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It’s about that time of year when I begin to crave bread baking, and this cheaters no-knead dutch oven sourdough bread is my newest homemade obsession.
Did anyone else’s moms bake bread when they were growing up? As I’ve mentioned…over and over, my mom is not much of a cook, but she has always loved to bake. Most of the time her baking was limited to chocolate chip cookies and pecan pies, but during the fall and winter months my mom would bake up a fresh loaf of bread for Sunday night dinner.
The woman loves bread like no other. Give her fresh, homemade bread and there’s a good chance she’ll end up eating the entire loaf within a day…the warmth, the carbs…the butter!
Anyway, mom baking bread on Sunday night is always such a relaxing and comforting memory for me. The house smelled incredible, the kitchen was warm from the oven, and often times there was also a roaring fire.
So basically the perfect fall night.
Recently, I’ve been seriously craving those comforting smells of homemade bread. A lot of this is due to my anxiety being kicked into high gear lately, but it’s also the extremely chilly nights and much cooler days we’ve been experiencing here that totally have me wanting to bake.
Also, it snowed up in the mountains while I was hiking on Saturday morning, so yeah, there’s that too.
Warm, baked things are clearly what needs to happen over here.
One of my favorite loaves of bread is a really good loaf of crusty sourdough. For years now I have been wanting to develop a sourdough bread recipe for the blog, but the involvement of making homemade sourdough always scared me off. It can take weeks to make a really great loaf of sourdough and let’s just be honest, that’s kind of way too much time for most of us.
I mean, right?
I make my homemade naan with plain greek yogurt, and it’s probably the most popular recipe here on the site…and with good reason. It’s incredible and I’m not sure I can really top that naan, but the use of yogurt in the recipe got me thinking.
Greek yogurt has some of the same cultures as a sourdough starter, so I thought I might try adding some to a no-knead bread recipe and see how it turned out.
The results? Sourdough bread perfection. YES.
Like any other no-knead bread recipe, this cheater’s sourdough is EASY. The dough is made with a total of six ingredients, including the water, and it all goes into one bowl, gets mixed up, and is then left to sit and rise. You can literally be done with the actual mixing of the bread in five to ten minutes. The rest of the time involved is rising and baking time.
Meaning hands-on work is so minimal. Mix. Let Sit. Bake. EAT. Simple as that.
As the title of this recipe states, you need a good dutch oven for baking the bread. It’s a must for getting a bread that’s crusty on the outside, but extra soft on the inside. I love my Staub 5 1/2 Quart Cocotte for this bread, it’s the perfect size. Any heavy cast iron pot that’s 4 quarts or larger will be great though!
Another key to success? A super hot oven and keeping the lid tight on the pot for the first half of baking. This traps the heat inside the pot, which in turn creates the extra hard crust, but extra soft interior.
Again, perfection and so easy!
I’ve made this multiple times now in the last few weeks, most of the time on Sunday, because I just love the smells and memories it brings.
Plus, serving it up with a bowl of chili is pretty much the best Sunday night dinner.
And of course, any leftovers are delicious when toasted the next day for breakfast, or used as a base for your favorite lunchtime sandwich. I’ve been spreading my homemade apple butter over toasted pieces of this bread, and it’s quickly becoming my go-to breakfast and/or afternoon snack…and yes, the apple butter recipe is coming soon. I’ll be sending out the recipe exclusively to all the HBH email subscribers, so if you aren’t signed up yet, I’d do so soon!
