Today I’m sharing an easy Homemade Bread Recipe! Today’s post includes lots of tips, pictures, and a how-to video. I’ve also included plenty of substitutions so you don’t have to make any additional trips to the grocery store. This is the perfect soft and fluffy recipe for new and experienced bakers alike. Makes one loaf, no bread machine and no mixer required!
Every home baker should know how to make a soft, fluffy loaf of homemade bread. Especially during times like this when you can’t always guarantee that you’ll be able to find one in the grocery store.
Today I’m sharing a very simple bread recipe. It uses only a handful of ingredients (and I’ve included lots of possible substitutions below), can be made with no mixer or bread machine, and yields the softest, best-tasting bread of your life. This recipe is one that will be appreciated by novice bakers and professional bread makers alike. It can be eaten by itself, covered with butter, or used as sandwich bread (my mom’s recently been using it to make paninis!). You won’t want to go back to store-bought.
If yeast recipes intimidate you, this is actually the perfect recipe to start with. It’s simple and uses basic bread making techniques. If you’re not a novice baker and have been following the blog for a while, well so far we’ve tackled bagels, soft pretzels, and homemade donuts, I think we can handle a simple loaf of bread.
Ingredients and Substitutions
The ingredients needed for today’s bread recipe are very basic: yeast, flour, salt, sugar, butter, water, and milk. I’ve specified my preferences for ingredients that I prefer for best results in the recipe, but I completely understand that right now you may not have exactly the ingredients I’ve called for in your pantry. To help with that, I tested this homemade bread recipe with several substitutions:
- Flour. I recommend bread flour. All-purpose (plain) flour will work, but the bread is a bit less sturdy and is fluffier with all-purpose. Bread flour is more ideal for a sturdier, chewier bread, so if you plan to use this for sandwiches bread flour is your best bet. You can also substitute a bit of the flour (about 1- 1 ½ cups/125-190g) for wheat flour to make wheat bread, but I don’t recommend a 100% substitution. I do not recommend using self-rising flour, as the bread will likely rise too much and will not turn out properly.
- Yeast. This bread recipe will work with active dry yeast or with instant yeast. No changes are required if you use one or the other. Craving bread but don’t have yeast at home? Try my biscuit recipe instead.
- Milk. Whole milk is my preferences for the softest, most tender bread. However, 2% milk or skim milk will work in a pinch. If you don’t have any milk on hand, you may substitute the milk for additional water.
- Butter. Butter is my preference for the best flavor, but if you don’t happen to have any you can substitute oil. Olive oil, vegetable oil, canola oil… just about any cooking oil will work.
- Sugar. If you don’t happen to have sugar on hand you can substitute an equal amount of honey. You may need to use a bit more flour if you make this substitution.
Hopefully these substitutions are helpful!
How to Make Homemade Bread
- Proof your yeast. Mix it with a mixture of warm water and milk (heat between 105-115F; too hot will kill the yeast and too cool the yeast won’t activate) and a pinch of sugar. Wait 5 minutes for it to get foamy.
- Add remaining ingredients and stir well until the dough reaches the proper consistency (a word on that below).
- Place in an oiled bowl, cover, let rise until doubled in size (see images above).
- Deflate and form into an 8×12 rectangle. Roll into a log from the shorter end and pinch the seam. Tuck the ends under and place, seam-side down into a greased 9×5″ bread pan. Let rise until doubled in size (see images below).
- Bake until golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped! Allow to cool before slicing!
While the easiest way to make this bread recipe is with a stand mixer (and I’ve included notes in the recipe on how to do so), it can also be made just with a large bowl and a spoon (just like my pizza dough). In the video I made it without my mixer, a bit of elbow grease and some manual kneading is required to make it this way.
Getting the Right Consistency
You’ll notice that in this bread recipe I don’t list a precise amount of flour. I indicate 4-5 cups. That’s quite a range and you would never find such vague guidelines on any of my recipes that don’t use yeast!
