Irene and Edwin

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No-Knead Boule

No-knead bread baked in a cast-iron double skillet or Dutch oven to contain the moisture and fake using a steam oven for good crust development.

No-knead Bread (Boule)

A recipe that requires no kneading and is baked in pre-heated cast iron to produce an awesome crust.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time55 minutes
No-knead Rise12 hours
Total Time13 hours
Course: Bread
Cuisine: Classic
Keyword: Bread
Servings: 1 loaf
Author: Edwin Voskamp

Equipment

  • Cast Iron Double Skillet or Dutch Oven

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

  • 564 g bread flour
  • 11 g fine sea salt
  • 2 g instant dry yeast

Wet Ingredients

  • 423 g water 105F

Instructions

  • Mix the dry ingredients.
    If you use dry active yeast, use 105F water and mix in the yeast, wait a few minutes, then pour it in. If you use instant dry yeast you can mix it in with the dry ingredients or dissolve it in water. If you use live yeast, double it and dissolve it in the water as well.
    Add the water.
  • Set the dough in a lightly greased container with a lid, or shrink wrap.
    Let rise 12-48 hours, depending on temperature (I usually let it rise for 12 hours at 72F).
  • Turn the dough out on a floured surface.
    Shape the loaf by stretching with floured hands from the center on top away in all directions and tuck under the loaf.
    Repeat until the loaf is smooth and feels soft.
  • Take a cast-iron Dutch oven or double skillet (when using a double skillet I put the shallow one on the bottom) and put in the oven on a middle rack.
    Preheat to 475F.
  • Put the dough ball in a floured towel (or bowl, with towel cover).
    Let rise (1-2 hours, depending on temperature).
  • Open the oven, pull out the rack, take off the lid or top double skillet.
    Carefully put the dough ball in the center of the cast iron, with what was the underside you tucked the dough under on top. It forms a natural crown to let the steam from inside the dough escape, and you won’t have to score the loaf.
    Put the lid on, and bake in the oven for 45 minutes.
  • Take the lid off, and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
  • Take the cast iron out of the oven, and take the bread immediately out of the cast iron (the cast iron retains a lot of heat and will overcook the loaf).
    Let cool down for 5 minutes.

Notes

Based on a recipe in Modern Break, Book 4, p. 32.

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