Dutch Oven Bread (Long Rise + No Knead)
No Knead Dutch Oven Bread is easy to make with 4 ingredients and overnight (12 – 18 hour) rise time. Thanks to the long-rise, this fail-proof recipe bakes into an incredibly flavorful homemade bread with an open crumb and golden crust!
I’ve made beautiful loaves of bread with this easy no knead bread recipe using a dutch oven, recreating the scrumptious bread made in great bakery houses right in my kitchen.
And it’s just about foolproof – proving that anyone can make yeast bread!
What Is No Knead Dutch Oven Bread?
No knead Dutch Oven Bread is made with flour, yeast, water, and salt. You quickly mix the ingredients, cover, and let rest overnight (12 – 18 hours). When ready, shape dough into a ball, place in a preheated dutch oven, and bake in a very hot oven. With no kneading involved, it’s the absolute simplest recipe and results in a delicious crusty bread with a golden crust and tender center with an open crumb!
I’ve done another no knead Artisan Bread, which requires only 2 hours of rise time and is baked in a skillet. This Dutch Oven No Knead Bread is a long-rise version. The longer rise time results in the MOST FLAVORFUL bread because it gives the flavors a chance to develop – greatly enhancing the flavor. And using the covered dutch oven will steam the bread during baking, creating an extra crispy crust!
What If I don’t have a Dutch oven?
No worries! You can still make no knead dutch oven bread in any 5 – 8 qt. oven-safe pot or pan (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex, or ceramic) with a fitted lid.
Can I Make No Knead Dutch Oven Bread Gluten Free?
Yes, you can make any artisan, no knead, dutch oven bread gluten-free by using a 1-to-1 gluten-free all-purpose flour that contains xanthan gum. If it doesn’t contain xanthan gum, add 3/4 teaspoons for this recipe. No other changes are needed! Just note that it will have a slightly different taste and may not rise as much.
How To Make Dutch Oven Bread
Here’s a look at the ingredients and steps with photos for reference. (Note, the full printable recipe card is below.)
Ingredients You’ll Need
- 3 cups flour – We’ve made this dutch oven bread using spelt, whole wheat, all-purpose, and bread flour. Most of the time, we use a combination of bread flour and spelt.
- 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast – Since instant and dry yeast is interchangeable, you can easily substitute instant yeast 1-1 for any active dry yeast.
- 1 teaspoon salt – Use sea salt or our favorite, pink Himalayan sea salt, which contains beneficial minerals and trace elements.
- 1 and 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons water – Water should be at room temperature.
Make the dough
- Add the flour, salt, and yeast to an extra large mixing bowl, and mix well (*be sure to use a large enough bowl since the dough will expand and bloom, doubling in size as it rises).
- Add the water and quickly mix to combine – using your fingers is fine, or a wooden spoon. The trick here is to mix just until there are no streaks of flour, 30 seconds or so is all it takes, no kneading. Dough may be shaggy looking (above right), but this is just right!
Let dough rise
- Cover the bowl tightly with saran wrap and place it on the counter, away from drafts, and preferably at a room temperature of 70 degrees F.
- Let dough rest, undisturbed, for at least 12 hours and up to 18. When done rising, the dough will have doubled in size and have a plump, bubbly texture (shown above left).
Shape the dough
- Lightly flour a flat working surface. Tilt the bowl on its side, and using a rubber spatula, scrape the dough onto the floured surface. The dough will be tacky but should peel away from the bowl fairly easily.
- Add a little flour to your hands and top of the dough, fold it over onto itself once or twice, then gently shape the dough into a ball.
- Transfer dough to a piece of parchment paper, cover loosely with a smooth cotton towel, and let rest for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Heat the oven
- We want the oven to get nice and hot! Turn the oven to 450 degrees F, and place a Dutch oven with the lid on in the center of the oven. If you don’t have a Dutch oven, a stock pot, or other 6 qt. oven-safe pan or pot will do just fine.
- Let the oven preheat for at least 30 minutes.
Bake the dough
- Place dough on parchment paper, if you haven’t done this already, using a sharp knife, slice an X or zigzag, cutting 1/4 inch deep (this is optional), and sprinkle with a few seeds if you have some on hand (shown above left). I added sesame and poppy seeds to the top.
