I am going to be honest, I am not a baker. And I am certainly not a bread baker. But when I originally found the no-knead bread recipe published by Mark Bittman in the New York Times, originally created by Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery in Manhattan, the world of bread baking was completely transformed.
Who knew you could bake a crusty loaf of bread in your home kitchen without the technique of kneading? I was instantly amazed.
Table of Contents
- What is Olive Bread?
- Where did olive loaf originate?
- What is an olive loaf made of?
- How to make olive bread?
- An important tip for using olives
- Is olive bread healthy?
- What to serve with olive bread?
- Olive Loaf Variations
- A few tips for making the best recipe
- Other bread recipes you might also like
- Homemade No-Knead Olive Bread Recipe
But then I realized, the 4-ingredient no-knead bread recipe is such a fantastic base, why not make it more interesting? And since olives are one of my pantry staples, as they are so prominent in Mediterranean cuisine, I knew I was on to something. So I got to work.
After a few trials and errors, this olive loaf bread became my new favorite. Warm from the oven, my husband and I simply couldn’t get enough. Once we tried it with Olive Oil Bread Dip, it was simply perfection. It makes a great go-to bread to bring to all of our upcoming holiday parties, too! Just think of this rustic bread as a delicious way to impress all your friends!
What is Olive Bread?
Olive bread, sometimes referred to as olive loaf (not to be confused with the cold cut version studded with olives), is a bread where the loaf of bread is laced with whole or chopped olives. This ensures a quintessential olive artisan bread flavor.
Where did olive loaf originate?
From my research, the olive loaf recipe seems to have originated in the Mediterranean, mostly in Italian and Greek cultures. And it makes sense since olives are such a staple ingredient in this region. Many times, you will find artisan bread makers with a version of olive bread in their shops. But today, it can easily be made in your home kitchen!
What is an olive loaf made of?
Homemade olive bread requires 5 simple ingredients:
- Bread Flour
- Active Dry Yeast
- Kosher Salt
- Lukewarm Water (more on that later below)
- Chopped Kalamata Olives (but you can use any of your favorite olives – more on that below)
How to make olive bread?
This no-knead olive bread comes together in 3 folds.
- First, mix the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Pour in the lukewarm water. Mix with a wooden spoon. At this point, the dough will be sticky.
Stir in chopped kalamata olives and ensure they are evenly distributed throughout the dough. (Feel free to also use your hands!) Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and allow it to rest 18-24 hours in a warmer part of your kitchen.
PRO TIP: Warm water is very important to activate the yeast. Though you might ask, what is the exact temperature you are referring to when you say, “lukewarm water”?
Typically, this is a temperature between 100-110 degrees. You can use an instant-thermometer to know for sure. If you don’t have one, you can simply stick your finger in the center, if it feels slightly warm to the touch, you are good to go!
- Second, transfer the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. It will be sticky. But if you gently remove the olive bread dough from the bowl, you will notice it will all come out easy and fold onto itself. If you need a visual, be sure to check out the quick how-to video in the recipe card below.
Form the dough into a ball by tucking the sides of the dough under. Transfer to a large piece of parchment paper, lightly dust with flour, cover with a kitchen towel and allow to rise once more in a warmer part of your kitchen until doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
- Lastly, towards the end of rising time, place your dutch oven in the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. When ready to bake, remove the very hot dutch oven from the oven with potholders.
Using the edges of the parchment paper, carefully place the dough in the dutch oven, cover and bake for 30 minutes. Then, remove the lid and bake another 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the olive loaf from the dutch oven and place it on a cooling rack to cool for 30-45 minutes before slicing.
PRO TIP: To know for sure that your bread is fully cooked through, once you remove it from the dutch oven, gently lift it over and tap the bottom of the bread loaf. If it sounds hollow, it’s done!
An important tip for using olives
Make sure the kalamata olives are completely drained as this rustic loaf recipe is already very moist and sticky. To ensure your olives are completely dry, chop first and pat them with paper towels to get rid of excess liquid.
Is olive bread healthy?
Yes, especially a dutch oven olive bread. Since olives have heart-healthy fats and we are making the bread from scratch with top-quality bread flour, it is good and good for you! So go ahead, have two, ahem, three slices!
What to serve with olive bread?
The rustic olive bread recipe is absolutely divine with Olive Oil Bread Dip (and a glass of wine!). But with the colder months coming, it also pairs perfectly with hearty fall and winter soups. Try it with Vegan Butternut Squash Soup, Ribollita Soup, Lentil Soup, Turkish Red Lentil Soup, or Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup.
Olive Loaf Variations
The beauty of this rustic olive bread recipe is the number of variations you can make. I would recommend replacing the olives altogether or adding one additional ingredient to keep it simple. Here are a few of my favorites:
- Olive Cheese Bread: Add 1 cup shredded white cheddar
- Green Olive Bread Recipe: Replace the purple kalamata olives with chopped green olives
- Olive and Herb Bread: Add 1 teaspoon each dried thyme and oregano to the dry ingredients
- Olive Garlic Bread: Add 1 tsp garlic powder to the dry ingredients
- Black Olive Bread: Replace the kalamata olives with black olives. I especially like the extra special briny bite of pitted, black oil-cured olives.
