The famous no-knead bread: does it work for everyone?
I've tried the no-knead bread (the one published in the NYT and blogged about by the Amatuer Gourmet and Chocolate & Zucchini, amoung others), but I can't get it to come out right. The dough is just too sticky coming off the first rise, and I can't shape it into anything ball shaped without a lot of additional flour. Another problem is the 'generously coat a kitchen towel with flour' step. The entire kitchen gets covered in flour, and the finished bread has an unappealingly thick coating of flour. It also doesn't rise nearly as much as what I've seen on various blogs. I'm in the UK, so I suppose I could be dealing with differences in flour/yeast, but I've followed C&Z's more weight-based instructions, also without sucess. Any hints from anyone?
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7 Comments:
i've only made it once, and it worked for me; but it was a huge sticky mess and i didn't think it would work until i took it out of the oven. it hadnt risen as tall as i thought it would, but the outer crust was heaven.
for other breads that i've made, i've never had them all come out the same way every time. it depends on the weather, the humidity, maybe even the type of flour you're using.
i don't remember offhand what type of flour it calls for (i'd have to look the article up and since it's early here i havent had enough coffee yet), but have you tried experimenting with different flours? the chick at chocolateandzucchini.com has blogged about her various attempts at it (you have to go through the archives).
the one thing i did notice about the finished product is that it needs to be enjoyed the day it's made. the crust was rather limp the next day. but that's what you get when you don't knead it i guess.
french tart at 8:22AM on 03/30/07
sorry, it was only after i posted that i saw you'd already read chocolate & zucchini's site. not awake over here!
french tart at 8:23AM on 03/30/07
I too had a problem with my bread. After reading that it is better to let it rise for the maximum amount of time, that is what I did. However, the dough was SO sticky. I coiuldn't shape it at all. It was a sticky blob. As for the final product- I had to give it extra time in the oven as it was still pretty raw on the interior. The crust was very crisp (which I like and was directly related to the fact that I had to give it much more time in the oven seeing as how it was still doughy). I want to get it right and love the recipe, but I need to try to work out the kinks. I used organic white flour.
Aerin at 10:52AM on 03/30/07
I've made the bread many times and do a few things different with good results. After the 18 to 24 hours I pour the dough onto a floured flexible cutting board. Cover with plastic wrap rise for 2 hours. Scrap off any flour around the edges of the dough. Pick up the whole cutting board and pour the dough into the pre-heated dutch oven. No need to try and form a ball. Bake according to directions. Comes out great every time.
chuck at 12:22PM on 03/30/07
Similar to Chuck, I turn the dough onto a silpat for the 2nd rise and cover with plastic wrap. When it comes time to place the dough in the pot, I just turn the silpat over and dump the whole dough blob into the pot. I've had great results. Also, I use a pastry scraper to help with the step where you fold the dough over on itself (prior to the 2nd rise). Even though I use a heavy Le Creuset Dutch oven to bake the bread in, I've found that I have to watch the bottom so that it doesn't get over-browned. I usually bake for a total of 25-30 minutes, and it's always been perfectly cooked through.
MBinDC at 1:38PM on 03/30/07
I too have made this bread many times - during the final rise, i sometimes put the dough on a floured silpat mat and other times I put the dough in a well oiled medium bowl. Each process will result in a different crust. The secret of a great oven rise is using a relatively small dutch oven - mine is 4.5 qts.
Two good websites that have recipes and photos of their experiments are: http://www.breadtopia.com/no-knead-recipe-variations/ and http://feeds.feedburner.com/RealBakingWithRose
Suebeano at 3:11PM on 03/30/07
I've made this bread many times but do a few things different. After the 18 to 24 hours I scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a floured flexible cutting board. Fold it over on itself twice and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise 2 hours srape any excess floor from aroung the dough off the cutting board. Use the cutting board to pick the whole thing up and just basically dump it into the pre-heated dutch oven. No need to try and form a ball. Bake per the instructions and it has come out great every time
chuck at 3:57PM on 03/30/07