Use this to make dough that lasts up to 3 weeks
First, take 3 cups of warm water — I stick my (clean) hands in it to make sure it's a comfortable temperature and not too hot — and pour it into the resealable container. Stir in 1.5 tablespoons of salt. Salt adds flavor, and it also inhibits the yeast's growth while the dough is rising. This is just about the perfect yeast-to-salt ratio.
Add 1.5 tablespoons of yeast. Stir
Let the mixture sit for a few minutes, until the yeast fully dissolves and starts bubbling.
Then add approximately 6.5 cups of flour. Just dump it all in there, there's no point in adding it cup by cup.
Stir the whole mixture together until a loose, very sticky dough forms.
When there are no more pockets of unmixed flour or water left, place the lid loosely on top of the container, and let the dough sit at room temperature until it rises. The process of rising is pretty impressive, if you think about it. Long, stringy glutens are forming in the dough, and as the yeast rehydrates, it feeds on sugars in the flour. In turn, the yeast produces alcohol (which flavors the dough) and carbon dioxide (which makes the dough rise). The bubbles of carbon dioxide get caught in the matrix of glutens, and the gas gradually stretches them out — which gives the bread great texture.
When the dough has risen to the top — which might take 1-2 hours, depending on your room temperature — punch it down slightly (if necessary) to fit the lid onto the container. Seal it.
Place the container in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight. This dough will keep in the fridge for 3 weeks. The low temperature sends the yeast into a kind of suspended animation; the dough isn't dead, but it's no longer really "rising" in the sense of growing in size. It is rising in the sense that the yeast continues ever so slowly releasing carbon dioxide and sweet, flavorful alcohol, and that the glutens keep on deliciously stretching. The principle of no-knead bread is simple: kneading stretches the glutens, but if you are patient enough, the carbon dioxide will do the work of stretching them out for you. Add in the fact that you can keep the dough in suspended (but increasingly delicious) animation in the fridge for the better part of a month, and this might just be the world's best bread recipe. And honestly, the dough only improves with time. The longer you can stand to wait to make a loaf, the better and more flavorful your bread will be.
Ta-da. Bake your loaf for 30-35 minutes at 450 Fahrenheit (230 Celsius). I recommend kicking the temperature up to 500 Fahrenheit (260 Celsius) for the last 5-10 minutes. It really improves the crust.
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Serving Size: 1 Serving (128g) | ||
Recipe Makes: 12 Servings | ||
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Calories: 247 | ||
Calories from Fat: 6 (2%) | ||
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Amt Per Serving | % DV | |
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Total Fat 0.7g | 1 % | |
Saturated Fat 0.1g | 1 % | |
Monounsaturated Fat 0.1g | ||
Polyunsanturated Fat 0.3g | ||
Cholesterol 0mg | 0 % | |
Sodium 13.9mg | 0 % | |
Potassium 82.5mg | 2 % | |
Total Carbohydrate 51.7g | 15 % | |
Dietary Fiber 2g | 8 % | |
Sugars, other 49.7g | ||
Protein 7.1g | 10 % | |
Powered by: USDA Nutrition Database Disclaimer: Nutrition facts are derived from linked ingredients (shown at left in colored bullets) and may or may not be complete. Always consult a licensed nutritionist or doctor if you have a nutrition-related medical condition. |
Calories per serving: 247
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