Bread baking equipment: choose by role and fit

For a round loaf with a light cover

A separate aluminum shell covers the loaf on a 14-inch square steel.

For a smaller oval loaf with a separate cover

An oval aluminum shell pairs with a square steel that stays in the oven.

For round and oval loaves with room for a heavy lid

An oblong cast-iron pan has a shallow base and separately handled lid.

For a round loaf and a multipurpose vessel

The lid also works as a handled pan, so one set fills more than one cooking role.

For a low ceramic base and a separate hot dome

A self-contained HR ceramic cloche for round loaves: a low platter for loading and a 4.3 lb domed lid to lift hot.

For loading the loaf onto a shallow hot base

A shallow cast-iron skillet you bake on and a 3.2 qt deep pot that drops over the loaf as the lid.

For a round loaf in an enameled pot that needs no seasoning

A 5.5 qt enameled cast-iron pot, 10.2 in across inside, rated with its knob to 500°F.

For a smaller round loaf in a heavy enameled pot

A 4 qt, 24 cm enameled cast-iron cocotte for a smaller round loaf, rated to 500°F.

For a 5.5 qt cast-iron pot that is lighter to lift

Lodge's thin-cast 5.5 qt pot: 11.29 lb with its lid, about a pound lighter than the 5 qt Double Dutch Oven.

For a bigger round loaf in an enameled pot

A 6 qt enameled cast-iron pot for a larger round loaf, rated to 500°F.

For a long covered loaf or a sandwich loaf

A long ceramic baker with a domed lid for sandwich loaves and long rustic loaves, 13.4 in long outside.

For three covered baguettes at once

A ceramic base with three ribbed channels and a vented lid that bakes three baguettes from a 3-cup flour recipe.

For a round loaf in a light ceramic pot

A 24 cm Flame ceramic pot and domed lid for a round loaf, 5.16 lb in all.

For a round loaf under a stoneware dome

An unglazed stoneware dish and bell-shaped dome: the loaf sits on a 10.5 in base and the dome comes off to finish.

For a 16 × 14-inch baking footprint

A quarter-inch carbon-steel surface for an oven with room for its full footprint.

For wide ovens and bigger bakes

A 20 × 15-inch steel provides a larger surface to arrange your shaped loaves.

For a square surface and a heavier steel

A 16-inch square, three-eighths-inch steel with a substantial cold handling weight.

For a 14-inch square bread surface

The Regular steel is 0.1 inch thick and weighs 5.6 lb.

For a warm proof, and folds flat to store

A heat-only appliance folds down between bakes; check bowl fit inside.

For heating and cooling dough containers

A countertop appliance controls temperature in both directions and supports remote settings.

For temperature control around a starter jar

A small heating-and-cooling chamber for a jar, rather than a full dough bowl.

For supporting a round loaf

A round cane basket and removable liner support the shaped dough before baking.

For an oval loaf, with the maker's dough range

An oval brotform and liner that King Arthur rates for up to 3 lb of dough.

For a sandwich loaf in a dedicated pan

A corrugated coated loaf pan sold by King Arthur and manufactured by USA Pan.

For covered bulk-dough storage

A stackable container with a lid; it does not heat or cool the dough.

For a standard 8.5 × 4.5 in sandwich loaf

The standard 8.5 × 4.5 in corrugated loaf pan, which USA Pan sells as its 1 lb size.

For a 9 × 5 in sandwich loaf

A 9 × 5 in corrugated loaf pan, which USA Pan sells as its 1.25 lb size.

For a square-sided pain de mie

A 13 × 4 × 4 in lidded pan for square sandwich loaves; bake it open for a domed top.

For a smaller square sandwich loaf

A 9 × 4 × 4 in lidded pan for a smaller square loaf; bake it open for a domed top.

For two round loaves of 850 g to 1 kg

Two ridged 8.5 in round bannetons molded from sugarcane pulp and bamboo, rated by Brod & Taylor for 850 g to 1 kg loaves.

For two oval loaves of 700 to 850 g

Two ridged 10 × 5 in oval bannetons molded from sugarcane pulp and bamboo, rated by Brod & Taylor for 700 to 850 g loaves.

For a large round loaf

A hand-woven 10 in round cane brotform that leaves the classic floured spiral on a large round loaf.

For a round loaf in a basket you can wash

A ridged 8 in round banneton made in the USA from a wood-fiber composite that goes in the dishwasher, rated by Breadtopia for 680 to 1,130 g of dough.

