A beautiful gluten-free no knead bread that is easy to make, and perfect for making toast, rustic sandwiches, or accompanying soups and dips.
BAKING BREAD – BEFORE & AFTER
You can say that my culinary experience can be divided into two different periods, with the event of baking bread from scratch marking the threshold between the two.
Bread baking, with yeast and the doubling of dough included, transformed the way I looked at my relationship with cooking and baking. It taught me what being self-sufficient was about, and broke the barrier I had in my mind about so many things.
When I made my first loaf of yeast-leavened bread, watching the dough rise and seeing the air-bubbles formed to give the bread height left me in awe.
It was nothing short of a miracle, and after that first loaf, I fell in love with cooking so much more. I also realized that if I could bake bread, which seemed scary and difficult before I’d tried my hand at it, it meant I could also do so many other things.
BREAD BAKING: PATIENCE IS KEY
Bread baking generally takes a rather large amount of time (unless you’re talking about quick breads), and the act of baking bread is not something you should attempt if you’re in a hurry or lacking in patience.
I find that the best time to bake bread is when you know you have nowhere to rush to, and that the dough can take all the time it needs to rise.
Which is precisely why during this special period, when we have been spending an extraordinary amount of time at home, I’ve returned to baking yeasted bread again. With the luxury of time to slow down, relax and return to the kitchen to test out recipes again, I was intent on making the perfect artisan loaf.
After a few days of research and testing, I finally settled on this rustic gluten-free no knead recipe, which is adapted from this sandwich bread recipe from The Effortless Chic.
GLUTEN-FREE BREADS: NO NEED TO KNEAD
Since gluten-free flours don’t have gluten, there’s no need to knead because only dough with gluten requires kneading. There’s only one rise required, whereas for normal breads you may have to let it rise again once you punch the dough down after its first rise.
Start off by activating the instant dry yeast – combine the yeast, warm water, and sugar in a large bowl (if the yeast is working fine, you should start to see small bubbles forming at the surface, if not, use another packet of yeast). Once you know that the yeast is working, add the oil, apple cider vinegar, and beaten eggs to the yeast mixture and whisk well until you get a pale yellow frothy mixture.
PREPARING THE GLUTEN-FREE BREAD DOUGH
Combine the gluten-free all-purpose flour (this is the Cup4Cup gluten-free flour I love and recommend), tapioca starch, and salt together in another bowl, and then whisk well to combine. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix well until you get a combined by sticky dough.
If it’s too liquid add a tablespoon extra of gluten-free flour at a time until it holds its shape but is still relatively sticky. (Gluten-free bread dough will be pretty sticky and wet and that is completely perfect, unlike normal bread dough which can be easily shaped with your hands. Resist the urge to add more flour as a dough that is too dry will result in a rock-hard gluten-free loaf!)
LETTING THE GLUTEN-FREE BREAD DOUGH RISE
Sprinkle a bit of gluten-free flour over a piece of parchment paper and transfer the dough to the floured parchment paper. Use a wet spatula to gently shape the dough into a large ball. Place the dough and parchment paper in a bowl and cover with a tea towel to let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for the next 45 minutes. It will have risen, but not exactly double in size, so don’t worry if it’s not double the original size.
As the dough rises, preheat the oven to 450F, and place the covered Dutch oven in the oven to warm it up. Once the dough has risen, use a gluten-free floured knife to score three lines on the top and sprinkle with some flour. Next, transfer the dough together with the parchment paper to the hot Dutch oven, cover it with the lid, and place the pot in the oven. Allow it to bake for 45 minutes, before uncovering and baking for another 30 minutes until top is golden brown and crusty.
ALLOW GLUTEN-FREE BREAD TO COOL BEFORE SLICING
As with all gluten-free baked goods, you have to allow the bread to fully cool before slicing as the inside of the bread will continue to cook with the residual heat. But once the bread is cool, slice into it and eat!
We’ve made this recipe 3 times in the past two weeks, and each time it comes out perfect. Eat it toasted and spread with jam for breakfast, or as avocado toast for brunch, or make rustic sandwiches for lunch. Use it to accompany soups or soak up sauces. Or use it to make French toast for a special occasion. One thing is for certain – no matter how you choose to eat it, this gluten-free no knead bread is just perfect.
IF YOU ENJOYED THIS BREAD RECIPE, YOU’LL ALSO LOVE:
- 10 Amazing Gluten-Free Bread Recipes to Make on Repeat
- Easy Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread
- Gluten-Free Flaxseed Coconut Bread (Paleo, Dairy-Free)
- Gluten-Free Honey Oat Quick Bread
- Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Bread
- Grain-Free Cashew Bread
- The Best Gluten-Free Banana Bread (Dairy-Free)
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Easy Gluten-Free No Knead Bread (Dairy-Free)
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hr 15 mins
- Total Time: 2 hrs
- Yield: 1 loaf 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
A beautiful gluten-free no-knead bread that is easy to make, and perfect for making toast, rustic sandwiches, or accompanying soups and dips.
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca starch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 3/4 cup warm water (approx. 105F-110F)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 eggs, beaten
Instructions
- Whisk the gluten-free all-purpose flour, tapioca starch, and salt together in a large bowl until the ingredients are well distributed.
- Combine the warm water, yeast, and sugar together in another large bowl and mix well. Set aside for 5 minutes. (You should start see bubbles at the surface. If not, it means the yeast has expired and is not working, so you will need to use yeast from a new packet.)
- Once the yeast mixture starts to form bubbles, add the oil, apple cider vinegar, beaten eggs and whisk well until you get a homogeneous yellow frothy liquid.
- Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly for a few minutes until you get a dough that is sticky but not too liquid. (If the dough is too wet, add one tablespoon of gluten-free flour at a time, but do not add too much. Gluten-free bread dough will always be a little wetter than normal bread dough, and it is perfectly fine.)
- Sprinkle gluten-free flour over a sheet of parchment paper and transfer the dough to the parchment. Use a wet spatula to gently shape the dough into the a ball that can fit a Dutch oven. Transfer the parchment with the dough to a bowl and cover with a tea towel to let it rise for approximately 45 minutes (note that the dough will rise, but it may not double in size as normal bread dough does).
- While the dough rises, preheat the oven to 450F and place a covered Dutch oven in the oven as the dough rises.
- Once the dough has risen, use a gluten-free floured knife to score three lines on the top and sprinkle with some flour. Carefully transfer both the risen dough together with the parchment to the preheated Dutch oven and cover it with the lid.
- Bake for 45 minutes before removing the lid, and then bake for another 15 to 30 minutes until the top is golden brown and crusty.
- Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing into it.
Notes
Flour: I love the cup4cup gluten-free all-purpose flour, but it does contain milk, so use a dairy-free gluten-free all-purpose flour alternative if you are allergic to dairy.
Starch: You may substitute the tapioca starch with either corn or arrowroot starch.
Liquids: In this recipe, I use water but if you prefer a creamier taste, simple use milk in the same amount. I’ve tried almond milk and cashew milk and it works great.
Oils: I used sunflower oil, but any other neutral tasting oil such as avocado oil would work great too.
Eggs: If you are vegan or allergic to eggs, simply replace the eggs with 2 flaxseed eggs or 4 tablespoons of oil. Eggs give the bread a beautiful yellow color so note that without the eggs the bread will be whiter in color on the inside.
Adapted from The Effortless Chic
- Category: Breads
- Method: Baking
Keywords: gluten-free no knead bread
