No Knead Bread

Our second bread machine died in as many years. I was distraught and believed that we needed a really heavy duty machine. I settled on the Bosch Mum 86 which retails at SGD1200/=. As versatile as a Kitchen Aid but with a more powerful motor. When I discussed with The Husband, he asked "Buy it if you really want it badly." 

So I took a few days to examine if I really wanted it BADLY.

I didn't want the machine BADLY... it's just that I hate store bought breads and the kind of artisanal bread I like costs almost SGD$10 a loaf. So I decided to explore bread making a bit more to see if I could make bread every 2 days without having to spend too long in the kitchen. 

That's when I discovered No Knead Bread.

One would have thought that the idea of a bread that didn't require kneading was a contradiction in terms. I thought the idea so impossible that it was intriguing. But well, the idea does exist and Petunia actually managed to bake the best bread she has EVER made without kneading.

Just stir. Proof 8 hours. Shape. Proof 2 hours. Plop into Dutch oven (must be a very HOT preheated Dutch Oven). Bake. 

Total preparation time : 10 minutes. 

Total waiting time: 10 hours. 

Total baking time: 20 minutes

I prepare the dough in the morning. I bake it after work OR I prepare the dough at night and bake the next morning. It works around my work schedule perfectly well and my family eats delicious home made bread. The bread is seriously better than what came out of my 2 dead bread machines. I had never had confidence to make bread without the bread machine because bread making is supposed to be so hard.

With the invention of No Knead Bread, breadmaking has become really very easy and idiot proof.

Risen dough after 3 hours.

My glass Dutch oven. Glass takes less time to heat up than cast iron so I didn't use the Le Creuset. The Dutch oven is important because artisanal breads (which I love) have thick crusts. Professional bakers introduce steam into their ovens when baking, to wet the crust and then bake it. The Dutch oven keeps the steam inside the pot and thus crust is both steamed and baked without the introduction of extra steam in the oven.

The finished loaf with a THICK crusty crust.

Look at the HUGE holes and the thick crust.

My recipe is HERE.