No-Knead Bread: Recipes with Forethought
Posted by Chas Grundy on January 8, 2010 under Loaves
Trying to pick the next bread recipe has been tough. There are so many breads I want to try my hand at, and some great ones that I want to try again. If you have any that you’d like to see me try (and try yourself if you’re following along) please leave me a note in the comments.
Bread is rarely an off-the-cuff idea – it takes time to make, let it rise, bake, etc. But sometimes it takes even longer. I’m looking forward to making sourdough bread – with my own sourdough starter. This will take at least a few days (probably longer, because I love really the sour sourdough taste). When this kind of prep is needed, I’ll post ahead of time so you can follow along.
This week, I’m going to try Jim Lahey’s No-Knead Bread. I’m starting tonight.
No-Knead Bread requires a little prep work. You start the dough a day ahead of time and let the small amount of yeast work more naturally. It also needs a nice, oven-safe pot with a lid. The heavy lid essentially traps the steam which helps create a thick crust. Pro bakeries accomplish this with fancy steaming ovens that mist during the baking process. Jim Lahey’s trick is great for the rest of us. Read a review here, also from the New York Times.
I’ll post photos when the results are done, but the No-Knead Bread recipe can be found on the New York Times website. It’s about as purist as it gets, though: the ingredients are flour, water, yeast, and salt.