I have a cherry hand-made bowl that was made from a tree destroyed in a hurricane (the name of the 'cane is engraved into the base of the bowl). It is a bread-rising bowl and it gets used a lot. It won't hold as much as a 10" ceramic bowl, but I love the feel, color and history of a hand-made wooden bowl.

Look around. You'll find what you want!

I have a cherry hand-made bowl that was made from a tree destroyed in a hurricane (the name of the 'cane is engraved into the base of the bowl). It is a bread-rising bowl and it gets used a lot. It won't hold as much as a 10" ceramic bowl, but I love the feel, color and history of a hand-made wooden bowl.

Look around. You'll find what you want!

bennington pottery makes some amazing big bowls and they are sturdy as all getout. they have a website.

I still love my Bunzlauer bread bowl, though they're hard to find. It's 13" in diameter, though there's a bit of a flange at the top so the interior is more like 11"-12". It's 6" high. I've looked under "XL mixing bowl" but can't find good dimensions for the result. There's one on eBay that looks like it just might be the right size, though it's a different shape.

What I don't like about my pretty ordinary ceramic mixing bowls is that it seems possible to scratch them. My mother uses a standard stainless bowl.

The Mason Cash bowl is very plain, but I bet it would look good in your kitchen!

I'm not sure about the shape, but this white one looks pretty.

The old thread doesn't come up in the search so I linked it here.

I use a vintage white milk glass bowl for bread. The yellow ware bowl holds onions, but I have the same concerns about using it for food. It's packed away now the laminate sill is gone and we are getting granite Monday.

Thanks so much, everyone...I hadn't gotten any email saying I had responses, so I didn't you were all here waiting for me. ;-)

I haven't checked Bennington yet (I'd forgotten about them, so thanks!), but all the great looking ones in the links you've so graciously found for me, are, unfortunately, too small. My bowl that's 'ok-but-I-could-use-bigger' is 13" in diameter by 6" tall. The Mason Cash is 14" by 6 1/2", so would give me a smidge more room. I know stainless would be more practical, and I actually have some giant stainless bowls, but bread dough and the stainless just don't seem to go together! ;-) So, I'm definitely heading into the form over function arena on this subject! I just want both...and maybe a reason for a pretty new bowl...

Over on the cooking forum, grainlady, who knows a LOT about baking bread, recommends a dough rising bucket. I'm pretty new to baking bread and have been thinking about getting one. IIRC, she mentioned that you can use any large plastic bucket or you can buy one specifically meant for dough. I've linked to the King Arthur one below.

As I said, I'm new to the bread baking game so I know very little but if you want more info, c'mon over to Cooking and ask for grainlady's advice. She's really good!

Here is a link that might be useful: KA dough rising bucket

I use 5qt icecream buckets with snap on lids. I have had them for a lot of years but they work great and they can be washed in the dishwasher. I spray the bucket very lightly with PAM and then place the dough in to rise. This works especially well for my wild yeast doughs as they have to be retarded in the fridge and you can stack the buckets when you have several batches.

I used them though for years before that for regular straight dough recipes. Here is a pic. One other advantage, not beauty LOL, is that the snap on lid prevents any drying out of the dough. Here is an example of 3 batches. I mix my breads in HUGE stainless bowls...not sure why you have a problem with the stainless but maybe I can help , I hope so. Anyway after I do the stretch and folds I place them in the buckets and then turn them out to do more s and f if need be and then place in buckets to retard. Way more than you probably wanted to know :)

I've had lots of conversations with Grainlady over the past few years. :-) She is an amazing source of information.

I think part of the problem I have with the stainless bowls is the ability to cover the bowl and the possibility of drying out the dough more...They're quite wide and comparatively shallow.

Daki, that is a GREAT find! Thank you! Do you think 'Heritage' is the brand name?

The first I really knew (or maybe paid attention) about using buckets for dough was because of the Bread in Five Minutes a Day people. I haven't gotten into the habit of doing things their way, since it's more of a one loaf at a time sort of thing, and maybe, because I don't have a good way to keep dough in the fridge for days. And I've always wanted to get into starters, so buckets would be good for those, too, apparently! (NOT too much info, Caroline...I love to hear it all.)

