This artisan Asiago cheese bread has only six ingredients and requires no strenuous kneading! Mix your ingredients in one bowl, proof, bake it in your Dutch oven, and you’ll have perfect Asiago cheese bread in no time!
How to Make No-Knead Artisan Asiago Cheese Bread
Here’s how I made my no-knead, artisan Asiago cheese bread in my Dutch oven. Perfect crusty exterior with a soft, cheesy inside!
If you’re anything like me, you’re obsessed with nice, crusty bread. Imagine– warm, crusty bread and then a soft cheesy inside once you take a bite! I can’t think of anything better made with such little effort– this no-knead artisan asiago cheese bread is going to be a regular bake in your kitchen in no time!
There’s something inherently comforting about the aroma of freshly baked bread wafting through the kitchen, beckoning us to gather around and indulge in its warm, crusty goodness. In the world of artisan bread, the no-knead method has revolutionized home baking, making it easier than ever to create bakery-quality loaves without the fuss. Today, we embark on a delightful journey into the realm of no-knead artisan bread with a twist – the irresistible Asiago Cheese Bread.
Table of Contents – No-Knead Asiago Cheese Bread
- What is Asiago cheese?
- What can I use if I don’t have Asiago cheese?
- What is a Dutch oven?
- Do I need a Dutch oven to make this recipe?
- Kitchen Equipment
- Ingredients for Asiago Cheese Bread
- How to Make No-Knead Artisan Asiago Cheese Bread
- Tips for Creating Perfect, Crusty Asiago Cheese Bread
- Storage Instructions for Asiago Cheese Bread
- More Recipes to Try
- Asiago Cheese Bread Recipe
What is Asiago Cheese?
Asiago cheese is a game-changer when it comes to cheesy bakes. If you’ve ever tried one of Panera Bread’s Asiago cheese bagels, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Asiago cheese is made from cow’s milk. The two Asiago cheeses you’ll find in the store are Asiago Pressato and Asiago d’Allevo. I used grated Asiago Pressato for my no-knead artisan Asiago cheese bread.
Asiago cheese is a versatile ingredient, often used in a variety of culinary applications. It adds richness and depth to dishes, making it a popular choice for grating over pasta, salads, or soups. Asiago also pairs well with fruits, nuts, and crusty bread, making it a delightful addition to a cheese board.
What Can I Use If I Don’t Have Asiago Cheese?
Couldn’t find Asiago cheese at the store or simply don’t feel like going to the store? Not a problem! You can easily substitute the asiago cheese for other cheeses like Cheddar, Grana Padano, Pecorino Romano, Gouda, or even Parmesan Reggiano! Not every cheese substitute will have the same taste as the Asiago cheese, but these cheese alternatives will do the job too. If I had to pick one, go for the Grana Padano!
What is a Dutch Oven?
A Dutch oven is a heavy, wide, and shallow cooking vessel with a tight-fitting lid. They are made with cast iron and coated with a shiny enamel finish. More often than not, if you take care of your Dutch oven, it can even be a family heirloom to pass down from generation to generation.
Dutch ovens can be used for a million and one different recipes, including this incredible Asiago cheese bread we’ll be making. What makes a Dutch oven so perfect for any artisan bread recipe is the tight-fitting lid of the Dutch oven that traps in all of the steam from your bread as it cooks inside of the Dutch oven; this allows the bread to form that nice crusty exterior everyone loves when they take a bite.
Do I Need a Dutch Oven to Make This Recipe?
If you do not have a Dutch oven, that’s okay– you can still make this recipe! The reason why we use the Dutch oven is to trap the steam from the bread inside of the cooking vessel to form that crunchy crust.
- This can also be done by baking the Asiago cheese bread in a 9×5” loaf pan, and using a second loaf pan as the “lid” on top. For this substitution, you wouldn’t have to head up your empty loaf pan in the oven while it preheats like you would with a Dutch oven.
- You can also bake the Asiago cheese bread on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
- Since there wouldn’t be a “lid” in this substitution, you can put a baking tin on the floor of your oven while it preheats, and then when the oven has reached the correct temperature, you can pour in a bit of boiling water into the baking tin and close the oven door.
- Let the steam disperse around the oven for a couple minutes before putting in your Asiago cheese bread loaf and baking with the tin still in the oven.
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Kitchen Equipment for Asiago Cheese Bread
- Dutch Oven – the perfect, steamy environment to make a crusty, artisan cheese bread.
- Mixing Bowl – this recipe is all made in one mixing bowl!
- Cheese Grater – for grating your cheese of choice.
- Wooden Spoon/Silicone Spatula – either utensil will do the trick! Just something to stir with. I guess if you’re out of utensils, you can always use your hand? I hope it doesn’t come to that.
Ingredients for Asiago Cheese Bread
- Bread flour – the best kind of flour to use for any bread recipe is bread flour. It has a higher gluten percentage, which results in a chewier bite.