For an oval loaf in a basket you can wash

A ridged 10½ in oval banneton made in the USA from a wood-fiber composite that goes in the dishwasher, rated by Breadtopia for 680 to 1,130 g of dough.

For an extra-large round loaf

A hand-woven 11 in round cane brotform for a big round loaf, one size up from Frieling's 10 in.

For a small round loaf up to about 600 g

A handmade 8 in round banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for up to about 600 g of dough.

For a round loaf up to about 800 g

A handmade 9 in round banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for up to about 800 g of dough.

For a round loaf up to about 1 kg

A handmade 10 in round banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for up to about 1,000 g of dough.

For a small oval loaf of about 500 g

A handmade 8 in oval banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for about 500 g of dough.

For an oval loaf up to 800 g

A handmade 10 in oval banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for up to 800 g of dough.

For a long oval loaf of about 1 kg

A long 13.5 in oval banneton of coiled rattan with a linen liner, rated by Central Milling for just over 1 kg of dough.

For a standard 8.5 × 4.5 in sandwich loaf

A 1 lb, 8.5 × 4.5 × 2.75 in loaf pan of 24-gauge aluminized steel with a nonstick coating, sold by Central Milling and made by Choice.

For big batches, up to 8 kg

A low-profile scale with a tempered glass weighing surface and whole-gram display.

For batch weighing and percentage mode

An 8 kg scale with a separate platform and adjustable auto-off.

For seeing the display past a wide bowl

A pull-out display helps keep the reading visible under larger containers.

For a small, simple scale that reads in grams

A compact two-button scale that weighs up to 5 kg (11 lb) in 1 g steps.

For a slim scale that reads in grams and stores in a drawer

A slim white digital scale that weighs up to 11 lb in 1 g or 0.1 oz steps, with touch controls and two AAA batteries included.

For a quick spot reading

Being discontinued

A handheld folding-probe thermometer for a measurement at a specific moment.

For monitoring with a separate probe

An alarm thermometer keeps its meter outside the oven while a compatible probe measures inside.

For quick dough and loaf readings on a budget

A pocket instant-read thermometer: ±1°F from 14 to 208°F, readings in 2 to 3 seconds.

For the fastest, most exact spot readings

ThermoWorks' successor to the Thermapen ONE: readings in 0.4 s, ±0.5°F from −4 to 248°F, magnets on the back.

For a marked container with a fitted lid

A low covered tub for mixing, folding and observing the whole batch.

For a starter or levain with room to rise

A clear 2 qt square tub with volume marks, low enough for a fridge shelf.

For one or two loaves of bulk dough

A clear 4 qt square tub with volume marks for watching bulk fermentation.

For two to three loaves of bulk dough

A clear 6 qt square tub with volume marks for a two- or three-loaf batch.

For a large batch of three or four loaves

A clear 8 qt square tub with volume marks for a large batch.

For one or two loaves of bulk dough

A clear, round 4 qt tub with a lid, sold by Central Milling for a large levain or preferment, a small batch of dough, or flour.

For two or three loaves, mixed and folded by hand

A clear, round 6 qt tub with a lid, sold by Central Milling for mixing small batches of dough by hand or keeping up to 10 lb of flour.

For dividing a batch on a work surface

A rigid stainless bench tool for portioning dough and clearing the board.

For straight scoring in a walnut holder

A straight blade holder for expansion cuts and shallow decoration.

For switching between straight and curved scoring

One blade can be held straight or curved; a protective case is included.

For a sliding transfer onto a steel or shallow base

An aluminum peel for an accessible flat baking surface.

For fine decorative scoring

A round walnut disc you hold between your fingers, so your hand is close to the blade; the blade tucks inside between bakes.

For getting every bit of dough out of the bowl

A 4 × 5 in bowl scraper of thin stainless steel wrapped in food-grade silicone: stiff enough to push dough, soft enough to follow the bowl.

For cutting and dividing dough on the bench

A stainless bench scraper with a solid wood handle, 6 × 4.5 in, made by Table Craft and sold by Central Milling.

For cutting and handling big pieces of dough

An 8 × 5 in food-safe plastic dough scraper, the larger of Central Milling's two, for cutting and handling big pieces of dough.

For lowering the loaf into a hot pot without burning your knuckles

A silicone sling with a 9 in round base and two 6.75 in arms for lowering the loaf into a hot Dutch oven, heat-resistant to 480°F.

