No-Knead Bread

This recipe has brought me and many others a lot of happiness. While living in Germany for approximately 12 years of my adult life, bread became a big part of my daily existence. I often told people that it was the bread, not the beer, that was irreplaceable in the US. Then I discovered this recipe, and it comes as close to anything in mimicking good, hardy, thick-crusted German bread. The secret is time and the Dutch oven within a very hot conventional oven. Here's the recipe, with my tweaks, I got from the NY Times.

 

No-Knead Bread

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November 8, 2006

Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

·        15 oz. all-purpose or bread flour, or 10 oz. AP/5 oz. Whole Wheat (I use King Arthur brand for both)

·        ¼ teaspoon instant yeast (Rapid Rise)

·        1.5-2 teaspoons salt 

·        Cornmeal for dusting

1.     In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1.5 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees. 

2.     Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. I find corn meal to work the best. Then gently and quickly shape dough into a ball.

 3.     Place a sheet of parchment over a bowl and spray with non-stick spray. Place dough ball into bowl, loosely cover with plastic and rise 1-2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4.     At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats.   

5.     When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Lift dough parchment paper and place into pot; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 20 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.