How to bake bread in a Dutch oven

Baking sourdough bread in a Dutch oven or combo cooker is the easiest way to bake bread at home. The sealed pot creates the right environment for a tall rise and a crunchy, golden crust.
➡️ FULL DUTCH OVEN GUIDE
www.theperfectloaf.com/how-to...
🫙 EQUIPMENT
Lodge Combo Cooker (affiliate):
amzn.to/3SvRgAy
My favorite parchment paper (affiliate):
amzn.to/3OE6hhZ
All my favorite baking tools:
www.theperfectloaf.com/my-bak...
🎥 CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro
00:06 What is a combo cooker and Dutch oven?
01:01 Other needed equipment
01:36 How to preheat your oven
02:35 Flip out proofed dough
02:39 Score your dough
03:08 Drag dough into Dutch oven
03:31 Bake with steam
03:41 Remove lid (vent steam)
03:53 Finished loaf
#sourdough #baking #bread

[@ImForgivenToo]

Love your teaching style..no loud, annoying music, clear explanation...thank you !!

[@theperfectloaf]

Thank you! Straight and to the point--more time baking, less time watching 🙂

[@dr.terrible7062]

kzbin.infoR3YNscjcJOk?feature=share

[@jowind777]

THANK YOU! Really appreciate you showing us how to do this, and explaining about how we don't need any other baking stone

[@theperfectloaf]

You're very welcome 🙂

[@drummerlovesbookworm9738]

I’m glad I found your channel!

[@theperfectloaf]

Glad it's helpful! Welcome 🙂

[@nbnb53]

I screwed up my last loaf using the deeper side of my dutch oven.. it kinda fell in the wrong way and sticked to the sides… going to try this method tomorrow, thanks for sharing!

[@user-yr9vg8cr3l]

Maurizio, thank you so much for your guidance! You helped me to make my perfect loaf after several previous failures! I wish I find your website sooner and safe all the flour that was wasted. I made 2 loaves of beginner’s sourdough bread by your recipe. Cannot wait to receive your book in mail! Thank you! Thank you!! ❤❤❤

[@theperfectloaf]

Wonderful to hear that, so happy to help 🙂 I hope you love my cookbook!

[@pthaloblue100]

I just received a Combo Cooker for Christmas and have been searching for the best way to use it for my sourdough, your video is the first source I have read/seen that suggested placing the bread in the narrow pan which is so much easier, Thank you so much!!

[@theperfectloaf]

You're very welcome! Much easier that way 🙂 Hope you enjoy your new pan and happy baking!

[@ForgottenMan1]

This video is x’lnt re. Combo/Bread technique. But wait, there’s more! The Combo skillet is my go to omelette pan/forearm workout; & with the addition of a suitable ‘flat-ish’ pot lid [mine is stainless w/ a flat rim that fits over the little raised pot rim & goes down into the skillet ~1/4th inch], the stove-top use expands to include steaming, warming pan… In camp, it works for both stove and campfire use.

[@Sarah-zg5qs]

great video, thanks for sharing

[@theperfectloaf]

You're welcome, Sarah!

[@tillybinkieking7258]

Thank you, you have opened up my world. I have a defunct oven, with just the grill working... so, a Dutch oven without a lid but I can use the glass from an old microwave (which has gone to glory) as the shallow dish and put the Dutch oven over the top, if the bottom is not cooked enough, then I can use my griddle (talwa) on the gas hob to finish off the bottom. Now to give it a try!

[@theperfectloaf]

So glad this was helpful for you! I used my DO to bake on a grill like that a long time ago, need to revisit that 🙂 Happy baking!

[@angelapope]

Thank you so much

[@theperfectloaf]

You're most welcome

[@MickyBellRoberts]

I make lots of bread. I came across your channel and love it so subscribed.

[@theperfectloaf]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@MickyBellRoberts]

@@theperfectloaf You are very welcome. I am watching and learning from you.

[@usahalil]

Great video appreciate!!

[@theperfectloaf]

Glad it was helpful!

[@melissasnelling370]

Beautiful loaf! Thank you for the information. I’ve been baking my bread in the deeper side of my dutch oven but will try using the shallow side for the bottom next time. I wonder if this is why my bread develops such a thick crust?

[@theperfectloaf]

Thank you! I find the shallow side easier to load the dough, but both sides will lead to a thicker crust in my experience. There's a few things we can do to mitigate that a bit. Check out my guide, where I go over them! www.theperfectloaf.com/how-to-bake-bread-in-a-dutch-oven/

[@tgif1207]

I don't cut off excess parchment paper as it helps me safely get loaf into and out of the hot Dutch oven! Thank you for another great video!

[@theperfectloaf]

Yes, convenient "handles!"

[@lisadavis3643]

Thank you! So timely! What size/weight loaf does the Lodge 3.2 hold? And how can I tell by looking at my recipe?! BTW, I preordered your book and can't wait!

[@theperfectloaf]

You're welcome, Lisa! And thank you so much for preordering my book, I hope you love it 🙂 I usually bake up to 900g dough weight in my lodge. You could probably squeeze in 1kg.

[@lisadavis3643]

@@theperfectloaf Oh I know I'll love it. Might be joining the membership soon, too. ;) My Sunday Sourdough was kind of a bust - it was the porridge bread which usually turns out okay for me (not that I would know what great tastes like). The oatmeal was too dry this time and I was too lazy to do anything about it. Oh well, onward!

