This olive bread recipe gives you fresh bread, crunchy outside and soft inside. No kneading, and no special baking skills.
This olive bread is one of the easiest recipes I make. The ingredients are ones you already have.
The olives add a salty, aromatic bite. The dough rises on its own overnight with almost no work from you.
The result looks like it came from a boutique bakery. In reality it takes just a few minutes of hands-on time.
One tip: toss the chopped olives with a teaspoon of flour first. It keeps them from sinking to the bottom.
This no-knead olive bread recipe uses bread flour, salt, instant yeast, lukewarm water, and chopped black and green olives. Stir, fold in the olives, and rise 12–16 hours at room temperature, then shape into a loaf pan and rise 1 hour. Bake with steam at 425°F (220°C) for 10 minutes, then at 400°F (200°C) for 30–35 minutes.
No-Knead Olive Bread (Overnight Loaf)
Ingredients
Method
- In a large bowl, mix the flour, salt, and yeast. Add the water and stir well, until all the flour is absorbed.
- Add the olives and gently fold them in until evenly distributed.
- Cover and let rise for 12–16 hours at room temperature, until the dough has doubled and is full of bubbles.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, fold it a few times, and shape it into a log to fit a 5 x 10-inch (13 x 25 cm) loaf pan.
- Place it on parchment paper, lift it into the pan, and let rise for about 1 hour.
- Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C) with an empty pan on the bottom rack.
- Right before the bread goes in, pour 1 cup of boiling water into the empty pan. Put the bread in immediately and bake for 10 minutes.
- Lower the heat to 400°F (200°C) and bake another 30–35 minutes, until the bread is deep brown and crisp.
- Move to a rack and let the bread cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- Pat the olives dry before chopping so they don’t make the dough wet.
- Fold the olives in gently. You want them spread through the dough without deflating it.
- The cup of boiling water creates steam, which gives the bread its crunchy crust.
- Wait until the loaf is completely cool before slicing.
- Mixed black and green olives → all one kind, such as Kalamata or green Castelvetrano.
- Bread flour → all-purpose flour (same weight; a slightly softer crumb).
Frequently asked questions
Toss the chopped olives with a teaspoon of flour before folding them into the dough.
The recipe uses a mix of black and green olives. Use pitted olives you like to eat, and chop them roughly.
The recipe calls for 12–16 hours at room temperature. Much longer can over-proof the dough, especially in a warm kitchen.
It creates steam in the first minutes of baking, which helps the loaf rise and gives it a crisp, crunchy crust.
Keep it wrapped at room temperature for a day or two. For longer storage, slice and freeze, then toast from frozen.
