French baguette with a crispy crust

Cookinero 22 Apr 2025

The French love to eat fresh bread for breakfast, as do people from many other countries, but this used to be a big problem for bakers. They had to get up at 3 a.m. to open their shops by 8 a.m. and have time to knead the dough. Bakers demanded that their rights be respected, and in the early 19th century a law was passed that prohibited them from starting work before 4 a.m. That's when they came up with the baguette - a bread that could be made fairly quickly.

How to cook French baguette with a crispy crust

Step 1

French baguette with a crispy crust

Knead the dough. Place the flour on a flat surface in the form of a mound with a depression in the center. Pour a quarter of the yeast dough into this depression and, constantly stirring, add the remaining liquid. Add olive oil and knead the elastic dough, mold it into a ball, cover with a towel and leave for 60 minutes.

Step 2

French baguette with a crispy crust

Form the baguettes. Cut the dough into 4 equal parts, roll each one out and form a sausage. Place them on a baking sheet and leave in a warm place for 15 minutes.

Step 3

French baguette with a crispy crust

Bake the bread. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Make diagonal cuts on each baguette and place in the oven for 15 minutes until golden brown.

French baguette with a crispy crust - FAQ About Ingredients, Baking Time and Storage

Yes, you can substitute instant yeast for active dry yeast. Use the same amount, but you can skip the initial activation step and mix it directly with the flour.
Store baguettes in a paper bag at room temperature for up to 1 day. For longer storage, wrap tightly in foil and freeze for up to 1 month.
Yes, substitute the all-purpose flour with a gluten-free flour blend. Add 1 tsp xanthan gum per cup of flour to help with texture, and expect a slightly denser result.
For a crispier crust, place a pan of water in the bottom of the oven while baking to create steam, or spritz the baguettes with water before baking.
Serve with cheeses, cured meats, olive oil and balsamic, or use for sandwiches. They're also delicious dipped in soups or made into bruschetta.
Absolutely! Divide the dough into 6-8 pieces for mini baguettes. Reduce baking time to 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
Possible causes include old yeast, insufficient kneading, or dough that wasn't left in a warm enough place to rise. Ensure your yeast is fresh and the rising area is draft-free.
Thaw at room temperature, then refresh in a 175°C (350°F) oven for 5-7 minutes. For extra crispness, sprinkle with water before reheating.

Reviews: 0

0 Overall rating
5
0
4
0
3
0
2
0
1
0

Have you already prepared this recipe? Tell what you think.

Write a review

Will be displayed on the comment.
Your review must be at least 50 characters.

Trending

Honey mushroom soup

Frozen honey mushrooms allow you to enjoy the taste and aroma of mushroom soup even in winter. There are many recipes with honey mushrooms and other frozen or dried mushrooms in traditional Russian cuisine. But soup with honey mushrooms, frozen whole

Baked pears with cottage cheese

There are those who love pears in their simplest and most natural form - "from the tree" or bought from a trusted market merchant, and there are adherents of pears baked, grilled or stewed in sugar syrup. This recipe is for the latter, alth

Asian Spritz

Three ingredients point to the Asian origin of this "Squirt": soju - the Korean national drink, the juice of the Asian citrus fruit yuzu and another citrus - pomelo.

Korean cold soup Kuksi

This cold soup was invented out of poverty. For the broth, bay broth is used, which is then seasoned with ground tomatoes and garlic, soy sauce and sugar are added. Separately, boil the noodles, wash them in ice water. A large portion of noodles is p

Armenian Lavash Roll with Stuffing

Perhaps the most versatile dish you can think of is a lavash roll with filling, because you can stuff lavash with whatever your heart desires. Lavash with vegetables, with salad, with canned fish, sweet lavash with cottage cheese. The choice of filli

Salad "Tbilisi"

Tbilisi salad is a popular Georgian salad with beef, red beans, sweet peppers, cilantro and walnuts. It is distinguished by its fresh spicy taste, because chili peppers, garlic and khmeli-suneli spices are added to it. The salad is traditionally dres

Kundyumy

Surprisingly, Russian dumplings can also be lenten - let's remember the old recipe for kundums. Although their main feature is that immediately after molding kundyums are fried, and then they are poured with broth, most often mushrooms, sour crea

Apricot and gooseberry jam

The combination of sunny apricot and amber gooseberry is already picturesque in itself. Since it is difficult to catch the moment of optimal ripeness of gooseberries, they are often picked while still green and sour. In this case, this is what we nee

Categories Menu Recipes
Top