[@theperfectloaf]

@@lisadavis3643 would love to have you join the membership! Sorry to hear about the Sunday Sourdough. Getting that hydration just right with the oats is always so tricky! Different batches seem to take on water differently. No biggie though, like you said, there's always the next loaf 🙂

[@Shana-hv2ye]

Thank you for great videos! At 450°F, after 30 minutes, I don’t get this color. Actually, I don’t get any color! Should I let it with the lid on for a longer time? Or is it better to try baking at a higher temperature? Thank you 🙏

[@theperfectloaf]

A higher temp and more steam may help!

[@ChiLiulovelyworld]

Hello! Thanks for making this video! I am wondering why you turned the combo oven upside down to bake? Does it work better than using a regular Dutch oven?

[@theperfectloaf]

Hey there! It's easier to place the dough in the shallow side than the deep side 🙂

[@WheresBillie104]

I seem to get everything in the process done well EXCEPT oven spring. What is your GoTo flour and hydration?

[@theperfectloaf]

If you're getting weak oven spring it could be several things (over hydrated/under strengthened dough, insufficient fermentation activity, over proofed, ...). It's hard to say on the flour + hydration, it really depends on how the flour feels that day in the kitchen. A good standard flour I like is Central Milling Artisan Baker's Craft, but King Arthur All-Purpose or Bread Flour will work well, too. Have you tried my beginner recipe? www.theperfectloaf.com/beginners-sourdough-bread/

[@WheresBillie104]

@@theperfectloaf thanks! I know there are many variables. I will try your link.

[@meurteltje]

Do you lower the oven temp after you remove the lid or do you keep baking at 450°F? Have you used a silicone bread sling instead of parchment paper? It's so easy.

[@theperfectloaf]

Keep baking at 450F! Yes, I have used one, it's great, too 🙂

[@meurteltje]

@@theperfectloaf Thank you for responding so fast. Looking forward to the result. The bread is proofing now.

[@cedricbergande2012]

Does it make any sense to remove the bread from the pan for the second half, putting onto the oven rack? i tried to find a difference but honestly couldn't find anything except for more superficial browning perhaps.

[@theperfectloaf]

You can absolutely do that, and it's something I recommend doing if you find the bottom of the loaf tends to get too dark (burn). I usually remove it closer to the end of the full bake time, though.

[@davidbrycewood]

Hi Maurizio! If I’m proofing my dough on the counter at warm room temp, how do I deal with my second loaf? One goes into the oven, but while that first one is baking, the other loaf waiting on the counter continues to proof, so that it has proofed nearly another hour and fifteen minutes (by the time the first one bakes and the oven is re-pre-heated for the second loaf), clearly risking overproofing. Any tips for this common situation for counter proofers?

[@theperfectloaf]

yes that's challenging. you can pop the other one into the refrigerator a few minutes before you bake the first one.

[@joestubbs3138]

Because of energy concerns at the moment baking in an Oven is expensive So ... is there a method to bake bread on a gas ring using the Dutch Oven...joe

[@theperfectloaf]

I've never baked this way, but as long as you can get the Dutch oven hot enough, it should work just fine! I typically like to bake around 450F.

[@Elizabeth-dg8dn]

Should my dough rise at all during cold proof overnight in the fridge? Dough seems to look the same next morning as when I put it in the baskets the night before which makes me think I should let is warm up and counter proof a while before baking?

[@theperfectloaf]

It's normal to not see a lot of rise in the fridge overnight. Just be sure you bulk ferment the dough far enough (like I show in my videos here) and it'll be just fine baking straight from the fridge!

[@Elizabeth-dg8dn]

Thank you. From the fridge, my dough bakes fine if I use a dutch oven, but when I try to bake it on a stone with a stainless bowl on top, it doesn't get enough oven rise. There seems to be a difference during bake off for cold vs rm temp dough, but I could be wrong and it is something else. @@theperfectloaf

[@theperfectloaf]

@@Elizabeth-dg8dn should be totally fine to bake straight from fridge, but it's possible if you're not getting good rise that the dough. might have needed more time in bulk fermentation before it was shaped and put in the fridge. I bake from cold every time over here :) the stainless bowl might not be the best in terms of radiating heat from the oven to the dough as the bowl will reflect much of that heat!

[@atalibouck8780]

Can I bake your high-hydration My Best Sourdough Recipe in a dutch oven like this? Would I need to adjust anything?

[@theperfectloaf]

Yes you absolutely can. No, same process.

[@user-yr9vg8cr3l]

Do I place bread on middle shelf level to bake?

[@theperfectloaf]

Middle is just fine. I usually have mine down in the bottom third of the oven, but middle is okay, too.

[@delvallo9652]

my crappy oven preheats to 475 in 10 minutes. Can't fathom an oven taking 45 minutes to get up to temp

[@theperfectloaf]

Unfortunately, it's not just the oven that needs to heat here, it's the thick cast iron pot. It could probably be done in 30m, but I say 45 or so just to be safe :)

[@matejfele9971]

There's absolutely no need for baking paper once you preheat it.

[@theperfectloaf]

Just makes it easier to slide the dough in. Not mandatory at all.