Easy Yeast Bread Recipe No Knead

5 from 3 votes

Easy Yeast Bread Recipe No Knead

Best Rustic Italian Bread Recipe (No Knead) is a fast and easy bread recipe! It's just like the bread my Italian mother-in-law makes!! This delicious bread is made in your Dutch oven and is ready in a few hours-no need to have it rise overnight!

Prep Time2 30

Cook Time45

Total Time3 15

Course: Bread

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: artisan bread, No Knead Bread, sweet yeast bread

Servings: slices

Calories: 133kcal

Author: Lora

Equipment

1 Dutch oven
1 Mixing Bowl

Ingredients

1 packet 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 ¼ cup warm water about 100 F
1 tsp granulated sugar
2 cups bread flour plus extra for dusting
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 ¼ teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt

Instructions

Prep the yeast: In the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached, dissolve the yeast in the warm water, stir in the sugar, and let it proof (5-10 minutes until foamy).
Combine flours and salt: In a small bowl, add the flours and salt. Give it a few whisks to combine together.
Combine flour with yeast mixture: Add the flour to the mixing bowl a small portion at a time and mix on low speed. Once you have added all the flour increase the speed and mix until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. If you notice the dough is too sticky, add about a tablespoon more of dough at a time until you get a dough that is not too sticky to handle. When dough is ready remove dough hook.
Mixing by hand: If you’re mixing by hand, mix until ingredients have just come together and form a smooth dough.
Let dough rise: Grease a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours (the goal is to not have the dough be too springy).
Sprinkle a little flour on a clean counter. Carefully remove the dough without disturbing it too much onto the counter. Pull the corners together to form a round dough, sprinkle a little flour into the bowl, and place the dough back into the same bowl seam side up. Cover with a tea towel and let it rise while the oven heats up.
Preheat oven to 460 F with rack in lower third of oven. Heat a covered 3 1/2 quart heavy ovenproof Dutch oven (9 inches in diameter) with the lid on for 30 minutes or until dough is ready.
Transfer to paper: Place a sheet of parchment paper (not wax paper)on your counter (about the length of a baking sheet). Sprinkle on a little flour. Flip the loaf seam side up on the parchment paper. Carefully push and slide it into the middle so it takes on a round shape. It won't be perfectly round and that is fine!
Carefully remove preheated pot from oven, and uncover.
Remove the towel from top of bowl and quickly but carefully lift the dough using the corners of the parchment paper and place the dough into pot, seam side up (the dough is on the parchment paper). Sprinkle a little more flour on top if it has been absorbed while rising.
Cover with lid: bake for 30 minutes covered.
Uncover pot: bake until bread is dark brown, 15-20 minutes.
Carefully lift bread using the parchment paper from pot and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Cool before slicing.

Notes

Here are some things to keep in mind regarding the ingredients.

Flour – If all you have is all-purpose flour on hand, that is fine to bake bread with. Although, bread flour does result in a very chewy crumb and it does keep the bread freshly for longer.
Wholewheat flour – You could use wholewheat (wholemeal) flour, just use a little bit less and increase to add more as you need as wholewheat flour is more absorbent.
Yeast – Instant or rapid rise yeast is fine to use and can be added right into the flours, doesn't need to be dissolved in water. I used active dry yeast.
Salt – I do not recommend using table salt, as it will turn out to be too salty. Sea salt or kosher is the best.
Water temperature – boiling hot will kill the yeast. It should be warm water (just above lukewarm), about 110-115°F. I always say like warm milk from a baby's bottle, too hot, and you wouldn't be able to drink it!

Some notes on the dough:

Dough rising- different factors will affect how the dough rises. The flour brand, room temperature, and humidity levels will all take an effect. As long as the dough is doubled in volume, wobbly, and bubbles on the surface, it doesn't matter if it rose faster or slower. It is a forgiving dough.
Too cold- In case your room is too cold and it's taking too long to rise, I like to turn on my heater and let it run a few minutes, and then put the bowl in the dryer. Do not let the dough rise in direct sunlight.
Dough consistency- the flour brand and the humidity of the room will affect how the texture of the dough is. I like to suggest while you're making the dough to not add all the flour at once. I would prefer the dough to be too sticky than too dry. Once you have added too much water, it's tricky to add water to loosen the dough and make it moist again. Much better to add less flour and keep adding if you need to to get to the full amount.
Dough rises fast-If your dough does happen to rise before you had a chance to preheat oven, go ahead and place the bowl in the refrigerator and get the oven heated.

No Dutch oven method: place a 20cm/8” square metal pan (NOT glass, could shatter) on center oven rack or bottom rack. Bring some water to boil. Place the dough on parchment paper on a baking tray. The metal pan with boiling water will create steam that is like baking in a Dutch oven.

Place tray in oven with the dough.
Fill the metal pan with boiling water. If it fits on middle rack next to tray with dough, fit it in there, if not, bottom rack.
Shut oven door and bake for 40-45 minutes, until it forms a nice crust with dark golden color.

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