- Sun-Dried Tomato and Olive Bread Recipe: Add 1 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes
- Olive Tapenade Bread: Replace the chopped olives with ½ cup strained olive tapenade
- Rosemary Olive Bread Recipe: Add 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
- Walnut Olive Bread: Add 1 cup chopped, toasted walnuts
A few tips for making the best recipe
- Can I freeze this olive bread? You sure can. As a matter of fact, I usually make a few loaves on the same day. Let them cool completely, slice, place in freezer bags, and freeze until I am ready to use. When ready to serve, I toast a slice (or more) and serve.
- Do I have to slice it before I freeze? Can I freeze the whole loaf? You can. However, (1) be sure to place it in an airtight container (I usually wrap it in a clean kitchen towel, place it in a freezer bag, and get as much air out as possible), and (2) be sure to thaw it in the fridge overnight before serving.
- What is the best size of the Dutch oven to bake this olive loaf? I have made this baked bread in 3 different sizes of Dutch ovens and brands and they all worked well. The brands and sizes are as follows (the links below are affiliate links)
Le Creuset Signature Cast-Iron Round Dutch Oven, 3 1/2-Qt
Lodge 6 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven
Staub Cast Iron 5.5-Qt. Round Cocotte - A few requests for whole wheat olive bread have been mentioned. I have not tested this recipe with whole wheat flour as the structure and protein content is different than bread flour. If you are adventurous and want to try a whole wheat version of this bread on your own, I would start with replacing 25% of the bread flour with whole wheat and work your way up from there. I would love to know the results if you try it out!
Other bread recipes you might also like
- Brioche
- Foolproof Challah recipe
- Turkish Simit
- Easy No-Knead Skillet Bread – From Baker Bettie
- Bread Maker Olive Bread Recipe – From Family Spice
Homemade No-Knead Olive Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups bread flour, (360 gr. )
- ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt*
- 1 ⅓ cup lukewarm water (between 100-110 F degrees), (316 ml)
- 1 cup chopped kalamata olives, drained well
Instructions
- Mix the dry ingredients; bread flour, active dry yeast, and kosher salt, in a large mixing bowl.
- Pour in 1 ⅓ cups (316 ml.) lukewarm water.
- Give it a mix using a wooden spoon. At this point, the dough needs to be quite sticky. Stir in the chopped olives and ensure that they are equally distributed throughout the batter. (Alternatively, you can use your clean hands to mix and feel the stickiness.)
- Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let it sit in a warmer part of your house for 18-24 hours.In my tests, I found that the bread baked after 18 hours of rising time was perfect, but the 24-hour one was also good. One important thing to mention here is that at the end of the rising time you might see a thin (kind of hard – for the lack of a better word) layer at the top of the dough. Don’t be alarmed by that. In the next step, we will fold that into the dough and since it is a sticky one, the additional rising time will help soften it.
- Lightly flour a piece of parchment paper, gently remove the dough from the bowl, and place it onto the parchment. While removing, you will realize that it is quite sticky. However, if you take your time and gently pull it by folding it onto itself, you will see that it will come out easily without any dough remaining in the bowl. For a visual, be sure to watch the video below.
- Form the dough into a ball tucking the sides of the dough under. Lightly dust it with a little bit of flour, cover it with a clean kitchen towel, and let it rise for 1-2 hours or until it doubles in size. Again, I recommend letting it sit in a warmer part of your house.
- Towards the end of the rising time, place your dutch oven in the oven and pre-heat it to 450 F degrees.
- When ready to bake, carefully take the now-very hot dutch oven out of the oven. Using the edges of the parchment paper place the dough into the dutch oven. Put the lid on and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove the lid and continue to bake another 20-30 minutes or until the top is nicely golden brown as you see in the photos.
- At the end of the baking, remove it from the dutch oven, place it onto a cooling rack and let it cool for 30-45 minutes before slicing.
Video
Notes
- I use Diamond Kosher Salt. If you are using Morton Kosher Salt or table salt, please use half the amount of salt.
- It is imperative that you drain the olives well.
- When using olives in any recipe, it is best to give them a taste. If they are too salty, I would recommend letting them soak in water for an hour or so. Obviously, the longer they sit in the water the less salty they will become. Alternatively, you can use less salt, but I personally prefer to adjust the saltiness of the olives instead of using less salt. Because I like my bread dough to be properly seasoned.
- Storage: After it comes to room temperature, cover it with a kitchen towel and keep it on the kitchen counter. It should still be good the next day.
- Freezing: You can freeze the whole loaf or slice it before freezing. Just make sure that it is fully cooled before doing so. Additionally, be sure to place it in an airtight freezer bag and get the air out as much as you can to prevent freezer burn.
