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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!
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
Servings: 1 loaf
Calories Per Serving: 1450 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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!
Is it normal for the crust to come out of the oven super hard? Will it soften as it cools?
Hey Jenny,
The crust should be hard-ish, but not super hard…let me know how it turns out for you! xx
I’m just curious about why you’d still need to use yeast if you use beer. Doesn’t beer have yeast in it?
Hey Linda,
The yeast in the beer isn’t enough for the entire loaf of bread:) Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
Absolutely delicious! Can I cut the recipe in half as written? If so, what size Dutch oven would you suggest and how long should I bake it with the lid on and how long with the lid off? Can’t wait for you new cookbook next month!
Hey Tina,
So glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, I appreciate you making it! Yes you can halve this, I think the cooking time would be 15 minutes covered and 10 uncovered, but you will need to keep an eye on it. I would use a 4 quart dutch oven. Have a great fall Friday! xT
We love this bread! It’s so easy to make!it’s a keeper!
I do have a question. Can you use bread flour instead of regular flour?
Hey Stephanie,
Awesome! Thanks so much for making this recipe so often and your comment! Glad to hear it is always enjoyed. Sure, bread flour should work nicely for you! Have a great week! x
Meh. Bread bubbled but didn’t rise as expected. 12 oz might be too much water. The dough stayed a wet mess and baked into a blob, not a lovely round loaf. I’ve tried other no-knead recipes that work better from a texture perspective.
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear you had some issues. Was there anything you may have adjusted in the recipe? What kind of yeast did you use? Please let me know how I can help! xT
Love this recipe! I’ve made it more than 8 times in my Dutch oven the past two weeks.
Do you think it would work in a bread loaf pan? 8.5×4.5 in particular?
Hey Denae,
So glad to hear you have been enjoying this recipe:) Honestly, I have never tried a bread loaf pan, but you certainly could give it a try! xx
Hi! I have a 5 quart cast iron Dutch oven that I will be using. Do I need to adjust anything in the recipe? Thank you!
Hi Allison,
You can follow the recipe as written:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
Does it matter what you cover the dough with ? Plastic, towel etc
Thank you!
Hi Susan,
Either of those is great to use! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
This is my new favorite go to bread recipe! It had a sourdough texture but with a more classic bread taste. Used Pacifico as the beer and it turned out delicious!
Hey Tricia,
Happy Sunday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xx
Can I make a half portion? If so, how do I adjust the cook time?
Hey Alison,
Sure, that would work for you! I would bake for 30 total minutes, I think that would work nicely for you! xx
Thank you for the easiest and the most delicious bread!
Hey Marleen,
Love to hear this! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and your comment! Have a great day:)
Hi everyone, I rarely comment online but in this case I decided to share my experimentation bc it’s kina changed my life. I have had a wheat gluten intolerance for at least 15 years, but only to heavily kneaded food like pasta and breads – not to flatbreads, pastry, etc. So in trying this with SPELT flour, I was delighted with the results. Gradually experimenting with different temps (everyone’s oven is unique) and beers, here’s what I’ve come to:
– dark beers create too liquid a dough for some reason (chemistry) and so I have been sticking to lagers and pilsners. I’m sure Belgian whites and pale ales would be fine.
– after a min 18 hr “rise” in a GLASS bowl/dish, I find I can just use a spatula to fold over into a ball and turn the thing upside down on parchment paper, and it will separate itself by gravity from the bowl – no working surface needed
-after it’s one hour “rest”, a couple of small slits in the top allow steam to escape, and I get a very nice height if the loaf is put in a dutch oven just slightly larger than the loaf
– for the final 15 min (lid off) I keep the oven on for 10min, then shut off the oven but leave the loaf in for a further 10min. This finishes cooking the inside, while just browning the crust but not browning too deep.
THANK YOU SO MUCH Teighan! Changed my food life!
Hey Eric,
Wonderful!! I’m so glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it:) Thanks a lot for sharing all of these helpful notes, I am sure it will be a help to other readers! Have a great weekend! xT
Can you use non alcoholic beer?
Hey Melody,
Of course, that will work nicely for you! I hope you love this recipe! xT
What type of beer is best to use for this recipe?
Hey Cassie,
I love using a pumpkin beer, but I’ve also used lite lagers that work nicely as well! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! xT
Thank you! I’m preparing the bread tonight but not baking till tomorrow. Should i leave out for 24 hours or put in fridge after 12 hours?
You can put it in the fridge:)