Brod & Taylor Ultralight Baking Shell for Sourdough Bread (Batard) – No Preheating Needed for Crispy Crust and Even Baking

The Brod & Taylor Ultralight Baking Shell has been a game-changer for my steam oven baking. It is impressively lightweight, making it easy to insert and remove even when hot, yet it feels very durable and solid. The flat, smooth surface ensures even heat distribution, which gives consistent browning and a nice crisp crust on bread, pizza, and pastries. I also appreciate that the edges are slightly raised, helping to keep dough or batter in place without spilling. Cleanup is simple since nothing sticks, and the non-reactive surface maintains its quality over time. The shell is slightly larger than I expected, so storage requires a bit of planning, but the quality, performance, and versatility make it an excellent tool for any serious home baker.

I have two of these batard shaped shells, and one boule. I use these frequently on a large stone in the oven, that fits two shells side by side (also purchased on Amazon), and they are lightweight, and do not require preheating. They seal in the steam so that the loaves have the appropriate amount for proper baking, and I highly recommend them.

Perfect. I love it. So light and get the job done. Great rise!!!

This would be great if it was just two inches wider, as I find that it’s difficult to get my full sized (1 kilo) loaves underneath without them expanding to touch the sides of the dome. That being said, it does work well and is much easier to manage than my enamel coated cast iron Dutch ovens.

Easy, light weight and allows me to bake 2 small loaves on a metal sheet. It has proved useful for my baking needs.

This item is very lightweight and easy to use. It does not require preheating. I thought it would be easier to manage than an heavy dutch oven, and while that is true I am still trying to fully decide if it bakes my sourdough as well as my Dutch oven. It’s a minimal difference I’m sure but to use this you do need a baking steel or pizza stone to put the bread on. I keep one in my oven so that’s not a problem for me. The baking shell can also serve as a lid over your grilled items so it is multi purposed.

I bought the batard and discovered my 840g batards were rising into the ceiling of the shell. In 2 pictures you can see the darker patches on top if my batards. You can also see how the top is flattened in the crumb shots of two of them. Now, could I have made a 650g batard and gotten away with it? Sure, but I don’t want to. I want to make my recipes. I bought the Boule shell and baked a horribly overproofed 840g dough. The thing was absolutely massive. As you can see in the pictures, the top did not rise into the ceiling of the shell and from the crumb photo there is no longer a flat spot. While they are both advertised as 5.5” tall, the Batard shell comes to a point in the middle and is overall shorter than 5.5”. The Boule shell is a gentle curve where more of its height is 5.5”. No need to buy the Batard shell or both shells, buy the Boule shell and be done with it. It works great and much easier than a heavy Challenger pan or dealing with an upside down hotel pan (shoutout Modernist Bread).

I am really really happy with this. Baked a loaf of caraway rye and it came out just right. Really expensive on my budget but I already had the Brod & Taylor Baking Steel, and together they contributed to a really well baked loaf with a mildly crunchy top and a golden bottom. Glad I purchased this. Big enough to bake both a large round loaf or two smaller oblong loaves.

I’m new to sourdough baking and after a ton of research I came across this shell after seeing it on TikTok and thought what a great and light alternative to a super heavy Dutch oven. I’ve baked a few times with a Dutch oven and was getting annoyed at how heavy it was, it was also not yielding me the desired results in terms of bread structure etc. I used this just once and I was blown away by how light it is and how easy it is to use!! Highly recommend.

Worked as advertised.

I bought this alongside the baking steel works brilliantly for my sourdough no heavy lifting, light to hold great handle excellent quality, my bread turns out great

It's better than a dutch oven,it's safer because of the weight difference much lighter,works great with the brod & Taylor steel aswell