No Knead Bread Recipe (2024)

Jump to Recipe

Making warm and crusty homemade bread is easier than you’d imagine with this No Knead Skillet Cheese Bread. Perfect for dunking in warm soup, the cheese and parsley add extra yummy goodness!

Why I Love No Knead Bread

Easy. If you’ve ever felt intimidated by the idea of making your own artisan bread, this is the bread to try. You don’t need a fancy bread maker or any tools other than a mixing bowl, wooden spoon, and a skillet.
Cheesy. If you are a cheese lover, you will completely fall in love with this homemade bread. It’s cheesy, savory, and 100% satisfying.
The crust. This cheese bread has the perfect consistency, including a golden and crisp crust with a tender interior.
Fresh. There’s something special about homemade bread just out of the oven. It’s fresh and fills your entire house with that delicious bakery smell.

What is No Knead Bread?

No knead bread is a simple bread-making method that requires no kneading. The dough is mixed and allowed to rise slowly, relying on time rather than kneading to develop gluten. This results in bread with a hearty crust and soft interior, and it’s perfect for those who want homemade bread with minimal effort.

Recipe Ingredients

Luke Warm Water: Activates the yeast.
Active Dry Yeast: Causes the dough to rise.
Salt: Enhances flavor.
All-Purpose Flour: For this recipe, I use a little over 4 cups of flour.
Garlic Powder: Adds a savory, garlicky flavor.
Onion Powder: Provides a subtle onion taste.
Shredded Cheddar Cheese: Adds a rich, cheesy flavor and texture. Other melting cheeses like mozzarella or gouda can be substituted.
Olive Oil: Used to coat the skillet and the dough, adding flavor and a crispy crust.
Coarse Salt: Sprinkled on top for extra flavor and texture. Flaky sea salt is a good substitute.
Dried Parsley: Used as a topping for additional flavor and visual appeal. Other herbs can also be used.

How to Make No Knead Bread

Make the dough. Combine your water and yeast in a large mixing bowl. Add a cup of flour and salt and stir it all together. Stir in the garlic powder, onion powder, and cheese. Gradually add the remaining flour and stir everything until it is all well combined.
Rise. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let your dough rise for 1 hour.
Prepare. Grab a cast iron skillet and coat the bottom and sides with olive oil. Lightly flour your hands and transfer the dough to the skillet. Shape the dough into a round disk, cover it with a towel, and let it stand for 30 minutes.
Preheat. While the dough rests, preheat your oven to 400˚F.
Bake. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil over the top of the dough and sprinkle it with salt and parsley. Score the top of the loaf with a knife in a criss-cross pattern. Bake it for 30 minutes or until the top is a golden brown.
Cool and Serve. Remove the cheese bread from the oven and immediately turn it out onto a cooling rack. Let it completely cool. Then, cut it and serve.

Recipe Tips

Cool it on a wire rack. To keep your bread from getting soggy, remove it from the skillet as soon as you pull it out of the oven and transfer it to a wire rack.
Skillet options. You do not need a skillet to make this bread. I know, it’s in the recipe title – but trust me, here. If you do not have a cast iron skillet, simply use a round stoneware baking dish instead!
Use good cheddar. For better flavor, opt for a better quality cheddar cheese. You can even shred the cheese yourself.
Double the recipe. You can double this recipe but don’t forget you’ll also need a bigger skillet. I recommend a 12-inch skillet for a double batch.

Serving Suggestions

Obviously, this bread goes great with a bowl of our creamy ravioli soup and a side of a salmon blt salad. It’s also great with hearty beef Guinness stew and pot roast. But don’t count it out on the side of a pasta dish, either. This chicken bacon ranch pasta or my creamy seafood pasta is fantastic. Basically, anything that is saucy is a perfect match for this bread.

How to Store Leftovers

The bread can be stored in a zip-top bag in a cool, dry place for up to 3 days. It can also be frozen for about 3 months.

More Homemade Bread Recipes

Challah Bread
Cornbread
Flatbread
Star Bread
Monkey Bread

No Knead Skillet Cheese Bread

Preparing warm, crusty homemade bread is simpler than you think with this No Knead Skillet Cheese Bread. Ideal for dipping in your favorite warm soup, the added cheese and parsley kick up the flavor!

Prep Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Cooling Time1 hour hr

Total Time3 hours hrs

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: artisan bread, cheese bread, homemade bread, homemade bread recipes, no knead bread recipe

Equipment

Ingredients

2 cups luke warm water
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
½ teaspoon salt
4⅓ cups all purpose flour
1½ teaspoons garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
course salt
dried parsley

Instructions

Combine water and yeast in a large mixing bowl.
Add 1 cup flour and ½ teaspoon salt to the yeast mixture; stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Stir in the garlic powder, onion powder, and cheese.
Add remaining flour, one cup at a time, stirring until well combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise for 1 hour.
In the meantime, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to an 8-inch cast iron skillet and coat the bottom and sides of the skillet with the oil.
Lightly flour your hands and transfer the dough to the skillet. Shape the dough into a round disk; cover with a towel and let it stand for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the top of the dough and sprinkle it with salt and parsley. Then, score the top of the loaf with a knife.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
Remove the bread from the oven and immediately turn it out onto a cooling rack.
Let it completely cool before cutting into it.

Notes

To freeze the dough: Make the dough as instructed and let it rise for 1 hour, per the recipe. Once risen, form the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and then place it in a freezer-friendly container and keep it frozen for up to a month. When ready, thaw the frozen dough on the kitchen counter, let it rise, and bake as directed.

Nutrition

cheddar cheeseflouryeast

FAQs

What happens if I don't knead my bread dough enough? ›

Under-kneaded dough won't rise properly because it doesn't have the strength and elasticity to capture the gases produced by yeast—it'll bake up dry, crumbly, and dense.

Why is my no knead bread so sticky? ›

Your dough can become sticky when you add too much water or the flour isn't suitable for the type of dough you are making. Over proofing or fermenting the dough can also result in the gluten structure weakening causing sticky dough.

What temperature kills yeast? ›

Regardless of the type of yeast you use, if your water reaches temperatures of 120°F or more, the yeast will begin to die off. Once water temps reach 140°F or higher, that is the point where the yeast will be completely killed off.

Show Me More ›

Can I leave dough to rise for 24 hours? ›

When you put your dough in the fridge it slows the yeast activity down. It takes ten times longer for dough to rise in the fridge than it does at room temperature. This means you can put your dough in the fridge overnight or whilst you are at work and come back to it when you are ready.

Discover More Details ›

Can you knead dough after it rises? ›

In broad strokes, if a recipe calls for you to stir or knead the dough then let it rise undisturbed, go ahead and stir or knead but only to the point where ingredients are hom*ogeneous and you have a “shaggy mass.” At that point you can step away, returning to fold three to four times in the first hour of fermentation.

Learn More Now ›

Does dough get tougher the more you knead it? ›

While underworked dough can simply be fixed by a little more kneading, severely overworked dough cannot be fixed. Instead, the overworked dough will result in a hard loaf that will likely not be eaten. It's important not to overwork your dough and continually check for overworking throughout the kneading process.