No Knead Rustic Bread

This No Knead Rustic Bread is a simple and delicious way to enjoy artisanal quality bread at home. It requires little effort with fabulous results. It’s perfect to pair this with a bowl of hot soup or a rich pasta dish.
This no knead rustic bread begins with whisking some flour, sugar, salt, and yeast together in a large bowl. Then add in some warm water and mix with a wooden spoon or danish dough whisk to form a dough ball. It will be sticky and shaggy. That’s ok. You want it with no white steaks. Lumpy and bumpy dough is the perfect texture for this bread.

Once you get to that point, the dough needs to rise until it is double in size. Cover the bowl with a light towel or plastic wrap. I like to use a flour sack towel. This will take about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. In the meantime, you want to spray a 9 inch pie plate with non-stick cooking spray. This is what the bread will bake in and help give it a nice round shape for the loaf.
How to bake this bread
Now to bake this, you bake it at a high temperature first. It goes at 425 for 15 minutes. Cooking at the the initial high heat helps gelatinize the starch granules in the flour, which helps them absorb water and swell. It allows the dough to rise properly. This high heat also will set the shape of the loaf by forming the crust and adding crispness to the crust.
Then you lower the temperature to 375 to finish baking for another 15-20 minutes. This allows the bread to finish rising internally without over browning or burning the crust. It also results in a fluffier soft interior crumb to the bread. This 2 temperature baking is crucial for artisan style bread that has a crispy crust with an airy interior.

This loaf is less airy and more dense than my other recipe called easy peasant bread. If you love that bread, you will love having this recipe too! Make this bread! The smell of this freshly baked bread wafting through you kitchen will bring a sense of warmth and satisfaction. It didn’t require much effort either! This will be a recipe you will be one you will enjoy through this fall and winter season.
Here’s what you need to make this
No Knead Rustic Bread
- FLOUR
- SALT
- SUGAR
- INSTANT YEAST
- WARM WATER

No Knead Rustic Bread
Real Mom Kitchen
Ingredients
- 4 cups flour
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp instant yeast **see note
- 2 cups warm water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt, sugar, and yeast together. Add the water and mix with a wooden spoon or danish dough whisk. Mix until a shaggy, sticky ball forms with no dry streaks.
- Cover the bowl a light towel or plastic wrap. Allow the dough rise until doubled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Generously grease a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
- Scrape the dough away from the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, forming a rough ball in the center of the bowl. Lightly grease your hands with cooking spray or oil and shape the dough into a circle loaf shape. Just lift, roll, and tuck the edges under. Place in the prepared pie pan. The loaf will not be completely smooth and rough in shape. Remember this is a rustic loaf of bread.
- Allow the dough rest again but uncovered this time, for 15-20 minutes until slightly puffy.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees. Then reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden. Makes 1 loaf.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe is adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Café.