The "no knead" bread hype had me rolling my eyes until I actually tried it

I spent years thinking you NEEDED to knead dough for 15 minutes or it wouldn't rise right. My buddy from a bakery in Austin kept pushing this no knead recipe where you just mix flour, water, salt, and yeast and let it sit for 18 hours. I finally gave in last weekend and baked a loaf in my dutch oven. The crust came out all crackly and the inside was full of those airy holes. Has anyone else had that moment where they were totally wrong about a baking shortcut?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_wesley22d ago

Same here, that 18 hour wait felt like magic when I finally cracked open the crust.

olivia_moore22d ago

Respectfully @the_wesley, I think the 18 hour thing is actually kind of a pain. Waiting that long for bread feels more like a commitment than a shortcut to me. The crust was good but I honestly prefer a quick 2 hour rise with some stretch and folds instead of letting it sit all day. A little elbow grease never hurt anyone, and you get more control over how the dough develops. Not saying it's bad but I'd rather spend 10 minutes kneading than plan my whole day around bread.

ryan_shah3822d ago

Wait, hold up @olivia_moore - you actually kneaded for 10 minutes straight? I thought that was a myth lol. I tried that once and my arms were dead after like 2 minutes.