Even if you’ve never made homemade bread or worked with yeast before, this homemade crusty artisan bread is for you. It’s the perfect beginner recipe because it only requires 4 ingredients without any special pans or mixer, there’s no kneading or complicated shaping involved, and 95% of the work is hands-off. Bread masters will appreciate this recipe too because it delivers with delicious flavor, a slightly crisp and mega chewy crust, and those signature soft holes inside like ciabatta or French bread.
Bread Beginners—Start Here
Have you ever wanted to master homemade bread? Real, crusty, chewy, delicious bakery-style loaves that taste incredible with dips, soups, sauces, and comforting dinners? This is where you start. This artisan bread recipe is for beginners, but even bread masters will appreciate its flavor and ease. It’s so fresh, so flavorful, and so surprisingly easy because it basically makes itself.
You only need 4 ingredients without any special pans or mixer, there’s no kneading, no poolish or dough starter required, and you can add herbs, cheeses, and spices to make a variety of bread flavors.
This base recipe will soon be on repeat in your kitchen. After you realize how easy it is to make real homemade bread, you’ll find any excuse to bake a loaf. You can even turn it into garlic bread and homemade croutons.
What is Homemade Artisan Bread?
When it comes to bread, the term “artisan” doesn’t mean 1 particular thing. But, generally, artisan bread is homemade, fresh, crusty, and deliciously rustic-looking. An artisan is a skilled worker, one who works with their hands. But ironically, there isn’t much “work” involved with this recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Bread Recipe
- Easier than you ever imagined
- Soft + flavorful
- Chewy, slightly crisp crust
- Shape however you want
- No special pans, poolish, or dough starter required
- Only 4 ingredients
- You decide the length of time it rests
Like sandwich bread, whole wheat bread, focaccia, homemade English muffins, seeded oat bread, and homemade bagels—the process is surprisingly easy. If you’re new to yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Only 4 Ingredients
The crustier and chewier the bread, the less fat in the dough—also known as a “lean dough.” We’re using a lean dough for our artisan loaf today. (If you’re curious, a “rich dough” is a soft bread dough with the presence of fat, such as butter and eggs—the kind we need for overnight cinnamon rolls, sweet potato dinner rolls, brioche, and honey butter rolls.) Without fat, we’re left with the basics.
- Bread Flour: While you can use all-purpose flour in this recipe, I strongly recommend using bread flour. Just like when we make olive bread, pizza bread, and asiago-crusted skillet bread, bread flour produces a stronger, chewier bread and that makes a big difference in a recipe with only 3 other ingredients.
- Instant Yeast: Instant yeast is key in this recipe. While you can use active dry if that’s all you have, any quick rise or instant yeast will produce flavorful results in less time. I use more yeast in this recipe compared to my cranberry nut no-knead bread and no-knead jalapeño cheddar bread. Why? Those doughs rest and rise at room temperature. However, for more flavor and just as much rise, I use more yeast and let this dough rest in the refrigerator. (Cool air slows the fermentation process.)
- Salt: You can’t make good bread without salt and for best flavor, I recommend a coarse salt, such as coarse sea salt. I find the bread’s flavor lacking with regular table salt.
- Water: I normally encourage you to use warm liquid with yeast because warm liquid helps the yeast work faster. However, use cool or room temperature water here. Not freezing cold, not super warm—cool to touch. 70°F (21°C) is great, but the exact temperature doesn’t matter as long as it’s not hot or warm. The cooler the water, the longer the dough takes to rise and, usually, the better the bread’s flavor. (This is important since there are so little ingredients to add substantial flavor!) We use the same cool water method for no knead honey oat bread.
- Optional Cornmeal: Dusting the pan with cornmeal adds a pop of flavor and a little crunch to the bottom crust. This is completely optional. If you have it, use it. If you don’t have it, don’t worry about it.