For cutting and handling an everyday batch of dough

A 5.5 × 3.75 in food-safe plastic dough scraper, the smaller of Central Milling's two, for an everyday batch and average pieces of dough.

For scoring baguettes and country loaves with a guarded blade

A 12 g bakery lame from the French blade maker Mure & Peyrot, 141 mm long, with a guard at the base of the blade and a cap for storage.

For everyday scoring with blades that are cheap to replace

A lame with a hand-crafted wood handle and a stainless steel stick for the blade, sold with five standard razor blades and a leather cover.

For proofing baguettes side by side in pleats

A 24 × 59.5 in linen proofing cloth for baguettes: pleated between the loaves, it holds 2 to 8 of them while they proof.

For moving baguettes from the couche to the oven

A 23 × 4 in beech board with a tapered edge, for flipping a proofed baguette off the couche and sliding it onto your steel or stone.

For carrying the loaf into a hot pot or onto a steel without touching either

Flat, unbleached, silicone-coated parchment sheets, 12 1/8 × 16 3/8 in, rated to 500°F for one use and 425°F if you reuse them.

For crusty loaves up to about 9 in across

A 10 in stamped wavy-edge knife with a wide blade and a textured grip.

For a light knife that goes in the dishwasher

A 10.2 in wavy-edge stainless knife with a rounded tip and a non-slip handle, 4.8 oz.

For the longest blade across a big boule

A 270 mm (10.6 in) serrated slicer with a fine-toothed molybdenum vanadium steel blade.

For an everyday bread knife that fits a drawer

A serrated bread knife made by Thermohauser and sold by Central Milling, 15 in long overall with a plastic handle, short enough for a standard drawer.

For two loaves on the counter

A 16 L steel bread box whose lid rolls back inside, so it opens without extra space above.

For one loaf and a lid you slice on

A ceramic bread box with a wooden lid whose grooved underside is a slicing board that catches crumbs.

For a starter you can see and scrape out

A straight-sided 3/4 L glass jar with a glass lid; the wide mouth lets a spatula reach every corner.

For a larger starter in glass

A 1 L glass jar with a rounded tulip body and the same wide 3 7/8 in mouth and glass lid as the 743.

For a bigger starter or a levain you build for the bake

A clear, round 2 qt tub with a lid, sold by Central Milling for keeping a sourdough starter and building a levain, biga or poolish.

For milling flour for one or two loaves

A home stone mill with corundum-ceramic stones that mills about 100 g of wheat a minute.

For milling flour for several loaves a week

The faster Mockmill: a 600 W motor mills about 200 g of wheat a minute through the same stones.

For fresh whole grain flour from a mill that can stay on the counter

A countertop stone mill in a bamboo body with corundum stones and a 450 W motor, set by one knob from cracked grain to fine flour.

For large batches of stiff or wet dough

A Swedish mixer whose 7 L bowl turns under a fixed arm; Ankarsrum rates it for up to 5 kg of dough.

For bread and enriched dough in a familiar bowl-lift mixer

A bowl-lift stand mixer whose 5.5 qt stainless steel bowl locks at three points under the head; KitchenAid says it kneads over 7 lb of bread.

For big batches of bread dough on a light, compact base

A 500 W mixer with its motor under a 6.5 qt bowl, rated to knead up to 14 lb of dough, from one loaf to fourteen 1 lb loaves.

For a hands-off 2 lb loaf or a machine-kneaded dough

A two-blade bread machine that bakes a 2 lb rectangular loaf and has Dough and Sourdough Starter settings.

For lifting a hot pot or lid with your fingers free to grip

Five-finger oven gloves of Kevlar and Nomex, rated by Breadtopia to 500°F, made in the USA in a men's and a women's size.

For gripping a heavy cast iron pan by its handles

A pair of 13 in five-finger gloves of aramid fibre and cotton, with silicone added where a hot pan’s weight presses on the fingers; Challenger gives no temperature rating.

For a sure grip on a hot pot, with the forearm covered

A mitt with a textured silicone hand rated by King Arthur to 500°F and a cotton twill arm that reaches up the forearm.

For a 500°F pot, with a heat rating above the oven's

Five-finger gloves of heat- and flame-resistant aramid fibre with a silicone grip, rated by Joseph Enterprises to 540°F; two to a pack, each fitting either hand.