Easy 5-Minute Artisan Bread

Name: Easy 5-Minute Artisan Bread
Prep time: 4 h
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 4 h 55 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 3 cups of cool or lukewarm water; 1 tablespoon of granulated yeast (or two packets, which is about the same); 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of coarse sea salt (I like my bread a bit salty); 6 1/2 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour; Optional: add-in ingredients, like herbs, garlic, citrus zest, spices, etc.

Yeast and I have always had a rocky relationship. I struggle to ever make my bread baking *look* as good as everyone else. It’s just not as pretty, and I always feel like I’m doing something wrong. But over the years I’ve found some great go-to recipes that are pretty reliable and always taste amazing.

This simple 5-minute artisan bread is a good example—no fancy ingredients or techniques, only a few minutes of hands-on time, and super versatile on timings and flavorings.

[Editor’s note: updated May 2020 with new recipe photos]

When I first found this recipe, I was really skeptical. “Easy french bread” it promised. But bread, in my experience, was anything but easy and fast.

I have to say, though, this stuff is the real deal. As long as you realize that the “5-minute” part is the actual hands-on time…you still have to give it a lot of rising and baking time. But still, this is a total win in my book.

This 5-minute artisan french bread is simple, delicious, and basic. It’s amazing with nothing on it, with butter, and with my homemade strawberry balsamic jam. It’s interesting and yummy with some add-in ingredients like chopped herbs and garlic, or citrus zest and cinnamon. Cheese wouldn’t be amiss. Whatever floats your boat.

What is “artisan” bread? Well, it basically just means it’s made by an artisan, a.k.a. by hand. Technically it means I should be “trained to the highest ability” in mixing, fermenting, etc…but I’m not quite there yet.

Save for later: A Tool to Decide What Bread to Make Based On How Long You Have…

First you’re going to need a really big bowl. The dough will expand quite a bit as it rises. The beauty of this recipe (besides how easy it is), is that it only takes four ingredients, all of which you probably have on-hand.

Add the flour to the bowl, then put the salt and yeast on separate sides. Then add the water. You want cool or lukewarm water (not hot, or it’ll kill the yeast). Then stir together…I like to use a wooden spoon because it feels more legit 🙂

Stir everything up until it resembles dough, though it will seem like it’s way too little dough to make three loaves. Don’t over-stir, just enough to get the ingredients combined. I then got in there with my hand and lightly kneaded it to bring it together into more of a dough ball.

Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for 2 to 5 hours, until it’s doubled. I’d go more on the 3-ish hour timeline…I tend to forget about it and go 4-5 hours, and often feel like it’s a little over-proved (see those crazy air bubbles??).

It will be pretty wet once risen, making it a little hard to work with initially. Flour your hands and the counter, and then turn the dough out onto the counter.

Work with the dough a little, giving it a little bit of kneading but not anything crazy. Mostly it’s just getting some flour worked into the dough so it doesn’t stick as much, and stretching it a bit. It should start to feel more smooth. Then divide into three equal sections (these will each be loaves).

I decided to get a little fancy the last time I made this bread, and added flavorings into two of my three loaves. In one, I added some chopped fresh rosemary and minced garlic (with a tiny bit of garlic powder as well). In the other I added fresh orange zest, cinnamon, and poppy seeds. One I left plain.

If you’re adding in any flavorings, now is a good time to do it. Pat out the dough a bit, add the ingredients, and then fold it over a few times and knead to get the ingredients incorporated.

You can also bake up one or two of the artisan bread loaves and put the rest of the dough in the fridge to make later. Just put it in a container or big Ziploc bag…what’s important is that the container or sack has a way for the gas to escape as the yeast continues to react. I usually put it in a gallon Ziploc and leave an inch or so of the bag unzipped to let the air out. It’ll keep in the fridge for about a week (I prefer to use it in about 3 days though).

Shape your dough into a smooth ball and place on parchment paper.

Let the dough sit here for about 40 minutes, covered with a clean kitchen towel or plastic bag. This is your second rise.

When the dough is mostly through its second rise, preheat the oven to 450 F. Put an empty baking-safe metal pan (not glass or pyrex!) in the bottom of the oven or on the bottom rack to heat up…this will be important in a few minutes!

Place the parchment paper and dough on a baking sheet or cast iron griddle. Once the oven is hot, make a few deep slashes on the dough (to let steam out while baking), and place the pans in the oven.

