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Home Recipes by Type Breads & Muffins Yeast Breads
DF Dairy-Free FF Freezer Friendly VG Vegetarian

No-Knead Whole Wheat Bread

5
/5
2 hrs
34 Comments
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By: Rachel GurkPosted: 10/21/2013Updated: 06/15/2021

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

This no-knead whole wheat bread recipe could not be easier! Great for the beginner baker. Get the easy recipe on RachelCooks.com!

An easy to prepare no knead whole wheat bread! Perfect for both experts and beginners.

Front view of loaf of bread wrapped in cotton towel. Text overlay reads 'no-knead whole wheat bread."

Baking with yeast. Does it make you nervous? Are you worried that it won’t rise properly? Are you scared off by the kneading process? 

Many confident cooks are a little uncertain when it comes to baking with yeast. But have no fear! You won’t be “kneading” any help with this easy bread recipe. (Sorry, couldn’t resist that little pun!)

About this bread recipe

“Batterway” bread is another name for no-knead bread. The dough is sticky and soft, more like a batter than dough. It’s incredibly simple to make (only seven ingredients, and one ingredient is water!). You’ll love the flavor of this yeasty no-knead whole wheat bread.

You guys — I really believe this is a no-fail recipe. You can mix it by hand, or with a mixer. A stand mixer makes it super easy.

This bread recipe uses a mixture of bread flour and whole wheat flour, subtly sweetened with honey. The result is a light and fluffy bread that is sturdy enough for a sandwich. Try it with egg salad, dill chicken salad, or make a pepperoni pizza grilled cheese. 

It tastes great toasted (next to eating it warm, right out of the oven, toasting is my favorite thing to do with homemade bread). Butter, cream cheese, jam, avocados, whatever you like to top a slice of bread with, this bread is ready for it. Try strawberry basil freezer jam, gingerbread butter, or orange honey butter. So good!

This no-knead whole wheat bread makes two nice sized loaves. Plenty for a hungry family!


Loaf of bread, sliced, on wooden cutting board.

What you need to make this bread

  • Whole Wheat Flour: Whole wheat flour is more nutritious and adds a nutty grain flavor.
  • Bread Flour: Bread flour is ground from a different type of wheat that has more protein which adds strength to the dough. For more about bread flour and how it differs from all-purpose flour, check out King Arthur’s website. They do a great side by side comparison.
  • Salt: Needed for flavor, of course, but also as a yeast inhibitor.
  • Water: The water needs to be warm, between 110-115°F.
  • Yeast: You’ll need two packets of active yeast, or 5 1/2 teaspoons. Refer to the note in the recipe card for more about the yeast.
  • Honey: Adds flavor and sweetness.
  • Shortening

Loaf of bread wrapped in cotton dish towel, with another loaf in background.

If you’re still feeling uneasy about baking bread, Red Star Yeast has great instructions online including a step-by-step baking guide.  You can also find Red Star Yeast on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest.

More yeast bread recipes

Give these delicious bread recipes a try! I’m sure you’ll love them. 

  • Cinnamon Swirl Bread
  • Dutch Oven Bread (no knead!)
  • No-Knead Cheesy Bread
  • Italian Herb and Cheese Pull-Apart Bread
  • Cranberry Walnut Bread with Oats
  • Flatbread (so easy!)
  • Easy Pizza Dough Recipe {and Cheesy Flatbread}

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Loaf of bread wrapped in cotton towel, with another loaf in background.
Recipe

Get the Recipe: No Knead Whole Wheat Bread

5 from 1 vote
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 50 mins
Additional Time: 1 hr
Total Time: 2 hrs
20 servings
Print Rate Recipe
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This no knead whole wheat bread recipe could not be easier! Great for the beginner baker.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 4 cups bread flour
  • 3 teaspoons salt
  • 2 ½ cups warm water (110°-115°F)
  • 4 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast (2 packets)
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter (½ stick), softened

