talmiere – Cook and Drink

No-Knead Bread – Easier Method

12 December 2022

Recently Le Creuset introduced a Cast Iron Bread Oven. A great way to make bread at home. The oven is well designed, making it easy to transfer the dough to the pan. It has a domed lid, ergonomic handles and looks amazing. Typical Le Creuset quality.

On their website you’ll find several recipes, including one for sesame bread. It is made with 600 grams of wheat flour, 14 grams of salt (wow!) and 400 grams of water. The recipe is based on slow-rise fermentation. With only 1 gram of yeast in combination with 19+3 hours of rest, the yeast does a wonderful job. And kneading, as you would expect, is not required.

Le Creuset’s approach is slightly different from Jim Lahey’s, owner of Sullivan Street Bakery, New York, promotor of no-knead bread since 2006 and author of the excellent book My Bread.
After the first rise, Jim Lahey folds the dough four times, dusts it with flour and bran, transfers it to a cloth for 3 hours before transferring it to a hot pan, a step that requires some practice and skills.
Le Creuset folds the dough twice and then transfers it to a cold pan. Wait for 3 hours and then transfer the cold pan to the oven. This approach is clearly quicker and easier.
And the result? A beautiful, tasty bread with a crispy crust.

What You Need

430 gram of Flour (we use 200 gram of Whole Grain Flour and 230 gram of All Purpose Flour)
25 grams Blue Poppy Seed
30 grams Brown Linseed
1 gram of Instant Yeast
4 grams of Salt
355 grams of Water
Additional Flower
Bran

What You Do

We use a 20cm Le Creuset Casserole with a heat resistant knob. Make sure the pan is well coated. If not, coat with oil and kitchen paper before using.
Mix flour, yeast, seeds and salt. Add water and create one mixture. Let rest in a covered bowl for 19 hours. Dust your kitchen worktop with flour, remove the dough from the bowl, fold 4 times, dust the pan with a touch of flour and bran, transfer the dough to the pan, sprinkle some bran on the top of the dough and close the lid. Let rest in the pan for 3 hours. Heat your oven to 235˚ Celsius or 450˚ Fahrenheit. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until it is nicely browned. Remove the bread from the pan and let cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing it.

No-Knead Bread – UPDATE

25 September 2019

Slow Rise Fermentation

A few months ago we shared a recipe of no-knead bread, based on the recipe courtesy of Jim Lahey, owner of Sullivan Street Bakery, New York. It was published in the New York Times in 2006 and can also be found in his book My Bread. It takes a bit of planning but preparing no-knead bread is simple and straightforward with a great result. We truly love it.
The recipe is based on slow rise fermentation. With only one gram of yeast in combination with 18+2 hours of rest, the yeast will do a wonderful job. The dough will be perfect. And kneading, as you would expect, is not required.

UPDATE – Talmière

Recently when enjoying the luxury of having a classic French bakery around the corner of our holiday apartment, we explored a range of beautiful French bread. One of these was the Talmière. It is enriched with various seeds, such as poppy seed, linseed, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. Sometimes honey is added. The Talmière came with a beautiful crust and a rich taste. The bread is a bit compact compared to the usual Baguette or Tradition, probably as a result of the seeds in the dough.
We combined our ingredients with blue poppy seed and brown linseed.
Our best bread ever?

What You Need

400 gram of Flour (we use 200 gram of Whole Grain Flour, 100 gram of Plain White Flour and 100 gram of French T65 Flour, but you will also have a great result when using 200 gram of Whole Grain Flour and 200 gram of Plain White Flour)
25 gram Blue Poppy Seed
25 gram Brown Linseed
1 gram Instant Yeast
4 gram Salt
310 gram Water
Additional Flower
Bran

What You Do

The easiest way is to read and follow the recipe and video as provided by the New York Times.
Or if you feel confident: mix flour, seeds, yeast and salt. Add water and create one mixture. Let rest in a bowl covered with foil for 18 hours. Dust your worktop with a generous amount of additional flour. Remove dough from bowl and fold 4 times. Let rest on a towel also generously dusted with flour and bran for 2 hours. Heat your oven to 230˚ Celsius or 450˚ Fahrenheit. Make sure the pot is also hot. We used a 20 cm Le Creuset Cast Iron Round Casserole. Put the dough, seam side up, in the pot, close it and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for 15 minutes until it is nicely browned. Let cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing you no-knead with blue poppy seeds and brown linseed.