Jamie Oliver has shared his two-ingredient recipe for homemade bread, and promises fans it "couldn't be simpler". To have a go yourself, all you'll need ingredients-wise is one 7 g sachet of dried yeast, and 1 kg strong bread flour, plus a little extra for dusting.
Like many of the thrifty chef's recipes, this bread is quite cost-effective to make. You can pick up a 1.5 kg bag of strong white bread flour for £1.30, and a box of 6x7g yeast sachets for 98p, both from Asda.
This recipe, which takes an estimated 45 minutes plus proving time, is said to be enough to make two loaves and could be perfect when whipping up deliciously fresh-tasting lunchtime sandwiches.
First of all, you'll need to pour 650ml of tepid water into a large bowl, before adding the yeast and mixing it in with a fork for a couple of minutes.
Then you should pour in the majority of the flour, plus half a teaspoon of sea salt, using the fork to mix everything together until you're unable to move the mixture.
Using clean hands, bring the mixture together as a dough ball, adding extra flour if needed so your hands and dough don't stick.
After transferring the dough to a surface dusted with flour, make sure to knead and stretch it for a good five minutes, until the dough is "silky and elastic".
Flour your hands and shape the dough into a ball before popping it into a bowl. Then, sprinkle flour over the top and use a "clean, damp tea towel" to cover it.
Leave this to prove for approximately one hour and 30 minutes, ideally in a place that's warm and draught-free, until it's twice the size it was. Then it's time to "knock the air out" by punching the dough using your fist, before kneading it for 30 seconds.
At this point, you can shape or flavour your dough how you like, leaving this to prove once more, this time for around 30 minutes to an hour.
Once it's doubled in size once again, preheat your oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4, and gently transfer the dough to the oven and shut the door.
Baking time should take about 35 minutes, by which point it should have a lovely golden colour. If you're not sure whether it's cooked or not, then you can try tapping the bottom, which should emit a hollow sound if ready.
Place your perfectly baked loaf to cool on a rack and allow the sweet bready notes to fill your kitchen temptingly.
According to Jamie: "Cooking can be good for the soul and making bread is such a rewarding, therapeutic, tactile thing – you'll be so proud of yourself when you've cracked it.
"From one simple bread recipe like this, there's a million things you can do – big ones, small ones, in a tin, on a tray, get creative. There are also loads of lovely flours you can experiment with – wholewheat, rye, spelt, using a blend of a couple of different ones. Plus, making bread is a great thing to do with the kids – they'll love it."
Do you have a thrifty recipe to share? Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com
