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!
HI, Brian again, I mistakenly forgot to include a 5 star rating !!
Hi, thank you so much for sharing your talent with us ! I grew up watching my mother bake and cook on a daily basis and learned so much from her. Mom is now 82 and this yr she made 25 loaves of panettone ( a special Italian bread) and gave it as gifts ! She inspired me to start baking again so i looked and found your wonderful site !! Im a little confused about how the last few loaves of white bread have turned out. The first 6 loaves i made couldnt have been nicer even if mom had made it haha. However, the last few split apart during the first rise and also during the second. The dough isn’t rising as well and the loaves are not full and fluffy upon completion. I asked mom and she smiled and said, “that happens now and then but it’ll still taste good.” I was wondering what “the brown eyed baker”would say about this. Thank you so much for your time ! Blessings, Brian
I made this bread today, it turned out great, rose very well
I will make it again, often
Excellent recipes that are easy to follow. More importantly, you are rewarded by delicious food!
Thank you for your bread recipes. I made the Italian bread and the white bread recipes which baked beautifully and were truly delicious. I am inspired by your recipes.
Regards , Sarah.
Made the white bread last week, it was very good. Substituted 2 cups whole wheat flour for part of the 9 cups, it is amazing. Husband spoiled his dinner….
This is my go to bread, it is so good. My stand mixer died on me while making the last batch, it was 23 years old so I can’t be mad, but I will be getting a new one . I’m getting to old for kneading by hand 🤷🏻♀️
I made this bread yesterday and it was yummy and hubby approved
I thought it was great! Did 1/2 a batch because I am afraid the full batch won’t fit in my mixer. Used 3 tablespoons of sugar and topped with grass fed salted butter per someone’s suggestion. My family loved it. Making a second loaf today.
I made one loaf by cutting the recipe in half. I let it fully rise both times, but it still came out quite dense. I forgot to put the rack low in the oven, and the crust came out very hard by the time it reached the proper internal temp. I’m a bit disappointed, but may try it again based on all the positive reviews.
After a demanding workday, geometry dash lite is an excellent game to kill time if you’d like to come over and play with me. You have a pretty great website. It’s amazing how much detail you have on your website.
The Brown Eyed Baker never disappoints. I look to you for great recipes.
Today I made four laves of your White Bread.
It was an easy to follow recipe.
The finished loaves are golden and chewy on outside and have abeautifully moist interior. The crumb is fine and the taste is so yummy!
Thank you from one baker to another!
Definitely a good crumb texture, but some how the bottom and sides are hard and crunchy even after cooling off for a few hours. What could be the issue? I prepared the pans lightly with butter and flour.
Makes huge loaves! Tastes great!
I’ve made this twice, following the recipe exactly as specified but I end up having to use way more flour than it calls for, at least an extra 2 cups, otherwise the dough is more like applesauce. Even with the extra flour, it’s very sticky and I have to grease my hands to get it out of the mixer. The bread has turned out okay, but very dense and yeasty. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong as I see a lot of comments that it comes out great.
Roxanne, this happens to me every time I make bread, I dont know if its where I live (Florida) or what, but I also used an additional cup and a half, making it 10 and a half cups of flour! Never ever used that much flour for bread, but we’ll see what happens!
I was always very intimidated by bread making. This recipe gave me confidence! I even started my sourdough journey. So delicious. Easy! Makes plenty
Excellent bread….I make this over and over again…..thanks so much for this wonderful recipe!!!!! My husband thanks you as well…lol
Great bread. Being Scottish the only change I made was reducing the sugar by half. Americans like their bread to sweet for me.
Sean, we also like english as a language. It is too not to. But good on you for trying to make a dig, but burying yourself homie. 🤫
Best white bread ever- makes awesome French toast- crunchy crust and light inside.
I love the reciep .
Making again as I type. Super beginner friendly. Light and fluffy, great for toast.
My whole family loved it. This will be a to go to recipe, anytime and any day. Thank you for sharing.
First time making this recipe and this bread is so good! One came out bigger than the other, so I think we’ll eat that one and freeze the other. Thank you!
Loved this recipe and the instructions! I made half (so one loaf) I wish there was a video here about how to fold/prepare it for the loaf pan but I watched another video about how to do that. It came out delicious and was enormous! It had some holes inside so I think I should have probably patted it down after the first rise. It looked just like store-bought bread and in fact was more hearty and delicious than store-bought bread! Slicing it was a little tricky….
I made this bread for the first time yesterday and it is wonderful. It’s big and fluffy and tastes great!
Perfect bread and so easy! Great for sandwiches, toast, or alone with jam. The instructions were easy to follow and resulted in delicious, dense, white bread that is nothing like store-bought! This will be an every-two days must for our two-person household, but can’t wait to make it for visiting family too!
My only suggestion is to use grass-fed butter in and on top of the loaves when making — really adds a next-level smell and taste (Kerry Gold or Costco are two favorites).
I’ve baked this recipe at least 5 times and the bread turns out amazing (in fact, I’m baking it again now)… Best tasting sandwiches ever!!! Thank you for publishing this online, BrownEyedBaker!
Was so excited to find this recipe again. For me, the full recipe is too much for my mixer, so I halve it and still get 2 loaves (my pans might be a bit small). We eat one immediately and freeze one. Hubby wants me to put herbs and cheese on the outside next time.
I love this bread recipe, have made it a few times. Does it work to make dinner rolls with this recipe?
I do not know these measurements,
stating (3/4 cup is not 820 ml)
I use cups not ml but I believe the 820ml is for all the water in that ingredient line not just the 3/4 cup. (3/4c+2 2/3c) the ml probably should have been listed as each cup measurement is for clarity.
I make this for my husband and I. Makes 2 huge loaves. One for freezing One for the week. Turns out perfect everything! This year for Thanksgiving I used the dough to make dinner rolls. My family loved them!