Bread the easy way. No starter. No Kneading
User Reviews
4.5
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Prep Time
10 mins
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Cook Time
50 mins
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Additional Time
1 d
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Servings
6 serves
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Course
Bread
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Cuisine
Australian
Bread the easy way. No starter. No Kneading
Description
Bread the easy way. No starter. No Kneading uses plain or bread flour combined with yeast and salt, stirred together with warm water and optional olive oil. The dough does not require kneading; instead, it is mixed just until combining and left covered at room temperature overnight. This slow fermentation allows gluten development and flavor without extensive handling.
The dough will become bubbly and rise, and can be shaped and baked in a Dutch oven or similar thick pot with a lid to create a crisp crust and soft interior. The minimal intervention approach suits home cooks without experience or time for traditional kneading methods, while producing fresh bread with good crumb structure.
This bread is suitable as a basic loaf for sandwiches or toast. You can vary the flour partly with whole wheat or add flavorings during shaping. Using a Dutch oven helps achieve a textured crust, though other lidded pots can also be used with some compromise.
Olive oil is optional but enhances flavor and crust sheen. The recipe advises watching a demonstration video for best technique. No punching down or kicking back of dough is necessary, reducing effort.
Ingredients
- 450 gm baker's flour plain, bread or pizza flour, 3 cups +tblsp
- 5 gm yeast 1 1/2 teaspoons, active dried
- 7 gm teaspoon salt (not flaked) 1 1/2 teaspoons
- 350 ml water a bit less than 1 1/2 cups, warm
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil ****optional
Instructions
- You will need a medium sized bowl. it can be stainless steel, glass or ceramic. Just as long as it is big enough to give the bread space to grow.I make the dough at the time I need it the next day. If you want it for breakfast or lunch make the base dough in the morning. If it is for dinner time then make it in the afternoon etc.You will also need baking paper and a Dutch Oven
- Put the flour, salt and yeast into the bowl and whisk together (or stir well)
- If you are using olive oil add it to the water then.....Add all the water at once and begin to stir with your hand (just one, the other one is holding the bowl). Mix from the outside collecting all the dry flour. You don't need to mix a lot it just needs to come together. There may still be bits and pieces around the bowl and it will not look smooth and mixed.
- Get rid of the excess from your fingers. Cover in plastic wrap well and put in a place where it will be undisturbed till tomorrow.
- Your dough will be a bubbly honeycomb mixture. Put some flour on the bench. Run your fingers around the top of the dough loosening the edges and then lift and fold the dough over itself a couple of times, then scrape the remainder out onto the floured bench, it will be very sticky. You DO NOT have to Knead it. Push it into a ball. Do this by using both hands to push the dough from the base inwards going around the base forming a circle. The dough will start to stretch and gather, pushing the dough towards yourself from the base works best. DONE (2-3 minutes)
- Lightly oil or spray a piece of baking paper 30 x 30 cm (12x12 in 0r just a round for the base of the baker). Put the dough ball onto the paper Lift the paper and put it into the Dutch oven. Cut the top of the dough with scissors. Cut very deep indets in around 3-4 places. This will allow the bread to expand. Put the lid on and set aside.
- Turn the oven and heat to 220C or 430 F. Leave for 10 minutes to heat and then put the baker into the oven. After about 20 minutes you will start to smell the bread baking. It will rise in this time so do not lift the lid before the first 30-35 minutes. Do not check until this time. Lift the lid swiftly. The bread should be well risen and some ears starting to form. If the bread is just shiny and not starting to rise and become rough put the lid back on for another 10 minutes before removing ***Caution when baking in a Dutch Oven. These are hot and heavy.
- The baking time will vary with different ovens. As a general rule after the first 30-40 minutes, you can take the lid off and let your bread brown. Final cooking time should be approximately another 15 minutes.Once you remove the lid If your oven is extra hot (that is your bread is browning very quickly) you can turn it down to around 190C / 375F and let the bread finish browning for another 15 minutes.
Notes
- Olive oil is optional but adds flavor and crust sheen.
- No kneading or punching down is needed; the dough rests overnight to develop.
- Whole wheat flour can replace one cup of white flour for a heartier loaf.
- A thick pot with a lid, like a Dutch oven, is recommended for baking to develop crust.
- If you don’t have a Dutch oven, use another lidded pot though results may vary.
- Add flavors during shaping after the overnight rising for variety.
- Watch the provided video for detailed mixing and baking steps.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.5
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