KitchenCraft Home Made Bread Cloche, Round, Stoneware, 30 cm

If you want to take sourdough baking seriously this baking cloche (or one similar at probably much higher cost) is all but essential.Professional bakers inject steam into their ovens to "spring" a loaf which keeps the crust unset in the early stages and permits the rise. If you try and bake a sourdough loaf in a domestic oven the chances are the crust will "fix" before the "spring" will occur.To get around this domestic sourdough bakers in the USA worked out you could close-replicate the "spring" effect by baking the bread in a Dutch Oven, lid on, and then removing it to crust up the loaf. The problem with that is you are throwing lumps of hot metal around your kitchen which is never comfortable.This is the answer and it is a genius piece of kit providing you look after it properly.The first rule is while it will turn up beautiful in alabaster white you must never subject it to water or wash it or it will likely crack the next time you put it in the oven. Instead it should gain a natural patina with use. It will stain - don't worry about it. Never ever immerse it ion water or feel the need to clean it.The second rule is you should treat it like your favourite part of your most prized dinner service, particularly when handling while hot. For the most part it is durable but it is a biscuit-bake unglazed pot, a bit like a chicken brick. They are the perfect cooking medium but need careful handling. So don't bump it into things, make sure the oven door will close without striking it etc. etc.I have read various comments on here regarding the quality. I have two other similar items made by other manufacturers which were much more expensive but aside from one being made of cast iron, which is much more expensive and also close to unliftable. I don't see much advantage in any of them.In my view if you take bread baking seriously within a household environment without access to a steam oven this, or something similar to it is essential and if you treat it well will give you lots of use.

Highly recommended if you're looking to bake in a home oven, especially one with a fan.I 'cured' it straight out of the box, at the oven's highest temperature for one hour, then baked my best ever loaf of sourdough in it just a few hours later.It's a simple, no-nonsense alternative to an expensive cast iron 'dutch oven' or similar, which keeps the steam in during baking of bread, buns and similar, to ensure plenty of 'spring' before the crust sets in your loaf.It's made of some form of simple clay compound and feels very breakable, but treat it carefully and you'll be fine.My only concern was with the alleged instructions leaflet. For some reason it talked about baking potatoes and putting my new purchase on an open flame. Very weird and to be taken with a pinch of salt, I feel, as I'd have thought direct flame would destroy this item. I'd like to know from the reseller what this was all about, actually.

Just tried to make my first loaf. Not impressed. Followed the instructions perfectly, and I do known how to make bread I make 2 or 3 loaves a week either by hand or in a bread maker.The bread did not rise very well just spread out to cover the base. With the lid on you can't tell how well it's rising.Stuck it in the oven at 220 degres for 35 minutes. Did not rise, nor did it go golden brown, just stayed pail. Worst thing was it completely stuck to the bottom tray so impossible to remove without breaking the flat pail loaf up. Then a long time trying to remove the stuck on bread.I will give it another go in a few days and update this if things improve.Just tried two more loaves the second did not rise and stuck, even though I had sprinkled some corn flour in the cloche. The ingredients on the box does not include suger. So I thought maybe that is the reason it does not rise. So tried a third time this time with a tried and tested recipe I use about once a week in the bread maker I have. Again sprinkled some corn flour in the cloche. The dough did start to rise nicely this time. So put it in the oven. When it was time to take it out I found that not only had it stuck to the base of the cloche but also to the lid like glue. I can not separate them.A phone call to amazon and I am sending it back (and the loaf that is still stuck inside) for a full refund. Amazon where very helpful.As far as this product is concerned it must be the most useless thing I have ever bought

Really a must-have for the regular bread maker. It's about as near you can get at home to a professional, steam-injected ovenMore practical and effective than a Dutch Oven, in my view, although much more fragile, of course. Its big advantage is that it has a base with very low sides, making it easier to place the bread, and to remove the lid and expose the whole loaf during the baking process.Creates a wonderful crispy crust every time and no messing about with spritzing and trays of water in the oven to create steam.One thing, pointed out by others, do ignore the recipe instructions this cloche comes with. The best way, by far, to use this is to heat it BEFORE the bread goes into the oven. Prove, then transfer to the ultra-hot cloche. I find transferring the bread best done by using a banneton, or simply proving a loaf on baking paper and then picking the loaf up with the paper, and placing on the base of the cloche, then baking the loaf with the paper.Also a good idea to bake the final few minutes with no lid to create a superior, thick-set crust.Postscript: after further experimentation, I find that the cloche works perfectly well if placed in the oven cold. In fact, I do this now everytime with the first loaf as it saves big on the energy bill. Just put the loaf Inna cold oven and crank it up to max, and a superb loaf emerges. Everytime!