- Grab the parchment paper ends and place the dough in a Dutch oven, cover, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for an additional 10 – 15 minutes to allow the top to turn golden brown.
And that’s it, with only 4 ingredients and simple to put together, making vegan yeast bread at home will be a pleasure!
See it in action!
If you’d like to watch this no knead bread being made in action, check out this Youtube video with Mark Bittman & Jim Lahey – takes 5 minutes to watch and is super helpful!
Adjusting Cups To Grams
For those baking using weight instead of cups, here is a handy guide King Arthur’s Ingredient Weight Chart. Simply use the search filter to find the flour you are using.
Serving Suggestions
This no knead has a nice textured crumb with a wonderful crusty shell and is so good straight from the oven as is. Here are a few other ideas to pair with your loaf:
- Dip it: Dipping it in extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar or smearing it with a little vegan butter wouldn’t be so bad either!
- Pasta: It’s great for swiping up every last bit of sauce in this Spinach and Ricotta Vegan Stuffed Shells or Eggplant Puttanesca.
- Soup: Of course, soups are almost always better with a chunk of bread! Soak up the juices from this Tomato Basil Soup, Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup, or Potato, Leek and White Bean Soup.
- Jam: For breakfast, toast up a slice and top with this Triple Berry Chia Seed Jam and/or Homemade Almond Butter!
If you try this dutch oven bread recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintNO KNEAD DUTCH OVEN BREAD: LONG RISE
Making no knead Dutch Oven Bread is SO easy, requiring only 4 ingredients, with virtually no hands-on, and a long rise time for flavorful fresh from the oven homemade bread!
- Prep Time: 12 – 18 hours
- Total Time: 12 – 18 hours
- Yield: Makes 1 loaf, serves 8 – 10 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 3 cups flour (all-purpose or bread), + more for dusting
- 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 5/8 cups water (1 and 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons)
Instructions
Mix: In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast, and salt. Add the water, and stir until blended; the dough will be shaggy and sticky.
1st Rise: Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
Shape: Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it. The easy way is to tilt the bowl and use a rubber spatula to scrap down the sides, turning the dough out onto the floured surface. Sprinkle the dough with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball.
2nd Rise: Lightly sprinkle your parchment paper with flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal, and put dough seam side down, dust lightly. Cover with a smooth cotton towel or large round mixing bowl, and let rise for 30 minutes – 2 hours.
Preheat oven: At least 30 minutes before the dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Place a 6 to 8-quart heavy-covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex, or ceramic) in the oven so it heats up nice and hot.
Bake: When ready, carefully remove the pot, uncover, lift the edges of the parchment paper with dough, and place it straight in the pot. Cover with a lid, place back in the oven and bake for 20 – 30 minutes. Remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Once done, carefully pull the bread up using the edges of the parchment paper and let cool on a wire rack.
Makes one 1 1/2 pound loaf
Notes
What If I don’t have a Dutch oven? No worries, you can still make no knead bread in any oven safe pot or pan (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic), at least 5 quarts, with a fitted lid will do great!
What if I don’t have instant yeast? No worries, you can safely substitute instant yeast 1-1 for any active dry yeast in this recipe.
Can I Make No Knead Bread Gluten Free? Yes, you can use 1-to-1 gluten-free all-purpose flour with good results. Bread will form hard crust, the center is nice, but it will taste different and may not rise as much.
To make pizza dough: Follow the steps to make the dough, if making the larger master recipe, use ¼ of the dough and shape it into a square or round pizza. Par-bake the dough for 7 – 10 minutes at 450 degrees F, carefully remove from oven, top with sauce and pizza topping, and bake for another 10 – 15 minutes.
Using Grams: For those baking using weight instead of cups, here is a handy guide King Arthur’s Ingredient Weight Chart. Simply use the search filter to find the flour you are using.
Here is my other recipe for Artisan Bread: Short Rise. I would suggest taking hints from both recipes and creating something unique and wonderful to suit your needs. Together these recipes will give you great fresh bread whenever you want. Here is an article from Huffington Post about the different uses of flours you may find helpful as well – Flour Guide: Which Types To Use For Baking
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This is an excellent, crusty bread. I’ve been baking bread for almost sixty years, but I never tried a ‘knead-less’ method before. This was a pleasant surprise. Not all flours are equally dry. This might be why some had issues with the dough. I used bread flour that was rather dry so added an extra T of water. Worked perfectly. I hope those who had issues keep trying because this is an excellent loaf. It IS crusty (which I love), so soft-crust lovers keep that in mind. Serving it with French Lentil soup tonight!
