No Knead Artisan Bread | Recipe by My Name Is Snickerdoodle (2024)

FAQs

Why is my homemade no-knead bread so dense? ›

Why is my bread dense: Usually bread will be too dense when there is too much flour. Keep in mind this dough will be pretty sticky, do not add more flour than specified. Other factors that come into play are humidity and age of flour. Little yeast, long rise, sticky dough are keys to a good, light loaf.

For example, if your homemade bread keeps turning out gummy, it may be a problem with your baking temperature. It should come as no surprise that the outside of a loaf of bread cooks faster than the inside, seeing as the heat touches the exterior first before it is able to penetrate the interior.

Cover with the lid and bake for 30 minutes, then remove the lid and bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the loaf is beautifully browned; the bread's internal temperature should be 200°F or more. (If at any point the dough starts to smell scorched, lower the heat a bit.)

It's easy to see the appeal of the “no-knead” approach in bread baking: minimal effort produces maximum flavor. By simply mixing up your dough and giving it an extended rising period, you can enjoy gorgeous, golden loaves without having kneaded a thing.

Editor: Shani, it sounds that your yeast may be too old and expired, or perhaps you're not letting the dough rest adequately after shaping and before baking.

Try less water with your flour. Uneven heat in your oven can be the culprit – if you loaf is nicely golden on the outside but gummy or moist in the inside, it's baking too quickly on the outside. Trying reducing the temperature you're baking at and bake for a bit longer.

If your dough is too sticky and it's impossible to work with you can add some extra flour, just a little at a time. Make sure you weigh the extra flour you add and then you'll be able to adjust the recipe correctly the next time you bake.

Folding the bread a few times during its long fermentation helps move the yeast to find more food and to introduce a little more oxygen into their environment.

Try using a smaller pan to help keep its shape. The smaller the bottom of the round saucepan is the more domed the bread will be. This can also happen if the bread is proved for too long (so left to rest before cooking for too long) don't leave for any longer than 12 hours.

Folding the bread a few times during its long fermentation helps move the yeast to find more food and to introduce a little more oxygen into their environment.

What are the pros and cons of no-knead bread? ›

Pros: Develops dough without adding additional flour (as with traditional kneading). Effective method, especially with slack doughs such as baguettes. Cons: Takes time and repetitions to master.

Tips from our Bakers

Bread flour has more gluten-forming protein, so if you choose to use it in this recipe, the crust will be a bit thicker and you won't get quite the same open-holed structure as with all-purpose. We really prefer the texture of both crust and crumb when all-purpose flour is used.

I've seen three major reasons for bread to come out too dense (other than dead yeast). The first is that you need to add more liquid. When you're mixing the dough, if the dough feels tight/tough, add some additional liquid. A wetter dough will result in a more open, soft crumb.

Simply put, you have to control the temperature of the bread. Allowing ample time for your bread dough to rise and the yeast to form will create the holes in the bread that give it a lighter texture. Letting your dough get puffy and grow before it goes into the oven is critical.

Potato Flakes or Potato Water

Starch helps the dough by trapping the gas from the yeast in the dough and makes the bubbles stronger. This helps the bread to rise and be lighter and fluffier. If you are boiling potatoes, you can use the unsalted water in place of the water in your bread recipe to help out the yeast.

The usual reason why bread becomes too dense is due to using flour with low protein content. When your loaf is spongy and heavy, you might have also put too much flour into it or made the dough in a cooler or too warm setting.