Cheaters No Knead Dutch Oven Sourdough Bread
Servings: 12 servings
Calories Per Serving: 241 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt (any % fat will do, but I use full fat)
Instructions
- 1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, honey, flour, salt, and yogurt. Using the dough hook, mix until the flour is completely incorporated. Alternately, you can mix the dough with a wooden spoon until it comes together. Cover the bowl with a wet towel or plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature 2 hours or until it doubles in size.2. If time allows, punch the dough down, cover the bowl, and transfer to the fridge to let sit overnight. This will help develop a stronger "sourdough" flavor. 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 in a parchment lined 4 quart or larger dutch oven. Allow to rise 1 hour or until doubled in size. 4. Preheat to 475 degrees F. Bake, covered for 20-25 minutes. Using oven mitts, remove the hot lid and continue baking until the bread is a deep, golden brown, about 20-30 minutes more. Remove from the oven. Carefully lift the bread out of the pot and place it on a rack to cool completely, about 2 hours. Don't slice into the bread right out of the oven, the bread continues to cook as it cools. Enjoy!
Honestly though…it’s doesn’t get better than this bread…with a little salted butter. YUM.
This post was originally published on September 19, 2017
OMG – I can’t wait to try. I just backed a loaf no knead bread that actually had me proof it in the microwave for a couple of seconds and then a very quick rise on the counter. Then a bake in the dutch over. Do you see any reason why this process would not work with this recipe?
HI! I am sure that process will work just great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much!! xTieghan ?
Hi!
I cant wait to try this recipe. I was wondering if it work if the Dutch oven is preheated. I have had great success with this technique and like the crust it forms on the bottom.
thanks so much for your feedback;)
HI! Yes, you can heat the dutch oven. That will be great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much!! xTieghan ?
How do you measure your flour? Is 1 cup 120 grams?
Hi Paul! Yes, a cup of flour is 120 grams. I hope you love this bread and please let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi Tieghan! Love your style, blog and as Colorado native and snowboarder, also follow your brother – he’s the best!
I had a question about how long you can leave the dough in the refrigerator before you bake it – I made this tonight (Sunday) and I’m planning on serving this on Thanksgiving – can I wait to bake the dough until Tuesday (leaving it in the refrigerator for 48 hours) or would it be better to bake after 24 and eat it a few days later? I want it to be as fresh as possible. Let me know what you recommend, thanks!
Hey Lindsey!! You can leave the dough in the fridge for up to 4 days, so baking Tuesday (today! sorry hope I am not too late) works just fine! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much and happy Thanksgiving! xTieghan
I just made this and WOW!!! Easy and SO DELICIOUS!!!
I have LOVED everything I have made from your cookbook!!!
Thank you Tina!
This looks amazing. And I love sourdough bread. I would love to make it for my friends when I’m in Breckinridge … at 9500ft. What kind of changes would you suggest for high altitude?
Hi Andrea! I think this recipe should work great for you, because I am close to that altitude as well! Just make sure it watch it a bit more while baking! Thank you!
HI, I’m a little confused with the label ‘sourdough’ when you are using dried yeast in the recipe? Are the ingredients just tasting like sourdough? I’ve made traditional sourdough using sourdough starter (natural yeast). Youre recipe sounds delicious and will definitely try it now that my children can now tolerate the dry bakers yeast ?
Hi Inger! Yes, this recipe just taste like sourdough, but is not made in the traditional way. It’s kind of like a shortcut method! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! x Tieghan
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Hi Tiegen
Llove so many of your recipes!! I will try and make this one, I usually make your seeded whole grain in a dutch oven and its to die for! In this recipe, do you think it would be okay to use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour or would it change the recipe drastically?
Thanks so much!
P.s making your cinammon knots for a party this weekend, I’ll let you know how they turn out
What if I don’t have a Dutch oven? Any other suggestions
HI! You can bake this on a baking sheet, but note that the crust may not be are crust as mine. I am sure the bread will still taste great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much! x Tieghan
Hi! I just made your bread and the flavor is AMAZE!!!! However, when I got to the middle of the loaf it wasn’t cooked all the way in the very very center. I followed your instructions, but any idea what I may have done incorrectly??? Don’t worry, it won’t keep me from eating the outside of the loaf 🙂 Thanks for your help!
Hi!! OK, so sounds like you just need a longer, slower cooking time. Try cooking the bread at at 475 for 20 minutes, then reducing the temp. to 350 and bake another 30 minutes. Please let me know if you have other questions. Glad you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