Easy Crusty Vegan Bread Recipe
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Crusty homemade and super easy Vegan bread recipe (+ Video) with only 3 ingredients: flour, water and instant yeast. Plant based, no knead, no fancy equipment needed, and we won’t be using any oil at all. Truth be told this is really my Italian pizza dough recipe in loaf form.
The best plant based vegan bread recipe ever!
Easier than making a ciabatta, this is for when you want your house to smell like a French or Italian bakery on a cold December day with minimal effort. It’s as easy as mixing three ingredients together in a large bowl, shaping a loaf and baking it.
There’s nothing else like the comforting sound of crackling crispy crust being torn over a steaming bowl of soup. This artisan bread loaf is also wonderful with this broccoli potato soup, or used for bruschetta, sandwiches and casseroles, for making bread crumbs, French toast, cheesy garlic bread and even Thanksgiving bread stuffing.
Am I right, or am I right…?!
By all means, feel free to chop up some fresh rosemary or black olives to add to your dough and give it that artisan Tuscan flair. You’ll still be under 5 ingredients, like a boss!
This vegan bread recipe is:
- Quick & Easy
- From Scratch
- Egg & Oil-Free
- Perfect for Sandwiches
- Crackling Crust
- Big Holes + Soft Center
- Dairy-Free
- Simply the Best!
The Secret to Making Crusty Bread
- a preheated pizza stone or cast iron dutch oven with a lid.
- a blasting hot oven.
- a tray of water to create steam <—crucial!
- allow the loaf to cool off in the oven or on its side on a cooling rack.
TIP: If you don’t have a pizza stone you can still bake your bread inside a cast iron skillet or dutch oven (lined with parchment paper) with the lid on instead.
FAQ
- Is Bread Vegan or Not? Yes it is, as long as you don’t add any animal products into the mix!
- Can I make bread without yeast? Yes you can but it will have to be a flatbread like this quinoa or potato flatbread.
- What to do with stale bread? So you forgot you made fresh crusty bread and now you have a stale loaf instead? No problem! it’s a sign from above that you must hurry and make Panzanella + a big pot of this Italian Bread Soup / Pappa al Pomodoro right away.
How to Store It
If you happen to not eat this loaf in the same day just store it on the kitchen counter in a bread box or a reusable bag for a couple of days.
What to Serve With
My favorite way to enjoy bread is fresh out of the oven, grilled for panzanella, dunked in this vegan zuppa Toscana, unstuffed cabbage roll soup, chunky potato soup, roasted butternut squash soup, chickpea salad sandwich and next to grandpa’s tomato cucumber salad + vegan ribs.
how to make homemade crusty bread
Easy Crusty Vegan Bread
Ingredients
- 3.25 cups all purpose flour + more for sprinkling (organic non-gmo)
- 1.5 cups warm water
- 2 tsp instant dry yeast
- 1.5 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Add the all purpose flour, yeast and sea salt to a large mixing bowl or your kitchen aid mixer. Mix in the water and stir well until incorporated. Cover the bowl loosely with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours. ( you may leave it overnight as well but it is not necessary )3.25 cups all purpose flour, 1.5 cups warm water, 2 tsp instant dry yeast, 1.5 tsp sea salt
- After about 2 hours check the dough and you should notice the surface dotted with bubbles. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and sprinkle it with a little flour. Shape it into a round loaf by folding it over on itself a few times. NO KNEADING Allowed!
- Meanwhile preheat your oven to 450"F with a pizza stone inside. I If you don't have a pizza stone preheat a cast iron dutch oven with the lid on instead). Place a baking dish with a couple of inches of water in it on the bottom rack to help create steam inside the oven for a crispy crust.
- Sprinkle a pizza peel or a cardboard box with some flour and place the bread loaf on top. Allow it to rest for 45 minutes while the oven warms up. Using a serrated knife make a few slits on top of the loaf.
- Sprinkle the pizza stone with a little bit of the semolina flour then gently slide the bread dough onto it just like you would do with a pizza. Cook for about 30 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool down before slicing. For an even crispier crust allow to bread to cool inside of the oven with the door slightly open.
Video
Notes
- No pizza stone? No problem, you can still bake the bread inside a preheated cast iron skillet or a dutch oven with a lid on instead (line with parchment paper but do not preheat the paper with the dutch oven). If using this method you won't need a tray of water to create steam as the lid will trap the steam inside the pot).
