No, Michelle, those cool expensive linen-lined proofing baskets are not necessary to great bread; but...

they sure are more fun than a plastic dough bowl. :(

/tricia

Nope, not necessary at all. I've been baking bread for 50 years now, I bake all my bread, sandwich buns, rolls, everything and I've never had a bread proofing basket. My dough proofs inside the bread machine (which I never use for baking, only kneading the dough), or on the counter in a bowl or a bucket or whatever I have on hand.

It's all good and somehow the bread doesn't know it's supposed to have a fancier domicile and rises anyway. (grin) If you want one, though, there's no reason you SHOULDN'T have one.

Annie

A plastic ice cream bucket works perfectly! I use the rectangular 4-litre ones, with the lid on.

I was recently given a round blue enamelled pot (similar to my roasting pans). It's Perfect for my dough to rise in, too. Straight sided containers are best.

Never even heard of one!

I use a food grade, 16 cup , plastic container for all my breads , works like a charm.

Thanks for the feedback...they are cool but expensive so if I can do without, that's better. Making my barm sponge starter tomorrow.

I am sure I will have more questions!

Have never used one either. We just use the KA plastic bucket we received as a gift from a friend. Works fine. Sometimes we put it on the radiator and sometimes it goes into a warm water bath. NancyLouise

Mine proofs in the mixing bowl...unless I want to refrigerate it then it goes into a straight sided tall plastic thing with a lid.

Are you asking about the bowl that you use for final proofing of a round artisan loaf after it has been formed, not the initial rise? It sometimes is called a brotform. I've put the link for one at King Arthur below.

Most of the answers seem to be about initial rise and it doesn't matter what that happens in. The brotform or similar basket can be helpful with a very wet dough that might spread too much if left unsupported. Sometimes it is also made so that it puts a pattern on the loaf like the rings the one below leaves.

I don't have one. I've made round loaves with wet doughs by putting them in a regular basket lined with a floured tea towel. Or without a form at all by being very careful with cloak formation.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/round-brotform

If cloudswift is correct in that you want to shape a very wet dough, that can also be done with a couche, a piece of canvas folded to hold the dough in shape or even my cheap and low tech version of parchment paper, folded to shape and held (if necessary) by jars and cans from the pantry. A Banneton is basically a bowl, you can line it with linen tea towels or parchment too.

As cloudswift mentioned, brotforms and similar baskets often are used to make a specific pattern on loaves, something I care little or nothing about, so I don't bother.

I looked for pictures of my cobbled up rising system and couldn't find them, I must have deleted them off photobucket. I do know Ann T uses a couche sometimes and she may have a tutorial.

At any rate, if you are going to make that specific kind of bread often, you may want to spring for a specific single purpose utensil to use for that. I do find it hard to successfully remove the dough from such devices without knocking down my dough,though, probably because I'm just completely clumsy.

No matter what you are doing, there's always a gadget or utensil availabe for any purpose and they are usually expensive and unwieldly to store, for some reason. (sigh) It keeps me from buying many kitchen toys, which is probably a good thing and makes me use my inventive nature to come up with a solution, LOL.\

So I stick with my original answer which is no, you don't NEED one, but if you want one, I think you should go for it. We won't tell anyone else you don't need it!

Annie

I've been following your bread making adventures Michelle...
And am remembering watching many videos online when I first started baking the No Knead Bread. One fellow in particular uses a nice cloche...and sells it on his site correct? Lots of info for sure.

I use a way that works for me dealing with a wetter dough:
I have two shallow bowls which are the size of the loaves I use for the final rise that I've lined with parchment paper
(like Annie). When they are ready to go into the preheated dutch ovens they get slashed on top then I'll lift the parchment into the pot and carefully push any creased paper back away from the loaves with a knife.
One of my pots is way too big for a small loaf...the shallow bowls that I use are a fired ceramic which can go directly into the dutch oven, so I slip on an oven mitt and carefully set the risen loaf (bowl and all)into the heated pot, lid on and bake until done.
My loaves now look more like bakery style than ever :)

I use the cane banneton (brotform) for some loaves but it's certainly not out of necessity. The only benefit is the nice pattern they create on the baked loaf. I've also used linen lined - between the 2 options I prefer the floured cane.

I must be the only foodie in this neighborhood who owns one. We have a delicious and much loved independently owned cooking store downtown where I always stop for a quick search of the sales rack. That magic day they were on sale for $2.00! Purchased two and use them often. Gives a very professional finish to the loaves.

$2.00 for a nice banneton Nandina? Holy kamolie! I would have bought every single one they had available...a lifetime of foodie friendly gifts! Lucky you :)

I bake a lot of sourdough. A banneton is necessary if you want to bake a professional looking sourdough loaf that has a nice high rise to it.

Before using one, most of my sourdough loaves tasted delicious and had amazing crust and texture but came out mishapen and flat. Now they look like I buy them at a bakery.

The basket holds the loaf in a desired shape as it rises causing it to rise upward.

BTW. I do a single rise in the basket or on a baguette pan for about 12 to 15 hours and get great loaves. That is only for recipes using only a starter. No commercial yeast.