No Knead Bread Revisited

Mark Bitman's video of his visit to Jim Lahey's Sullivan Street Bakery has been viewed over a half million times. I have looked at the video several times, but I was not able to achieve the results shown, and now I think I have figured out why. After Jim dumps out the dough on his work table, the video is edited, and suddenly he's forming and shaping the dough. Sorry, but you just can't shape such shaggy dough without an intermediate step. My feeling is that what you don't see is extremely relevant. I suspect the shaggy dough is rolled around with flour until it firms up enough to shape. The story in the New York Times also talks about a two hour rest period, but this is never mentioned in the video. To make this excellent bread, you really need to have all of the information. The recipe calls for three cups of flour, but I think you might have better results with three and one half cups.

Steam

Oven sprayer and assorted other gadgets

To get a good crust on your breads made in an earth oven, you need steam. A fully loaded oven with breads might create enough steam all by themselves, but the easiest way to make steam is with a sprayer. The little $1.00-$2.00 hand sprayers won't do it. You'll have to invest at least $12.00 for one that will put out the volume required. These are the ones you have to pump up and are sold in garden supply stores. I sent to Amazon for mine. Only a fool would use a sprayer that once held herbicides and/or pesticides, so I won't tell you not to use one of these.

Excellent crust color and texture

I just learned that anyone can download a free version of The Bread Ovens of Quebec. If you don't have a hard copy and can't find one, then I highly recommend the electronic version.

Apple Crisp

Bagels came out and the apple crisp went in. The most important thing to know about apple crisp is that it has to be served cold. Just like apple pie.

Bagels in the Earth Oven

Simple to make and the taste and texture are better than what you can make in a conventional oven.

Earth Oven Form

Constructing an earth oven generally requires a form that the mud rests against as the oven goes up. from Earth Oven Adventure
Most folks use a simple sand mold.

from The Bread Ovens Of Quebec
But traditionally in Quebec, a framework of alder saplings was used.

Here, a boat builder has used his skills and the materials he had on hand to build a simple framework of cedar, plywood and cardboard.

And then shares a pizza he made just a few hours after the oven was constructed.

Hot Pants

Baking superlative breads requires steam, and one way of adding steam to the oven is by sealing the oven door with with something wet. My son graciously donated a pair of worn out pants, and I soaked the pants in water and mushed them around the door after the bread came off the peel.
Spraying the oven interior also helps, but in this case, I did both.