Thank you for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Mari! Thanks for the sharing your tips. I hope you make it often. Cheers :)
I’ve been making this bread for many years. Sometimes it doesn’t come out as light and airy, especially when I mix in other kinds of flour (wholewheat or rye), but it’s always very tasty, much better than any store bought bread. So I would suggest if you are new to this – don’t be afraid of flat or otherwise imperfectly looking dough and go ahead and bake it. Alternatively, this dough can be used for stuffed pastry such as hand pies, calzones, etc. or roll it flat and bake it on a very hot cast iron pan. We made many stove top “pizzas” this way.
My Dutch oven is 2.75 at. Could I split the dough after rising and make 2 loaves?
Yes, halving the dough or recipe should work just fine baking in a smaller pot! I used a 6 qt for whole loaf in the photos and there was still plenty of room around the edges once baked. If prepping the whole recipe, you can refrigerate the other half for later if you don’t plan on making both loaves. Would love to know how it goes, it’s super helpful to others as well. Enjoy!
If I don’t have a dutch oven or an oven-safe pot what would be another alternative baking container for the bread? At the moment I cannot afford a dutch oven
Yes, you can still make this no knead bread in any oven safe pot or pan (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic), at least 5 quarts, with a fitted lid! You can check out my no knead Artisan Bread which uses a skillet. Do let us know how it goes for you or if you have any other questions!
I made this and it turned out flat. I let it rise for 18 hours and it did rise significantly, but it seemed to deflate after I shaped it and it never recovered. Does anyone have any suggestions? I did use the right yeast and make sure the water was not too hot or cold.
Hmm, sometimes it just may not work. Maybe it’s a bit too cool in the room. If you have a microwave above your oven, try turning on the over overhead light and place the dough in the microwave, where it should do better with the warmth from the light beneath. Honestly, I think you’ll be just fine! In fact, you will end up with a nice holey interior, unless you’re preferring a denser bread. I would say go ahead and bake it! Do let us know how it goes, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised!
Third time’s a charm! The first time I made this bread, I went right by the recipe. It was super sticky, no rise, looked like a thick pita. Then I realized I didn’t proof my yeast. I made it a second time but changed it up with 2.5 cups all purpose flour (Bob’s Red Mill unbleached) and 1/4 cup flaxseed meal and 1/4 cup whole wheat flour (Bob’s) AND proofed my yeast in warm water for 5-10mins until a nice bloom. BUT I forgot to cut in slits. Taste was good and the dough was very bubbly which was good. THIRD TIME, did same as above, long 12 hour rise, 45 min rest, AND I CUT IN SLITS…now is finishing up baking and the rise is beautiful. Remember people, proof the yeast, cut slits in the dough for the dough to breathe and rise!! LOL. Thought this recipe was a bust until I paid closer attention to what I was doing! Very easy recipe, thanks!
I’d love to try these. My house gets quite cool overnight 55 deg F. Will this still work?
Hi Robin, you will be just fine with cool temps, it just may need the full 18 hours to rise. I would place it in the oven or microwave overnight so it’s in an enclosed placed without any drafts. Please do let us know how it goes!
Hello! I couldn’t find instant yeast at my local stores, but did find fast rise yeast (Hodgson Mill). Do you think this will work ok for a bread with a long rise such as this? Thank you!
Hi Bee, you can definitely use the fast rise yeast in this long rise recipe. Use the same 1/4 teaspoon called for and do everything the same. It will be just as wonderful, the long rise is what really makes the bread flavorful, and really both rapid and active yeast will work! Do let me know how it goes, so we can document here for others. Enjoy!
If you’d like to read more, I enjoyed reading The Fresh Loaf forum discussion on Yeast: Dry vs. Rapid Rise
No knead bread? That’s so cool! I’ve only made bread once before, and since the seal on the oven door had gone it was DISASTROUS (that’s my excuse, and I’m sticking with it). I’ve moved house (and oven) since then though, so I’ll have give this a go!