Potbrood
Vegetarian
A simple yeasted white loaf baked in a cast-iron pot over coals, with a thick crust and soft crumb. A braai favourite with butter and jam.
Potbrood is a South African bread, ready in about 2 hours 40 minutes and made with bread flour, dried yeast and sugar. It serves 8 and is rated intermediate to cook.
No licensed photograph of this dish yet.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 50 min
- Rest
- 1 h 30 min
- Total
- 2 h 40 min
- Serves
- 8
- Level
- Intermediate
- Calories
- 261
Method
Step 1
Mix the flour, yeast, sugar (opens in a new tab) and salt, add the water and melted butter (opens in a new tab) and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
- 15 min
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels Step 2
Cover and leave in a warm place until doubled.
- 60 min
Step 3
Knock back, shape into a round and place in a well-greased cast-iron pot. Cover and leave to rise again.
Step 4
Bake with the lid on over a few coals with more coals on the lid, turning the pot now and then, or in an oven (opens in a new tab) at 200 °C, until risen, browned and hollow-sounding when tapped.
- 50 min
- 200°C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
Step 5
Turn out and cool slightly before slicing.
- 5 min
About this dish
- Origin
- South Africa · Commonly attributedA tradition of outdoor and farm cooking also common in Namibia.Also popular in NamibiaMore food from South Africa
- Dish
- Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Breads & flatbreads
- Cooking method
- Oven-baked
- Taste
- savoury, buttery, mild
- Diet
- Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredientsWith the listed swaps: Vegan, Plant-based, Ovo-vegetarian, Dairy-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · DASH-style - Good for
- Make-ahead · Child-friendly
- Cook more with
- Bread flour · Dried yeast · Sugar · Butter
- Techniques
- Baking · Kneading · Fermentation
Allergens
- Contains, can be adapted: Milkfrom butter
- Contains: Wheatfrom bread flour
- Contains: Glutenfrom bread flour
Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.
Nutrition
261 kcal per serving
Calculated1 serving ≈ 110 g · recipe makes 8
Where the energy comes from
- Protein 12%
- Carbohydrate 73%
- Fat 14%
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 g* |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 261 kcal | 238 kcal |
| Protein | 7.9 g | 7.2 g |
| Carbohydrate | 47.3 g | 43 g |
| Net carbohydrate | 45.5 g | 41.5 g |
| Sugars | 1.8 g | 1.6 g |
| Added sugars | 1.6 g | 1.4 g |
| Fibre | 1.7 g | 1.6 g |
| Fat | 4.1 g | 3.8 g |
| Saturated fat | 2.1 g | 1.9 g |
| Trans fat | — | — |
| Cholesterol | 8 mg | 7 mg |
| Sodium | 464 mg | 422 mg |
| Salt equivalent | 1.2 g | 1.1 g |
Vitamins & minerals per serving
- Potassium
- 72 mg
- Calcium
- 15 mg
- Iron
- 2.8 mg
- Magnesium
- 17 mg
- Vitamin A (RAE)
- 26 µg
- Vitamin C
- 0 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0 µg
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg
- Folate (DFE)
- 201 µg
How these numbers were made
- Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
- *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
- “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
- Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.
Good to know
Tips
- Too many coals underneath burns the base; most of the heat should come from the lid.
Serve with
- Serve warm with butter, apricot jam and grated cheese at a braai.
Storage
- Keeps 2 days wrapped; freezes well.
Reheating
- Warm wrapped in foil on the edge of the fire or in the oven.
Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated
Recipe DNA
How this dish is built
Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.
What the dish is built around
Main ingredient
- Bread flour500 g
- Butter, melted, plus extra for greasing30 g
Baker’s notes
Customise in Bread & BakeryTimeline and readiness cues
Mix and knead · about 20 min
Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).
First rise (bulk) · about 1 h
About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.
Final proof · about 30 min
Poke test: the dent springs back slowly and only partly. Springs back fast = needs longer; doesn't spring back = over-proofed, bake now.
Bake · about 50 min at 200 °C
Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).
Cool · about 5 min
Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.
- Start to finish: about 2 h 45 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.
The dough
| Ingredient | Role | Weight | Baker’s % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread flour | Flour | 500 g | 100% |
| Water | Water | 320 g | 64% |
| Butter | Fat | 30 g | 6% |
| Sugar | Sugar | 13 g | 2.5% |
| Salt | Salt | 9 g | 1.8% |
| Dried yeast | Yeast | 7 g | 1.4% |
- Total flour
- 500 g
- Hydration
- 64%
- With milk, eggs…
- 64%
- Wholegrain
- 0%
Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.
- Medium dough (55–65%) — soft and easy to knead; sandwich loaves and rolls.
- Salt 1.8% — normal for bread.
If something goes wrong
Dense, heavy loaf
Likely causes
- Under-kneaded (weak gluten)
- Under-proofed
- Old or dead yeast/starter
- Too much wholegrain flour without extra water
What to do
- Knead to the windowpane stage
- Proof by the poke test, not the clock
- Test yeast in warm water with sugar; feed the starter and use it at its peak
- Add 5–10% more water for wholegrain flours and give them a rest
Gummy or wet crumb
Likely causes
- Under-baked
- Sliced while hot
- Hydration too high for the flour
What to do
- Bake to 93–96 °C inside (cakes: clean skewer)
- Cool completely on a rack before slicing
- Reduce water by 3–5% or use a stronger flour
Spreads flat / no oven spring
Likely causes
- Over-proofed
- Weak shaping (no surface tension)
- Oven not hot enough
- Too much water for the flour
What to do
- Shorten the proof; bake when the poke springs back slowly
- Shape tightly so the skin is taut
- Preheat fully (30+ minutes; with a stone or Dutch oven, 45)
- Lower hydration or use bread flour
Collapsed or sunken middle
Likely causes
- Oven door opened too early
- Too much leavening or sugar
- Under-baked centre
- Over-proofed yeast dough
What to do
- Don't open the oven for the first two-thirds of baking
- Measure leaveners exactly with spoons, levelled
- Test the centre before removing
- Proof less
Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Crust too hard or thick
Likely causes
- Baked too long at too low a temperature
- No steam at the start
What to do
- Bake hotter for a shorter time
- Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
- Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust
Big holes or tunnels
Likely causes
- Overmixed batter (cakes, muffins)
- Air trapped while shaping bread
- Uneven proof
What to do
- Mix quick breads only until no dry flour shows
- Degas gently and shape tightly
- Proof covered in an even, warm place
Dough didn't rise
Likely causes
- Dead yeast (expired or killed by hot liquid)
- Kitchen too cold
- Salt in direct contact with fresh yeast
- Starter not active
What to do
- Liquid should be lukewarm (no hotter than 40 °C)
- Proof somewhere warm (an oven with just the light on)
- Mix the salt into the flour, not onto the yeast
- Feed the starter until it doubles in 4–8 hours
Over-proofed (sour smell, collapses when scored)
Likely causes
- Too warm
- Too much yeast
- Left too long
What to do
- Knock back, reshape and proof again briefly (yeast doughs)
- Use less yeast or a cooler proof
- Set a timer and check early with the poke test
Dry or crumbly
Likely causes
- Too much flour (scooped, not weighed)
- Over-baked
- Too little fat or sugar
What to do
- Weigh flour, or spoon it into the cup and level
- Check 5 minutes early
- Don't cut fat or sugar by more than a quarter without another moisture source
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