My Favorite White Bread Recipe
This is a classic white bread recipe, and so easy! The loaves bake up incredibly tall, soft and fluffy… the perfect white bread!
Are you a bread fanatic? Isn’t there something fantastic about a great piece of bread? Whether you’re making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, grilled cheese, a big sandwich piled high with fixings, or simply slathering a piece with butter… I’ve always found it to be great comfort food.
While I’ve made quite a bit of homemade bread in the past, we’ve really cut back on carbs significantly, and have pretty much nixed sandwiches from our diet, so I haven’t been buying or making any for the last six months or so. However, Joseph would eat grilled cheese and some other things with bread (depending on the day – we’ve hit the picky toddler stage!), but once we found out about his allergies, anything store-bought was pretty much out of the question (why does bread need soybean oil?!). Luckily, he was cleared of his wheat allergy, but we’re avoiding soy, so homemade it was! I had a previous favorite white bread recipe, but had this recipe bookmarked for AGES, so I decided to finally try it. I’m so glad that I did because…
Best. Bread. Ever.
There are so many reasons you need to hurry up and make this bread immediately:
- It comes together incredibly quickly for a yeast recipe requiring two rises. In about 2 hours you’ll be smelling fresh bread wafting from your oven.
- These are the largest loaves of a simple white bread I’ve ever seen! I’ve made too many disappointing loaves of bread that have turned out short and squat, especially those made in a 9-inch pan (p.s. these are my very favorite loaf pans!). However, these are incredibly tall, full loaves – beauties!
- I was surprised at how incredibly light, fluffy and soft this bread was given that there isn’t any milk in the recipe, just water (thanks butter!). It’s honestly the perfect texture.
I was honestly blown away when I made it, my husband was as equally thrilled, and much to my delight, Joseph was a huge fan too! This makes phenomenal peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, awesome grilled cheese, and I have eaten way more than I should just slathered with butter.
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I should have known how good this would be since it came from someone’s grandma… those are always the BEST recipes!
I’ve made this three times now, and I love that it makes two loaves… I immediately slice and freeze one and leave the other one out for us to eat throughout the week.
The frozen slices reheat exceptionally well – just 20 seconds in the microwave is all they need.
You only need one great white bread recipe and this is it!
Grab that yeast and get baking!
Three years ago: Kentucky Derby Pie Cupcakes
Four years ago: Chile con Queso
Watch How to Make My Favorite White Bread Recipe!
My Favorite White Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 4½ teaspoons instant yeast, two 0.25-ounce packets
- ¾ cup + 2⅔ cups warm water, divided
- ¼ cup (52 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 3 tablespoons (43 g) unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature
- 9 to 10 cups (1200 g) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons (43 g) unsalted butter, melted, for brushing
Instructions
- In the bowl of a mixer, stir to dissolve the yeast in ¾ cup (180ml) of the warm water, and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the remaining 2⅔ cups (640ml) water, sugar, salt, room temperature butter, and 5 cups of the flour and stir to combine.
- Using a dough hook, mix on low speed and gradually add the remaining flour until the dough is soft and tacky, but not sticky (you may not need to use all of the flour). Continue to knead until a soft ball of dough forms and clears the sides of the bowl, about 7 to 10 minutes.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and turn it over so it is completely coated. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a draft-free place to rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean, lightly floured surface. Gently press it all over to remove any air pockets. Divide the dough in two and, working with one piece at a time, gently pat it into a 9x12-inch rectangle. Roll up the rectangle, starting on the short end, into a very tight cylinder. Pinch to seal the seams and the ends, tuck the ends of the roll until the bread, and place into greased 9-inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves loosely and place in a draft-free area until doubled in size, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Position an oven rack on the lowest setting and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Brush the loaves with some of the melted butter. Bake the loaves for 30 to 35 minutes, rotating halfway through, until golden brown (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 195 degrees F).
- Remove from the oven and immediately brush with more of the melted butter. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pans and cool completely before slicing. The bread can be stored in an airtight bread bag or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 4 days. It can also be frozen for up to 1 month.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
Been making this bread recipe for 2-3 yrs now. Grandkids love it. Great toast and butter with tea. Recently tasted store bought white bread…well….that ship has sailed forever lol.