You can also add herbs and seasonings such as garlic, rosemary, dill, chopped onion, jalapeño, shredded cheese, chopped nuts, dried cranberries, etc. My no yeast bread is the quick bread alternative here—you can add flavors to that loaf, too!
Baker’s Tip: Avoid adding too much flour to the dough as you work with it. The stickier it is—and the longer it sits in the refrigerator—the more likely you’ll have those big airy pockets of air in the crumb.
How to Make Homemade Artisan Bread in 5 Steps
- Mix the dough ingredients together. At first the dough will seem very dry and shaggy and you’ll question if it will even come together. But it will. Use a spatula at first, then switch to your hands to ensure all of the flour is moistened. The dough is actually a little sticky after it’s thoroughly mixed.
- Let it rise at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Cover the dough and let it rise at room temperature for about 2-3 hours until doubled in size.
- Use right away or refrigerate. After 2-3 hours, you can immediately continue with the next step. However, for ideal flavor and texture, I strongly recommend letting the dough sit in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours and up to 3 days. Yes, 3 full days! I usually only let it rest for about 18 hours. During this crucial step, the cold air slows the fermentation process and adds so much flavor and texture. So, you can bake bread in 2-3 hours or in 3 days. The longer it sits, the better it tastes. 🙂
- Shape into 2 loaves or 1 boule. Rest as oven preheats. You can shape the bread into a round loaf (boule) or two longer loaves. I usually make two longer loaves side-by-side on a flat baking sheet, about 9×3 inches each. Preheat the oven to a very hot 475°F (246°C). The extremely hot air will immediately set the crust so the bread rises up instead of spreading all over. Score the loaves on top right before baking. Scoring also helps control the bread’s expansion. To help ensure a crispier crust, after the oven preheats, pour boiling water into a metal or cast iron baking pan on the bottom oven rack. Immediately place the baking sheet inside and shut the oven door to trap the steam. The steam will help create that coveted crisp crust.
- Bake until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Gently tap the loaves because if they sound hollow, they’re done.
Look at those deliciously soft holes inside! Reminds me of ciabatta or a French baguette, both of which can be a little more complicated to make.
Serve Artisan Bread With
- Slather with homemade honey butter or cinnamon butter
- Slice and dunk in crab dip, beer cheese dip, garlic & bacon spinach dip, or even homemade Italian dressing
- Serve alongside slow cooker chicken chili or pumpkin chili
- As a dunker for homemade tomato soup, creamy cauliflower potato soup, minestrone soup, creamy chicken noodle soup, crab soup, or slow cooker creamy chicken & corn soup
- With a big bowl of mac & cheese or spaghetti with slow cooker turkey meatballs
- Use for my goat cheese & honey crostini
- It’s the perfect starch in breakfast casserole or baked apple cider French toast
- Use it to make homemade garlic bread or homemade croutons
- With anything because homemade bread is everything’s best friend
Homemade Artisan Bread Recipe
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 8-inch loaves
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Even if you’ve never made homemade bread or worked with yeast before, this homemade artisan bread is for you. Watch the video tutorial below and review the recipe instructions and recipe notes prior to beginning. If you’re new to working with yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Ingredients
- 3 and 1/4 cups (about 430g) bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and pan
- 2 teaspoons (about 6g) instant yeast
- 2 teaspoons (about 9g) coarse salt (see note)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) water, close to room temperature at about 70°F (21°C)
- optional: cornmeal for dusting pan
Instructions
- In a large ungreased mixing bowl, whisk the flour, yeast, and salt together. Pour in the water and gently mix together with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon. The dough will seem dry and shaggy, but keep working it until all the flour is moistened. If needed, use your hands (as I do in the video tutorial below) to work the dough ingredients together. The dough will be sticky. Shape into a ball in the bowl as best you can.
- Keeping the dough in the bowl, cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and set on the counter at room temperature (honestly any normal room temperature is fine!). Allow to rise for 2-3 hours. The dough will just about double in size, stick to the sides of the bowl, and have a lot of air bubbles.
