Rustic Whole Wheat Dutch Oven Bread

A loaf of rustic whole wheat bread on a cutting board with a couple slices next to it.

Rustic Whole Wheat Dutch Oven Bread

This rustic whole wheat bread baked in a Dutch oven or cast iron, is the best crusty bread to serve alongside soups and stew, for making hardy sandwiches or enjoying with butter and jam.

Prep Time20

Cook Time45

Resting Time4 30

Total Time5 35

Course: Breads, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Servings: slices (1 loaf)

Calories: 91kcal

Author: Jessica and Merissa

Equipment

6-8 qt Dutch oven pot with lid

Ingredients

1½ cups (360 g) lukewarm water 90-100°
1½ teaspoons instant yeast *
1 teaspoon sea salt
2¾ cups (374 g) hard red wheat flour **

Instructions

In a large bowl dissolve 1½ teaspoons instant yeast and 1 teaspoon sea salt in 1½ cups lukewarm water .
Add 2¾ cups hard red wheat flour and stir together until no dry flour remains.
Cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
Wet your hand and reach down the side of the bowl, grab a chunk of dough and pull it into the center, repeat around the whole circumference of the dough twice or until the dough starts to have some resistance, this is called stretch and fold. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
Repeat step 4 two more times.
Do one more stretch and fold. Then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into a ball by gently pulling the edges into the center, similar to stretch and fold.
Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 2-3 hours.
Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape into a ball by folding the edges into the center. Turn the dough over and tighten by dragging it toward you with your palms. Handle the dough gently so you don’t deflate all the air bubbles you spent so long creating.
Place the dough onto a large piece of parchment paper, cover loosely with a tea towel or an upside down large bowl.
Preheat the oven to 425°F with the rack in the center position. Place a 6-8 qt Dutch oven with a lid into the oven while it preheats.
When the oven is preheated, dust the top of the dough with flour and score with a sharp knife or razor blade.
Remove the hot pan from the oven, carefully lift the dough by the corners of the parchment paper and transfer to the pan. Place the lid back on and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove the lid from the pan and bake another 20-25 minutes or until it has a deep golden brown crust and the internal temperature is 190°-200°F
Transfer the bread from the pan to a cooling rack.
For best results, cool completely before slicing.

Notes

*If you’re using active dry yeast, let it sit in the water for 5-10 minutes before adding the flour.

**You can use hard white wheat flour in this recipe. You’ll need 3 cups (384 g).

If you want a more hands off method, you can place the dough into the refrigerator overnight after you mix it up and then shape and bake the next day. The loaf will be a little more dense this way but still yummy.

Nutrition