Ok, are we still talking about nerdy things like accuracy, precision and consistency? Kind of! The last tool I would recommend for getting started with bread baking is a simple cast iron dutch oven. The issue with most home ovens (even new ones!) are that they struggle to deliver strong, consistent heat in all directions, and they don’t seal well so they can’t contain steam very well. Unfortunately these are exactly the things we need to make great bread! One way to get around this is to bake your loaf in a preheated dutch oven. Cast iron has excellent heat retention so it creates a perfect tiny oven for you loaf, and the lid seals tightly and retains the moisture and steam inside your loaf during the initial bake. This is a pretty affordable hack to make great bread, and a dutch oven is an all around all purpose kitchen tool. This Lodge model is the one I use, it’s nice a roomy for making large loaves, the handle is easy to grab (surprisingly important when things are really hot) and while enamel is very pretty, this cast iron is a great work horse.