I'm a little stuck in the ambiance of it all...The hanging out in a cozy kitchen, making a big batch of bread, with it rising in the big ceramic bowl on the counter... My mom and grandmas just didn't use plastic buckets! ;-)

For bread I use my old trusty BIG 26-cup Tupperware bowls. (15" or 16" across?) Lids are airtight, they're not heavy and won't crack if I drop them with dough in them, and slide onto a fridge shelf for those overnight-retardation recipes. Not as classy as gorgeous pottery, I know, and they are probably out of production now, but they have been my loyal helpers for many years:

Here is a link that might be useful: Tupperware Big Bowl

I used to have one of those Tupperware bowls...Actually still might, but probably not the lid.

I guess one thing different here is that almost everything I do is started and made the same day, and is not refrigerated. I'm a little confused by containers that seal, because I've never done a recipe, even those that go overnight or for a few days in the fridge that say to seal the dough into the bowl...and what I do mounds up over the top of the bowl some so a sealed lid would interfere....? I know I probably need to learn some of those recipes that take days, but so far, I don't plan enough in advance to do that. When we're out of bread, we need it NOW. :-D

I need to find a simple chart for making, feeding, and using starters...I read the books, but I just get lost.

No mystery about the dough outgrowing the bowl or covered tub. Just divide your dough after you have mixed it up and place in covered buckets that will hold the dough when doubled. A lot of folks let their bread rise to more than 2x when making straight doughs, that is dough with reg. bought yeast to rise it. If you place the dough in the bucket and then measure and mark , on the straight side, where 2x is you will know when you are done and the dough will not get too large for the container. If your bread gets to 2x way too soon and is then going and and on rising it either is too warm or too much yeast ...most likely reasons.

As you said the problem with bowls is the attempt to cover it with something and nothing ever works well. A large plastic bag is the only other alternative and it works great...just not very attractive :)

For a starter of wild yeast it is really really easy. I will attach the link for the tutorial on The Fresh Loaf. I followed it a couple years ago and in 6 days had my starter and it has been perfect ever since. Also I have several formulas for breads with the wild yeast starter that I do in one day and they don't have to be retarded overnight at all. I would be glad to give them to you. Follow the tutorial and you will have a starter in no time at all. Please email and I would love to help get you going.

Oh the huge problem with the "5 minute a day" bread is the taste and reliance on large amounts of yeast for the dough to rise. It is OK if you want just bread but if you really want something with flavor then the least amount of yeast you can get away with is the best route to follow, at least that is the direction most bakers are taking. I was a hard sell at first but as I have gotten used to doing this it has become second nature and my breads just get better and better. Also wild yeast bread never gets stale...not that we ever have it around that long anyway LOL but that is a big selling point also. Here is a pick of what I made last night...YEP baked in my grandmother's turkey roaster...this is a 2# loaf !

Here is a link that might be useful: Wild yeast starter tutorial...

Yum! That looks amazing. Do you use the starters to do things like hamburger buns and such, or just for crusty breads?
I will look at the tutorial when I get the chance to sit and really pay attention...Thank you.

Am I missing something? I've always used a birdseye tea towel dampened with hot water to cover the bowl. It works on both the big bowl and the wide shallow stainless. The shape of the stainless bowl is great for softer doughs, btw. They have a chance to rise without teetering under their own weight.

I don't dampen mine with hot water, but usually do use a slightly damp cotton or linen towel to cover my rising dough. But I don't have one large enough to cover the stainless bowls...Have to use 2 and overlap. So, duh...the answer could be to make a larger towel? ;-)

That's not as fun as a new vessel, Plllog! And I thought you were here to support me in my habit. lol But it'd be easier on the wallet.

Found one! It's simple, but nice looking.

Stoneware, 16", $50, at Heinsohn's Country Store. Scroll down, but also notice the huge crocks along the way. They might be great for hardy breads.

