Weekend Cooking: No Knead Bread

I have long been a fan of Great British Bake Off and by extension I now watch anything that Paul Hollywood is in. 

A couple of years ago now I was watching Paul Hollywood's City Bakes, and there was an episode set in New York. There were two segments that caught my attention. The first was when he mixed chocolate brownies and cheesecake together, which I do intend to try and make at some point in the future, and the second was when he learnt how to make no knead bread.

Now, I loved the idea of making bread, but it definitely feels like something that is too hard to do. All that kneading and having to get the gluten stretched to the right point, and rising. See, just thinking about it is challenging.

Anyway, not all that long ago I happened across that episode again and this time the BF was watching so it was agreed that we would try to make it. And, oh my goodness, it was good.

Now, to be fair, this isn't the kind of bread that you decide that you want to make now and eat later today. The most important ingredient is time. On the 3 occasions we have made it so far we have started it on Saturday morning and eaten it for Sunday brunch, but it is totally worth the time investment, because it looks and tastes amazing, and there is very little physical effort involved.

There is a video that you can watch from Paul Hollywood's show here (sorry can't embed it) but there is another video

We have recently found another version which apparently only takes 2 hours so we may well give that a try soon too.

 No Knead Bread

3 cups (400 grams) all-purpose or bread flour, plus more for the work surface
1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons (8 grams) salt
1 3/8 cups (320 millilitres) water
Cornmeal or wheat bran, as needed



1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the water and mix with your hand until you have a wet, sticky dough. This should take roughly 30 seconds. You want it to be really sticky.

2. Cover the dough and bowl with a plate, towel, or plastic wrap and set aside to rest at warm room temperature for at least 12 hours and preferably about 18 hours until the dough is roughly double in size. You’ll know the dough is properly fermented and ready because its surface will be dotted with bubbles and take on a darkened appearance. This long, slow fermentation is what yields the bread’s rich flavor.

3. Flour your work surface. Turn the dough onto the surface in one blob. The dough will cling to the bowl in long, thread-like strands and it will be quite loose and sticky. This is exactly what you want. Do not add more flour. Instead use lightly floured hands to gently and quickly lift the edges of the dough in toward the centre, effectively folding the dough over onto itself. Nudge and tuck in the edges of the dough to make it round. You don’t knead the dough.

4. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal. Place the dough, seam side down, on the towel and dust the surface with a little more flour, bran, or cornmeal. Cover the dough with another cotton towel and let it rise for about 2 hours. When it’s ready, the dough will be more than double in size and will hold the impression of your fingertip when you poke it lightly, making an indentation. If the dough readily springs back when you poke it, let it rise for another 15 minutes.

5. A half hour before the dough is done with its second rise, preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Place a heavy pot and its lid (whether cast iron or enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in the oven as it heats. We use cast iron

6. When the dough is done with its second rise, carefully remove the pot from the oven and uncover it. Also uncover the dough. Lift up the dough and quickly but gently turn it over into the pot, seam side up, being very careful not to touch the pot. Cover the pot with its lid and bake for 30 minutes.

7. Remove the lid and bake until the loaf is beautifully browned, which take 15 to 30 minutes. Carefully lift the bread out of the pot and place it on a wire rack to cool.  It should sound hollow when it is tapped on the bottom.


Try to resist eating it before it is cooled, but it will be tough as the bread smells amazing.

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