No-Knead French Bread loaves have golden, crisp crusts and lightly chewy centers. This homemade bread needs just 90 minutes of total rise time and makes two rustic loaves. It doesn’t require special methods or equipment. (No bread flour needed.)
Yesterday I shared the basic recipe for making No-Knead Everyday Bread which is baked in a bowl to produce a single, round loaf of bread. Today, we’re using that same recipe to make these French bread loaves. These loaves just use a bit of flour for dusting and can be baked on a sheet pan.
Whether this is your first time baking bread with yeast or you’re just looking for a quick go-to French-style bread to have in your back pocket, this recipe is for you.
Here’s how to do it!
Ingredients for No-Knead French Bread
- All-Purpose Flour - No special flour needed here - just regular all-purpose. Any brand is fine. In addition to the flour you’ll use in the dough, you’ll need a bit of extra flour to dust your hands and the dough in order to shape the loaves.
- Kosher Salt - This recipe was tested with Kosher salt, so use that for the right balance of saltiness. (If using table salt, reduce the amount you use by about half.)
- Sugar - Use regular granulated / white sugar. Don’t skip this - the dough needs sugar in order to rise.
- Fast-Acting or “Instant” Yeast - No-Knead French Bread uses a dough that rises quickly (making it a go-to for new bread bakers or those of us who want this ready fast) and requires Fast-Acting (not “Active Dry”) yeast. See the original post for No-Knead Everyday Bread for more details on this yeast.
- Warm Water - The water should feel quite warm, but not too hot to touch. Check the package on the yeast for the recommended temperature range. I usually heat tap weather in the microwave for about 90 seconds to reach about 120°F / 49°C.
How to Make No-Knead French Bread
Now you’ve got the tools and ingredients for no-knead French bread, here’s how to make it!
- Combine Dry Ingredients - In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and yeast.
- Add Warm Water - Pour water over dry ingredients (check the packaging on your yeast and use water at the temperature it recommends) and stir until no dry spots remain. The dough will be very sticky, but just scrape down the sides as you stir.
- First Rise (45 minutes) - Cover the dough with a clean dish towel and leave it on the kitchen counter to rise until the surface is topped with large bubbles and it has nearly doubled in bulk, 45 minutes. (If your kitchen is on the cooler side, let the dough rise for 60 minutes.) Don’t worry too much about getting the timing just right here - anywhere between 45 and 60 minutes should work.
- Shape Loaves - Set out a large sheet pan (or two sheet pans) and dust the surface of the pan with some all purpose flour or cornmeal. Dust the surface of the dough with flour or cornmeal and then dust your hands as well. Use a knife to slice down the center of the dough, separating it into even pieces (the dough is very sticky, so don’t worry about being super precise). Working with one half of the dough at a time, transfer it to the sheet pan and form it into a long baguette-shaped oval. Dust the dough or your hands with some more flour, if needed. Repeat the process with the remaining half of the dough.
- Heat Oven - Preheat the oven to 450°F / 232°C. (If you have an oven that heats up fairly fast, you can wait to start heating the oven until the dough is nearly through the second rise below.)
- Second Rise (45 minutes) - While the oven heats up, let the dough rise on the sheet pan, uncovered, until nearly doubled in size, 45 minutes.
- Bake bread (25 minutes) - Just before baking, use a knife or kitchen shears to cut slits in the surface of the dough. (These slits help the dough to spread out and rise as it bakes, but they’re also decorative - giving the bread some more texture and color on the surface.) Bake bread in the heated oven until the top is golden brown and crisp, about 25 minutes. If you have an instant read thermometer, that is the best way to check and see if the bread is done cooking. The bread should be 190°F / 88°C in the center.
- Cool Bread - Transfer loaves immediately to a cooling rack. Allow to cool slightly and serve!
What to Serve with French Bread
- Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup or Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup - We always love these simple soups that come together quickly in the Instant Pot.
- One-Pan Italian Turkey Meatballs with Marinara - Slice these French bread loaves lengthwise, fill them with meatballs and marinara for meatball subs!
- Lemon Chicken Piccata - Charred sweet and sour lemon slices give seared chicken big lemon flavor and the light, creamy pan sauce is great over pasta or with this yummy French bread.
