Clay pot cooking

 I have and do bake in clay pots. 1 is a very large round flower pot I use on a pizza stone, the other is a La Cloche, instructions with La Cloche say NOTHING about soaking the pot. I treat both the same way.......

 I know and soak my  Romertopf for roasting /cooking dinner, but don't do that much now as I prefer to convect roast......    

 qahtan

One of the earliest ways to bake bread was underneath a curved cover or cooking pot placed over an open hearth. This is such a cooking bell made from hard-fired clay that nests on a lipped baking stone 10" in diameter. Place your bread dough on the pie-shaped base, cover it with the bell, then put it in a preheated oven. A 2-pound loaf fits under the 8 1/2" high dome. The lid traps moisture escaping from the bread to create the steam needed to produce a light, brittle crust. During the last few minutes, remove the cover to lightly brown the crust.

I have a cloche, the oblong one for "french" bread, as sold by KAF...

The book The Bread Builders, which is a great book about breads baked in masonry ovens, claims that you can get top results by using a cloche (they say almost as good as a wood fired masonry oven) in this fashion:  you preheat top and bottom in the oven, put loaf in heated base, cover with heated lid, no extra measures to add steam are required as it will trap the steam from the bread.  So no soaking, but pre-heating to high temperatures important.  The top is removed accordingly later in the baking period to brown off the top to even out with the bottom as required.

I would say definitely do as you asked, proof in a separate container, then add to preheated cloche and preheated oven when ready to bake.

 But if you are going to do as they say heat the top and bottom of the clay baker , then put in your dough which is should be ready to bake or why heat your baker, actually putting your dough onto the hot baker is going to be a major problem, your dough will deflate with your handling it, plus you will will most likely give yourself a nasty burn. 

 Agree the steam from the bread dough is enough to give a good crust.

 I put my dough to rise, at it's leasure in/on the base, leave it on the counter, when  risen and ready to bake, place lid over dough, place in hot oven etc.....qahtan

I would be hesitant about putting dough in a pre-heated Romertopf having read that they MAY be prone to crack. Most, if not all of their recipes call for starting in a cold oven.

Heres a cheap workable cloche, to put your dough in to rise, cover and place in

preheated oven, qahtan

1) qahtan, that is a very cool cloche, and not $50 like the others can be :)

QUOTE "actually putting your dough onto the hot baker is going to be a major problem, your dough will deflate with your handling it, plus you will will most likely give yourself a nasty burn"

not true if done properly -- they recommend tipping it out of your banneton or proofing basket right into the hot cloche (sprinkle some meal into the bottom of the cloche first).  Shouldn't be much more deflating in a loaf that's not over-proofed than flipping it out onto your peel.  You slash quickly if desired, then put the hot top on and bake.  As for the "nasty burn," there is a danger for sure, I use serious bakers oven gloves that go up to my elbow, highly recommended even if not using a cloche with how high we heat our ovens.

The downside I worry most is to crack the cloche with a shock from hot to cold.  I think that's the most dangerous with liquids, but I don't think this method is risk free.  Though The Bread Builders describes the results as "breathtaking."  They also say you can use the cloche at room temperature flipping a proofed loaf into it, or proofing in the cloche, then cover and put in a 500 degree oven.

Whatever floats your boat.

  As you say what ever floats your boat,,,,,

 This is how I do it, and it works for me,,,,,,,

 I will be interested to see how your idea works,, :-)))) qahtan

If I understand my instructions correctly I have to soak my pot in cold water before each use.  Is this true?  Seems like a ton of work.  

My best sourdough breads have come from using the Romertoph. I preheat top and bottom at 500 degrees and transfer bread that was rising on parchment in another vessel. Transfer is easy. I leave the top on for 15-20 min then uncover with great oven spring and a lovely crumb. Found my Romertoph at an estate sale for 10 bucks..

with my,new to me, Romertoph 109 found at Goodwill, is that we have a water softener and RO water in the house.  So inside no easy way to soak the pot.  So I have to go outside with a 5 gal bucket and fill it with the hose used to water plants and lug it back in to soak the pot for 10 minutes.  Makes good bread but not better than any other DO type pot in my book.

I'm wondering too...  I just set both ceramic halves in the sink and pour water over them until they are both holding water.  Give them a little top off after a few minutes and then turn them over to drip after 10 minutes.    Butter and lay in the dough to proof.  Then place the whole thing in the cold oven and turn on the heat, fan at 250°C  until it reaches temp, then turn down to 220°C  and ev 200°C to finish the bake.

The theory is that the wet ceramic heats more evenly (no hot spots) and gives off steam inside the chamber for a good amount of time.  Especially works well in a gas oven.  It is good to let the forms dry out well before putting them away.  I leave them on a rack for a day or two.