Universal No Knead Refrigerator Dough is very easy to make. You only need 5 minutes to mix all the ingredients with a spoon and then leave the dough in the fridge or overnight. It can be used for rolls, pizza, crescents, or even bagels.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while then you know that I love baking. There’s not much better than the smell of freshly baked bread yet I don’t make it too often even though I actually think it’s very easy to make, you can take my Easy Vegan Pumpkin and Chili Pretzels for example.
Traditional yeast dough sounds scary but it shouldn’t be. If you have a big stand mixer with a dough hook then making bread is an easy affair: just pour all the ingredients, turn the mixer on and wait. And then wait some more for the dough to rise.
It doesn’t take long but the whole process takes time, it takes hours. Hours that you need to usually plan for and I usually forget.
This is where my Universal No Knead Refrigerator Dough comes in handy. In theory it takes longer to make than the traditional dough since the wait time of minimum 6 hours is longer than the rising time would be if the dough were to be kneaded.
But those same 6 (or more) hours actually make bread making easier. I only need 5 minutes to mix the dough in the morning and then I can forget about it for the whole day, no waiting for rising, no proofing, no shaping etc. The dough is just there, in the fridge, waiting to be used!
Now, will it make the most delicious crusty loaf of bread ever? No! But this Universal No Knead Refrigerator Dough isn’t designed for that either.
It’s the kind of dough that you want to use to make ham and cheese rolls, or raisin buns, or bagels, or chocolate filled crescent rolls, or pizza, or… well, you get the idea.
Because it’s a no knead dough it is not the easiest to roll thin but I’ve done it many times, so get lots of flour and patience if you are making rolls, crescents or pizza. I use it for smaller individual hand pies too and I start with rolling each piece of dough and then stretching it by hand.
Universal No Knead Refrigerator Dough
Ingredients
- 2 cups warm water
- 2 1/4 teaspoons dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 cup buttermilk powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1-2 tablespoons oil
- 4 cups flour
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix warm water, dry yeast, sugar, buttermilk powder, salt, and oil.
- Add about 3 cups of flour and mix with a spoon.
- Add the rest of the flour and mix until all the flour disappears. You may need to add a bit more flour.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Let the dough come to room temperature. Knead for a few minutes to mix it all together well and use for pizza, buns, rolls, crescents etc.
Notes
Nutrition
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judith judge says
can i use instant yeast
Julia says
Yes. I know you aren’t supposed to but I use both types of dry yeast interchangeably
Sylvia says
How long can you keep the dough in the refrigerator? During the war my mother said grandmother always had refrigerator dough ready. Her door was always open for the soldiers and the saying was put more water in the soup and make more rolls.
Julia says
What a heartwarming story!! That’s amazing that your mom did that!!
I am not sure about how long the dough would keep. I’ve never kept it for more than a day. I usually use the whole thing in one go
Darlene says
What temperature for how long, to make a classic loaf? I am not an experienced baker.
Julia says
I don’t usually use his dough for a big loaf. I either make hand pies with it or bake small buns/dinner rolls…. for the rolls it’s 375-400f for about 20-30 min. Bigger rolls take longer and smaller take less time.
Peggy says
Can this dough be used for cinnamon rolls?
Julia says
I don’t see why not. They won’t be as fluffy/soft as regular rolls but it should work. You could add a bit more sugar to the dough for it to be sweeter and melted butter instead of oil for a more buttery taste.
Stella says
Hi, May I ask, if I don’t have buttermilk powder, what to replace?
Julia says
I’d use either milk powder or omit it altogether and use 2 cups of milk instead or just water. This way you can even make the dough dairy free.