When you’re baking homemade bread (or other yeast recipes), though, the amount of flour will almost always vary. Rather than using a specified amount of flour and calling it a day, you need to judge based on the consistency of your dough. You’re looking for the dough to cling together and form a ball. It should not stick to your hands but should be slightly tacky to the touch. You may need less flour than I do, or you may need more.
For a visual guide on how your bread dough should look, be sure to check out the video below the bread recipe.
How to Store
Store homemade bread tightly wrapped or in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. This bread may also be frozen. Let it cool after baking and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and then in foil and freeze.
If you are interested in making the dough in advance, here is a guide I found on how to freeze homemade bread dough.
This bread recipe is great served alongside baked ziti, stuffed shells, or lasagna soup! Enjoy!
More Bread Recipes to Try:
Are you more of a visual learner? Check out my YouTube channel where I show you exactly how I make this recipe step-by-step in my own kitchen.
Homemade Bread
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast¹ 1 packet
- 1 ¼ cups (300 ml) water
- ¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk²
- 2 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 Tablespoons butter softened and cut into 4 pieces
- 4 - 5 cups (500-625 g) bread flour or all-purpose (plain) flour³
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Combine milk and water and heat in the microwave (or on the stovetop) until it reaches a temperature between 105-115F (40-46C). Make sure to stir the liquid before measuring the temperature to make sure it is heated evenly.1 ¼ cups (300 ml) water, ¼ cup (60 ml) whole milk²
- Pour warm milk/water mixture into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Add yeast and 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar and stir to combine. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes, until yeast is foamy (if yeast does not foam there is something wrong with it, it is likely dead. You will have to throw this out and start over).2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast¹, 2 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- Once yeast is foamy, add remaining 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, salt, butter, and 2 cups (250g) of your flour mixture. Stir well until completely combined (the butter may not be completely combined at this point but as you add more flour it should mix into the dough completely).2 teaspoons salt, 2 Tablespoons butter, 4 - 5 cups (500-625 g) bread flour or all-purpose (plain) flour³
- Gradually add additional flour, stirring well after each addition (if you are using a stand mixer, stir on low-speed with a dough hook attachment), until dough clings together and forms a ball that pulls away from the side of the bowl. Dough should be slightly tacky to the touch but should not be sticky.
- Transfer to a clean surface and knead for about 5-10 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic (or continue to stir with mixer on low-speed with dough hook until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes).
- Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turn dough to coat the surface lightly with oil, cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 1-2 hours).
- Once dough has doubled, transfer to a clean, lightly floured surface and use your hands to deflate the dough. Use lightly floured hands or a lightly floured rolling pin to form into an 8x12” rectangle. Starting with one 8” end, roll dough tightly into a log. Pinch the seam to seal the log and tuck the ends of the dough under to form a loaf (see my video below the recipe for a visual).
- Transfer to a lightly greased (I use shortening) 9x5” bread pan. If desired, use a serrated knife to score the bread lengthwise across the top. Cover with a clean towel and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size and loaf has risen about .5-1” above the edge of the loaf pan. While dough is rising, preheat your oven to 400F (200C).
- Once dough has risen and oven is preheated, oncover loaf and transfer to 400F (200C) oven and bake for 25 minutes or until loaf is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped,
- Immediately invert onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool a bit before slicing and serving.
Notes
Storing:
Wrap tightly or store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for 2-3 days. I do not recommend keeping in the refrigerator as it will dry out the bread and make it stale. Bread may be frozen, allow to cool and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and foil and freeze for up to a month.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Netta
I made this today and made my house smell like heaven! It came out wonky but that didn’t mess with the taste!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Netta! I wonder why it came out funny looking? Is your oven heating evenly, or maybe it was just placed in the pan a little funky? At least it still tasted good. 🙂
Joseph Catoir
great and easy. Will adding corn starch to this recipe work like in the biscuit recipe ?