- You can continue with step 4 immediately, but for absolute best flavor and texture, I strongly recommend letting this risen dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours and up to 3 days. Place covered dough in the refrigerator for 12 hours – 3 days. I usually let it rest in the refrigerator for about 18 hours. The dough will puff up during this time, but may begin to deflate after 2 days. That’s fine and normal—nothing to worry about.
- Lightly dust a large nonstick baking sheet (with or without rims and make sure it’s nonstick) with flour and/or cornmeal. Turn the cold dough out onto a floured work surface. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut dough in half. Some air bubbles will deflate as you work with it. Place dough halves on prepared baking sheet. Using floured hands, shape into 2 long loaves about 9×3 inches each (doesn’t have to be exact) about 3 inches apart. Loosely cover and allow to rest for 45 minutes. You will bake the dough on this prepared baking sheet.
- During this 45 minutes, preheat the oven to 475°F (246°C).
- When ready to bake, using a very sharp knife or bread lame (some even use kitchen shears), score the bread loaves with 3 slashes, about 1/2 inch deep. (“Score” = shallow cut.) If the shaped loaves flattened out during the 45 minutes, use floured hands to narrow them out along the sides again.
- Optional for a slightly crispier crust: After the oven is preheated and bread is scored, place a shallow metal or cast iron baking pan or skillet (I usually use a metal 9×13-inch baking pan) on the bottom oven rack. Carefully and quickly pour 3-4 cups of boiling water into it. Place the scored dough/baking pan on a higher rack and quickly shut the oven, trapping the steam inside. The steam helps create a crispier crust.
- Place the shaped and scored dough (on the flour/cornmeal dusted pan) in the preheated oven on the center rack. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Gently tap the loaves—if they sound hollow, the bread is done. For a more accurate test of doneness, the bread is done when an instant read thermometer inserted in the center reads 195°F (90°C).
- Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing and serving. Store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The dough can sit in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, so this is a wonderful recipe to begin ahead of time. You can also bake the bread, allow it to cool, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving. You can also freeze the dough. Complete the recipe through step 3. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-friendly container. To bake, allow dough to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, or for 2-3 hours at room temperature. Continue with step 4 and the rest of the recipe instructions.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spoon | Baking Sheets | 2-cup Measuring Cup | Bread Lame | Instant Read Thermometer
- Flour: For absolute best flavor and chewy texture, I strongly recommend using bread flour. You can use a 1:1 substitution of all-purpose flour in a pinch with no other changes to the recipe. I recommend avoiding whole wheat flour in this dough. If necessary, use half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. The bread will taste dense.
- Yeast: You can use instant or active dry yeast, but I highly recommend an instant (aka “rapid rise” or “quick rise” yeast). The bread will rise faster. I usually use Platinum yeast by Red Star, which is an instant yeast. 2 teaspoons is a little less than 1 standard packet. If using active dry yeast, there are no changes needed to the recipe. The rise time in step 2 may take longer.
- Salt: Use a coarse salt, such as coarse sea salt, in this bread. I find the flavor slightly lacking when using regular table fine salt. If you only have fine salt, reduce to 1 and 1/2 teaspoons.
- Water: Use cool water. 70°F (21°C) is great, but the exact temperature doesn’t matter as long as it’s not hot or warm.
- Round Loaf: If you want to shape the dough into a boule (round loaf) simply shape into a round ball instead of 2 loaves in step 4. Baking instructions are the same, but the loaf will take a few extra minutes in the oven. If you want to bake the boule in a dutch oven, see next note.
- Using a Dutch Oven: Follow this dough recipe through step 3, then follow the simple shaping/baking instructions (steps 2-5) in my Cranberry Nut No Knead Bread recipe including using the parchment paper. If your parchment paper can’t withstand heat this high, you can either lower the oven temperature and bake the bread for longer or grease the Dutch oven instead.
