No-knead Bread
By Katy Hume
No-knead Bread
By Katy Hume
Yield/Serves:
Makes 1 loaf
- 3¼ cups unbleached, all-purpose flour, plus more flour to dust work surface
- ¼ tsp instant or rapid-rise yeast
- 1½ tsp regular kosher salt
- 1 cup room-temperature water
- ¾ cup room-temperature beer (preferably ale)
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, yeast and salt. Add the water and beer and mix together until a shaggy ball of dough forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Allow to sit at room temperature overnight or up to 18 hours.
- The dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
- Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton kitchen towel with flour; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour. Cover with another towel and let rise for 1½ hours or until the dough has doubled in size. About 30 minutes before the dough is ready, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a 6-to-8-quart cast-iron pot on the bottom rack of the oven while it heats.
- When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and flip the dough into pot, seam side up. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.