24 hour bread

[Undertoad]

The NY Times posted a story about making bread in about 24 hours with no kneading and practically no work.



You put 3 c flour, 1 1/4 t salt, 1/4 t yeast into a bowl and mix it, then 1 1/2 c water, and stir it with your fingers until it's a ball of semi-wet dough. No kneading.

You set it aside for 12-18 hours, then remove it to a floured surface, and fold it over so there are some folds in the dough. This is the only part I haven't pictured. Then you set it aside for another 4 hours.



You bake it in a dutch oven or covered casserole or something like that, in a standard oven at 500 degrees. You just flop the dough, seam up, into the pre-heated pot. Then you put the lid on the pot, and bake for 30 minutes. After that you remove the lid, and bake for another 15-20 minutes.



I've done this twice, with regular old all-purpose flour, and it makes the best crust ever. The inside is a little spongey. Although it takes all day to make, it only takes about 10 minutes of actual effort.