Supermarket out of bread? Try this simple slow cooker recipe instead

As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus continues to rise across Australia, leaving the government with no choice but to introduce stricter rules and guidelines to prevent further spread of the virus, many people are struggling to get their hands on basic food items such as bread and pasta.

Panic buying has swept the country, seeing supermarket chains having to enforce seniors-only shopping hours and limit the number of items a single shopper can buy at one time.

So with the range of products people can get their hands on at the shops dwindling, people have begun sharing simple recipes or alternatives online, to help each other through this difficult period. And one such woman, from Tasmania, shared a super easy recipe for making bread in your trusty slow cooker.

Dannielle Luttrell posted the recipe earlier this week and it has since been shared more than 300,000 times on Facebook as people thanked the woman for sharing the easy recipe. One person commented: “Thank you so much. Definitely will give it a go.”

Another said: ” I have my trusty bread in a bowl recipe. Pretty much the same but done in the oven. Slow cooker would be good too. I might try it.” While another wrote: “It looks yummy!”

So, what ingredients do you need and how do you make it?

Ingredients

1/2 cup warm water
2 cups of warm milk
2 Tbsp melted unsalted butter
1-3 tablespoons of sugar (add more if you like sweeter bread)
3 tablespoons of active dry yeast
6 cups of whole wheat flour (or 3 cups whole wheat and 3 cups all-purpose)
2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder

Dannielle’s method

1. Grab a big bowl and stir the 1/2 cup of warm water, 1 (or more) tablespoons of sugar, 3 tablespoons of yeast. Wait for 5 minutes until it is frothy on the top. While you’re waiting warm 2 cups of milk and 2 Tbsp of butter in microwave.
2. Next, add milk and butter to yeast mixture. Using a standing mixer slowly add the 6 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Mix and knead the dough.
3. Line your slow cooker with baking paper and place in your round ball of dough. It will rise in the slow cooker as it heats through. Cook on High power for 2- 2.5 hours. Start checking at every 7-10 minutes until top springs back and has no moisture. The bottom should be a nice brown colour as well as sides.
4. Once cooked, you can place in the oven on grill to get a nice crusty top too!

Dannielle also added a handy tip to avoid excess condensation, writing: “You can use a tea towel on top if you want to avoid condensation dripping in down on the loaf.” She also suggesting using unsalted butter or experimenting with more sugar to achieve a sweeter-tasting loaf.

It comes after American chef Brandon Johnson’s super simple recipe for Navajo flatbread went viral. If you don’t have access to a slow cooker, you can find that recipe here.