Overnight White Bread

Name: Overnight White Bread
Yield: 2 loaves, each about 680 g after baking
Ingredients: 1000 g White all-purpose flour Room temperature; 780 g Water Warm; 22 g Fine sea salt; 0.8 g Instant dried yeast; As needed Flour For bench and proofing baskets; not included in formula

Makes: 2 loaves, each about 680 g after baking
Heat: 245°C conventional
Baking time: 30 min covered + 20–30 min uncovered

Preheat covered pots for at least 45 min. Check the crust after 15 min uncovered.

Straight breads

Overnight White Bread

A low-yeast white dough with an overnight bulk rise; 78% hydration and an open crumb. Also suits focaccia or skillet pizza.

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Ingredients

Group	Ingredient	Amount	Preparation
A	White all-purpose flour	1000 g	Room temperature
A	Water	780 g	Warm
B	Fine sea salt	22 g
B	Instant dried yeast	0.8 g
Finish	Flour	As needed	For bench and proofing baskets; not included in formula

Tools & alternatives

Utensil checklist

Tick the tools you have ready. Choose the recommended tool or its workaround; keep the specified pan size and heat rating.

Recommended Tools Regular Baker	Casual Baker Workarounds Hacks
Digital kitchen scale with a fine scale for small yeast doses	Borrow a suitable scale for the gram amounts; tiny yeast doses need a fine scale, not a guessed pinch.
Covered 11 L mixing tub	Use a food-safe container of similar capacity with a loose lid or plate. Leave room for rising; do not seal fermenting dough airtight.
Bench scraper	Use a firm food-safe spatula for lifting dough, or a kitchen knife for dividing it. Avoid sharp edges on nonstick surfaces.
2 floured proofing baskets or towel-lined bowls	Use similarly sized bowls lined with clean, flour-dusted, lint-free tea towels; leave room for the dough to expand.
2 lidded 3.8 L Dutch ovens	Borrow a lidded ovenproof pot of similar capacity, with every part rated for the stated heat. Bake loaves one at a time if necessary; keep waiting dough cool.
Oven mitts	Use dry, thick oven gloves or folded dry tea towels with a secure grip. Damp cloth conducts heat quickly.
Cooling rack	Set a clean, cool wire trivet over a tray. Let air reach underneath; a flat plate can trap steam.

Timing & recipe details

Time & temperature

Baking temperature: 245°C conventional
Baking time: 30 min covered + 20–30 min uncovered

Preheat covered pots for at least 45 min. Check the crust after 15 min uncovered.

Makes: 2 loaves, each about 680 g after baking
Heat: 245°C, conventional; preheat lidded pots at least 45 minutes
Plan for: 20–30 min autolyse; 12–14 h bulk; about 1¼ h proof; 30 min covered + 20–30 min uncovered; ≥20 min cooling

1,000 g total flour78% hydration2.2% salt0.08% instant yeast

Use the recipe tools

Core dough totals include the flour and water in the portion of preferment used. Extra feeding culture, toppings and inclusions are separate.

