Easy No-Knead Bread
This easy No-Knead Bread loaf has a deliciously crisp crust and a soft spongy center. It’s the perfect blend of soft and chewy. With only 4 ingredients (flour, salt, yeast and water), you can make a bakery-quality, scrumptious loaf of homemade bread.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Easy No-Knead Bread Recipe:
Dutch Oven Bread is surprisingly easy – there is no kneading required. You just need a bowl and a wooden spoon to stir the ingredients together. Let it rise on the counter overnight and it’s ready for the oven.
We love the aroma of freshly baked homemade bread in our house, like from our staple White Bread Machine Bread, our classic French Buns and of course for the sweet tooth: Cheese Sweet Rolls.
We make bread in our kitchen at least twice a week. According to my husband, this easy no-knead bread is the best for him. We made this recipe countless times because it’s so easy and needs so little attention. It bakes to perfection every time and you will fall in love with the spongy soft texture instantly.
What is the Best Flour for Bread?
Bread flour is typically recommended for bread making, but this recipe works great with either bread flour or all-purpose flour. We have tested both and we don’t see difference between the two. Both rise nicely and provide incredible results. I prefer using all-purpose flour because it’s the one I always have on hand for all the baking I do.
Ingredients for Easy Dutch Oven Bread:
The ingredient list is short and the measurements can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of this page.
- Flour – we need all-purpose flour that you all have in your pantries. No need for the fancy stuff!
- Fine salt – gives flavor and makes it extra delicious.
- Instant yeast – I use instant dry yeast as it’s my #1 yeast in the house, but you can definitely use active yeast. I tried with both, and don’t see difference.
- Warm water – it’s important to make sure your water is at room temperature, but not too hot so it doesn’t deactivate the yeast.
How to Make Easy Homemade Bread:
1. In a glass measuring cup, combine to dissolve warm water (100-110°F) and sprinkle instant dry yeast over the top. Let it sit 2-3 minutes.
2. Into a large mixing bowl, sift all-purpose flour and add salt. Whisk to combine.
3. Pour in the water mixture and use a wooden spoon to stir until all of the flour is incorporated (do not knead). The dough will be very sticky, but do not add additional flour.
4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest on your counter or inside your unheated oven for 18 hours to 24 hours.
5. Place an empty dutch oven and lid inside the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Once preheated, remove dutch oven and place on the stove. Be careful not to touch the dutch oven or lid without oven mitts because it will be very hot.
6. Meanwhile, generously dust a cutting board or work surface with flour. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the dough out (which will be very thin and sticky) onto the floured surface. With help of pastry scraper or well-floured hands, shape the dough by folding the dough in half and then fold in half again, pulling the dough together into a loose ball.
7. Sprinkle the bottom of the dutch oven with flour or cornmeal and carefully place (or drop) the dough in the center of your hot dutch oven. Cover with lid and bake for 30 minutes at 450°F. Carefully remove hot lid and bake for another 15 minutes to 20 minutes until golden brown.
8. Remove the bread from the pot (it should fall out easily) and place directly on wire rack to cool completely until it’s nearly room temperature before slicing it.
Quick Tips:
- Use warm water – between 100°F to 110°F. Avoid using hot water or it will deactivate the yeast.
- Substitute for active yeast – instant dry yeast can be replaced for active dry yeast. Use 3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast in this recipe.
- Measure correctly – spoon flour into a measuring cup and level off the top with the back of a knife.
- Rising the dough – draft-free room temperature, unheated oven or turned off microwave. Avoid placing dough into hot oven to rise. Hot temperature will deactivate and ruin the yeast.
- For round, less flat bread – use a 4qt or 5 qt dutch oven so that the bread rises upwards, rather than spreading out over the entire surface of bigger pot.
- Preheat the oven and dutch oven – placing the bread into hot dutch will help form a beautiful crust.
- Flour the dutch oven – to make sure your bread doesn’t stick to the pot, sprinkle flour or cornmeal on the bottom of the preheated pot.
- Cool before slicing – always wait for hot bread to cool to room temperature before slicing. Cutting it while hot, will release too much steam and the bread will become gummy.
Do You Need Dutch Oven?
The key to making this crusty easy no-knead bread is that you need something really heavy and thick so that it holds and radiates heat well and it must have a lid. A thick glass or stoneware dish may also work, but probably not as well as cast iron dutch oven.
I used a 4 qt Martha Stewart dutch oven, which can be purchased as low as $40 on sale. You do not need to spend hundreds of dollars on single dutch oven. Martha Stewart and other brands have different sizes of dutch ovens for a lot cheaper. They all do the same job!
Do I Need to Proof the Yeast?
You do not need to proof the yeast for this bread recipe. You can just combine it with flour. However, I like to dissolve the yeast in water before combining with the flour to make sure it incorporates equally throughout the dough.
Why Did my Bread Stick to the Pot?
