Quick, Easy, 1 1/2 Hour Crusty Bread

This quick, easy, 1 1/2 hour crusty bread is the perfect side to go with any fall or winter meals. Throw it together in just 1 1/2 hours with only 5 minutes of hands-on work!

Fresh bread is the best; it makes the house smell good, tastes great, and pairs well with just about everything. Fresh, crusty bread is even better than normal bread. The problem with crusty bread is that it requires thinking ahead, as it takes a long time to make.

We, like most others, love bread, and my husband is especially fond of crusty bread. However, I am not very good at thinking ahead. Most of the time, when I decide bread would go well with something for supper, it is when I am in the middle of making supper, trying to get the house clean before my husband comes home, and the kids running around being silly because they are excided daddy will be home soon. And when I’m in the middle of all of that, it doesn’t leave much time for bread making, which takes a long time.

So, I had to come up with a way to make crusty bread quickly on a whim, when I was also in the middle of supper and everything else. I found a few recipes and mixed a few, changed some things, and came up with this quick, easy, crusty bread that you can have on the table in an hour and a half. The best part about it is that it only takes about 5 minutes of hands-on work, which is perfect for when you are in the middle of other things.

What You Need

• Dutch Oven – I use a 5-quart cast-iron Dutch oven
• Parchment Paper – The parchment paper is to line the Dutch oven with
• Flour – Mostly, I use just regular all-purpose flour, but I have tried bread flour, and that works as well.
• Instant Yeast
• Salt – Pink Himalayan sea salt is my favorite.
• Hot Water – Around 100-110 degrees.

How To Make Quick, Easy 1 1/2 Hour Crusty Bread

This dough is so easy to throw together. There is less than 5 minutes of hands-on work, which makes this the perfect bread to make on a busy night.

Step 1:

Put all the ingredients, the flour, yeast, salt, and hot water, in a bowl and stir together until combined. Your dough will have shape to it, but it will still be sticky.

Step 2:

Scrape the dough off the spoon and the side of the bowl, and cover the bowl with a towel. Place the bowl in a warm area and let it rise for half an hour or up to 2 hours.

Step 3:

After half an hour is up, start the oven preheating to 450 and place your cast iron dutch oven and lid in the oven to heat as well.

Step 4:

While your oven is preheating, sprinkle your counter with flour and turn your dough out onto it. Using your hands, fold the dough over a few times and shape the dough into a ball.

Step 5:

Place your ball of dough on a square of parchment paper and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Step 6:

After 15 minutes, carefully transfer the dough, parchment paper, and all into the hot cast-iron pot.

Cover the pot with the lid and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid. If you like how it looks, take it out. If you wish it to be more golden and crusty, then bake it for another 5-10 minutes or so with the lid off.

Let the bread rest a few minutes (if you can leave it alone for that long) before cutting to prevent the bread from getting gummy. Slather with butter and enjoy!

How To Store Quick, Easy Crusty Bread

This quick, easy, crusty bread is best eaten fresh, but if you have any leftovers, store the bread in a sealed bag for no more than a couple of days.

And there you have it, quick, easy, crusty bread in less than 2 hours! I hope you enjoy it and use this recipe as much as we do.