Crusty bread should ideally have a soft interior and a thin crust that’s crunchy but not too hard. For a perfect crust, Paul Hollywood suggests creating a steam bath in the oven.

The chef advises adding this extra step to your crusty bread recipe on his website. To start, place a roasting tray at your oven’s bottom and set the temperature to about 425° F.

"When the oven reaches the right temperature and just as you put the bread in to bake, fill the tray with cold water," he says. About one cup of water should suffice.

The heating water will fill the oven with steam, which will keep the bread moist as it bakes and expands, delaying the hardening of the loaf and yielding a perfectly crunchy crust.