
Homemade Yeast Bread Without Sourdough
Simple homemade bread without sourdough starter, baked in a Dutch oven. Crispy crust, soft center, and just a few basic ingredients.
Prep time
2 godz. 15 min
Cook time
55 min
Total
3 godz. 10 min
Servings
1
Difficulty
Łatwy
Ingredients
Dough
- 450 mllukewarm water (about 25-27°C)
- 650 gspelt flour or regular wheat flour
- 12 gsalt
- 9 gfresh yeast (or 3 g dry yeast)
Also needed
- flour for dusting the counter and dish
Instructions
- 1
Pour the lukewarm water into a large bowl. Add the salt and stir until it dissolves well.
- 2
Add about 300 g of flour and mix everything together.
- 3
Crumble in the fresh yeast or add the dry yeast. Mix again so the yeast spreads evenly through the dough.
- 4
Add the remaining 350 g of flour and mix everything only until there's no more dry flour in the bowl. The dough doesn't need to be perfectly smooth.
- 5
Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
- 6
After 30 minutes, do the first fold. First pull the dough up from the bottom into the center from each side, then do a coil fold - gently lift and fold the dough under itself.
- 7
Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for another 30 minutes.
- 8
After that time, do the second fold the same way: first from the bottom into the center, then a coil fold.
- 9
Let the dough rest for another 30 minutes.
- 10
After 30 minutes, do just a coil fold and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes.
- 11
Dust the counter with flour. Also dust the Dutch oven you'll bake the bread in.
- 12
Dust the top of the dough in the bowl with flour, then use a scraper or spatula to gently loosen the dough from the sides of the bowl.
- 13
Turn the dough out onto the counter. Fold it in half first, then the sides into the center, then in half again, sides into the center again, and finally roll the dough into a log.
- 14
Transfer the shaped bread into the flour-dusted Dutch oven.
- 15
Score the bread down the middle.
- 16
Put the dish with the bread into a cold oven. Set the temperature to 230°C, top and bottom heat.
- 17
From the moment the oven reaches 230°C, bake the bread for 50-55 minutes, depending on your oven.
- 18
Don't uncover the bread while baking. Don't add more water to the oven or put in an extra tray of water.
- 19
After baking, remove the bread from the dish and set it on a wire rack so the crust stays crispy.
Tip
Don't skip folding the dough. These short folds are exactly what give the bread structure, help it hold its shape, and give it a nicer crumb.
Common mistake
The most common mistake is adding too much flour while shaping. The dough should be lightly dusted, not dried out, or the bread can turn out dense.
Serving suggestion
Tastes best after cooling slightly, with butter, curd cheese, egg spread, or as a base for homemade sandwiches.
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