it open too soon lets a lot of the steam escape, leading to tougher, less tender bread that dries out much faster.
Instead, leave it on a This is an affiliate link.wire rack so air can circulate, and let it come to room temperature before slicing open. Or something close to room temperature – I can never manage to wait quite that long!
Your patience won’t be regretted. Slather the bread in butter, a slice of cheese or turn it into a tasty sandwich. Perfection!
Storage and leftovers
If you don’t plan to use the bread within a couple of days, or you made an extra loaf or two, the best place to store it is the freezer. Keep it sealed in plastic wrap or something similar and use within 3 months.
More bread recipes
- Easy Flatbread
- Rosemary Spelt Bread Recipe
- Rhubarb and Red Currant Jam Swirled Bread
- Sourdough Bread
No Knead Farmhouse Bread
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Cast iron Dutch oven
- This is an affiliate link.Oven thermometer
Ingredients
- 3 to 3½ cups/400g to 450 g cups/400g to 450 g all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting (I used 3 1/2 cups)
- ¼ tsp This is an affiliate link.instant yeast
- 1¼ tsp salt
- 1½ cups/ 375ml warm water
- flour for dusting
Instructions
- Mix flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add warm water to the ingredients and mix until a sticky dough forms. Cover with a towel and let it rise on the counter for 12 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 500F/260C with Dutch oven inside.
- Turn your dough out on a floured surface, it will be flat, tuck all four sides in to form a ball and place it on a floured surface seam side down, sprinkle with more flour and cover with a towel. Don't be afraid to be generous with flour. Let it rise for 20 minutes.
- If you are short on time you can bake your bread after a 20 minute rise, and it will be a somewhat dense and hefty loaf yet still delicious. (Like mine in the pictures). Alternatively, you can let it rise for 2 more hours in order to produce a more airy loaf of bread.
- Cut slits in the top of the loaf with a sharp knife approximately 1-2cm deep to allow steam to escape and create a better shaped loaf.
- Take Dutch oven out of the oven and carefully place your dough in it, cover with a lid and bake for 25 minutes.
- Take the lid off and bake for 10-15 minutes longer to get more colour into your crust.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
There should be a sixth star. I made this today and it’s beyond simple and delicious. My toddler was fascinated by the second rise and bake portion. A couple questions, have you tried this with whole what flour? Can the batch be doubled? I have a Dutch oven and a large stock pot, both enameled cast iron and I’d love to make two loaves at a time.
Hi Jessica, I am always happy when people are successful with this recipe. To answer your question… yes, we have tried it with wholewheat flour. Wholewheat bread is what we’ve been baking for the last month and it works great. It doesn’t rise as much as white flour loaves but it’s the nature of wholewheat flour…it’s heavier and coarser. You can also double the recipe. We usually bake two loaves every Sunday but we bake them separately.
This was the first ever bread I made and it turned out incredible! Being from Latvia, breadmaking is something all the women in our families know how to do so I felt it was about time I took the plunge too!
I put chopped rosemary in the dough and let the flavour soak into it during the rise. About 10 minutes before I took it out of the oven I brushed it with sesame seed oil and sprinkled sesame seeds over it. Two flavours which you wouldn’t normally put together but it tastes so good!
Thank you so much for making my first ever bread experience so effortless and satisfying with this fabulous recipe! I’ll be visiting your page a lot for future recipes!
I am beyond happy that you found my instructions helpful and easy to follow, Marta! Bread making is so much fun and quite addicting! 🙂
Can you use a cast iron Dutch oven that isn’t coated to bake in?
Hi Cathy, yes you can. You can line it with parchment paper if you wish to prevent sticking.
Your loaf looks amazing. I have tried similar no lnead recipes and the dough is so wet it doesn’t hold its shape when rising on the parchment paper and I have to scrape it into my Dutch oven. What am I doing wrong. I follow the recipes to a tee. Thanks in advance.