Tools for Baking No-Knead French Bread
The key is not to overwork the dough for this rustic bread, so the loaves may not be exactly the same shape or size - but they will taste great! Here’s all you need to make them:
- Large Mixing Bowl - This is the bowl in which you’ll mix the dough and let it rise. Any large bowl is fine.
- Large Sheet Pan - A half sheet pan is the right size for baking two of these loaves of bread side-by-side, but you could also use two smaller sheet pans.
- Kitchen Scale - This is not necessary, but it’s easiest (and most accurate) to just measure the flour by weight right into the mixing bowl.
- Parchment Paper - This is optional, but to make the loaves easy to remove from the sheet pan, it’s a great idea to add parchment paper. (Note: Many brands of parchment paper have a recommended upper temperature limit, but there should be no issue with baking it above that temperature.)
No-Knead French Bread
No-Knead French Bread loaves have golden, crisp crusts and lightly chewy centers. This homemade bread needs just 90 minutes of total rise time and makes two rustic loaves. It doesn’t require special methods or equipment. (No bread flour needed.)
Servings: 12
Calories: 163kcal
Cost: $5.00
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Half Sheet Pan
Ingredients
- 4 cups / 500g All-Purpose Flour
- 2 teaspoon Kosher Salt (I use Morton’s or Diamond Brand)
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoon Fast Acting or “Instant” Yeast (see note)
- 2 cups / 473ml Warm Water (see note)
Instructions
- Make Dough: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and yeast. Pour water over dry ingredients and stir until no dry spots remain. The dough will be very sticky, but just scrape down the sides as you stir.
- First Rise (45 minutes): Cover the dough with a clean dish towel and leave it on the kitchen counter to rise until doubled in size, 45 minutes. (If your kitchen is on the colder side, let the dough rise for 60 minutes.)
- Set out a large sheet pan (or two sheet pans). If you’d like, you can add a piece of parchment paper to the sheet pan which will make it easier to remove the bread and eliminate any chance of sticking. Dust the pan with all-purpose flour (see note).
- Shape Loaves: Use a knife to slice down the center of the dough, separating it into even halves (the dough is very sticky, so don’t worry about being super precise). Dust the surface of the dough and your hands with flour. Working with one half of the dough at a time, transfer it to the prepared sheet pan and form it into two side-by-side baguette-shaped loaves. (If things get sticky, dust with some more flour as you work. These loaves may not look picture-perfect, but they'll taste great!)
- Heat Oven: Preheat oven to 450°F / 232°C. (If you have an oven that heats up fairly fast, you can wait to start heating the oven until the dough is nearly through the second rise below.)
- Second Rise (45 minutes): While the oven heats up, leave the dough to rise on the sheet pan, uncovered, until nearly doubled in size, 45 minutes.
- Just before baking, use a knife or kitchen shears to cut slits in the surface of the dough. (These slits help the dough to spread out and rise as it bakes, but they’re also decorative - giving the bread some more texture and color on the surface.)
- Bake bread (25 minutes): Bake bread in the heated oven until the top is golden brown and crisp, about 25 minutes. (Use an instant read thermometer if you have one. The bread is done when it reaches 190°F / 88°C in the center.)
- Transfer loaves immediately to a cooling rack. Allow to cool slightly and serve!
Notes
Yeast - 2 ¼ teaspoon of Fast Acting or “Instant Yeast is one ¼ oz packet of yeast (often sold in 3-packet sets). Be sure to get yeast labeled as Fast Acting, Instant, Quick-Rise, Bread Machine, or RapidRise - any of these will work. Do NOT use “Active Dry Yeast” for this recipe; it needs to be dissolved in water before using.
Water - Check the label on the brand of yeast you have purchased for the recommended water temperature. Water that is too hot will kill the yeast, water that is too cool will not “activate” it. Use a thermometer to check the temperature or just make sure it feels warm (but not hot) to the touch.
Dusting with flour or cornmeal - The key to shaping the loaves of very sticky dough without them sticking to your hands or the pan is to dust everything lightly with either all-purpose flour or cornmeal. Either one will work.