Sam
Hi Jospeh! I think you could add cornstarch here but there’s really no need. 🙂
Jen
It took me ages to find this recipe again, because I was looking for the wrong thing: the last time I made it, I cut the dough in half, making a small loaf and cinnamon rolls–so I was looking for a cinnamon roll recipe! Both loaf and rolls were delicious, and my (full-sized) batch of cinnamon rolls is proofing as we speak 🙂
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jen! You can always print the recipe or save it as a bookmark so you never lose it. 🙂
Rob Ruffin
Bread was fantastic. Made for a meeting, everyone loved it. Thanks for all your recipes.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that it was such a hit, Rob! Thanks for trying my recipe. 🙂
Sandhhya Hariharan
I have tried your bread recipe. Oh wow. Now I can proudly say I can make the best bread in town, thank you, thank you, thank you so much. I tried pizza base and I added garlic powder and simply loved them. So I added the garlic and basil to the bread recipe as well. I can’t believe that I can too make yummy soft delicious bread all by myself, you are amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this fabulous recipe.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that the recipe turned out perfectly for you and you enjoyed it, Sandhhya. Thank you for commenting. 🙂
jamie
We did it! We finally did it! Wow! We’ve reached a major milestone in our lives! Here I am almost 40 and finally “know how” to make bread!!! So we have been too intimidated to try it in the past, and we’ve tried various things with very little success over the years, usually getting hard bread that is not very good and certainly not suitable for anything you want a loaf of bread for. Well, we never thought we’d ever be able to make a loaf of bread, I’ll be honest. We had contented ourselves with your other recipes. To date, we’ve made the garlic knots probably a dozen times or more, and the banana bread a handful of times, the garlic cheese drop biscuits nearly a dozen times, the regular biscuits 2-3 times, the scone recipe once, and a few others, including a few dessert things. As I’ve commented before, this pattern emerged: we, who consider ourselves to be abysmal at baking, suddenly found ourselves succeeding EVERY TIME! What!??? So at last we concluded it’s your recipes! So finally we decided to be brave and try the loaf of bread. We were shocked to discover it was as easy as the garlic knots! Wow! And it was SOOOOO good!!!!! So our plan was to eat it with our leftover veggie soup. But after dipping it just once, we were like, um, no, this is too good to dunk! You dunk bread that’s sub-par, dried out, hard. Instead, we ate soup, and we ate bread, separately. The loaf was half gone at the end of our late lunch, leaving no room in our bellies for dinner. We are elated, truly elated, to know we can make bread now!!! This is really going to change our lives! I am now starting to have aspirations of one day getting good enough at this and seasoned enough that I could eventually make sourdough bread. If you haven’t seen the Michael Pollan series (and the Samin Nosrat series) on Netflix, definitely check both of them out. They’re both 4 parts, they’re both wonderful for anyone who loves food. But Michael Pollan talks about (and I’ve heard before) how bread is probably better for you if you use sourdough rather than yeast, so one day, I aspire. It felt so far off, this idea. But now I feel like even though it’s not immediately within reach, it’s possible. I really cannot explain to you how completely out of reach I always believed baking to be. I really thought I was just bad at it. So this is so super exciting. I will be even more stoked if I don’t have to figure out the sourdough thing myself, because sugar-spun-run-Sam figures it out (there’s SO much to read and think about and wade through, it’s overwhelming!) and makes it easy for us! But hey, I’m just grateful for being able to make bread. I mean, you know, it’s so good, you pretty much don’t ever want to buy bread again, because it’s never this good from the store! And I have to say again how pleasantly surprised I was that it wasn’t hard. It was actually so easy. It looks like a lot more ingredients and steps and that made us intimidated, but once we did it, we were like, this is JUST like making the garlic knots, except we roll it instead of knotting it! Your website just keeps making us happy every time we visit. Seriously. Thank you so much for your awesome recipes!!!
