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1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the water and stir until
all the ingredients are well incorporated; the dough should be wet and sticky.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest 12-18 hours at room
temperature. When surface of the risen dough has darkened slightly, smells yeasty,
and is dotted with bubbles, it is ready.
2. Lightly flour your hands and work surface. Place dough on work surface and
sprinkle with more flour. Fold the dough over on itself once or twice and, using
floured fingers, tuck the dough underneath to from a rough ball.
3. Generously dust a cotton towel (not terry cloth)with enough flour, cornmeal, or
wheat bran to preven teh dough from sticking to the towel as it rises; place dough
seam side down on the towel and dust with more flour, cornmeal, or wheat bran.
Cover with teh edges or a second clean towel and let rise for about 2 hours, until
it has doubled in size.
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4. After about 1 1/2 hours, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place a 6-8 quart heavy
covered pot, such asa cast-iron Dutch oven, in the oven as it heats. When the
dough has fully risen, carefully remove pot from oven. remove top towel from
dough and slide your hand under the bottom towel; flip the dough over into pot,
seam side up. Shake pan once or twice if dough looks uneavenly distributed; it will
straighten our as it bakes.
5. Cover and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and continue baking for 1-15 minutes,
until the crust is a deep chestnut brown. Ithe internal temperature of the bread
should be around 200 degrees. You can check with a meat thermometer, if
desired.
6. Remove bread from the pot and let it cool completely on a wire rack before
slicing. If you slice before it is completely cool bread will become gummy.
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