- Can I make bread without yeast? Yes you can but it will have to be a flatbread like this quinoa or potato flatbread.
Nutrition
Absolutely the most delicious bread! It didn’t stand a chance with my family. We ate the entire loaf in one meal. My kids went nuts for it and are begging me to make it again already! I did use 2 cups all purpose flour and 1 1/4 whole wheat flour. It turned out just yummy! Thank you!
Thank you for reporting back Leslie, you totally made my day ~ Florentina Xo’s
Do you bake this bread at 450 or is that just for heating the stone?
Yes but you can lower the temperature to 400″F if you prefer and cook a few minutes longer. Just keep an eye on it, oven precision varies from brand to brand and kitchen to kitchen.
Hi Florentina–attempting first try at making this bread today on this snowy New Jersey day…. The dough is rising as we speak. I am an avid cook, but for some reason, never tried my hand at bread. My question is that my parchment paper says only use up to 400*…any suggestions? Also, if I’m using cast iron fry pan, do I still need it?
TIA.
Cheryl
In this case you won’t need the parchment paper, just make sure to preheat the pan with the oven. Once you shape your loaf place it on a pice of cardboard sprinkled with some corn meal so you can use it to slide the loaf safely inside the fry pan much like you would a pizza. Stay safe and warm in this stormy weather! ~ Florentina Xo’s
I’m trying to be super careful with what I eat, I saw the caloric value was 188Kcal, what is the serving size for that ?
This is the easiest and best loaf bread I have ever made, I’m so addicted to making it, I’m making it for everyone 🤣🤣
Firs of YAY for awesome homemade bread success! The serving size would be your loaf divided into 8 pieces, each piece is 188 calories.
I always found that the plain/all-purpose flour makes the bread cake-like when I’ve used this recipe, so I swapped it with actual bread flour – 2/3 white, 1/3 brown – and oh goodness, what a difference. The best crusty bread I’ve made yet, and its fluffy texture is divine. I’ll definitely stick to the flour tweak hereon.
I’m trying the recipe without a Dutch oven or a skillet just in a small metal oven safe pan and water on the bottom of my oven to increase steam and in parchment paper will report how it goes as I’ve seen other commenters use this method too.
I just made this bread for the first time using bread flour. The recipe was incredibly easy and the turnout amazing! My bread did rise going up so ended up with a crystal ball looking loaf but I cannot stress how easy this was..!
Hello, I will be using a pizza stone to bake the bread. Do I leave the pan of water in the oven the entire time the bread bakes?
You can or until all the water has evaporated.
Thank you so much!!! The first bread that really worked for me! I just love it!💚
This was too good not to review!! I baked it in a dutch oven and came out exactly as pictured. Extra bonus, it tasted amazing! Making for the third time now, thank you for this recipe!
Where’s the video showing how to make this bread? I’m not finding a link.
I live on a sailboat and cook with propane and have a small oven. I don’t have a cast iron Dutch oven, however I do have a stainless steel one. Would that work? I’m not sure that I would have to heat it up the oven for as long with it, would I? Do you still need to have water in the oven if the bread is baking inside a dish with a lid? Also, would a silicone baking mat work instead of parchment paper? I know, lots of questions!!!
Hi Sussane, If you bake the bread inside a dish with a lid the water below is not needed as there will be plenty of steam. If you don’t have a cast iron pot/pan jus use a stainless heavy baking sheet preheated with the oven to act as a pizza stone. This way you can use your silicone baking mat to easily transfer the bread loaf straight onto the baking sheet. Just make sure to check the max temperature for your baking mat. Let us know how it goes!
I’m trying to heal my relationship with cooking also not eating meat I like your recipe shall give it a go thank you 🙏♥️
I’ve been making this bread for a few years ever since I saw your recipe! I even shared it with friends. My husband is from Italy and he LOVES crusty bread that’s nice and soft in the middle! This bread is awesome! It tastes so yummy with just regular flour! I do add half bread flour lately to it to make it more dense which is also yummy! Thinking of trying to make 4 smaller loaves this time to see how it works out. I use a pizza stone and pizza slicer to move the bread to the stone, which is so much easier. Thank you so much for sharing this amazing and simple recipe!
This makes me so happy Jenna! Thank you for reporting back and the great tip to use the pizza slicer and move the bread to the stone. ~ Florentina Xo’s
Could pastry flour be used?
Yes pastry flour should be a fine substitute for the all purpose flour.