Storing bread - Sliced bread can be stored at room temperature for 2 days (it’s best warmed in the toaster after the first day) or can be frozen for up to 6 months.
This recipe is adapted from what is, as far as I’ve been able to figure out, the original source - Mrs. Howard G. Shutte, Jr. as published in the Three Rivers Cookbook III of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1990). Tips, tricks, and the discovery of this recipe come from my grandma - Jeanne Gregg.
Nutrition
Calories: 163kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 390mg | Potassium: 66mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 2mg
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Emi Lim
Hi Jess,
Just made this recipe today and it was a total success - and so easy too which is a bonus as it's often hard to get much bread making done with a 7 month old baby.
Highly recommend giving this recipe a go!
Jess
So glad you liked it Emi! And congrats to you - both on the baby AND on attempting to bake with a 7-month-old. That's no small feat!
Diane
So easy and delicious! Will be making weekly! Looking forward to trying your other recipes.
Jess
Wonderful! So glad you liked it Diane!
Jessica Azenaro
Easy and delicious! Although, I admit to adding a pan with 4 cups of water in the bottom rack while preheating the oven. I love crusty loaves and that certainly did the trick.
Jess
Yes - always a good move for a crispy crust!
Enrique
Hi, I want to try to make this bread but I’m wondering if I can skip the sugar; it is just a spoon but I’m trying to avoid sugar. Will it work without sugar?
Thanks
Jess
Hi there! You'll have to have some sort of sweetener to activate the yeast. Honey would work as a substitute.
Michelle
Besttttttttttttt
I used oil instead of flour because the dough was so sticky that I can’t control it. This is really the best and the easiest bread I have ever baked!!!!!!!!!
Jess
Yay! So glad you liked it Michelle! It's definitely a sticky dough to work with, but pays off in the result!
Carmenb
How do you store the bread after it's cut?
Jess
If I'm not freezing it, I keep it in a sealed container or plastic bag in the pantry. It's best toasted if you're eating it a day or two after it was baked.
Donita Male
I have baguette pans. For two loaves. This recipe works great for a quick bread. I give it a squirt of water when I put it in the oven. Helps the crust crisp. It’s sooooooooooooo easy. I make many kinds of breads. Can’t go wrong with these instructions. Unless you can’t read. 😉. A must have if you like fresh bread in a hurry. Thanks.
Jess Smith
Wonderful! Great tips Donita - thanks so much for sharing and for your kind note!
Donita Male
I have two loaves in the oven now. Sooooooo easy. I just snipped “V” ‘s along the tops. Sprayed with water and have a pan of water on the bottom of the oven. Soup and bread tonight. Love his recipe.
Tom Sloan
I absolutely love this recipe. So simple and satisfying, and it's become my Saturday morning activity to prepare this bread for our weekend meals and for dipping with olive oil during happy hour. Thanks so much!
Sharon Knutson
I love this bread so much💕
I was wondering if I can make just one large loaf from the recipe?
Jess Smith
So glad you like it Sharon! Yes - absolutely you can make one large loaf. Since it tends to flatten out a bit, the cook time doesn't change significantly when making one large loaf. I also often make this same recipe into one large focaccia - that recipes is also here on the site.
LESLIE BECK
This is great to know! I'm just cooking for two people. Would it be possible to make one loaf of french bread and one loaf of focaccia with this dough recipe? How would you modify the recipe to make it focaccia? Thank you!
Jess Smith
Yes - it's a great way to make two bread with one batch of dough! Search for the focaccia recipe on this site to see exactly how I do it!
Cristin
I made this last Saturday and Sunday, but both times they came out flat. The second rise was a little long, so I was much more careful the next day, but no luck—flat!
Any idea what I am doing wrong? I am an experienced baker, but not so much with yeast breads. The room temperature is warm enough; I also used a kitchen scale, fresh yeast, and thermometer.
That said, it is delicious!! No fault of the recipe—it’s me! 🙂
Jess Smith
Hi Cristin! So glad you liked them but sorry to hear that they turned out flat. The dough is quite wet so they do spread out a bit - they're definitely a more rustic style. Did your loaves turn out more flat than in the photos? It sounds like you already went through the checklist I would have sent!