Put a heavy dusting of bran on the bottom of the pan, before you put in the bread. It slides right out after that. The bran will burn, but it doesn't effect the flavor of the bread and it doesn't stick to the bottom of your pan.

Michael Ruhlman also wrote a great post on no knead bread, should help you out for the future.

-M

Parchment paper.

That is all.

Parchment for me too. I set it out for its final rise on parchment and then throw the whole thing into the dutch oven.

i'd probably put a healthy dose of baking soda on the stuck part, then heat it on the stove top. i *think* that should unstick the stuck parts.

Curious about the parchment paper technique. One of the frustrations for me is having to use bran or flour to keep the wet dough from sticking to the cloth prior to plopping it in the hot pot. Perhaps the flour/bran isn't needed if you set it on the paper. But in the transfer to the pot, do you flip it over so that the dough hits the bottom of the pot (the way Bittman does), or do you set it down so that the paper sits between dough and pot?

I was going to guess the pot wasn't hot enough as well. I preheat the oven and pot during the last hour of the 2nd rise just to make sure the oven it hot enough. As for parchment paper I must buy the wrong kind b/c the brand I have would burn to a crisp in an oven greater than 400.

@trevor from hamilton -- right, you don't flip the dough over. Just lift the parchment-and-dough and set it down as is in the pot.

I use parchment paper, too. I'm following the Cooks' Illustrated no-knead bread recipe (which offers some improvements over Bittman's recipe). The parchment goes under the bread before the last rise and goes under the bread when in the dutch oven.

I use parchment too. Never had a problem w/ it burning to a crisp.

We use parchment too. Make sure the piece is big enough so you can pick the whole thing up by the corners and set it in the pot without burning your fingers. I love when my husband bakes bread in the winter because the oven warms up the whole house. We have been trying to figure out how to bake it in the barbeque in the summer for the same reason.

Two things: first, put hot soapy water in the dutch oven and bring to a boil on the stove top. Then use a heat proof nylon brush to scrub until the crust softens and releases from the pan. Any residual burned on grease build up can be removed with a damp Magic Eraser (my kitchen super weapon).

I had the exact same thing happen last weekend, and no amount of soaking in boiling water would get the burned flour off the enamel in the bottom of my pot. A paste of lemon juice and baking soda and about 45 minutes of serious scrubbing with a scrubby sponge finally cleaned it off.

@DenverDriud - have you had any problems with the magic eraser scratching off the enamel in your dutch oven? I was tempted to use one but was afraid it would cause damage.

+1 vote for Cook's Illustrated's version. Parchment paper, screaming hot pot... it's magic.

Check the temperature of the oven - how true is it? And let it heat up even longer than suggested to make sure that there isn't a big drop in temperature as soon as the door is opened.

If you let that leftover bread in the bottom dry out it will chip right off. It's what we do at work.

:)

I learned two things after my grandmother burnt sugar to the bottom of her ceramic fancy pot. 1. boiling rhubarb in the pot will get it (and anything else) right off. 2. she is impressively creative with cursing.

i also use parchment - and use more of cook's illustrated's technique. I line a small pan with a sheet of parchment for the final rise and place the dough in (the shape of the {frying} pan helps keep the shape of the loaf circular like a boule). When I'm ready to transfer it to the pot, I place ANOTHER piece of parchment on top of risen dough and flip the dough over (with another frying pan as a support). Peel off the top sheet of parchment then put the bread with underlying parchment in the pot to cook. I find that if you don't flip it over, the rise isn't as good!

A tablespoon of fabric softener in warm water and a good, long overnight soak should take any burnt, caked-on food off. At least, it works for me...

Olive oil and a coarse cornmeal should do the trick.

I use coarse cornmeal or nothing as long as the dutch oven is searing hot. Never had any sticking problems. I would suggest against olive oil though, as this has only burnt my breads in the past.

clean it with bar keeper's friend

I wipe a little vegetable oil on the inside of the pot before putting the bread in.

@JMooney -- the magic eraser is pretty gentle on everything except the greasy crust. I've never had any issues with it damaging anything, so far... I am having trouble finding them again though. Target doesn't apparently carry them any more. Or my favorite size of Gladware either.