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The Best (easiest) No Knead Bread. Crusty on the outside, light and airy inside, with just a little rosemary swirled throughout. It’s the easiest bread recipe, yet still impressive. It’s best served warm right out of the oven with softened butter and a sprinkling of sea salt. Serve alongside your favorite soups, chili, pasta dishes, with roasted chicken, or even on its own. This is certainly sure to become a weekly staple!
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Every time I make a pot of soup or chili or even a creamy curry, I also make a homemade bread recipe. Many times I’ll go for everyone’s favorite, honey butter beer bread. And if I’m making Indian, I always, always make naan.
But on snowy Sundays in January, I make my no-knead bread. I’ve been making this for years, sometimes with rosemary, it’s delish with or without.
We LOVE it. But my no-knead bread isn’t like others. I have a little secret.
Instead of water, I use beer, which I think enhances the flavor of the bread. You don’t know it’s there, but it gives the bread more of a sourdough flavor, just without all the work.
Kind of like a “cheaters” sourdough bread in a way.
If you have my Super Simple cookbook, I use this recipe for my pizza dough too. Either way, it’s baked up, it’s delicious. But We really LOVE it as bread (plus I have a new and improved pizza dough that I’ve been making all the time now).
Here are details
Step 1: mix the dough
Using a large bowl and dough hook or just a wooden spoon, mix flour with instant yeast, you could also use active dry yeast, fresh rosemary (if you like), and salt. Now, pour over a room-temperature can/bottle of beer. If you don’t drink, use 1 1/2 cups warm water.
Mix just until the dough comes together. Do not do any kneading!
Step 2: let that dough hang out
Now, cover the dough with a towel and let it hang out on the counter in a nice warm spot for at least 12 hours. I usually let the dough sit overnight or even over two nights for more flavor.
Step 3: bake
Preheat the oven to 450°. Place a cast iron Dutch oven into the oven to preheat. Get it nice and HOT.
Shape the dough into a ball or an oval. Let it rise on a piece of parchment paper while the oven is heating. When ready, you can lift the parchment and the dough up and into the hot Dutch oven.
And then you bake it. Nothing fancy at all. Not even a stand mixer. We love this bread. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
Step 4: enjoy it
Slice with a sharp knife. Of course, we love this bread most when it’s fresh from the oven. Topped with really good butter and a small amount of sea salt – so yum!
Or serve it up with dinner. Soups, chilis, and slow-roasted meats are our favorites. Or use it for avocado toast. For sandwiches, the options certainly are endless.
Looking for other breads to make? Here are a few to try:
Salted Honey Butter Jalapeño Cheddar Rolls
Jalapeño Cheddar Popovers with Honey Butter
Soft Garlic Herb Cheddar Cheese Bread
Easy Pull Apart Garlic Parmesan Bread
Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Soft Pretzels
Lastly, if you make this The Best (easiest) No Knead Bread, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
The Best (easiest) No Knead Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast (rapid rise)
- 1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, (optional)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 (12 ounce) can or bottle room temperature beer, (or 1 1/2 cups warm water)
Instructions
- 1. In a bowl, stir together the flour, yeast, rosemary (if using), and salt. Add the beer and mix with a spatula until combined. Cover the bowl and let sit at room temperature for at least 12 hours, but ideally overnight. 2. Preheat oven to 450° F. Place a large Dutch oven in the oven to preheat for 30 minutes. 3. Generously dust a work surface with flour. Scrape the dough out of the bowl. It should be loose and sticky. Form the dough into a ball and place on a piece of parchment. Cover and allow to rise for 1 hour, until doubled in size. 3. When ready, carefully lift the dough and the parchment and place in the Dutch oven. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and continue baking until the bread is a deep, golden brown, about 15-20 minutes more. Remove from the oven. Enjoy with softened butter and sea salt. YUM!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
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What is the flour measurement in grams?
Hey Emma,
If you click “metric” under the ingredient list, all of the measurements will convert for you. I hope you love this recipe! xT
The crust and flavor of the bread were perfect but the inside was dense and gummy, not light and airy. What did I wrong? I’m not ready to give up yet!