To prevent your bread from sticking to the pot, make sure your dutch oven is hot enough before adding the dough. Also, make sure to sprinkle some flour or cornmeal on the bottom of hot pot before adding the dough.
Alternatively, you would use parchment paper to keep bread from sticking to the pot, but I don’t do it because all the brands of parchment paper I have say 420°F maximum. I don’t want my oven or your oven to get on fire, so let’s use flour to avoid any risk.
My Bread is Too Dense:
Usually bread is too dense if there is too much flour. Keep in mind that this dough will be pretty sticky, so don’t be tempted to add more flour. Also, humidity and age of the flour could be another factor.
Follow the instructions and avoid overmixing the dough in the beginning or before baking. There is no kneading required that is why this bread is called ‘No-Knead’.
Readers Favorite Bread Recipes:
- White Bread Machine Bread – family staple bread recipe for decades
- Cheese Vatrushka – with the scrumptious cheese filling and fluffy dough
- Ukrainian Pumpkin Bread – this bread is made all-year round (Easter and Christmas are a must!)
- French Bread Buns – these are so easy and go well together with any soup
- Banana Berries Bread – moist banana bread, loaded with fresh berries
- Cherry Pizza Pie – amazing cherry and cheese topping
Easy No-Knead Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon fine salt, (for saltier, do 1 1/2 tsp)
- 1/2 teaspoon instant dry yeast
- 1 1/2 cups warm water (100-110°F)
Instructions
- In a glass measuring cup, combine to dissolve 1 1/2 cups warm water and 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast. Let it sit 2-3 mins.
- Into a large mixing bowl, sift 3 cups all-purpose flour and add 1 tsp fine salt. Whisk to combine.
- Pour in the water mixture and use a wooden spoon to stir until all of the flour is incorporated (do not knead). The dough will be very sticky, but do not add additional flour.
- Cover the bowl with a plastic food wrap and let the dough rest on your counter or inside your unheated over for 18 hours to 24 hours.
- Place an empty dutch oven and lid inside the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. Once preheated, remove dutch oven and place on the stove. Be careful not to touch the dutch oven or lid without oven mitts because it will be very hot.
- Meanwhile, generously dust a cutting board or work surface with flour. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the dough out (which will be very thin and sticky) onto the floured surface. With help of pastry scraper or well-floured hands, shape the dough by folding the dough in half and then fold in half again, pulling the dough together into a loose ball.
- Sprinkle the bottom of the dutch oven with flour or cornmeal and carefully place (or drop) the bread in the center of your hot dutch oven. Cover with lid and bake for 30 minutes at 450°F. Carefully remove hot lid and bake for another 15 minutes to 20 minutes until golden brown.
- Remove the bread from the pot (it should fall out easily) and place directly on wire rack to cool completely until it’s nearly room temperature before slicing it.
Notes
- Use warm water – between 100°F to 110°F. Avoid using hot water or it will deactivate the yeast.
- Substitute for active yeast – instant dry yeast can be replaced for active dry yeast. Use 3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast in this recipe.
- Measure correctly – spoon flour into a measuring cup and level off the top with the back of a knife.
- Rising the dough – draft-free room temperature, unheated oven or turned off microwave. Avoid placing dough into hot oven to rise. Hot temperature will deactivate and ruin the yeast.
- For round, less flat bread – use a 4qt or 5 qt dutch oven so that the bread rises upwards, rather than spreading out over the entire surface of bigger pot.
- Preheat the oven and dutch oven – placing the bread into hot dutch will help form a beautiful crust.
- Flour the dutch oven – to make sure your bread doesn’t stick to the pot, sprinkle flour or cornmeal on the bottom of the preheated pot.
- Cool bread before slicing – always wait for hot bread to cool to room temperature before slicing. Cutting hot bread will release too much steam and the bread will become gummy.
KIM says:
CAN YOU MAKE THIS GLUTEN FREE
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Kim! I haven’t tried substituting for gluten-free before, so I cannot really advise. However, I did a bit of research, and found that some people had success by using a gluten replacement such as xanthan gum. If you decide to experiment please let me know how you like it. 🙂
Mira K says:
This bread is so easy. I made it twice over the past couple days. The first time, I did exactly like the recipe and the second time I mixed in some dried cranberries. Super easy, super delicious bread and I will be making it again over and over again. Also, I did 18-19 hours since the no-knead bread requires it and highly recommend for anyone who’s making it for the first time. I made regular bread all the time, but the long-rising makes a huge difference. Thanks Olga for another delicious recipe!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thank you for the wonderful review, Mira! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe!
Janice says:
I made this bread, it is delicious and sooooo easy…
But I only let the dough rise for about an hour and it was double, how can you let it sit for ‘up to 12-24 hours.’?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Janice! This recipe is made to rest for 18-24 hours for many reasons. The no-knead bread (like this recipe) gets its power from a long, slow rise at room temperature. In other words, because it’s ‘no-knead’, the long-rising is required. It gives a different (delicious) bread flavor than regular bread, it provides bigger holes in bread and most importantly – the bread will stay fresh for much longer. My sister decided to do 7 hours and she said bread got moldy within 2 days, where the 18-24 hour process will prevent bread getting moldy for over a week (up to 2 weeks, from personal experience). So yes, you can bake this bread after proofing for 1-2 hours, but the outcome of the bread will be different than the actual recipe in this post. It’s as if you’re making a totally different bread recipe. Hope this helps!
