How To Bake A No-Knead, Artisanal Crusty Loaf of French Bread

There’s something really special about baking your own bread. Not only will it impress your family and friends, but it will make your house smell amazing while it bakes in the oven! Is there anything better in life than pulling a loaf of bread out of the oven that you made completely from scratch? Go on…I’ll wait while you try to think of something that comes even remotely close…

If the thought of working with yeast has kept you from trying your hand at baking your own bread, you’ve come across the perfect recipe to finally give it a try. This technique is pretty much foolproof. The dough is very forgiving, so there’s no need to get out a kitchen scale to weigh anything and it requires only 4 basic ingredients. The most challenging part will be the amount of time it takes to make it. I recommend picking a day when you’re not pressed for time and will be at home for the day. Do you have a rainy day in the forecast? Are stuck at home because of snow? Are you ready to pull out a beautiful loaf of bread from your oven like this one? You can do this. I’m going to walk you through it step by step. You got this…I promise!

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One of the best things about this beautiful boule is how light and airy the interior of the loaf is. The dough gets nice and bubbly so you end up with a lighter interior that’s not too dense. It bakes up nice and crusty on the outside with that soft fluffy interior. The crust has a wonderful chew just like the loaves you can purchase at a high end bakery.

It’s perfect for dipping in all your favorite soups and stews. Slathered with some butter and serve alongside a steaming, creamy bowl of my all time favorite Old Fashioned Potato Soup. The ultimate winter meal, a hot creamy bowl of soup with freshly baked bread, slathered with butter…YUM! A meal that makes winter not so awful.

Alright, let’s get started baking up a loaf of bread. Begin by adding 1 1/2 teaspoons of yeast to warm water and stir to combine. You don’t want to water scalding hot, just warm.

If you want to get technical use an instant read thermometer and make sure the temperature of the water doesn’t exceed 105 degrees. I just used my finger. I stick it in the water and make sure it’s not too hot.

After about 5-10 minutes the yeast water should look a little something like this. It will start to get bubbly and a little frothy. If it doesn’t get frothy, that means your yeast has lost its rising power. You will have to start over with fresher yeast.

GOOD TO KNOW: This process is called “proofing” the yeast.

If you’re wondering what kind of yeast to use the one below is is the one I use the most. There are other brands to choose from but this one is the most economical and consistently gives me good results. You can purchase yeast in small packets as well, but I bake bread so often it’s more economical to buy it by the jar instead of in the smaller envelopes. I’ve always used an active dry yeast, never the rapid rise yeast, so I don’t know what kind of results to expect from a rapid rise yeast. An active dry yeast is a good all purpose yeast that you can use for just about any recipe that calls for yeast. Use an entire packet of yeast if you’re using a packet instead of the bulk form.

GOOD TO KNOW: If you purchase a jar of yeast, storing it in your fridge will help keep it fresher longer.

While the yeast proofs in the warm water, stir together the all purpose flour and the salt in a large mixing bowl to combine. I have a fancy Danish dough whisk to do this, but if you don’t have a whisk like this one, a wooden spoon will also get the job done.

Once you have stirred together the flour and salt, add the proofed yeast water to the dry ingredients.

Stir everything together until you have a shaggy dough that looks like this. Don’t worry, it’s going to look like a sticky hot mess at this stage. Kinda looks like I do first thing in the morning, a crazy hot mess…LOL!

Cover the mixing bowl with a cotton towel and allow the dough to rise for 3-4 hours, or until the dough doubles in volume. I always place the bowl in my oven and turn the light on. It creates the perfect warm and cozy environment that gets the yeast activated and causes the dough to rise beautifully.

After 3 hours, remove the bowl from the oven. Your dough should look like this. If it doesn’t, give it another hour in the oven with just the light on.

Once you have removed the bowl of dough from the oven, place an empty Dutch oven pot in the oven and preheat your oven to 450℉. We want that Dutch oven pot to get screaming hot in the oven.

You will need a large enameled cast iron pot, typically called a Dutch oven, with a lid to make this bread. It creates the perfect environment so that your loaf of bread develops that chewy, crunchy crust with a soft fluffy interior. If you don’t have one, ask your friends if they have one that you can borrow. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars for a good quality Dutch oven pot. I picked up an off brand for only $45 at Homegoods. You might even find one for less at a Thrift Store. But you do need one in order to make this loaf.

Alright, back to our bread…lightly flour your work surface.

Transfer the dough from the bowl onto the floured surface.

The dough will be very sticky and shaggy looking, so be sure to flour your hands well.

Grab the edges of the dough and pull them towards the center and start to form the dough into a ball shape.

Cup the dough with your floured hands and gently form the dough into a smooth ball, stretching the dough from the center out towards the edges and underneath. Once you have a smooth ball formed, transfer the ball of dough onto a sheet of parchment paper.

Dust the top of the loaf with flour.

Allow ball of dough to rest for 30 minutes while Dutch oven is preheating in the oven.

Just before you are ready to place the loaf in the oven, use a sharp knife to score an ⅛ inch deep “X” into the top of the loaf.

GOOD TO KNOW: The loaf will rise and expand as it bakes. Scoring the loaf allows the steam that’s created inside the loaf to escape where you want it and prevents blowouts that would give your loaf a deformed, unattractive shape.

After the Dutch oven has been in the oven for about 30 minutes, carefully remove it from the oven. You want that Dutch oven pot to be screaming hot. Grab the four corners of the parchment paper and carefully lower the dough into the hot Dutch oven pot. Cover pot with the lid.

Bake covered for 30 minutes.

Removed lid and bake for an additional 15-30 minutes.

Loaf is done when it sounds hollow when tapped and the crust is a rich golden brown. Use the four corners of the parchment paper to carefully remove the loaf from the Dutch oven pot and place it on a rack to cool. Cool the loaf completely for at least 45-60 minutes, before slicing into it.

Oh my gosh this loaf of bread is so very, very good! It rivals anything you can purchase at a bakery! It’s almost impossible to mess it up too! This loaf has become my go to bread recipe. It’s quicker than making a sour dough loaf, and it’s equally delicious! No starter to keep going either, just mix up the ingredients whenever you get a hankering for some freshly baked bread. If you decide to give this recipe a try be sure to let me know how it turns out for you. I’m hoping you end up with one of the tastiest loaves of bread you’ve ever had.

Did You Make This?

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Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

John 6:35

Remember…Jesus ❤️’s you!