I made this over the weekend and loved it! The bread had such nice rise and great flavor! I’ll definitely be making this again. Thanks for sharing the recipe! Question – I halved the recipe just to make one loaf. I have a regular sized Kitchenaid mixer (I think it’s 5 quarts). I’m wondering if a full batch fits in this size mixer? I don’t know if I’ve ever done a recipe with 10 cups of flour in it before.
It definitely will 😍
Do you have a recipe for Pullman white bread that comes out light and fluffy that your picture shows?
Hi! I’m not affiliated with the website in any way, but I have been experimenting with finding the perfect Pullman sandwich loaf. I have a 7×4” pan de mie pan and I’ve found that any recipe that makes around 600 grams of dough is about right for that pan. If you could find a weight that tends to work for your pan, it might help you scale other recipes! Maybe try looking around at other recipes written for a pan your size or other recipes you’ve tried, add up all the ingredients by weight, and scale this recipe to roughly match. Good luck!!
I just tried this. I put 1150 grams into a 4″ x 14″ pullman pan and it has turned out fine.
I think next time I will try just splitting the regular recipe into two equal halves because it left the regular loaf a wee bit light. (975 gams). at 1150 the pullman loaf rose a bit too much in relation to the time needed for the regular loaf.
One other item I noticed was the Pullman loaf reached 203 degrees about 5 min faster than the regular loaf ( trapped steam?) it is not a big deal – it just means the top has to come off the pan at about 23 minutes to get a brown crust.
I have to say after making a few different white breads, and making this one several times, THIS really is my favorite white bread! I’ve made it a few times in my Kitchenaid stand mixer, but after a 20 minute knead for a different recipe, I broke my mixer and made this recipe by hand because I don’t buy bread anymore and it turned out just as good (although my arms were super sore from kneading for 10 minutes!).
And here’s a little secret I learned from making other bread/rolls recipes… I put a half sheet pan of water in the oven while preheating and during baking and when it comes out of the oven, I spritz the loaves with a very fine mist of water before I cover the loaves with a damp kitchen towel until cool and I get THE BEST crust from doing this…now we fight over who gets to eat the end slices.
Not enough water. Calls too much flour
This is the first bread recipe I’ve made where I can honestly say the results are better than store bought! I’ve made these into buns, cinnamon buns, cheesy scrolls and the results are amazingly soft and delicious!
Please post the recipe for one loaf.
I am not the author, but the recipe clearly states it makes 2 loaves. You can simply divide the ingredients in half. Surely you didn’t rate this recipe poorly simply because you didn’t want 2 loaves?
Trust me… make the two…. the last time I made it, I made four loaves and they barely lasted 4 days… what with toast and grilled cheese sandwiches… the little bit that was left, I cubed to make croutons… It’s worth it!
Hello! This is my second white bread recipe I have tried and I am excited to see the results. Just wondering if I am the only one the dough goes all over the mixer (Kitchenaide) for? I actually thought my motor was going to burn out. I followed the recipe exactly, am I doing something wrong? I Used the dough hook.
Thanks!
Hi! Laura,
I start the recipe using the paddle attachment first and then as I add more flour, I switch to the dough hook.
I used all the flour called for and kneaded and kneaded the dough, but it’s never pulled away from the sides of the bowl. I’m afraid I misread the amount of water that’s needed. Is it 3/4 plus an additional 2 and 2/3 (which is what I used)? I’m wondering if the total I used should have been 2 2/3, with the 3/4 coming out of that amount? I found the water amount somewhat confusing.
Did you use 5 cups or 9 to 10 cups? I almost only used the 5 cups.
i had the same confusion. i used the 3/4 plus 2 2/3 (although halved both amounts b/c i just made one loaf) & also used all the flour (5 cups) & it came out fine.
just made this today…haven’t eaten it yet but i looks wonderful! question: one end of the loaf “overlapped” the pan – looked fine until it baked & then it sort of fell over the edge. over-proofed?
