Another No-Knead Bread Recipe

Update: I have made the following modifications to good effect.Use the ingredients specified in the Test Kitchen version with the following modifications:

• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting work surface (15 ounces) or 3 cups for whole wheat use 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour and 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1⁄4 teaspoon fast rise yeast
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 7 ounces water
• 5 ounces beer
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Combine beer and water in a measuring cup and heat in the microwave until hot. For my 1000-watt machine, this takes 2 minutes. Make sure that you have whisked together the flour, yeast, and salt before adding it so as not to kill the yeast.

Heat oven to 500º to prep the Dutch oven, then lower to 425º for baking. Follow other instructions as posted.

Mark Bittman has offered two new versions of the No-Knead Bread Recipe:

Ingredients

• 3c bread flour
• 1 packet (1/4 oz) instant yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• Oil as needed

Preparation

• Combine flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add 1 1/2 cups water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest about 4 hours at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
• Lightly oil a work surface and place dough on it; fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes more.
• At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6-to-8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under dough and put it into pot, seam side up. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.
• Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Jim Lahey made the following changes:

Ingredients

• 3c bread flour
• 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 1/4 tsp red wine vinegar
• 1 5/8c hot water
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3-4 hrs on first rise; then a shorter rise (30-mins to 1 hr) on the second. Otherwise, same as above.
This is the first result of Lehey’s version. The crumb was as good as the slow rise. The flavour was not. I will try it again with lager in the mix. The crust was thinner but still crispy. I baked it in a 4qt Dutch oven to get a higher rise.