And in my experience with the no-knead breads, at least with the recipe I posted above, cutting into the loaf while it is warm is a big no-no (haha, I guess I am contradicting myself!). It makes the crust harder and the inside almost rubbery.
Do you have a stand mixer with dough hook or a food scale? I bake a ton and when I got those I could tell my stuff came out more consistently.
But if not, my tips are -
1. don't skimp on kneading! When you do it by hand its really easy to think "eh, this seems good enough" right around when...