No-knead Bread

[The Dude]

Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.h...
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13Ah9ES2yTU

Apparently the technique became famous a couple of years back when Jim Lahey (of Sullivan Street Bakery, NY) had it published in the NY Times. I accidentally discovered the article last week so yesterday I decided to have a go. I'm at the final rising stage now (after 18 hours initial rising!) - 2 hours to go before it goes into the oven.

I'll post back with the results.

(sometimes the NY Times website asks for registration but it seems to let you in if you go via Google: http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls... )

Edited by The Dude on Saturday 11th October 11:50

[The Dude]

Turned out pretty well.

The texture (as you can see) is similar to french bread but with a softer crumb, which would come from the cooking method I guess - in a covered cooking pot for 2/3s of the cooking so the dough essentially steams, then the remainder with the lid off which gives it that lovely crust.

Tastes like proper home-made bread, not at all yeasty (which is not surprising as there's barely a 1/4 teaspoon in the recipe).

Absolutely recommended - unbelievably simple to do.

Now, pass me the butter

Edited by The Dude on Saturday 11th October 11:48

[grumbledoak]

Looks lovely, dude. And such a tiny amount of yeast, too.

[Coq au Vin]

Well done - looks brilliant! Haven't made that one for a while, but the technique of cooking it in a pot is something I've stuck with for my sourdough.

You might be thinking that maybe there are ways to get away with a lot less kneading in more "normal" breads too. You'd be right - kneading for a few very short periods (<30 seconds each) at 10 minute intervals has much the same effect as kneading for one solid 10 minute block. I can recommend getting your hands on a copy of "The Handmade Loaf" by Dan Lepard: opens up a whole new world of simple bread making.

[HundredthIdiot]

Semolina gives an interesting finish to this, IIRC from my experiments last year.

Must try again now that winter is coming....

[The Dude]

HundredthIdiot said:

Semolina gives an interesting finish to this, IIRC from my experiments last year.

Must try again now that winter is coming....

I thought about that as its used in one of my favourite bread recipes from Truly Italian (book): spinach and olive bread.

Couple of things from making the no-knead bread that people who've tried it might be able to help with;

- the crust, if anything, was a little too thick. I've read that this can be because of the dough rising too fast? If that's the case, should I use colder water (for the dough) or leave the dough in a slightly cooler place (put it in the boiler cupboard)?

[Coq au Vin]

The Dude said:

HundredthIdiot said:

Semolina gives an interesting finish to this, IIRC from my experiments last year.

Must try again now that winter is coming....

I thought about that as its used in one of my favourite bread recipes from Truly Italian (book): spinach and olive bread.

Couple of things from making the no-knead bread that people who've tried it might be able to help with;

- the crust, if anything, was a little too thick. I've read that this can be because of the dough rising too fast? If that's the case, should I use colder water (for the dough) or leave the dough in a slightly cooler place (put it in the boiler cupboard)?

The main thing that affects the thickness of the crust is the cooking time and temp. Short + hot = thiner crust, long + less hot = thicker crust. Try winding up the heat a bit and leave the lid on the pot for a bit longer.

[The Dude]

Coq au Vin said:

The Dude said:

HundredthIdiot said:

Semolina gives an interesting finish to this, IIRC from my experiments last year.

Must try again now that winter is coming....

I thought about that as its used in one of my favourite bread recipes from Truly Italian (book): spinach and olive bread.

Couple of things from making the no-knead bread that people who've tried it might be able to help with;

- the crust, if anything, was a little too thick. I've read that this can be because of the dough rising too fast? If that's the case, should I use colder water (for the dough) or leave the dough in a slightly cooler place (put it in the boiler cupboard)?

The main thing that affects the thickness of the crust is the cooking time and temp. Short + hot = thiner crust, long + less hot = thicker crust. Try winding up the heat a bit and leave the lid on the pot for a bit longer.

I'll give it a try.

Thanks.