Homemade bread is simply the best winter treat

I was so thrilled with the reader response to my column on homemade yogurt and the number of friends who told me they were inspired to make yogurt, that I'm bringing you another home recipe: crusty, home-baked bread.

Baking bread at home is not only possible in Shanghai, it's also simple and inexpensive. In the past few years great bakeries like PAUL and Bastiaan have come to Shanghai, but crusty, dense bread is still quite pricy. Plus, few things are as satisfying as fresh bread straight from your own oven.

My easy recipe is called “Almost No Knead Bread” and it's adapted from Cook’s Illustrated and The New York Times. As advertised, there's hardly any kneading, but it does require an overnight rise.

What you need:

-An oven–my own is basically a glorified toaster oven and it works fine

–An ovenproof pot with a cover. If you happen to have a fancy cast iron Le Crueset-style French oven pot with a cover, that's perfect. But I get great results using my cheap, heavy terracotta Chinese stew pot (see pic), you can buy one for a song at any local supermarket.

-Measuring cups and spoons

-Ingredients: I buy everything extremely cheaply at my local Lianhua. Believe it or not, you can bake fantastic hearty bread without any imported products.

Crystyl's Shanghai-local-ingredient Almost No Knead Bread

For one loaf:

3 cups (15 oz.) flour

1/4 teaspoon instant yeast (make sure you buy the instant rise type)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3/4 cup plus 2 tablepoons water (7 oz.)

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (3 oz.) mild-flavored beer (Qingdao will do!)

1 tablespoon white vinegar.

NOTE: You can see the actual brands I use in the photo above.

INSTRUCTIONS

Mixing:

1. Mix flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl.
2. Add water, beer and vinegar and optional dry additions (I like rosemary and toasted walnuts, you could try some Italian spices, or just leave it plain, also good).
3. Fold mixture until a dough forms, it will be very stiff. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for 8-18 hours -- you'll be amazed how it's grown overnight into a very sticky, moist mass of dough.

Kneading & Rising

1. When you're ready to give it a quick knead, first prepare a bowl by laying aluminum foil inside and giving the foil a light oiling. Transfer your big, puffed up dough to a floured surface and knead it quickly 15 times. It is extremely moist and sticky, so I first use a spatula to help me turn it over and over for a few minutes, then start kneading it with quick turns, all the while clapping my hands with extra flour.
2. Now, shape your dough into a ball by pulling the edges down and toward the middle until you have a round loaf.
3. Place it, seam-side down, in your foil-lined bowl and oil the surface of dough.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise again at room temperature for about two more hours. It won't grow as much during this second rise, but it will be a little larger and rounded out.
5. Thirty minutes before you're ready to bake, place your pot with lid into the oven and heat it to 425 degrees Farenheit.
6. When you're ready to put the loaf in the oven, lightly flour the top of the dough and make a six-inch long slit along the top.

Baking

1. Carefully remove the hot pot from oven and take off the lid. Pick up your dough by grasping the overhanging foil and lower it into your hot pot, replacing the lid.
2. Bake covered for 30 minutes.
3. Remove lid and continue to bake until loaf is browned and sounds hollow when knocked with a wooden spoon or your fist (about 20- 30 more minutes, depending on your oven). Click on the above "View all images" link to see a shot of the finished loaf.
4. Remove bread from pot and cool before wrapping, or slice while hot, butter generously, and enjoy one of the greatest pleasures of home cooking.

I'd love to hear from anyone who actually tries this recipe, or wants advice on how to start.

Check out my other recipes using all local, inexpensive ingredients:

--Camellia Oil Salad Dressing - try out this healthy, antioxidant rich oil, also great for sauces and cooking.

--Homemade Yogurt - it's surprisingly easy to make your own creamy, tart yogurt.

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