Homemade bread sounds like hard work, but this loaf needs about ten minutes of hands-on time. Time does the kneading for you: a long, slow rise builds the structure and flavour, and baking it in a lidded pot gives you a crackly, bakery-style crust.
You’ll need
- 500g strong white bread flour
- ½ tsp (about 2g) fast-action dried yeast
- 10g salt
- About 380ml lukewarm water
- A lidded casserole dish that’s safe in a very hot oven
Method
- Mix: stir the flour, yeast and salt together in a large bowl, then add the water and mix until there’s no dry flour left. It will look shaggy and sticky — that’s right.
- Rest: cover the bowl and leave it at room temperature for 12–18 hours, until it has roughly doubled, is covered in bubbles and smells slightly tangy.
- Shape: tip the dough onto a well-floured surface. Fold the edges into the middle a few times to make a rough ball, then turn it over.
- Second rise: put it on a sheet of baking paper, dust with flour, cover and leave for 1–2 hours until puffy.
- Heat the pot: 30 minutes before baking, put the empty casserole dish and its lid in the oven at 240°C (220°C fan).
- Bake: carefully lift the dough into the hot pot using the baking paper. Bake with the lid on for 30 minutes, then lid off for another 15–20 minutes, until deep golden brown. It should sound hollow when tapped underneath.
- Cool: leave it on a rack for at least an hour before slicing. It’s still cooking inside.
Safety: the pot will be extremely hot. Use thick, dry oven gloves and keep children and pets away while you lift it in and out.
If something goes wrong
- Flat loaf: the dough over-rose (it was very warm) or it wasn’t shaped tightly enough. Try a shorter first rest next time.
- Dense loaf: it didn’t rise enough. In a cold kitchen, give it longer.
- Pale crust: bake it longer with the lid off. Darker crust means more flavour.
Make it your own
Swap 100g of the white flour for wholemeal, or fold in seeds, chopped olives, grated cheese or rosemary when you shape it. Once it’s cool, slice the whole loaf and freeze it — you can toast slices straight from frozen.