I tried this recipe and it is flawless, easy to make, and gives the results you said it would. I’m delighted with the results. I might leave it to prove even longer next time.
Can not wait to make this bread! It will have to be a special occasion, though, since I’m trying to cut my carbs, too!!!
Great easy bread recipe for one of my first times. Made with quality organic bakers flour. Family loved it :-)
I am making it for the second time we left 2 cups flour out and it worked even better than the last time thanks for the recipe
Very easy to do. Some proofing right now.
I would like to make one loaf though and concerned dividing 3/4 plus 2 2/3. I am getting 1 1/2 cups of the water for one loaf. Is that correct.
Not quite. I made this same error once. For one loaf, you’ll use about 3oz of water to activate the yeast, then an additional 1⅓ cups when you add the butter, sugar, etc. Hope that helps! I make this bread regularly and have accidentally gone short on the water for this reason. That was some STIFF dough, lol😅 I ended up having to add the missing water after the dough was partially mixed, which is a messy arm workout!
LOL I did that too the first time I made the bread! :D
Excellent. I split this into 3 loaves. Used only 1 tsp salt as my husband is on a low salt diet and unsalted butter. Made one loaf into cinnamon bread. My oven runs hot so 25 min at 395 degrees and it was perfect. Thank you so much!!
This recipe is perfection. I had no issues following along at all. Didn’t do weight measurements and just did cups as written in recipe. Best bread I’ve ever had. THANK YOU!
Yum! Can’t wait to try!
Also – we are in the same boat with you and food allergies and it’s hard. My understanding is that oils are so highly refined that they’re safe. For example – Even my anaphylactic peanut reacting daughter can have peanut oil. You might consider looking into this and talking to your allergist…
This is the the best bread ever. So easy to make and the dough is beautiful! Thank you so much.
I tried so many recipes and never succeeded, it always came out too dense. I followed the instructions exactly, with exact measurements using a kitchen scale and it came out flawlessly perfect. Will be using this recipe from here on out. Highly recommend!
Turned out great!
I don’t know what I did wrong… the dough never pulled from the sides. I’m sure I added double the flour and nothing! Was I just to impatient? Needed to mix longer? I finally just greased my hands and took it out to proof. Any help would be greatly appreciated
Jennifer, I’m no expert but I believe that part of problem could be that you added too much flour… try the recipe again and add any additional flour (start with about half and mix until a smooth “batter” forms) a cup or so at a time and mix until almost all incorporated then add a little more… I think I got to tacky but not sticky and that’s when I started counting my “kneading” time.
I printed the recipe for one loaf in metric measurements. The amount of water exceeds 4 1/2 cups! (404ml which is about 1 3/4 c PLUS 2 2/3 c !!!)
Am I missing something? Thanks.
Half of 3/4 cup water is equal to 6 tbsp, and half of 2 2/3 cup water is 1 1/3 cup! SoI did the 6 tbsps with the yeast to activate, and then I added the 1 1/3 cup. Good luck!
I often gets victimized by this recipe. Water calls for 800ml – and its way too much. Please check your measurements
Just wanted to let you know that 3/4 cups are only around 177ml, so the above instructions are slightly confusing. I think you mean the total amount of water?
Best bread recipe I have ever made, and I have made quite a few. So soft and moist. Not crumbly. Rises beautifully. Keeps 5-7 days on the table without getting stale, though usually gets eaten way before that. :) It is a flexible recipe as I have also used 50% whole wheat flour and it was still delicious!
Best white bread I’ve had. Not a very good cook, but this recipe was easy to follow. And if I can make it anyone can
I used the weight measurements. I loved it. It is our family favorite now.
OMG, I am amazed at how easy it was to make this recipe and how awesome it turned out and tastes! Thank you!!
Does anyone know what a serving is? Like how many grams? Or the calories in one standard slice?
These loaves turned out beautiful. They rose like no other recipe I’ve tried. For sure my favorite thus far
I have made bread for many years. This bread is definitely my go to recipe , I make three bread loafs though because they bread pans aren’t as overflowing. Freeze one keep one and give the other one away. It’s wonderful.