For the few times I can convince hubby that home made bread is edible, or the many times a year that I convince myself that cinnamon buns aren't fattening, I use the insert from a crock pot. Mind you it's just the bowl, the heater went berserk and burned chili in 2 hrs, so I threw out the element/base, but the bowl, complete with lid, works wonderfully for raising bread. I don't know how many litres ours was/is, but I can raise enough dough for 3 dozen cinnamon buns in it.. and they aren't delicately sized.

I'd check around for a used up crock pot crock!

Happy baking!

Thanks, Pllog! That Heinsohn's bowl looks like it must be the same as the ones Lehmann's has. I sure wish I could find out the manufacturer. I emailed Lehmann's, but don't know if they'll answer.

Smart idea, Countrycottageklutz. I'm still distracted though by this sentence, though: the few times I can convince hubby that home made bread is edible
Really?! He's not a fan? We hardly ever buy bread, because my family thinks homemade is the only decent kind...Unless it's sourdough, or from a bakery, so it's similar to homemade. I've never met someone who doesn't really like homemade bread, so now I'll appreciate more that my dh does. :-)

Lehman's, to their credit, did email me back, but won't tell me who makes the bowls.

hey rhome you can make any shape or bread you want with the sourdough. You can substitute it for the yeast in any recipe you are currently using. What you do is you have your wild yeast....it is growing and you feed it ....1/2 flour and 1/2 water...so if you give it 2 TBSP water and 2 TBSP flour. When you want to make a sourdough recipe out of your regular yeast recipe you simply subtract part of your flour and water to = the amount of starter you are going to use to rise the bread.

Ex: you are going to use 1 cup of starter to rise your recipe. OK you take out 1/2 c water and 1/2 c flour from the original recipe and put the cup of starter into the recipe...no yeast...and you are done. It is easy. You will of course have a bread that takes longer than it would have to rise...hours instead of 1 hour but the flavor and texture of the bread are worth it.

It is better to start with simple sourdough formulas and make them till you are used to the way it works and the feel of the dough. MInd you you don't "knead" the dough....you do the stretch and fold that I had shown on the "food porn" thread. We can talk all about this in Seattle ...only a few more days !! c

Just a quick FYI if it makes any difference. I live in Ohio and get to Kidron--where Lehmann's is-- a couple of times a year. Lehmann's is this HUGE hardware type store that caters to the Amish in the area. I was really surprised to find them online. They have lots of neat "old-fashioned" kitchen items that I remember my grandma using.

I'm a little lost, C, but you can help me find myself next week! I emailed you earlier about our lunch.

Misstheatre you are fortunate! I have drooled over their merchandise several different times, but it'd sure be nice to shop in the store...to see and touch to help make decisions, and not pay shipping!

Rhome, Ikea has several sizes of glass and stainless cookware lids that work perfectly for covering large mixing bowls. The lid keeps the dough moist and it is easy to check on progress through the clear glass. I have two huge mixing bowls. One is oxo, rubber coated outside and stainless inside. I also took CF advise and started using a dough bucket. But rather than a KA bucket, I found a 2 gal. Rubbermaid pitcher works well. It has a lid, graduated markings and it's easy to see through the clear-ish container.

Not beautiful, but quite functional.

Another good tip, Cotehele. Thank you. Haven't seen you here in awhile. How is your oven doing for you these days?

Oh. It does look similar. Did you see the 3 gallon and 5 gallon crocks on the same page? And the flowered (though smaller) bowls? The other site says theirs are made in Texas, and Heinsohn's is in Texas, so I was thinking they were close to the source, if not the source. You could call their 800 number and see what info they have.

Plllog, They are similar or the same...but cheaper on the Texas site! :-) I did see those crocks and the other bowls and the batter pitchers and...and...I WANT IT ALL! ;-) Just wish it came in other colors, since probably everyone here knows, I'm just not a blue fan. But, oh well, they're very cool, big, ceramic mixing bowls, which trumps my disfavor of blue.

I've been so loopy. Here's what I didn't seem to write. See, I figure if they have those online they might have more. Like if you called them and asked for green or some other better color, they might have one since they're a real store and close to the source.

