Clay Pot Bread Recipe (2024)

Clay Pot Bread

Thanks to lucky fortune, I was flush with yeast and flour when the lockdown began. (No panic buying for me!) For the whole wheat flour, I used either einkorn flour, red fife flour or rye flour, which I had on hand, purchased from local sources.

Last year, my friend Annie gave me her Schlemmertopf clay pot. She cooked chicken in it but I use it exclusively for baking bread. This is a no kneed bread recipe ~ just mix it in the evening and bake it in the morning, or vice versa.

Start to finish, it takes about 10 hours, give or take. But we have plenty of time now, right?

Clay Pot Bread
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 heaping tsp yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups warm water

1. In a bowl with a tight-fitting lid (I use an ice cream pail) mix the flours, yeast and salt.

2. Stir in the water to make a shaggy ball of dough. Stir well to make sure ALL the flour is mixed in. Place the lid and leave it to sit on the counter for 8 to 10 hours.

3. At baking time, immerse the clay pot and its lid in water. Let it soak 10-15 minutes. Remove from the water, set the lid on the pot and place it in a cold oven. Heat the oven to 450F.

4. While the oven is heating, turn the dough onto a well-floured countertop. You'll see that it has transformed from a shaggy ball to a sticky almost batter-like dough. Flour up your hands and form it into a loaf about the same shape as your clay pot (see pix below). Make sure the bottom is well floured so it doesn't stick to the counter or to the pot.

5. When the oven reaches 450F take the hot clay pot from the oven. Put the dough in the pot, replace the lid and return to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes. Note: You don't need to be graceful about placing the dough in the pot, just set it in quickly and wish it well

😘

6. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and keep baking another 15 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven. Lift your beautiful bread out of the pot and set on a rack to cool.