The original No Knead Bread was started by Jim Lahey. Jim learned to bake bread in Italy in the 1990s, but developed the process without kneading much later. In 2006, Mark Bittman of the New York Times was invited to witness the ease of making this bread at Laheys Sullivan Street Bakery. The rest is history.
This story was completely new to me in the summer of 2011. I went to the local farmers market and bought a bar of what was called Mark Bittmans No Knead Bread. I love artisan breads, with the crunchy outside and a lot of chewy inside. I knew about Mark Bittman and I was curious. I brought the bread home, tried it, and fell in love. I searched online to see if I could find this recipe and saw that it was available everywhere. I didn’t know the recipe was from Jim Lahey until much later.
Recipe comparisons
Mark Bittmans’ recipe differs from Laheys in a few slight nuances. I have used the recipes both ways and I can say that I prefer the Bittman version, at least in my home oven. Lahey adds less water and uses a 500 degree oven. Bittman uses a little more water and a 450 degree oven. I don’t like blackened crusts so I limited myself to 450 degrees. The question of water is a choice. With 2 more tablespoons of water, the result is an interior with much larger holes. With less water, the inside grain of the bread is more uniform. The bread is still quite chewy done either way and the oven temperature and time easily adapts.
My experiences with no-knead breads
I made the Mark Bittman version of the bread for over a year, sometimes 3 times a week when we had guests. Then I was curious and went to the local library. I reviewed Jim Lahey’s book My Bread and discovered another new world of breads. To that same basic recipe, Lahey added things for flavor. I made some of these breads and they are all wonderful. One had the addition of walnuts and raisins and it was delightful. One was called Jims Brown Bread and it was a version of Irish Bread, using beer in the batter. Another recipe had ½ pound of cubed cheese added. Pieces of fried bacon were added to another. Each recipe was simply delicious. The bacon bun was almost a sandwich on its own.
If you haven’t jumped on this train yet, I urge everyone to give it a try. The only requirement is a very sturdy pot that will withstand oven temperatures of 450 to 500 degrees. This means an enameled cast iron pot, a clay oven with a lid, or a Pyrex glass oven with a lid. The size should accommodate 6 to 8 quarts to hold the bread while it bakes. The reason for this type of pot with a lid is that the steam from the very wet dough is trapped inside. The nightmare of any home baker trying to create that artisanal crispy exterior is the inability to trap enough steam to pull it off. When the dough is inside a small closed environment at high temperatures, the pot achieves the necessary steam for the perfect crust. When it’s taken out of the oven, the bread literally sings. The bread pops, pops, resonates and makes many interesting sounds as it cools and is a pleasure to listen to.
The recipe is on the internet and my favorite method is Mark Bittman’s. You have now presented some more interesting nuances about making this bread. I have time at home to work with the bread, so I’m not looking to make this a shorter process. In fact, the whole process of around 16-18 hours, requires a total of about 15 minutes of actual attention. Mix the 4 ingredients the night before, cover and leave it to act overnight while you sleep. Place on a surface in the morning and let it rest for another 15 minutes. Form a loaf and let it grow. An hour and a half later, place the empty pot in the oven to heat for half an hour. Remove the pot, add the leavened dough, replace the lid and bake for 30 minutes with the lid on, then continue to bake another 10 to 30 minutes without the lid, depending on your preference. In between, you can perform a number of other household activities. Give this recipe a try, because it doesn’t disappoint.
Thanks for taking the time to read my article. I hope it was informative and helped you on your own culinary journey.