- Salt – can’t make a tasty bread without a bit of salt.
- Granulated Sugar – adding sugar is completely optional. Though I will say that adding sugar to your bread helps to keep the bread moist and acts as a preservative.
- Asiago Cheese – feel free to swap out the Asiago cheese for one of the other substitutes I mentioned above! Alternatively, you can omit the cheese completely if you’re after a normal white crusty bread.
- Instant Yeast – I used instant yeast for this recipe, but active dry yeast works just the same. You’ll just have to dissolve/rehydrate and “wake up” your yeast before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.
- Water – ideally have your water to be a lukewarm temperature; if you put your finger in it, it shouldn’t be too hot or too cold. Just lukewarm.
How to Make No-Knead Artisan Asiago Cheese Bread (Step-By-Step Video Guide)
Tips for Creating Perfect, Crusty Asiago Cheese Bread
- Don’t peek! The reason why bread develops that irresistible crunchy exterior is because of the steam inside of the oven. Try not to peek at your bread in the first 30 minutes of baking because opening the oven door may allow the steam to escape.
- You’ll definitely need a bit of flour to handle the proofed dough. This bread recipe has a high hydration percentage (which essentially means that it’s a very wet dough, in baker’s terms). Don’t be afraid to use some extra bread flour to help handle the dough when you’re folding and shaping it. No need to mix the flour into the dough, just add a thin dusting on the surface to make it easier to handle.
- Don’t knead the dough, fold it. Just like David and Moira Rose say, you have to fold it in. You can see exactly how I fold the dough in the attached video for this Asiago cheese bread recipe.
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Storage Instructions for Asiago Cheese Bread
- The best way to store this Asiago cheese bread is in a gallon-size plastic bag. It will stay fresh and soft for 4-5 days at room temperature after baking, but you can also make your bread in advance and pop it into the freezer. Just make sure to wrap the loaf in plastic wrap twice and drop it into a gallon-size plastic bag before popping it into the freezer.
- This Asiago cheese bread can stay in the freezer for up to 3 months. Make sure when you pull the Asiago cheese bread out to eat, let it come to room temperature in the same plastic packaging it was wrapped with. Don’t try to unwrap the bread and then let it defrost– you may dry out your bread that way.
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Asiago Cheese Bread
Equipment
- 1 mixing bowl
- 1 Dutch oven 4 qt size preferred
- 1 cheese grater
Ingredients
- 435 g bread flour, plus more for dusting [3½ cups]
- 7 g instant yeast [2¼ tsp]
- 10 g kosher salt [1 tbsp]
- 12 g white granulated sugar (optional) [1 tbsp]
- 360 ml lukewarm water [1½ cups]
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together bread flour, instant yeast, sugar, and salt.435 g bread flour, plus more for dusting, 7 g instant yeast, 10 g kosher salt, 12 g white granulated sugar (optional)
- Pour in warm water and mix with a wooden spoon/silicone spatula until combined and there are no more dry patches of flour. It will be a very wet mixture!360 ml lukewarm water
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put in a warm place to rise and double in volume, around 1½ to 3 hours.
- After dough has doubled in volume, dust your work surface generously with extra flour. Scoop the wet dough onto the floured surface and lightly dust with more flour.
- With floured hands and dough, grab the portion of the dough furthest away from you and stretch it over towards you (or the bottom of the dough). Once you've done that, turn the dough 90º and repeat three more times.
- Form the folded dough into a ball and transfer to the center of a piece of parchment paper larger than the size of your Dutch oven. Cover dough with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
- Store your empty Dutch oven inside of the oven as it preheats to 450ºF. After the dough has rested, carefully remove the Dutch oven from the oven and take off the lid.
- Uncover the dough from the plastic wrap. Score the dough down the middle, then use the corners of the parchment paper to transfer the dough into the hot Dutch oven.
- Sprinkle the remaining shredded Asiago cheese on top of the dough, then cover the Dutch oven with the lid. Bake for 25 minutes with the lid, then remove lid and bake for another 5-10 minutes.
- Remove bread from oven and let cool inside the uncovered Dutch oven for 10 minutes before carefully transferring the bread to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Video
Notes
- Don’t peek! The reason why bread develops that irresistible crunchy exterior is because of the steam inside of the oven. Try not to peek at your bread in the first 30 minutes of baking because opening the oven door may allow the steam to escape.
- You’ll definitely need a bit of flour to handle the proofed dough. This bread recipe has a high hydration percentage (which essentially means that it’s a very wet dough, in baker’s terms). Don’t be afraid to use some extra bread flour to help handle the dough when you’re folding and shaping it. No need to mix the flour into the dough, just add a thin dusting on the surface to make it easier to handle.
- Don't knead the dough, fold it. Just like David and Moira Rose say, you have to fold it in. You can see exactly how I fold the dough in the attached video for this Asiago cheese bread recipe.