Method

01 · Autolyse
20–30 min
Use: A
Mix the flours, add all A water, and stir by hand until no dry flour remains. Cover.
Ready when: Rough, fully hydrated dough; no dry pockets.
01 Rest the flour and waterWet all the flour, then cover the rough dough and let it rest.
02 · Mix
About 5 min
Use: A + B
Sprinkle B over the dough. Wet your hand. Fold the outer quarters over the salt and yeast, then pinch through the dough 5–6 times with thumb and forefinger. Alternate these cuts with folds until evenly mixed; rest briefly, then fold for another 30 seconds.
Ready when: Even salt and yeast distribution; dough gains tension.
02 MixPinch and fold with a damp hand until the dough is evenly mixed.
03 · Fold and bulk
12–14 h from the end of mixing
Use: Mixed dough
Apply 2–3 sets during the first 1½ hours (3 gives more strength). For each set, wet your hand; stretch one edge upward only to resistance and fold across. Repeat around 4–5 edges until the dough firms, then turn the whole mass seam down. Let it relax before the next set. Cover between folds; leave undisturbed for the final hour.
Ready when: About 2½–3 times its initial volume.
03 Fold and bulkLift one edge only until it resists, fold it across, then cover between sets.
04 · Divide and shape
A few minutes
Use: Risen dough; dusting flour
Ease dough onto a lightly floured counter without tearing. Divide equally. Fold each piece’s edges inward to enclose it, turn seam down onto a clean unfloured patch, and cup and drag toward you while turning to make a medium-tight ball. Set seam DOWN in a well-floured basket; flour the top and cover.
Ready when: Two smooth rounds that hold moderate tension without torn skins.
04 Divide and shapeDivide evenly and cup each piece into a round without tearing its surface.
05 · Proof
about 1¼ h at about 21°C; nearer 1 h if warmer
Use: Shaped loaves
Proof covered. Gently press the loaf with a floured fingertip to make a small dent: a slow, incomplete return indicates readiness; immediate spring-back means wait; no return with a slack loaf suggests overproofing.
Ready when: Expanded loaves, still able to hold their shape; check from 1 h.
05 ProofLet the rounds become puffy; a small fingertip dent should return slowly and only partway.
06 · Preheat during proof
At least 45 min at 245°C
Use: Oven and lidded pots
Put lidded Dutch ovens on the middle rack and heat fully. If using one pot, refrigerate the second room-proofing loaf about 20 minutes before baking the first; reheat the empty pot 5 minutes between loaves.
Ready when: Pots and oven fully heat-soaked.
06 Preheat during proofHeat the covered pots thoroughly while the loaves finish proofing.
07 · Load and bake
245°C throughout
Use: Proofed loaf
Invert the loaf onto a lightly floured counter, then carefully lower it seam UP into the hot pot, avoiding the hot sides. No scoring is needed: the seam opens naturally. Use mitts for the pot and lid. Bake covered 30 minutes; remove the lid and bake 20–30 min more. Begin checking 15 minutes after uncovering.
Ready when: Crust at least medium-dark brown all around, with a naturally split top.
07 Load and bakeThe seam opens by itself. After the covered bake, remove the lid with mitts and finish browning uncovered.
08 · Cool
At least 20 min
Use: Baked loaves
Turn the bread out and cool on a rack with air beneath it. Wait at least 20 minutes before slicing; allow longer if the center is still very hot.
Ready when: Crumb has begun to set; steam can escape on all sides.
08 CoolLet air circulate underneath both loaves and give the crumb time to set before slicing.

What to look for

Stage	Look and feel	Needs attention
After folds	Dough holds a rounded form longer after each fold.	Forcing the dough beyond resistance or folding during the final hour of bulk.
End of bulk	About 2½–3 times its initial volume.	Shaping solely because the clock says so; temperature changes the pace.
Ready to bake	A fully aerated loaf that keeps its outline; for room proof, a dent returns slowly and incompletely.	A fast spring-back or a fragile, collapsing loaf.

Troubleshooting

If you see	Likely cause	What to do now	Next time
Little rise by the stated time	Cooler dough or room; weak or inaccurate yeast dose.	Check dough temperature and expansion. Allow more time in a gently warm place; continue only when the recipe’s volume cue is reached.	Weigh yeast carefully and record final dough temperature; adjust the next batch’s water temperature.
Loaf spreads or collapses at loading	Final proof went too far or shaping left insufficient tension.	Load gently and bake promptly; expect reduced height.	Begin checking early, particularly in warmth. Shape with moderate tension and refrigerate a second loaf while the first bakes.
Dark bottom but pale upper crust	Uneven oven heat or a rack too close to the bottom element.	Check oven temperature and finish by crust color while monitoring the base.	Use the middle rack and a fully heated pot; verify actual oven temperature.

Recipe notes

Times are estimates for the stated yeast dose and dough. Warmer kitchens shorten fermentation; follow the expansion and texture cues.

Show ingredient flow

Two intact round white loaves arranged diagonally on a cooling rack, viewed from above. — Two cooled overnight white loaves with naturally opened crusts.

Recipe