LOL@rhome.. yes.. the english hubby has had the nerve to prefer a can of soup, store bought rolls or bread, and to top it all off had the audacity to announce that the first ripe tomato off our plant this summer .. drum roll..... "was so good I thought it was one of the ones I bought last week".. suffice to say.. he won't be having another if I have to call in the Salvation Army to come pick them all!

No.. he's not a fan. Apparently I should be glad, as it's less work for me! I'd love to prepare the hundreds of yummy foods I grew up making, baking, and tasting! I do get the opportunity to bake for hubbys work friends, and they're more than happy with the offerings! Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies once the weather cools off.. should be.. November at this rate!

Rhome, I think these bowls are made at Marshall Pottery in Marshall, Texas.

When I was a kid we made a trip there every summer. It looks like the company is now owned by an Italian company. If you contact Marshall Pottery they would probably tell you whether the bowls are made there. They have a retail store.

Here is a link that might be useful: Marshall Pottery

I did the same thing as you did... found a crack in my McCoy Pottery dough rising bowl and tossed it after imagining bacteria thriving in there. Looked for years for another and finally found one I like made by Roseville Pottery: 12" diam, 7" tall. Love it. But have to confess after my remodel was complete I treated myself to the largest KA stand mixer made for home use. Now I do the initial flour addition in the mixer then take it to the right consistency by hand, knead it, then return the dough to the mixer bowl to rise.

Nevertheless, if you are looking for a nice deep bowl, this is on ebay until tomorrow Item 300453570058

Here is a link that might be useful: McCoy bowl on ebay

Thanks for the Ebay link, Cross Stitch. That's a pretty one.

I get what you were saying now, Plllog.

Thanks, Mcraney!! Bowls those big aren't in the catalog they show, but everything looks in the same style...and ALL and ONLY blue. So maybe that's just what they do. Really helpful that you solved the mystery! What a cool place that would be to visit.

COuntrycottageklutz, that's amazing! Fresh tomatoes...Fresh baked bread...? I've always heard the English have a completely different taste in food. Good that he has coworkers to appreciate your efforts! And I guess that means you can enjoy all the fresh garden tomatoes you want! :-D

My favorite dough bowl is a 6-qt vintage yellow pyrex -- you could likely get one at any flea market. I cover it with saran and rubber band that to keep the plastic wrap in place. Has worked forever. Do like trailrunner's pots with lids, though. Very handy.

When I've spent time in bakeries both in France and Italy they used plastic tubs -- the square ones. My only qualm about plastic tubs or bags is not knowing the material. Like baby bottles.

Wouldn't worry about cracks in bowls since baking will kill whatever might be lurking there.

I think I know the kind of bowl you mean, Rococogurl. Fleamarkets aren't too big around here, but I do keep my eyes open at any store with used items.

Related, but a little OT and maybe of interest to fellow vesselarians: I don't think there were any bowls, but when we were cleaning out my in-laws' house I found a set of vintage Pyrex refrigerator dishes (like the ones in the link...DD took my camera, so I can't take a pic of mine). Also found a set of smallish mixing bowls with straight sides...white with big red polka dots. I think if I'd had these a couple years ago, my whole kitchen would be decorated around them!! ;-) Oh, here's a picture of what the bowls look like:
http://www.trocadero.com/stores/cheshire/items/997592/item997592.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Pyrex 'refrigerator dish' set like I have

I have one of those bowls! My mother had two sets and gave me her extra biggest bowl. A couple broke. I was looking in the junk shops for a full set a few years ago and they were going for over $75. I couldn't do it. I'll have my mother's some day and a cousin gave me some nice red melamine bowls which are good for a lot of the same things. My favorite glass mixing bowl, however, is the one from the old pre-Hobart (KA) Mixmaster. It's a fabulous bowl! Too small for bread, though.

Would you consider handthrown? Would you trust the glaze? Because there might be an artists' coop or maybe the university art department, where you might find someone who can make a bowl to exactly match your kitchen.

