This amazing gluten-free crusty French bread boule is the thing of dreams. As my son says, “It is just really good, normal bread.”
It’s got a caramelized crust. Soft and chewy insides. The big slices are ready to lather with butter or dip in an amazing soup. There are no compromises here to be gluten-free. It’s just simply really good bread.
Let’s learn how to make it.
Start by measuring the ingredients in three separate bowls.
One bowl contains the yeast, sugar, and warm water so the yeast can activate. It’s just going to be bubbly when ready.
The second bowl will contain more warm water and the psyllium husk. At first, this bowl will seem very watery. Let it sit for just a few minutes and a nice gel will form. Since we have removed all gluten from this recipe, the psyllium husk is going to act as our building block to give the bread structure and height. Plus it is a healthy fiber for your diet.
The third bowl will contain all your dry ingredients. I try to stick with five basic flours or starches in all of my custom recipes. I find that Amazon is the least expensive place to buy them. I usually buy them in bulk and keep all of the dry ingredients on hand. There are times when one item may run out of stock, so it is good to keep a backup supply. These flours are white rice flour, sorghum, potato starch, tapioca starch, and brown rice flour. This recipe doesn’t use brown rice, but others will.
Combine all three bowls into your mixer, or a large bowl if mixing by hand. Start to knead the dough. It will be lumpy and separated at first but as you continue to knead it will start to look more uniform and even have a slightly stringy appearance. Those are great things! We want this dough to turn into a nice mostly smooth dough, even into a large ball that wraps around your mixer. As you continue to work the dough by hand or with the mixer it will begin to resemble a traditional wheat dough.
After kneading for 8-10 minutes, place the dough on a lightly floured countertop and knead for a minute more.
The dough will begin to form a ball. Shape into a round loaf with the seam side down. Turn in a circle for a few turns to seal the bottom, just like you would a dinner roll.
Line a medium-sized bowl with a tea towel. Dust lightly with flour. Place the dough upside down in the bowl. Spritz or lightly drizzle some water on the bottom so that it doesn’t dry out. Cover and let rise for 45-60 minutes or until doubled in size.
As soon as you have the dough rising in a bowl, turn the oven to 450. Place a Dutch Oven, a cast-iron pan, or a cookie sheet inside. Whatever you have to cook the bread. We want both the oven and the cooking device to get very hot. If using a cookie sheet or a cast-iron pan, place an additional small metal pan at the bottom of your oven. You will need to add water to the oven when you add the bread to create a nice steam effect. This will help the bread to rise more when baking.
When the bread has risen, turn it out onto a piece of parchment paper. Cut a design into the top, making several deep cuts. This will give the bread room to grow once in the oven. Spritz with water.
Use the parchment paper as a sling to carry your dough and place it in the pan you will use. If using a Dutch Oven, place several ice cubes under the parchment paper for steam. Quickly add the lid to seal in the moisture. If using a cast-iron pan or cookie sheet, add water to the hot pan at the bottom of the oven. Quickly place the dough in the oven to trap the steam.
Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on the Dutch Oven. At 30 minutes, remove the lid. No matter which method you are using, rotate the bread in the oven to get an even bake. At this point, the bread will be much bigger in appearance, but the crust will be a very light color.
Bake for an additional 30 minutes.
After the full hour of baking the crust will be a dark golden brown. Remove the bread from the oven. Take the bread out of the pan — the most dangerous part, so be very careful. Remove the parchment paper and let the bread cool for at least an hour for optimal texture inside.
Gluten-Free Crusty French Bread Boule
Ingredients
Yeast Mix
- 245 g warm water
- 12 g active dry yeast
- 28 g sugar
Binder Mix
- 300 g warm water
- 22 g psyllium husk
Dry Ingredients
- 90 g white rice flour
- 90 g sorghum flour
- 200 g potato starch
- 120 g tapioca starch
- 12 g salt
Instructions
- Prepare the Yeast Mix by adding water, sugar, and yeast to one bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Prepare the Binder Mix by adding the warm water and psyllium husk to a separate bow. Whisk to combine.
- Measure dry ingredients into a third bowl. Add dry ingredients to your mixer or a large bowl if mixing by hand.
- Add Yeast Mix and Binder Mix to the dry ingredients. Knead well for 8-10 minutes.
- Dust the countertop lightly with white rice flour. Remove dough from the mixer or large bowl and place on the countertop. Gently knead the dough by hand until smooth. Shape into a ball and spin until the seam on the bottom is sealed.
- In a medium-sized bowl, add a clean tea towel and dust with white rice flour. Place the dough with the seam side up into the bowl. Cover with the sides of the tea towel. I like to spritz with a little water on the dough and the towel to make sure the dough does not dry out.
- Let rise for 45-60 minutes or until doubled.
- At the beginning of the rise turn your oven to 450. Add a Dutch Oven. Both the Dutch Oven and the oven need time to get very warm, usually an hour will make sure they are hot enough.
- When the dough is ready, turn it out onto a piece of parchment paper. Remove the tea towel. Slice several deep cuts into the top of the bread. Spritz with water.
- Use the parchment like a sling to put the dough into the hot Dutch Oven. Add several ice cubes under the parchment to help provide steam during baking.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove the lid and rotate the Dutch Oven for an even bake. Bake for an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove the bread from the oven. Remove the pan and parchment paper. Place the loaf on a cooling rack for at least an hour before cutting for the best texture.
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