Instructions

  • Have water at 110°-115°F and all other ingredients at room temperature.
  • Measure bread flour, whole wheat flour, and salt into a bowl; whisk to combine. Set aside.
  • Pour the warm water into a large mixing bowl; add the yeast. Let stand 3 to 5 minutes; stir. Add the honey, butter, and half of the flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes with electric mixer on medium speed, or by hand until smooth.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients and beat again with stand mixer or spoon until smooth and dough comes together. Cover. Let rise in warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, grease two 5 x 9- or 4½ x 8½ – inch loaf pans.
  • Punch down dough, and divide in half.
  • Place in prepared pans. Let rise again until edge of dough comes to within 1-inch of tops of large pans or reaches tops of smaller pans, about 30 minutes.
  • Preheat oven to 375°F with rack positioned in lower third of oven.
  • Bake loaves 35 minutes, or until well browned on sides and tops (internal temperature should be 190°F at the center of the loaf when measured with an instant read thermometer). Remove loaves from oven and brush tops with butter for soft crusts.
  • Let bread cool 5-10 minutes in pan; remove from pans and cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Notes

  • Makes 2 loaves, 10 slices each. Nutrition information is based on 1 slice.
  • Recipe card revised 4/28/2022.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 173kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 6mg, Sodium: 351mg, Potassium: 97mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 72IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 10mg, Iron: 1mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk
Did You Make This?Be sure to upload a photo & tag me at @RachelCooksBlog. I love seeing what you made!
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Loaf of bread, sliced.

Disclaimer: I am in a paid partnership with Red Star Yeast to recreate and photograph recipes from their website. Red Star Yeast is the only kind of yeast I use. All opinions are my own, as always.

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  1. Stephanie L says

    November 9, 2013 at 7:17 pm

    I am a bread making beginner. I have a bread maker and am wondering if I could use it with this recipe. I am worried that I will ruin it and am looking for a fool proof way. Thank you!

    I am hoping to use this recipe with your cranberry cinnamon butter for Christmas.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 10, 2013 at 9:28 am

      Honestly, being a no-knead recipe, it’s pretty fool proof the way it is! Also, the amount of dough would be way too much for a bread maker. Red Star Yeast has lots of recipes on their site (http://www.redstaryeast.com/our-best-recipes) that can be adapted for a bread maker (look for the “bread machine recipes” category) so maybe try one of those if you prefer to use a bread maker. But give this recipe a try — it really is fool proof! :) And enjoy the cranberry cinnamon butter — one of my faves!

      Reply
  2. Jamie says

    November 6, 2013 at 11:45 am

    Can you use all of the same kind of flour in this? Or will it not turn out?

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 6, 2013 at 2:17 pm

      It might create too heavy of a dough that doesn’t rise properly and ends up being dense. Always worth a shot, though!

      Reply
  3. Tony Giles says

    October 31, 2013 at 5:04 am

    I’m sure it’s as delicious as it looks, but how can you call this “whole wheat bread” when only a third of the flour is whole wheat?

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 31, 2013 at 7:08 am

      We call chocolate chip cookies “chocolate chip cookies” and they certainly aren’t all chocolate chips. Although, I wouldn’t mind if they were. Whole wheat flour is a major ingredient in this bread that gives it that nutty/whole grain flavor. And it is as delicious as it looks, thanks!

      Reply
  4. Deborah says

    October 28, 2013 at 9:55 am

    Girl – you should not be afraid of yeast, because this looks so perfect!!

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 31, 2013 at 7:28 am

      Thank you! I’m slowly getting more comfortable with it…

      Reply
  5. Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking says

    October 23, 2013 at 10:59 pm

    This bread looks so delicious!!

    Reply
  6. Stephanie @ Girl Versus Dough says

    October 22, 2013 at 9:28 am

    This loaf looks just fantastic! I love RSY’s batterway loaves; they always turn out so fluffy and soft. Wish I had a few slices of this in front of me right now with butter and jam for breakfast!

    Reply
  7. Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen says

    October 21, 2013 at 8:26 pm

    This looks so good and so easy!

    Reply
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