Easy No-Knead Bread Recipe in a Pot

Name: Easy No-Knead Bread Recipe in a Pot
Prep time: 2 h 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 20 slices (1 large loaf; calories per slice)
Ingredients: 400 g Plain flour / all-purpose flour; 350 g Strong white bread flour; 550 g Lukewarm water; 30 g Olive oil; 15 g Salt; 10 g Instant dry yeast

This easy no-knead bread recipe makes a golden, crusty loaf with a soft centre—all baked in a pot. With simple ingredients, three gentle folds and less than 10 minutes of hands-on work, it’s an approachable homemade bread recipe for beginners.

This is the bread I bake every week. There’s no mixer or kneading involved: just mix, rest, fold and bake.

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Bread & Pastry

Prep time
Less than 10 minutes

Cook time
10 minutes

Total time
2 hours 30 minutes

Approx. calories
150 kcal
per serving

Ingredients Instructions Video Tips

Ingredients

Choose your units:

Ingredients (for 20 slices (1 large loaf; calories per slice)):

Plain flour / all-purpose flour: 400 g
Strong white bread flour: 350 g
Lukewarm water: 550 g
Olive oil: 30 g
Salt: 15 g
Instant dry yeast: 10 g

Equipment

Kitchen scale

Large mixing bowl

Sturdy spoon or spatula

Oven-safe pot with a lid, both suitable for 250°C / 480°F

Baking parchment

Cooling rack

Vasko’s Tips

Don’t add extra flour. The dough should be soft and sticky — that helps create a light, airy crumb.

Use lukewarm water, not hot water. Water that is too hot can weaken or kill the yeast.

Wet your hand before folding the dough. It prevents sticking and makes folding much easier.

Give the dough time. The short rests between folds develop structure without kneading.

Keep the dough warm while it rises. A slightly warmed, switched-off oven works very well.

Use any oven-safe pot with a lid. You don’t need a special Dutch oven — just make sure there are no plastic parts.

Let the bread cool completely before slicing. Cutting it too early can make the inside gummy.

Freeze leftover slices. Put them straight from the freezer into the toaster and they taste almost freshly baked.

Instructions

1. Mix the Dry Ingredients

Adding flour to a bowl for no-knead bread recipe on a wooden countertop.

Add both flours, the salt and the instant dry yeast to a large bowl. Stir until evenly combined.

2. Add the Water and Olive Oil

Adding yeast to flour mixture for no-knead bread recipe on a kitchen scale.

Pour in the lukewarm water, then add the olive oil. Mix with a sturdy spoon or spatula until no dry flour remains. The dough should be soft and sticky. There’s no need to knead it or add extra flour at this stage.

3. Rest for 20 Minutes

Cover the bowl and leave the dough in a gently warm place for 20 minutes.

4. Make the First Fold

Hands mixing no-knead bread dough in a white bowl on a wooden countertop.

Lightly dampen your hands. Lift one edge of the dough, gently stretch it upwards and fold it towards the centre. Turn the bowl and repeat around the dough. Cover and leave to rest for another 20 minutes.

5. Make the Second Fold

Repeat the gentle folding process, bringing the edges towards the centre. Cover the bowl and rest for another 20 minutes.

6. Make the Third Fold and Transfer to the Pot

Pouring dough into a baking pot for no-knead bread recipe.

Line your pot with baking parchment. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Fold the edges towards the centre to form a loose round loaf, handling it gently. Transfer the dough to the prepared pot, cover with the lid and leave to rise for another 20 minutes.

7. Preheat the Oven

Remove the pot if you have been proofing the dough in the oven. Preheat the oven to 250°C / 480°F with the fan on. Keep the pot covered while the oven heats.

8. Bake in the Covered Pot

Place the covered pot in the fully preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes. The lid traps steam released by the dough, helping the loaf expand as it bakes.

9. Finish Baking Without the Pot

Freshly baked no-knead bread being removed from oven in a baking dish.

Using oven gloves, carefully remove the pot from the oven. Lift out the bread and remove the baking parchment. Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C / 390°F and switch the fan off. Place the loaf directly on the oven rack and bake for another 25 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.

10. Cool and Slice

Person slicing freshly baked bread on a pink cutting board in a kitchen.

Transfer the loaf to a cooling rack and let it cool completely before slicing. Cooling allows the centre to set and helps prevent a gummy texture. Enjoy with soup, use for sandwiches or toast a slice for breakfast.