- Using a pizza stone: If you want to bake your bread loaves on a pizza stone, place pizza stone in the preheating oven. In step 8, place the shaped and scored dough on your preheated pizza stone. If the bottom of the shaped dough is pretty sticky, dust the hot pizza stone with some extra cornmeal. Bake as directed.
- No Nonstick Pan: If you don’t have a nonstick baking sheet, line it with parchment paper instead. Coat with a dusting of flour and/or cornmeal before placing the dough on top. Parchment paper can burn, so it’s best to check the box to see how much heat yours can tolerate. Lower your oven heat if necessary and bake the bread for longer until golden brown and when gently tapped, sound hollow.
- Flavor ideas: Before pouring in the water in step 1, add any of the following ingredients/combination of ingredients to the dry ingredients in the bowl: 4 cloves minced garlic + 3 Tablespoons chopped rosemary, 3 Tablespoons your favorite fresh herb (chopped), 1 cup your favorite shredded cheese, a diced jalapeño, 3/4 – 1 cup dried cranberries and/or chopped nuts, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, etc.
- Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour & Red Star Yeast, similar method originally from Jim Lahey.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 slices
- Calories: 136
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 389.8 mg
- Fat: 0.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 27.2 g
- Protein: 4.7 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Reader Comments and Reviews
I’ve made this recipe twice and both times the bread didn’t rise at all during baking. It rose quite a bit during proofing so I know it wasn’t the yeast.
Hi Julia, happy to help troubleshoot. Make sure to handle the dough very carefully to prevent compressing the air bubbles. Be sure to also spoon and level your flour (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure it’s not over-measured, which can make the bread dry and dense. Are you using instant yeast or active dry? Active dry can take a little longer to rise. Finally, a digital thermometer is helpful for ensuring the water temperature isn’t too hot, which can kill the yeast. Hope this helps for next time!
Hi Sally.
Can I bake the boules in a cast iron frying pan?
That should work!
The taste and structure are both amazing considering the steps are so easy! However, my bread has good nice big holes on top somehow less the bottom. The bread did not rise as much as shows in the video after bake. Still tastes good and chewy though. Is that because I overworked my dough when shaping the dough to two loafs or the room temperature is too cold? ( I did leave dough for 3, even 5 hours in the room temperature)
Thanks!
Hi Ivy, If the dough did not rise, it sounds like it was an issue with the yeast — our Baking with Yeast Guide may be helpful to review.
The mobile version of the website there are two lots of ‘instructions’ (which i didn’t notice until afterwards. The ‘Steps’ and then much further down ‘instructions’. They are almost the same except the ‘steps’ don’t give the instruction to let the dough rest for 45mins before putting in the oven – so i didnt’t .
Hoping the bread will still be ok ..its currently cooling, looks great but proof will be on the inside!
What effect is missing out this 45mins resting time likely to have?
And please could that part be added to the ‘steps’ for those like me who didn’t scroll down enough to realise there were additional instructions. Thank You 🙂
Hi Nat, we’re so sorry for any confusion. The first portion of this post (and all of our recipes) is a deeper dive into the whys and hows of the recipe. When it’s time to make the recipe, the Instructions are there to provide the detailed step-by-step process. If you’d like, you can always hit the “Jump to Recipe” button at the top of the page to be taken directly to the Ingredients and Instructions. How did your bread turn out for you? It may be a bit denser without that 45 minutes of rest, but it should still turn out. We hope you enjoyed it!
Can I use the same recipe to make several small individual buns? Thank you.
Hi Fernando, You can definitely make smaller rolls/buns. Careful shaping into rolls or buns– this is a sticky dough, so use floured hands. The bake time will be only a few minutes shorter. Bake until golden brown and when lightly tapped, they sound hollow.
