Two Hour Crockpot Bread - Baking Bread in a Crockpot

TWO HOUR CROCKPOT BREAD is short knead and no rise.  

5 ingredients+ parchment paper + crockpot = DELICIOUS BREAD

Get out of the kitchen and let the crockpot do the work!

Crockpot Yeast Bread

(See below for pics of the process.)

 

1 1/3 cup very warm water (hot, but no hurt – like a hot bath)

1 Tablespoon active dry yeast

1 Tablespoon sugar

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon table salt

(Parchment paper is a must.)

 

Directions:

1.   Turn the crockpot on HIGH to preheat while mixing the dough.

2.    Combine hot/warm water, yeast and sugar and set a timer for 10 minutes to allow time for "proofing" which just means letting the yeast/water/sugar start foaming. 

3.       Combine the flour and salt in a mixing bowl.

4.       Once the yeast/water/sugar has proofed for 10 minutes gently stir a little bit, and then pour over the flour/salt mix in the mixing bowl.

5.       Stir to mix the liquid and flour/salt and then knead only about one minute.  (I kept dusting my hands with flour to avoid sticking.) 

6.       Once the dough formed a tight ball from the short kneading time, dust w/ a little flour and placed on a large square of parchment paper.  (I placed my parchment paper with the dough ball into my microwave (power off of course) to rest while my crockpot finished preheating. (Make sure the ceramic insert feels hot before you add the dough to it).  That took about 15-20 minutes for me.

7.       Place the parchment paper topped with the dough ball into the (now hot) crockpot and cover.  (No need to wait on the dough to rise before "baking".)

8.       Cook two hours on high (covered).  *Note that each crockpot is different for how long this will take.  Once the bread feels sturdy on top, you can carefully peek underneath the bread to see if the bottom is browning.  Note the top never browns.  It just gets done.  The bottom will brown and form a toasty crust.  When done, the bread top will feel solid beneath the top surface.

9.       Remove the entire parchment paper with the baked bread to cool.  I placed two butter knives underneath my bread to allow the moisture to escape as it cooled (simulated cooling rack).  I let it cool a few hours and then placed in a plastic bag overnight.  I sliced when completely cool the next morning.

 

Here are a few more pics of the process:

This is the yeast/water/sugar proofing (foaming on top).

 

Resting in the microwave (micro is OFF) until the crockpot preheats.

Plopped into the hot crockpot.  

(My crockpot is just a few years old so cooks on the “hot side”.)

Snapped a pic of the start time.

Note the time on the stove above compared to the start time picture.  The bread cooked almost two hours.  The bread felt sturdy but the top did not brown.  I had to peek underneath to see if it was brown under there.

My kitchen is dark but you can see the underneath is browned in this picture.

Cooling on two butter knives.  Cooling racks are overrated LOL.

 The underneath was nice and toasty!  

(I guess if you hated the bland color of the top, 

you could just serve it upside down!  😊

Sliced and ready for the bread bag!

THE CHIT CHAT!

I tried baking bread in my crockpot last night and it was a great success!  It may truly be the best thing since sliced bread.  LOL

I love to bake bread but baking bread in a tiny house can be a little intense with little counterspace and the fact that our little place can really heat up in the summer.  Since I have baked banana bread in the crockpot successfully (Tin Can Banana Bread HERE) (although I now cook it in canning jars since tin cans may leach into food while cooking in them), I decided to try baking yeast bread in the crockpot.  I wanted a soft bread that I could eat as sandwiches or toast.  This bread fits the bill!

I believe the increased yeast and addition of sugar in this recipe gives it the soft texture.  It really turned out delicious!  

One thing to note is that all crockpots are different.  My crockpot is fairly new and so cooks pretty "hot".  I cooked my bread on high for the full two hours.  You are looking for the top to be firm/solid and the bottom to be browned nicely.  Try to avoid opening the lid.  That lets the heat out! 

You could finish it off in the oven to give the top a nice brown finish, but that didn't bother me at all so I left it.  The idea was not to use the oven so I didn't.  Presentation isn't everything to me if the taste is worth it, and the taste of this bread is worth it!  

Make sure to let it cool completely before slicing.  I let mine cool two hours and then placed the still warm bread in a plastic bag.  I let it cool overnight before slicing.  Also, I found slicing with an electric knife made prettier, neater and less crumbly slices, if that matters to you.  

I'm looking forward to "baking" lots of bread in my crockpot this summer.  I may even stick the crockpot on the patio to keep all of the heat outside.  

Bread prices can climb all they want to if I can make my own!  This recipe is simple, requires only a tiny kneading (one minute) and rises while baking.  What's not to love about baking bread in your crockpot AT HOME MY WAY!

Enjoy!

Gina