Description
A simple and foolproof homemade bread recipe perfect for beginner bakers. With just five basic ingredients, this recipe yields two golden, crusty loaves that are great for sandwiches, toasts, or warm with butter.
Ingredients
Scale
- 7 cups bread flour
- 3 cups water
- 2 tablespoons instant yeast (or 2 packets)
- 3 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons oil (vegetable, olive, or melted butter)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine bread flour, instant yeast, and salt. Stir until evenly mixed.
- Gradually add water while mixing with a spoon or hands until a shaggy dough forms.
- Add oil and mix until incorporated. Knead lightly for about 5 minutes until the dough begins to smooth out.
- Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1 to 1.5 hours or until doubled in size.
- Punch down the dough, divide into two equal portions, and shape into loaves.
- Place loaves into greased pans or on a lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise for 30–45 minutes until noticeably puffed.
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Bake for 35–40 minutes or until golden brown and hollow-sounding when tapped.
- Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack to maintain a crisp crust.
Notes
- If dough is too sticky, flour your hands instead of adding extra flour to the dough.
- Do not overproof the dough; once doubled in size, proceed to the next step.
- Hand-kneading works fine—no stand mixer required.
- Cover loaves loosely with foil if the crust browns too quickly during baking.
- For a softer crust, brush the top with melted butter immediately after baking.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/16 of loaf)
- Calories: 160
- Sugar: 1g
- Sodium: 290mg
- Fat: 2g
- Saturated Fat: 0.3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 0mg