In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Add the water and stir until all the ingredients are well incorporated (I love my Danish Dough Whisk for this!). The dough should be a little wet and sticky. Add extra water 1 Tbsp at a time if needed. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough sit for 12-18 hours on the counter at room temperature.
Lightly flour a work surface. Using a spatula or your hands, scrape dough out of bowl onto the work surface and sprinkle more flour on top. Using floured hands, lightly shape dough by moving it in a circular motion until round in shape and not sticky. *You can gently tuck edges under or fold it over on itself a few times, but I try to handle it as little as possible. Remember, no-knead.
Spray your bread bowl generously with cooking spray. Place dough back into bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise for about 2 hours or until dough has doubled. (I have shortened this when short on time, and it works out just fine. This bread is VERY forgiving!)
After about 1 ½ hours, preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Place your cast-iron Dutch Oven in the oven as it preheats. When dough is fully risen, carefully remove your pot from the oven. Remove plastic wrap from bowl, then flip the bowl over allowing bread to land in pot bottom-side up. Shake pot once or twice if dough looks unevenly distributed (or don’t, it will still turn out just fine!).
Cover and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and continuing baking for 10 minutes more, until the crust is deep brown. The internal temperature of bread should be about 200 degrees.
Remove the pot from the oven and immediately transfer bread to a cooking rack. Let it cool completely before slicing. (Slicing too soon will leave your bread gummy, so resist the urge)
Notes
Tip 1: This bread is super forgiving. Add too much water during mixing? Throw a little more flour in! Short on time, use the minimum rise time. Need to feed the baby or take a shower during the second shorter rise? Let it go for 2-3 hours. Tip 2: Looking to add a little pizzazz or flavor? Sprinkle Everything Bagel Seasoning in the dough during mixing or on top just before baking... or both! Roast a head of garlic and mix the cloves into the dough. Add a little sharp cheddar and chopped jalapeno. Swap 3 cups of flour with whole wheat flour. There are lots of variations … just google it!