Laurie says:
Hello can this recipe be made into baguettes? Any special instructions?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Laurie! Without experimenting it myself, I’m not sure how/if these would work for baguette. You would need to use a baking sheet process for baking these and figure out a way to keep the shape of baguette. I personally don’t like the baking sheet process of baking this bread because the bread tends to rise to the sides, rather than to the top. So the baguette will most likely end up on a flat side. (If other readers have experimented of putting this recipe into baguette, please share that with us here. Thanks in advance!)
Kaylee says:
I cannot comment in the taste yet because mine is still cooling but this recipe was so easy and the crust looks remarkable.
Question… would this recipe do okay with add ins? I’d like to try adding fresh ground black pepper, roasted garlic and dried Rosemary the next time but I didn’t know if that would affect the rising at all.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
I have not experienced it myself, but other readers have added add-ins with success. I have heard about rosemary, fried onions, garlic, bagel spices, etc. (Make sure to read previous comments and there are tons of comments of add-ins success on Pinterest under this bread pins).
Kaylee says:
Thank you! I tried to read through but there’s a lot of comments 😂 this is a popular recipe!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
lol this is one of the most loved recipes on the entire blog 🙂
Erin says:
I’m very eager to try this recipe but I don’t have a Dutch oven. Could I use an oven-safe pot?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Erin! I would probably suggest one of these options for best results if you don’t have a Dutch Oven. A heavy corningware baking dish with lid, a covered metal pot or soup pot with lid would work as long as either are 450F safe. If you don’t have a lid, use a heavy-duty aluminum foil making sure you seal the pot really well. In general, you want something heavier/thicker so the bread doesn’t burn at that high temperature and end up uncooked on the inside. Also, you don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on a Dutch Oven. Most of mine are Martha Stewart brand I purchased at Macy’s for 10 times cheaper than these branded once; they are on sale all the time. They are heavier than Le Creuset, but do the same job and I use them daily for everything, bread especially :).
Katerina says:
We made 2 loaves of this bread in our new Martha Stewart cast iron (recommended by you) for Christmas and this bread was a huge hit. Our guests kept asking where we bought the bread and we told them we got it from Olga in the Kitchen. This bread is so easy for a beginner and you just can’t go wrong anywhere here if you follow the tips. Amazing fool-proof recipe and we will definitely be using it again.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thank you for sharing that with us, Katerina! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! 🙂
Kimberly says:
I followed the directions exactly and the bread stuck HARD to the bottom of my dutch oven, creating quite a mess. I’m assuming everyone who makes this uses an expensive, coated cast iron pot. My pot is a regular, seasoned, cast iron dutch oven. I wouldn’t call this a “no fail” bread unless you update the directions to state you have to buy an expensive pot before you can make it!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Hi Kimberly! No, you don’t need an expensive cast iron. I personally don’t even own one myself. I use a $16 cast iron for this bread all the time. If your bread stuck, this would happen if your pot was not hot enough. (I know it because it happened once to me). You need to preheat the cast iron by putting it into the oven with the lid, the moment you turn on your oven and the cast iron MUST be really hot before you add the bread. Also, in step 7 – I suggest to flour the bottom of the pot before putting the bread. Following both of these suggestions, it’s impossible not to get a beautiful loaf. Hope this helps! 🙂
Michelina Evelyn Guerriero says:
I made this bread tonight, and it turned out good, but the crust is so hard that I can’t bite it easily. I ended up putting the bread in some chicken soup I made to soften the crust. I have veneers on my two front teeth and I am afraid to bite the crust. Is the crust supposed to be really hard like that, or did I do something wrong
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Yes, this bread is crusty. If you baked longer than the recipe says, it will get more crusty within any extra minute. But a little advice because I have seen my mom do it all the time (for her and dad): she wraps the bread into plastic food wrap while it’s still hot. The hot bread let’s out steam (which you will see underneath the plastic wrap), but it keeps the bread soft. It still has a crust, but it’s very soft when you bite it. And I would advice to keep it in plastic food wrap or even in ziploc bag until you finish the loaf so it stays soft. Hope this helps 🙂
Wendy says:
Loved this recipe! I’m making my second loaf as I write this review. Is there a way to incorporate flavors into the loaf? For example, could I add some garlic powder or chili powder to the recipe?
Olga in the Kitchen says:
I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying this recipe, Wendy! I have not experienced myself, but I see people in comments and on my Pinterest account (under bread pins) saying they added different flavors, such as different dry herbs, fried onions, etc. they all say it works out pretty well (a success), so I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. Hope this helps 🙂