No-Knead White Bread - 4 Hour Recipe
Perfect for tearing into pieces and dipping into the rich sauce of autumn stews. This is that classic white bread with a crispy crust and soft crumb. For preparation, you don't need any special equipment/mixer, just a wide bowl and a spoon. It requires no kneading, just a few successive folds. I wanted a bread with the shortest possible preparation time, so it becomes the go-to recipe when we want fresh, warm bread on the table in just over 4 hours.
Ingredients
320 g white flour (550, 650, or Italian pizza/focaccia flour)
220 g lukewarm water
3 g dry yeast
5-10 g salt
Calories: 1,110 kcal (200 kcal / 100 g baked bread)
Carbohydrates: 231 g
Protein: 34 g
How to prepare no-knead white bread - 4 hour recipe
- In a wide bowl, weigh out the yeast. Pour the lukewarm water over it and stir to dissolve. Add the flour and salt and with a wooden spoon stir just until the flour is completely absorbed.
- Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and let it sit for 30 minutes in a warm place (between 26-30C; I place it in the oven set to 30C).
- Fold the dough as follows: with wet hands, grab one end, pull up and bring half of the dough over the other half. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees and repeat. Do this 2 more times - you will essentially stretch and fold the dough 4 times. Cover the bowl again and let it sit another 30 minutes in a warm place.
* here you can find a video showing how to do a round of dough folding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=QYzxulQY1Gc - Repeat the 4 folds once more - this time you'll feel that the dough is softer, more elastic, and already homogeneous. Let it rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
- On a floured surface, turn the dough out of the bowl. The dough will be slightly sticky. Cut the dough into 2, 4, or 6 pieces (I make 6 pieces, so they're roll-sized). Pull the edges of each piece of dough underneath to form a roll. Roll it on the surface to make it as round as possible.
- Let them rest for 10 minutes - the dough balls will relax. Gently pull the edges underneath again to create a bit of tension in the dough. Roll gently on the surface to give them a slightly elongated shape, like a small loaf.
- Place the rolls in a shallow baking pan lined with parchment paper, spaced apart from each other. Cover the pan with foil and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C.
- Dust the breads with a little flour using a tea strainer. With your hand, spread the flour over the dough, including the edges. With a very sharp blade, make a cut about 1/4 cm deep along the length of the breads. Make the cut in one single motion if possible. Sprinkle a little water (1-2 tablespoons) with your fingers into the pan, between the breads.
- Cover the pan with a lid and bake at 220C for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue baking for another 10 minutes until the breads are golden. If you formed only 2 pieces, leave the breads in the oven until nicely golden - it will take at most 5 minutes longer than with 6 pieces.
* the crust is crispy on the day it's baked; it keeps well until the next day, the crumb doesn't become crumbly