Hi Erin,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear you had some issues with the inside of the bread. Was there anything you adjusted in the recipe? Any chance it needed to be baked a bit longer? Was the dutch oven that you used large enough? Let me know how I can help! xT
Can I use active dry yeast Vs rapid?
Hey Amber,
Totally, you will just want to follow the package instructions for proofing and then follow the bread recipe as written. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi Tieghan
I have this recipe in one of your books but there it says to let the bread cool for 2 hours before consuming. What do you recommend? Does it matter to let it cool for that long or not? Also, im trying this with whole-wheat flour and I’m excited to see the outcome 🙂
Hey Rebecca,
I would let it cool slightly before cutting it, 2 hours is great but it doesn’t have to be that long. I hope you love this recipe! xT
One more… in the video you pour oil on the dough while it’s in the bowl. How much? Do I mix it in? Thank you!
Hi Amber,
You can do just a little drizzle of olive oil, no need to mix it:) xx
If it says ( no kneading) why then do you have to flour a counter top and place dough on to the surface and form it into a ball.. that would be kneading it !! Right !! I’m sorry to bring that up. Please let me know if I’m wrong.. Thanks A
Hi May,
When making the dough, all you need to do is mix the ingredients, you do not have to knead the dough for 10-15 minutes like some recipes call for:) I hope this makes sense! xx
I started this last night with a near beer and baked it this morning. Just got into it finally, as it’s cooled, and it is wonderful! I wish I’d left it in a little longer for a crustier crust, but the chew is AWESOME.
Hey Mary Kate,
Amazing!! I’m so glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! Have a great weekend! xT
If we do a longer resting period of two nights as mentioned do you recommend putting it in the fridge?
Hi Halli,
Yes, you will want to put the dough in the fridge:) I hope you love this recipe! xT
Immediately, or after the first 24 hours?
After the first 24 hours:)
what type of beer did you use? what type do you suggest? pale ale? IPA? light beer?
Hey Suzanne,
An IPA might not be the best option, I think it will leave a stronger flavor. I love using a pumpkin beer, but something light like Modelo is great to use! Let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
Can I substitute some or all whole wheat flour?
Hi Susan,
I haven’t ever tested this, but I don’t see why not! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Hi! Would halving the recipe effect the bake time on this at all? Hoping to use a 2 quart dutch oven. Thanks!
Hi Lauren,
I would go ahead and start checking for doneness at the halfway point! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
If I don’t have beer , can I use lemon seltzer ?
Hi Mimi,
I think a seltzer would be a great option in place of the beer. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Please let me know how the timing works with pizza dough I could let it raise overnight but then I’m concerned it will be ready too early and I won’t be ready to make the pizza. Also it will not be cooked in a dutch oven oven so I want to know if it will still be crispy?
Hi Linda,
I’m so sorry, I’m a little confused. I think you are trying to use this dough for pizza correct? You do not need to use a dutch oven when making the pizza, just use a baking sheet. The dough will be fine to rise overnight and rest until you make the pizza. I hope this helps, please let me know if I can clarify anything else for you! xx
Can I make this with Active Dry Yeast?
Hi Amy,
Of course! You’ll want to follow the packet instructions for proofing first and then you can follow the recipe as written:) I hope you love this bread! xT
Thanks for the wonderful recipe! I made this with pancake batter results too – then checked the size of the beer can! It was 500mL, which is 16.9 fl oz – not 12.
If you have a bunch of those larger cans on hand, like us, here is the rest of the recipe scaled up:
4 1/4 cups flour
2 3/4 (2.8) tsp yeast / salt
As much rosemary as you want, fresh or dried (we used dried and it was so yum)
Haven’t made a second batch yet to test out the baking time, but am guessing it’ll be a little longer.
(The fix for batch 1: sprinkling plenty more flour into the dough and folding it in until it stopped being sticky, letting it rest for 30-60m in a greased 8×8 pan, then covering it with olive oil and coarse salt, poking foccaciaish holes and baking it 25m @ 425F yielded amazing results!)
Hi Megan,
Wow, thanks so much for making this bread and sharing your detailed notes! So glad to hear it turned out well for you with some adjustments! Have a great day! xT