Carefully pour about an inch of water into that HOT metal pan you placed in there. Ideally this is at least four inches below your bread baking. The purpose of this is to create some steam, which helps the outer shell of the bread develop while the inside stays soft.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the outer crust is good and hard. If you like it darker, you can set the oven on broil for a minute or two.

The bread should be at least 200 F inside when done, and when you flip it over and tap the bottom it should sound hollow. ONE CRITICAL POINT: Make sure to let the bread cool down completely, or at least to less than 85 F inside before cutting in…otherwise you’ll end up with a dense, doughy mess.

And that’s all there is to it! It’s awesome fresh and warm with good quality butter. The plain version is amazing when you add jam or honey as well.

This “artisan” bread is soft and chewy on the inside, with a nice crust on the outside.

If you put some of the dough in the fridge, just pull it out and let it come to room temperature, then shape it and let it do a second rise (~30 minutes), then bake as normal. You’ll feel so fancy for having hot, fresh bread whenever the whim strikes!

Other easy bread recipes you’ll love:

Original recipes from Tidy Mom and Artisan Bread in Five here

Yield: 3 large loaves

Prep Time: 4 hours

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Additional Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 4 hours 55 minutes

This easy artisan french bread is soft and chewy on the inside, with a nice crust on the outside. Perfect plain or with added flavorings, and simple to make!

Ingredients

3 cups of cool or lukewarm water
1 tablespoon of granulated yeast (or two packets, which is about the same)
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of coarse sea salt (I like my bread a bit salty)
6 1/2 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour
Optional: add-in ingredients, like herbs, garlic, citrus zest, spices, etc.

Instructions

Use a large bowl, as the dough will expand as it rises. Add the flour to the bowl, then put the salt and yeast on separate sides. Then add the water. Stir together until it resembles dough (I use a wooden spoon, but whatever you have works). Once it's come together, I get in there with my hand and lightly knead it to bring it together into more of a dough ball.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm-ish place for 2 to 5 hours, until it’s doubled in size. I’d go more on the 3-ish hour timeline…I tend to forget about it and go 4-5 hours, and often feel like it’s a little over-proved.
Flour your hands and the counter well, and then turn the dough out onto the counter. It's quite a wet dough, so just be patient. Work with the dough a little, giving it a little bit of kneading but not anything crazy...mostly it’s just getting some flour worked into the dough so it doesn’t stick as much, and stretching it a bit so it starts to feel more smooth.
Then divide it into three equal sections (these will each be loaves). If you're putting add-in ingredients, now's the time to work those into the dough. Just flatten it out a bit, put the ingredients on, and then fold it in and knead until the ingredients are well-incorporated.
Shape your dough into a smooth ball and place on parchment paper. Let the dough sit here for about 40 minutes, covered with a clean kitchen towel or plastic bag. This is your second rise.
Preheat the oven to 450 F. Put an empty baking-safe metal pan (not glass or pyrex!) in the bottom of the oven or on the bottom rack to heat up…this will be important in a few minutes!
Place the parchment paper and dough on a baking sheet or cast iron griddle. Once the oven is hot, make a few deep slashes on the dough (to let steam out while baking), and place the pans in the oven. Carefully pour about an inch of water into that HOT metal pan you placed in there. Ideally this is at least four inches below your bread baking. The purpose of this is to create some steam, which helps the outer shell of the bread develop while the inside stays soft.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the outer crust is good and hard. If you like it darker, you can set the oven on broil for a minute or two.
The bread should be at least 200 F inside when done, and when you flip it over and tap the bottom it should sound hollow.
ONE CRITICAL POINT: Make sure to let the bread cool down completely, or at least to less than 85 F inside before cutting in…otherwise you’ll end up with a dense, doughy mess.

Notes

Makes 3 large loaves, or you can split it however you want; this recipe can easily be halved
You can also bake up one or two of the loaves and put the rest of the dough in the fridge to make later. Just put it in a container or big Ziploc bag…what’s important is that the container or sack has a way for the gas to escape as the yeast continues to react. I usually put it in a gallon Ziploc and leave an inch or so of the bag unzipped to let the air out. It’ll keep in the fridge for about a week (I prefer to use it in about 3 days though). The leftover dough can be put in the fridge for up to a week in a big ziploc bag. When removed from fridge, let come to room temperature and then rise for a bit (40-60 minutes) before cutting slashes in it & baking.