This bread was so easy to make and delicious! The perfect compliment to the salad and chicken I served for my mom’s birthday. Everyone raved about the bread and it was so simple. I made it the night before and let it sit in the fridge overnight, about 12 hours, then completed the process. I used one loaf to make homemade croutons (Sally’s recipe) and they were out of this world amazing! I will definitely make this bread again. Thanks, Sally!
Hi Sally, Can I make this bread using whole wheat flour or half and half.
Hi Jan, we recommend avoiding whole wheat flour in this dough. If necessary, use half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. The bread will taste a bit dense.
Bread turned out lovely!!!
I know the nutritional panel says a serving is 2 slices but how many grams is one serving? (For calories 🙂 )
It works! Amazingly easy recipe that makes 2 great loaves of crispy crunchy bread with a soft inside! It was amazing and I did it on the first try! It cooked all the way through, seriously the crust was great and so is the bread. I’ll definitely be making it again, with inclusions the next time.
I’m wondering can I use my sourdough starter as my leavening agent instead of yeast? Just a question that’s all.
Amazing bread I’ll make again. Thanks Sally!!
Hi Linda, We haven’t tested that. Let us know if you do!
this recipe worked well but my bread turned out really dense with absoulutly no air bubles 🙁 not sure where i went wrong
Hi Sop, happy to help troubleshoot. Make sure to handle the dough very carefully to prevent compressing the air bubbles. Be sure to also spoon and level your flour (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure it’s not over-measured, which can make the bread dry and dense. Finally, a digital thermometer is helpful for ensuring the water temperature isn’t too hot, which can kill the yeast. Hope this helps for next time!
Looking forward to making this! If I’m going for two 9×3 loaves but want to bake one after 12 hrs rest and the other after 3 days, should I divide the dough before putting it in the fridge? Or put the remaining dough back in the fridge after shaping the first loaf? Thanks!!
Hi Kendra, we would put the remaining dough back in the refrigerator after shaping the first loaf. Enjoy!
My dough is drier than yours even after mixing for a long while? It is covered and resting on the counter now but I’m worried it won’t come together like yours looks.
Hi Tania! If your dough is dry there may be too much flour in it. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
I tried doing this recipe and I don’t know where I went wrong. I used dry active yeast but let it rest for 36 hours. When it was time to form the dough, it was way too sticky. I flour my hands, flour the knife (still was impossible to cut), flour the parchment paper that I put the dough on, sticky. I couldn’t form anything. I was getting really frustrated. I just threw the dough away which was saddening. Didn’t know how else to save it
Hi Jay, this is a sticky dough. Use extra flour on your hands next time, so sorry you had trouble with this recipe!
Thank you Sally, easy enough for a guy who has never baked. Tastes great too (regardless if i may have gotten the added ingredients and honey butter out of proportion)!
So far so good! It gets 5 stars for coming together so easily and for being able to sit in the fridge til I’m ready for it. Just made my first batch. It is a little more sticky than I expected. Might need to add more flour when I try to separate the dough for the loaves. I added a teaspoon of garlic powder and onion powder and thyme each. The dough smells good! Making it on a Saturday morning for a Sunday meal. Can’t wait!
Love this recipe and have made it time and time again.
I’m hosting a dinner soon and want to make garlic bread, however one of the guests is gluten-free. Would swapping out the bread flour for gluten-free bread flour (such as King Arthur’s Gluten-Free Bread Flour) result in the same flavor/consistency? Should I make any changes in prep/cooking time?
Hi Ella! So glad you love it. We have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour, but you should expect different results if doing so–especially with yeasted breads.
Got my dough made and it’s in the fridge. Looking forward to baking this tomorrow.
Ok to use parchment paper? I’ll be putting the dough on cookie sheets. I’m not sure if they are nonstick.
Thank you!
Hi Jeanine, If you don’t have a nonstick baking sheet, you can line it with parchment paper instead. Coat with a dusting of flour and/or cornmeal before placing the dough on top. Parchment paper can burn, so it’s best to check the box to see how much heat yours can tolerate.