Sam
Thank you so much, Jamie! This comment put a big smile on my face. I really appreciate you taking the time to write it all out. I am so glad you have enjoyed everything so much! It truly does feel like quite the accomplishment when you are able to make your own from scratch food. I have not seen those series on netflix, but I will certainly check them out if I find myself looking for a good tv show (There’s so many things to do all the time!!) I hope you will continue baking and enjoying all of the recipes on the blog and can’t wait to hear from you in the future. 🙂
jamie
they’re great options for when you’re breastfeeding baby and baby falls asleep in your arms & you can’t move! that’s how we watched both of these! they’re each just 4 episodes, so, not a big commitment 😉
Sam
I know how that goes! 🙂
George
My attempts at the recipes of others failed dismally, my pile of rocks were growing after 4 attempts the only way l could get my teeth into it them was after frying “ Ye olde English fried bread”
After Googling a pizza base recipe l found a yeast recipe that actually worked, yours, l was nearly ready ready to use that to attempt to make a loaf when l saw your bread. All the other recipes I tried were vague on the temperature of the yeast, blood heat or not too hot not too cold they would say but you put a figure on it and got out a thermometer, that worked for me and I got perfect bread, the coiling of the doe as you would with a suit rolley polley pudding was another great idea that worked. Also tried your biscuits ,was low on butter so l unused the information from the bread recipe to use oil, 6 Tablespoons of olive oil they didn’t rise much but they were quite edible
Thank you, power to your website.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, George! 🙂
Wendy
This is a new family favorite! I make it once a week.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys it so much, Wendy! 🙂
Liz
This has got to be the best bread recipe I have ever made!! It makes such a huge loaf and it’s just the two of us and my husband has a problem with frozen bread, so I cut the recipe in half and put it in a smaller loaf pan and it was just as delicious and rose very well. I’m always afraid to divide yeast recipes but this worked great. I also experimented one time and after I rolled it out, spread some melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, then rolled it up, and again, I’ve spoiled my husband. It was the best cinnamon bread, no more store bought!! He’s lucky I like to bake :).
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Liz! I love a good cinnamon bread. 🙂
Andrea Pereira
Followed the recipe to the letter and the bread turned out absolutely AWESOME!!
I’m so happy, the result was an absolutely delicious, soft and fluffy loaf of bread. Don’t need no store bought bread no more 🙂
Thanks Sam for this simple and amazing recipe <3
Sam
Homemade is always better if you ask me! I’m glad you enjoyed the bread. 🙂
Kay
I have failed at bread for years, until now! Thank you. This recipe is easy to follow and baked a perfect loaf every time. I’ve made this 6 times and it’s perfect every time.
I could only find instant yeast on my last shopping trip. Should I still let the bread rise twice?
Sam
Hi Kay! You would still want to let it rise twice, but you wouldn’t need to proof the yeast if using instant yeast. 🙂
Susancars
Thank you for taking the time to make videos along with your recipes!
Just made my second loaf of this bread and it is delicious and easy!
Sam
I am so glad you have enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Neisha
This was my first attempt at homemade bread and I have to say this recipe is a winner! I used instant yeast and was able to get 2 loaves using 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pans. I will definitely be making this again.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so happy that you enjoyed it, Neisha! Thank you for commenting. 🙂
Morgan
Ever since quarantine started I’ve been baking bread like crazy (just like everyone else in the world, lol) and this is my favorite recipe so far. So simple and delicious! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that this has been your favorite bread recipe that you have tried, Morgan! Thank you so much for commenting, I appreciate your feedback. 🙂
Jeannie
Sam, how would I sub honey for sugar?
Sam
Hi Jeannie! I would still use a pinch of sugar with the yeast or leave it out. For the 2 Tablespoons, just do an even 1:1 substitution and stir it in once the yeast has become foamy. You may need a little bit more flour. Enjoy! 🙂