- Thawing: If you froze it sliced, you can warm the slices in your toaster without having to wait for it to thaw. If you froze it as a whole, it is best to let it thaw in the fridge overnight.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe is great. We missed good olive bread. We also tried this recipe with gluten free flour. While it didn’t rise as high as the regular, it still tastes really good and is spongy inside. Not dense like other recipes I have attempted with gf flour. Will be using this recipe as my base going forward! Thank you for this recipe 🙂
That is wonderful to hear. Thanks for sharing your experience Kelly.
what if I do not have a dutch oven? I just bought this bread for $6 at Whole foods and would love to make this at home
Hi Susan,
Sadly, to get 100% foolproof results, you need a Dutch oven recipe for this no knead bread recipe. If you read some of the reader comments you will see that some readers used other vessels to cook the dough. I did try some of them but honestly none of them worked as well as a Dutch oven. At least, not good enough for me to recommend here on the recipe card.
I am sorry that this is not very helpful but I would hate to give you information that will deliver less than ideal results.
Hello Aysegul,
Question: why is this recipe asks for only 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, where your artisan bread asks for a full teaspoon? Is this amount enough?
Hi Katrina,
Yes, the amount is correct. However, I am not sure if we are looking at the same thing. Both recipes use 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
This recipe sounds so good! I do have a question though. If I do a version of this with cheese, is it still okay to leave out to rise for a day since it has dairy in it?
Hi Rosie,
I made this no knead bread recipe with shredded mozzarella and shredded cheddar before and it turned out good. In both cases, I used 1 cup of cheese and they melted into the bread making it not so noticeable in the finished product. So, please keep that in mind.
To answer your question: I think it is best that you let it rise overnight. It’s been a while since I made it with cheese, but I don’t remember leaving out the rising part. I make a version of this with olives (in my olive bread recipe) and even though olives are not a dairy product, the dough still needs to rise.
I hope this helps. Please do not hesitate to reach out if I can help in any way.
Best of luck,
Aysegul
i used a ceramic pot with lid and it worked great.
Good to know. Thanks for sharing your experience.
The recipe sound great, however, I don’t own Dutch oven. Any suggestions?
Hi Judy,
Sadly, this recipe will not work without a Dutch oven. At least, I couldn’t make it work without it.
If you read some of the comments left by readers you will see that people tried a few different vessels. To be honest, I haven’t tried any of them so I can’t vouch for them but if you want you can try if you have any of the vessels they used.
I am sorry. I know this is not helpful but I would hate to offer you a solution that doesn’t work.
Hope this helps.
You do not need a Dutch oven .i did it in my large cast iron skillet for about 1hr in the oven checking it half way .half way through my baking I poured olive oil on top .turned out delicious ! I also made it with green olives and added sun dried tomato paste which turned out heavenly like tomato bread .
I just made this bread, and it is delicious. I used a 3 olive medley of oil packed olives (Calamata olives, Mammoth Black Greek olives and Green Sevillano olives. I also added 3 cloves of minced garlic and 1 teaspoon of diastatic malt to help with oven spring. I used coarse cornmeal on the parchment paper.
The one comment I would make is that the instructions should be edited to match the video. The instructions state to turn the dough out onto a floured countertop, then form it into a ball and placed on floured parchment paper. The video shows that the dough being turned out onto the floured parchment paper, and skipping the floured countertop, which is the easy way to do it.
The dough is so wet, sticky and limp that first turning it out onto a floured countertop, forming it into a ball and then transferring it to the parchment paper is very difficult if not close to impossible.
Hello Glenn,
Good point.
I made that video a year after making that video. In between, I made it so many times that I thought it is easier to place the dough onto parchment paper. Sadly, I failed to go back and change it in the recipe.
I made the changes now. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention.
I am happy to hear that you liked it.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave an honest feedback.
Aysegul
delicious as all of your recipes. I now have the confidence to add herbs and oil for different textures and flavours. My family loved it. Thank you Aysegul. Your recipes always make me want to try something a little different and I do share them with friends and family.
Dear Elizabeth,
This is music to my ears. I am happy to hear that you and your family enjoy my recipes.
Thank YOU! for coming by and taking the time to review the recipe.
Best,
Aysegul
My first loaf a couple of weeks ago turned out great! My husband said that he liked it better than Brea’s store-bought olive bread. Thank you for your recipe.
I want to try substituting some of the warm water with olive juice from the kalamata olives jar to infuse more olive flavor in the bread Do you have any thoughts or recommendations about my idea? Thanks in advance for your response.
Hi Helene,
I am glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe.
I think your idea is great. Though make sure that the temperature of the juice is luke warm because if it is cold the yeast will not be activated.
And if you end up trying I would love to know how it turns out.
Thanks for coming by!
Thanks for your reply, Aysegul. I did substitute the water with warm olive juice and love it! It gave the whole bread a nice olive taste. This time, I made two loaves and froze one. I also posted pictures with the recipe to encourage my Facebook friends to try it. Thanks so much for this great recipe! It’s a keeper. from Helene
This was my very first attempt at making bread and it turned out perfectly! It was difficult waiting for it to cool, but after an hour, while it was still slightly warm, I enjoyed a few slices, dipped in olive oil. Magnificent! I’ll definitely be making this again, and thanks for teaching me that making bread is something a novice can do perfectly the first time 😋
This is music to my ears Dorothy. I am thrilled to hear that you’ve got good results in your first attempt at making this olive bread recipe.
Thanks for coming by and taking the time to leave a review.