No-Knead Challah
No-Knead Challah
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| quick-n-easy | |
| Hands-on time: | |
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| Yield: | Three 9" challah rounds; made individually, or all at once |
Ingredients
Dough
- 6 3/4 cups or 7 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour*
- 1 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons instant yeast
- 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup melted butter or vegetable oil
- *See step #1, below.
Topping
- 1 egg (any size) beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
- 2 to 3 tablespoons sesame seeds or poppy seeds, optional
Directions
1) The flour/liquid ratio is important in this recipe. If you measure flour by sprinkling it into your measuring cup, then gently sweeping off the excess, use 7 3/4 cups. If you measure flour by dipping your cup into the canister, then sweeping off the excess, use 6 3/4 cups. Most accurate of all, and guaranteed to give you the best results, if you measure flour by weight, use 33 ounces.
2) To make the dough: Combine all of the dough ingredients, in the order written, in a very large bowl (at least 6 quarts). Stir to make a sticky dough. You can do this in a stand mixer and then transfer to a larger bowl; or simply use a big bowl and spoon (or dough whisk).
3) Cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for 2 hours at cool room temperature.
4) Refrigerate the dough for at least several hours, to chill it and make it easier to work with. It can be refrigerated for up to 4 days before using.
5) When you're ready to make challah, remove the dough from the refrigerator, and scoop out about one-third of the dough (about 21 ounces). Transfer it to a floured work surface; a silicone mat works well here.
6) Divide the dough into three pieces, and shape each piece into a log about 24" long.
7) Braid the logs, pinching the strands together at each end.
8) Lightly grease an 8" x 2" round cake pan. It's important that the pan is at least 2" deep. If it's not use, a 9" round pan. Coil the braid into the pan.
9) Cover the pan, and allow the braid to rise for about 90 minutes, till it's quite puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
10) Uncover the challah, and brush it with the egg/water mixture. Sprinkle with seeds, if desired.
11) Bake the challah for 30 to 35 minutes, till it's golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers at least 190°F.
12) Remove from the oven, and carefully turn out of the pan onto a rack to cool.
Yield: one 9" round braid. The entire recipe will make 3 loaves.
Reviews
04/08/2012- Really good and oh so easy!! Would be nice if you could add storage tips, Please? Two people = leftovers! :)
This bread is definitely freezable if you need to store it long-term. It will stay soft if kept air-tight at room temperature. ~Amy
- 03/16/2012
- Just a question, please ... I noticed that the quantities of honey and melted butter are different under onces and grams. Under volume, the quantities are 1/2 cup each. Could you please confirm that the ounces and gram quantities are correct?
And, by the way, your recipes are just a delight to view, make and savour!
With thanks,
Good question. Different ingredients will weigh out a different weights depending on their density. Honey will not weigh the same as light powdered milk, or as much as heavy chocolate.
- 03/03/2012
- I am not a natural at bread baking. I am also a moderately lazy person. So naturally, no-knead breads are all I make. The problem with no-kneads is that they rarely taste as good as they look (for me). This recipe and preparation is the exception to all other no-kneads. It actually produces a bread that tastes VERY GOOD! I cannot believe I made this bread! It is 8/10s of the way to tasting like a challah bought in NYC! Thank you, KA -for wonderful products and recipes and a supportive, true community!
- 12/22/2011
- This as my first time making challah and it turned out great, even though I mixed up my ingredients and only added half the butter I was supposed to! I made a round, but I also rolled the dough out to only about 12" and made a traditional loaf, also. They were both delicious and beautiful! I wish I could upload the pictures here! Thank you for adding the internal temperature. It really takes the guess work out for us newbies.
- 08/05/2011
- I too am from New York (sadly have moved away) and have had wonderful traditional Challah. Over the last two years I've really been playing with yeast and have developed a fondness for making fresh baked bread. I love the No-knead recipes due to my busy schedule which provides me the opportunity to make a large batch of dough I can use over time. I spotted this recipe and had longed to try it. I finally did and it was spectacular. The bread wasn't too sweet for my tastes and the bread had a great rise and was wonderfully soft and delicious. I actually made two large loaves, braided, but not baked in a circular pan, straight loaves on a cookie sheet lined with parchment. These loaves very well may have been my best results yet. Thank you KAF, I love your recipes and your products.
03/09/2011- This bread came out ok, but nothing like what a New Yorker (like me) would call challah. It is too sweet, and the characteristic challah taste just isn't there. The crust was good though. Some experimentation is clearly in order...
Bear in mind this challah variation is the no-knead variety. Results may meet your expectations if you make challah the traditional way. Happy Baking! Irene @ KAF
- 01/20/2011
- I make this recipe almost weekly. I rises beautifully in an 8" round pan but not so great braided and baked on a sheet pan. However, it is always moist and delicious.
- 01/06/2011
- Just took these 3 loaves out of the oven and the smell in the house is absolutely heavenly! This is the second time I've made this recipe and it is such a joy...the first time, I brought a loaf to the home of Jewish friends of ours when we went for dinner and they loved it. Tomorrow it's going to my sister's home where she is recovering from a fractured hip and surgery last week. Although we're not Jewish, I'm bringing these loaves along with homemade chicken soup...she'll be up and dancing tomorrow after a taste of this heavenly bread!!!!! How I love this website and I plan to visit your education center again as soon as possible. I can't wait to take one of your classes this year - one of my New Year's resolutions for ME! Julie in the Berkshires
- 11/15/2010
- Love no-knead recipes in general. For this challah recipe, I like that you only need four eggs. Some other challah recipes that I've seen call for 10 or more egg yolks, but then I would need a plan to use the 10 or more egg whites (too much effort). Anyway, my mom was impressed that I made challah and so she had to try the recipe too. I think we will both continue to make this in the future. Oh, and I just purchased a scale and an instant-read thermometer. These tools have made an amazing difference in my baked goods because apparently I have quite the heavy hand when scooping flour. Thus I now use the weight measurements instead of the volume. Also, the instant-read thermometer removes some of my anxiety around when bread is done or not (so please keep posting internal doneness temperatures please!). FYI, if you use the weight measurement challah recipe, KAF forgot to post the egg washing part of the recipe. However, this is under the volume recipe. Thanks!
- 08/19/2010
- I make this fabulous, easy, delicious weekly for shabbos. I've been making this bread for a few months now. I generally make it wed evening, keep in the fridge until friday 4ish, take it out, let it rise, then bake. The bread is done in time for friday night service and best of all the house smells from the delicious smell of baked bread. Thank you.