Love your new book and all the recipes it contains. I am now making each recipe until the recipes have ALL been tried. It is my new goal. These products are going to a church social each week.
Thank you for making a wonderful cook book.
Hello!
Can I use this bread for the garlic bread recipe (crusty bread) ?
Thanks
Hi Laura, Yes! Here is exactly how we use it to make Garlic Bread.
I’ve just baked the Artisan loaf and I’m not sure it’s properly cooked. It tastes good but it’s rather soggy. If I had left it any longer in the oven it would have been burnt! I guess it’ll make good toast.
Hi George, it sounds like it may have been under-baked. What sort of pan did you bake the bread on? Do you have an oven thermometer and an instant-read thermometer? Both tools are super helpful when you’re baking bread. Your oven could be running a bit cooler than it says it is, so an oven thermometer will let you know if that’s the case; and testing the interior temp of the bread with an instant-read thermometer is the most precise way to check if it’s fully baked. You’re aiming for 195°F (90°C). If the top of the bread looks like it’s getting too brown but the interior is not yet fully baked, tent a piece of aluminum foil over top of the bread for the remainder of the bake time. Hope these tips help for next time!
This happened to me and I tried the foil tent tip Sally mentioned toward the end of the bake. It works like a charm!
Getting prepared to make my first loaf of bread tomorrow. 🙂
My first time ever making bread, super clear and simple directions, thank you! 🙂
Really easy recipe. I was so surprised how perfect they turned out since there was no kneading involved. Went with the spaghetti perfectly. And then with butter and honey.
I’ve been making Artisan Bread for many years. Some of the techniques you’ve used have improved my result I really like the idea of making it in advance, storing it in the fridge for three days and it’s ready to go. The taste is very different after being in the fridge for three days.
Can u make this in a stand mixer? If so, are the directions still the same? Also, can u put in some herbs or seasonings in the dough or even on top before u bake it?
Hi Brenda! A stand mixer isn’t needed since all you need to do with this no knead dough is mix the ingredients together. You can definitely add you can add herbs, cheeses, and spices to make a variety of bread flavors.
If I could this would get 10 stars!
I have made this several times and we absolutely love it! I always have good intentions that I will freeze one loaf but it never makes it to the freezer since we eat it so fast and there are only t wo of us!! I recently put in one cup of shredded block cheese and one-half cup jalapenos. OMG! This makes the bread absolutely sinful! My next concoction is going to be cinnamon and raisins. I do have to ask other commenters who have used loaf pans how long they bake it?
I have the same problem as Obi-Wan. Couldn’t score it because it just stuck to the knife. What’s wrong?
Hi CBrooks, keeping the scored cuts can be difficult if the dough is simply too wet and sticky. (And this dough is certainly both!) We recommend adding a little more flour such as 1/4 cup (30g) to the dough so it’s sturdier and holds the score a bit better.
Hi C—
I find using scissors much more easier than trying to score it with a knife. I have designated scissors that never leave the kitchen.
Hey SBA Team! I have made this bread a few times with results ranging from “Total success!” to “It’s ugly…but it still tastes good.” Thank you for the recipe!
That being said…it is SO incredibly sticky that I can barely get it into loaf shapes because it sticks to my hands so badly. It seems like I can’t add enough flour to my hands to keep the dough from sticking like mad. I know you say in the video that it’s a sticky dough, but could I be doing something wrong? Am I not adding enough flour? I try to weigh everything, but I have no one to look over my shoulder and warn me off of rookie mistakes. Thanks!
Could I add sugar to the recipe for a sweeter tasting, and if so how mich
Hi Madisyn, Feel free to play around with the recipe and add sweeter additions. You can try adding a little sugar—start with a few teaspoons, then adjust further for future batches.
I made a couple loaves about a month ago to freeze them! Do I need to keep the loaves refrigerated after they are thawed and how long do they last after thawed?
Hi Taylor! Once thawed, store bread loosely covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.