The shape will always shift while it is resting. It’s okay to do a bit of reshaping before sending it to the Dutch oven, and make sure to use plenty of flour to keep it from sticking. But if it seems that the dough is a bit too wet, feel free to add more flour until it is a consistency that is right. I’ve found that bread baking requires some adjusting depending on the flour, humidity in the air and oven used, so you may want to experiment a bit to get everything right for you. Takes a bit of work but worth it!
Just made the dough. First attempt with yeast. But just noticed that my gas oven only has a setting of up to 450- will it still work? And what shelf do I put the rack on?
450F will still work. I usually put the rack on the lower shelf, so the pot is right in the center of the oven.
I made it, my daughter, sister and I loved it😊 We thought it was a little too hard though, but this was my first time to ever make bread so I will just watch it as it approaches end of the baking time and maybe cut it short by a few moments. It worked great at selling the oven at 450, As my oven doesn’t go up to 500. We all thought though that it needed a little more flavor, I usually love plain bread even without butter, so I think I’ll try it again tonight and maybe add a little rosemary and thyme to it but any feedback from you would be greatly appreciated thank you so much, Abby , I read in one of your comments that you should add seasoning at the second rise. Won’t it be harder to thoroughly mix in the seasonings if you’re doing this by hand? I am wondering why you don’t add the seasonings to the flour mixture before you read the water, but I am a novice to all of us so I have no idea…
Hi Abby, the reason I suggested the second rise because the original commenter asked about also adding garlic and I thought the smell would be overwhelming if you let it rise for 12 hours with garlic in it. If you are adding rosemary, you can surely add everything at the same time. I am so happy to hear all of you enjoyed your homemade bread. My husband is now the main bread baker in the family and a couple of years ago he never held yeast in his hands! Enjoy!!
A volunteer meeting at a friend’s house had the host making spaghetti for everyone. I made this loaf and brought it. Not until after eating it, did I mention that it was homemade. The host assumed I purchased it from a store! LOL It is impressive and delish.
I love that you were able to impress your friends with a delicious homemade loaf, Lisa!
How long do you pre heat the dutch oven for?? I can’t wait to make this!! Thank you!
Hi Amanda, I usually put it in the oven when I turn it on and take it out when the oven is the right temperature and the dough has risen enough and is ready to be baked. It just has to be hot, so I am sure 10 minutes is enough.
Just to let the gluten free people know THIS RECIPE WORKS WITH GF FLOURS. I used 1c cup4cup brand wholesome gf flour , 1c Pamala’s gf all purp flour, 1c cup4cup gf all purp flour. I used 1tsp yeast . Following all the rest of the instructions & HOLY COW I made a fabulously amazing “real” tasting bread. Brought one fresh from the oven to work & it was gone in 15 mins. No one knew in was GF . I win when the “regulars” can’t tell.
That is absolutely amazing, Aimee! Thanks so much for letting me know! One of my best friends is coeliac and I would love to make it for her. Best, Julia
Hi and thank you for this wonderful recipe my kids love it and so do I… I made it quite a few times… Tonight I prepared dough for two loafs but for some reason I put less salt.. Instead of 1 1/4 tspn I put 1/4….urgggg lol… Can I add more salt after it has risen when I take it out of the bowl to prepare it for the second rise?????
Thanks in advance
Vicky
Hi Vicky, sorry this is late but I am in a different timezone, so was sleeping! The quick answer is Yes. The only challenge with that method is making sure the salt is distributed evenly. Let me know what you ended up doing and how it turned out! Best, Julia
I do not have a dutch oven. I DO however jave a crockpot. Can I use the glass dish from that and cover it with foil instead?? I would really love to tey this bread recipe…Thanks!
Hi Laurie, I would be nervous about putting a glass dish in an oven at such high temperature, also you really need a heavy lid for it to work. I have another post where I suggest a different method of baking, which produces the same crust. https://vikalinka.com/2015/03/14/rosemary-spelt-bloomer/