I have made this Italian Dutch Oven Bread so many times in the last two months that I’ve lost count. See, I’m not a bread maker. I am a baker. But I consider bread-making it’s own special art form. It’s an art that I don’t practice often. If I make a bread, it’s usually a banana bread, maybe a challah bread on occasion. But I wanted a one of those fresh-baked, crusty, no-fuss bread recipes in my repertoire and I wanted to make sure that it was perfect. See you need a bread like this when you’re making something with a sauce that needs to be sopped up with something. Or quite frankly, pour some good quality olive oil on a small plate and dunk this bread in it. And then call it a day. Cause damn.
What makes this Italian Dutch Oven Bread recipe special?
As I was perusing recipes for a no knead, Dutch oven bread, it shocked me to my core that ALL of the recipes require a 12-18 hour rise time. Like what the hell? When I’m craving bread, I usually don’t think about it the day before. Am I seriously supposed to prep the dough the night before and then leave it overnight? And then what bake it in the morning and hope that I don’t devour throughout the day before dinner? I thought that these breads were supposed to be “no fuss” breads? I mean this isn’t a notoriously difficult sourdough or croissant recipe.
So I set out to see if it could be done. A six hour bread. And I’m here to tell you that it absolutely can. This bread is about as no fuss as a no fuss bread can get. You can start it at a decent hour and have it ready for dinner time. Boom. Yeah, I said boom. I’ve tried to be as detailed as possible with my instructions below in case you, too, are not a bread-maker. This bread has a fantastic Italian flavor. It reminds me of the fresh bread that an Italian restaurant that my husband and I used to frequent would serve upon being seated. You gotta give it a try!
Let me show you how I made this Italian Dutch Oven Bread 👇🏻
Let’s get started with some yeast.
Add 1 tsp of granulated sugar to a large liquid measuring cup (must be at least a 2 cup-er). Pour in 2 cups of warm water. Not hot. Not cold. Warm. Stir the sugar around until it’s partially dissolved. Add a 1/4 oz packet of quick-rise yeast and give it a quick stir. Let it sit for 5 minutes while you prepare the other ingredients.
Moving onto flour.
In a large bowl, add 4.5 cups of AP flour, 1.5 tsp of Italian seasoning, 1.5 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp roasted garlic powder (may substitute with regular old garlic powder), and 2 tsp of grated parmesan cheese.
Whisk the dry ingredients together. Make a well in the center of the bowl.
After 5 minutes, this 👇🏻 is what your yeast should look like. Nice and foamy. Pour this into the well in the bowl.
Now combine.
At first, use a spatula to combine the wet and dry ingredients. It will be super sticky.
Once the dough starts to come together, abandon the spatula and use your hands. You want to form the dough into a ball. It will still be sticky, but should come together enough to shape into a ball. Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel and place in a relatively warm, draft-free place.
Time to preheat.
For this recipe, you will need a preheated oven and a preheated Dutch oven. After the dough has been able to rise for about 5 hours and 15 minutes, begin preheating your oven. Preheat to 450 degrees. Mine takes about 10-15 minutes to preheat to that temp.
When your oven is preheated, place your EMPTY Dutch oven (lid and all) into the oven and bake it for 30 minutes.
Final Dough Preparation
While the Dutch oven is preheating, remove your dough from the bowl to a lightly floured surface.
Fold the dough onto itself a few times and shape into a nicely rounded ball. You may need to add a little more flour. Add flour one teaspoon at a time. Be sure to not over-flour.
Clean out your bowl and lightly rub with olive oil. Place the dough back into the bowl, gently rolling it around in the oil. Cover with the towel.
After 30 minutes, when the Dutch oven is preheated, your dough will mostly look the same.
Time to bake.
Remove the Dutch oven from the oven (be careful, it’s hot). Now remove the dough from the bowl and place on a sheet of parchment paper. Place the dough AND parchment paper into the hot Dutch oven. Place the lid on top and place in the oven. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, remove the lid. Bake for another 15 minutes.
After 30 minutes of baking with the lid on and 15 minutes of baking with the lid off, your bread such be a beautiful golden color and have a great crusty exterior.
Carefully lift the bread out of the hot Dutch oven. You can use the parchment to lift it out, but be careful, it can tear.
Place the bread onto a cutting board to cool completely before slicing, about 1 hour.
It’s really difficult to wait that hour until the bread has cooled. Really, really difficult.
Enjoy!!
These are the recommended products that I used to make this delicious recipe. These are not only products that I use, but products that I love.
Italian Dutch Oven Bread
Ingredients
- 1/4 Oz Packet of Quick Rise Yeast
- 2 Cups Warm Water
- 1 Tsp Granulated Sugar
- 4 1/2 Cups AP Flour + more for handling dough
- 1 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1 1/2 Tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 Tsp Roasted Garlic Powder Can substitute Garlic Powder
- 2 Tsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
Instructions
- Add the granulated sugar to a large liquid measuring cup. Fill the measuring cup with 2 cups of warm water. Stir the water to dissolve the sugar a little, then add the packet of yeast, and give it a quick stir. Let it sit for 5 minutes while you prepare the other ingredients.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the salt, Italian seasoning, roasted garlic powder, grated parmesan cheese, and 4.5 cups of flour. Make a well in the center of the bowl.
- Pour the water mixture into the well of the bowl of flour. Using a rubber spatula, combine the water and flour. When it has mostly started to come together, use your hands to finish incorporating.
- Your dough will be sticky, but you should be able to form it into the shape of a ball without it sticking to the sides of the bowl. Add a little more flour if necessary.
- Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and place it in a relatively warm, draft-free place for 5.5 hours.
- After about 5 hours and 15 minutes, preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Once preheated, place your EMPTY Dutch oven (with lid) into the oven and preheat it for a half hour.
- While the Dutch oven is preheating, remove your dough from the bowl to a lightly floured surface. Fold the dough onto itself a few times and shape it into a ball. You may need to add a little more flour (only like a tsp at a time, don’t over-flour). Clean out your bowl and then brush the bowl lightly with olive oil.
- Place the dough into the oiled bowl, rolling it in the oil slightly and cover with a towel while the Dutch oven preheats.
- When the Dutch oven has preheated for 30 minutes, remove it from the oven (be careful, it’s hot). Place the dough onto a sheet of parchment and carefully place the dough AND parchment into the hot Dutch oven. Place the lid on the pot.
- Cook, covered, in the oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake for another 15 minutes until the bread is golden and crusty.
- Carefully remove the bread from the Dutch oven to a cutting board and let cool completely before slicing, about 1 hour. Enjoy!
- Wrap leftover bread in plastic wrap or store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days.
Welcome to Cupcakes and Sarcasm! My name is Maggie and I am the creator of C & S. I am a wife and mom of two beautiful kiddos. I grew up in Columbus, Ohio and now live in Northeast Ohio with my family. I have been cooking and baking since I was a kid. I decided in 2017 that I wanted to share my passion (and recipes) with all of you! On this site, you’ll find easy and delicious recipes- both savory and sweet. I’ll also sprinkle in some stories of parenting and our adventures along the way.