My current bread bowl is hand-thrown, so I have nothing against that at all. I ordered it from a potter at the farmer's market. But the size was at the top end of his ability, and one I had him make after that (Ordered "as large as you can make it") was smaller. If my love-to-throw-things-on-the-wheel daughter was home, I'd have her try one for me with all the porcelain clay she has stored in our outdoor storage room.

Christmas is coming.... Maybe big towel and old steel bowl now, and big hints about what to do with porcelain clay during vacation?

Of course, bigger is a lot harder to have not crack.

If that doesn't work, I have a friend who knows an excellent potter here. I can get the info for you. I don't know how big her bowls go, but I have an immensely huge Seder plate she did. Johnliu's wife is also a potter, but they're also in California.

I think that may be too tall of an order for the week she'll be home to visit... Her largest bowls to date are half that size.

Thanks for the offer to get me info from the potter you know of! I should probably ask the ceramics instructor we know. He's made me bowls before, but as gifts, not at my request...

Go for it!! Most artists and artisans I know are pleased to be asked to do something special and interesting if they're offered a fair price or not too much fussing.

Love the red dot ones. And I bought an updated pyrex glass refrigerator set a year or so ago to do exactly what those Pyrex do. I love those. I got off plastics for a while (though it's hard to stay off).

Have you considered a large pudding bowl? I had a while one I adored for bread. They have a sort of V-ish shape. Very handy but like the others, not easy to find.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vintage Pyrex bowls

I've studied all the ebay vintage bowl offerings. ;-)

I didn't even know the set I have was called 'refrigerator dishes' until I was trying to find a picture to show here. I thought of them as baking dishes and didn't think about storing leftovers, etc. I have them on a shelf to look at, cuz I thought they were kinda cool. Maybe I should put them where I can reach and use them!

And I have to admit that I've never heard of a pudding bowl. I'm learning all sorts of things...

Here is pudding bowl shape, which I loved for bread. I had a plain white one -- about 6-8 quarts at one point.

You got me started thinking that I could use a nice big bread bowl -- 4.5 and 5.8 qt sizes on the link below but so spendy. I'm sure there are some Chinese-made for less and I could check in Zabars when I go next week. I got a 8-quart glass bowl which holds a double recipe of my lemon tiramisu (which will feed 24) there that looks $$$$ for $7. You want glass? (they ship)

Here is a link that might be useful: breadtopia bowls

Can you tell I'm avoiding chores/work today?

This rising basin from King Arthur is reasonable and looks like what trailrunner was talking about -- of course not with the romance of ceramic or stoneware (or the weight).

Here is a link that might be useful: Dough Rising Bucket

Love those stripey ones! Almost a cross between a mixing bowl and a pot for plants. I think I saw some like that at Crate and Barrel.

I have a 5 qt glass one with horizontal ribs that I use for smaller batches. I was hoping for something with a little more character in a big one, because it'll have to sit out on my counter and will do double duty as my fruit bowl.

OH MY GOODNESS. I finally checked out that blog, and I think I could LIVE there. So much to see, to learn, to try, and then more links to follow! That starter tutorial is the closest thing I've seen to a 'starters for dummies chart' that I've been hoping for. While printing it out, I got distracted by a discussion on bagels, so I had to print the recipe and instructions for those, too. I am, for the moment, ignoring all the other discussions I could check out. I need more paper! And to accomplish something more today.

Plus, if one is going to spend one's life baking things like bread and bagels, one definitely shouldn't spend too much time spreading one's behind at the computer! A 'catch 22.'

There's exercise in walking the supermarket aisles and lifting groceries in and out of the basket, let's not forget.

Yes, the summer pudding and baked alaska cookies are bookmarked. Very high quality for a commercial blog, must say.

There's exercise in walking the supermarket aisles and lifting groceries in and out of the basket, let's not forget.

Yes, the summer pudding and baked alaska cookies are bookmarked. Very high quality for a commercial blog, must say.

lifting groceries in and out of the basket

That's not what kids are for? ;)

If you have them. My situation is DIY.

Well, then you can stay on the computer longer with less negative impact...all that exercise you're getting! LOL