There's something about fresh bread that can bring the whole family together. Make the world's most delicious no-knead bread recipe and enjoy the amazement on your family's faces when they realize you made this without a bread machine!
We all love a good bread recipe. If you love to knead bread, then be our guest! However, some people are totally freaked out by the thought of even making their own bread, let alone having to actually knead it! (That used to be us, so don't feel bad if it's you.) What's a mama to do when she needs to make some bread for her family, but is worried it won't turn out correctly?
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Oh man, shelf cookers, you are in luck today! We've got the world's yummiest no-knead bread recipe comin' atcha that is going to knock. your. socks. off. Not only that, but you can start working on it at 2:00 pm and have it ready to be devoured by dinner at 5:30 pm. No crazy amount of rising time before you can pop it in the oven! So, who is ready for your new favorite no-knead recipe?! *Mmmmm, yes please!*
Don't forget, I have an entire digital recipe ebook with all of my favorite bread recipes! Grab your copy of Our Favorite Bread Recipes Ebook here!
A FEW NO-KNEAD BREAD SPECIFICS
In order to make the perfect bread, follow these few tips and you'll be on your way to your family's lips smacking and heads nodding at how amazingly good this bread is!
BREAD IS ALL ABOUT THE YEAST
We prefer instant yeast for this recipe. Pour it straight into the flour and whisk it in as you do with the salt and sugar. There's no need to add it to the water first. Just make sure your water is the temperature your yeast package calls for! (Ours calls for 120° – 130°F.) An instant-read thermometer is a great way to know your water is warm without being too hot.
If you have active-dry yeast, no worries! In a small mixing bowl, add the sugar to warm water (110°F is perfect for this and you should be able to get it from your hot water tap faucet) and sprinkle yeast over top. Let it stand for 10- to 15-minutes. Your mixture should start getting foamy or bubbly, that's when you know that the yeast is active and ready for duty! Then you can add it to your flour mixture and continue as normal.
A NOTE ABOUT THE DOUGH
Since this is a no knead bread recipe, the dough will be very sticky… That's normal. Don't freak out and breathe into a paper bag because it's not like a “normal” bread recipe. Rather than using your hands to work the dough, use two small salad forks. No flour mess all over the counter? Score!
THE BEST PANS TO BAKE THIS BREAD IN
You can use a variety of dishes to bake the bread in. The biggest key to helping this super sticky dough slide out of the dish when it's done is to make sure the dish is well-greased. Butter is our non-stick barrier of choice, but you could also use room temp coconut oil. Olive oil won't work, so don't waste your time with it! Be generous with the butter and grease it completely from the lip of the dish to the bottom.
We recommend splitting the dough in half and using 1- or 1.5-quart glass bowls or loaf pans. You can also use a larger 2-quart glass bowl if you don't want to split the dough in half. Just add another 10- to 15-minutes of bake time to ensure it bakes all the way through.
Pro Tip: If you have half of your dough in a 1-quart bowl and half in a 1.5-quart bowl, they'll still bake for the same amount of time! Throw them in the oven together and they'll both come out perfectly golden brown.
WHERE TO LET THE NO-KNEAD BREAD RISE
Your dough will need to rise twice. For the first rise, you'll cover the bowl and put it in a warm place. The dough will need to double in size (it should only take about an hour to do so). The “warm oven trick” is a tried and true way to get your bread to rise no matter what time of year it is, whether it's cold or hot in your kitchen. Turn your oven on for no more than a minute to allow it to heat up just a little. Place your covered bowl in the oven and check back on it in an hour. It should have doubled!
You'll do the second rise after you split your dough and put each half into a greased baking dish. Don't cover your dough for the second rise. Preheat your oven and place the dough on top while it's preheating. That should give off enough heat for them to rise the second go around. It shouldn't take more than 20- to 30-minutes for the second rise!
THE MOST DELICIOUS NO-KNEAD BREAD RECIPE ON THE PLANET
Alright, who's ready to get to baking already?! In no time at all, your house will smell like freshly-baked bread and your mouth will be watering.
Recipe adapted from Alexandra's Kitchen.
No Knead Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups or 512 g all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 cups lukewarm water (whatever temp your yeast calls for)
- 2 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp instant yeast (or active-dry, using notes)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and instant yeast.
- Add water and mix until it forms a sticky dough.
- Cover the bowl with a dish towel and let it rise in a warm environment for at least an hour, or until it doubles in size.
- Meanwhile, grease two oven-safe dishes well with butter.
- Once your dough has doubled, use two forks to punch it down. Scrape it from the sides of the bowl and bring it to the middle of the dough. Do this all the way around until the dough has been loosened entirely from the sides of the bowl.
- Using your forks, divide the dough down the center of the bowl in two equal portions. Starting from the center, pull the dough apart with the two forks, then scoop each half up as quickly as possible and put in prepared dishes. (Good luck getting it in one fatal swoop… It usually takes a few tries to get it all!)
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and sit your dishes on top of the oven, uncovered, for the second rise. Allow them to rise 20 to 30 minutes or until dough has risen just above or below the top of your dishes (depending on what size you're using).
- Bake for 15 minutes at 425°F. While the bread is still in the oven, reduce the heat to 375°F and bake for 15 to 17 minutes longer.
- Remove from the oven and turn onto a cooling rack. If the loaves don't look golden brown or are a little soft, place them back in the oven, directly on the rack, for another 5 minutes.
- (Im)patiently wait for 30 minutes to let it cool before cutting into it (or else risk it collapsing on itself). Enjoy!
Notes
Super simple, right? Put that yeast and flour to work and get to baking! This no knead bread is great on it's own, with soup, as a sandwich, and even as toast! (Cinnamon toast is our favorite and you can even make it ahead and freeze for later!)
HOW LONG DOES NO-KNEAD BREAD LAST?
If you manage to have any leftovers, then good for you! Store any remaining bread in an airtight container or baggie and keep on the counter for up to five days. Since it's fresh, it won't last as long as store-bought bread, so make sure you eat it before you see those pesky little green mold spots!
So there you have it! The best no knead bread recipe in the galaxy. Yup, we said it! 😉 Let us know how you like it in the comments!
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- Have some leftover steak that needs using up? Make a steak quesadilla!
Get to baking!