This homemade brioche bread recipe makes delicious buttery and tender bread. If you are a budding bread baker, perfecting a French brioche recipe is one of the best ways to broaden your bread-baking portfolio.

French brioche is a super enriched and buttery bread with rich flavor. It has a delicate and tender crumb and is not very sweet; you can use it for sweet and savory dishes. An enriched dough is one where fats and proteins are added, and brioche dough has a considerable amount of butter and eggs added to the dough.

Adding all this fat means the dough reacts differently to standard bread. The high butter content slows gluten development down, so the initial kneading process is trickier than regular bread. However, you can build the dough’s strength with patience and time.

You can make enriched bread without butter, like these challah buns. They use oil instead.

The development of brioche dough

Brioche develops over several stages, and the look and feel of the dough change throughout. The first stage makes a thick dough that uses all the ingredients except butter.

Add in the cubed butter in stage two, a bit at a time. Butter brings in fat and liquid. The dough will become slack and sticky with all this moisture and fat.

Once the butter has been added, it is time to develop the gluten in the dough. This is done by kneading the dough, preferably in a stand mixer, until it becomes glossy and strong, pulling away cleanly from the sides of the mixer.

This is a slow and steady process. The dough will seem sticky, but suddenly, it will come together and become glossy and strong.

Equipment

A stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment- A stand mixer makes this brioche recipe nice and easy. It is possible to knead by hand, but with such a large amount of butter and eggs in the dough, it takes a lot of arm muscle.
Two standard 8.5 x 4.5 inch (21x11cm) loaf pans are used.

Making brioche dough by hand

You can make this enriched French bread by hand, but you will need plenty of patience and elbow grease. All the butter in the dough makes the gluten development very slow.

A slap-and-fold method works well for a very sticky dough. The dough can be slapped down hard on the bench and folded over itself. Use quick motions to avoid it sticking too much on your hands.

Let’s see how it’s done!

Begin with mixing together your yeast, sugar and warm milk to let it activate.

Add in the eggs, flour and salt and mix it for 5 minutes to form a dough.

Add in the cubed butter a little at a time until it’s all incorporated. Then keep mixing.

For the best gluten development and brioche crumb, mix for at least 15-20 minutes.

To test for proper gluten formation, let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then grab a piece and stretch it out til it’s see-through without tearing.

Let the dough rise until doubled in size, then proof overnight in the fridge.

The next day, shape the cold dough and let it rise.

Brush the risen dough with egg wash.

Bake until deeply browned.

Storing

Fresh brioche can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. You can also freeze brioche bread wrapped tightly for up to 3 months. I like to pre-slice it before freezing so I can grab one or two slices as needed.

Uses for brioche

By day two, especially day three, the bread will firm up a bit. Use older brioche in recipes that add some extra moisture to the bread.

Here are 21 great ways to use brioche bread, including french toast, bread pudding, savory recipes, and more! You can also use this dough recipe to make brioche burger buns, brioche cinnamon rolls, and biscoff babka.

Authentic Brioche Bread Recipe

Elien Lewis

This brioche bread recipe makes a yellow, buttery and tender bread. This recipe makes 2 loaves

5 from 33 votes

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 30

Additional Time 12

Total Time 13

Course Bread

Cuisine French

Servings

Calories 463 kcal

Ingredients

125 g milk lukewarm(95-104°F / 35-40°C)
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast or active dried yeast
50 g granulated sugar
600 g all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoon salt
5 large eggs approx. 260g-270g excluding shell.
230 g unsalted butter room temperature, cubed

Egg wash

1 large egg
1 Tablespoon water

Instructions

In a stand mixer bowl fitted with a dough hook, add the milk and stir in the yeast and one tablespoon of sugar. Leave it to sit for 5-10 minutes until foamy. Add to it the remaining sugar, eggs, flour, and salt. Turn the mixer on low and combine until it forms a thick but slightly sticky dough. Mix this dough for around 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten.
Add in the butter, a cube or two at a time, ensuring each cube has been incorporated before the next addition. Turn the mixer on medium and keep it mixing until the sticky dough starts to strengthen and come together and pull away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
For the best gluten development and brioche crumb, mix the dough for at least 15 minutes. Proper gluten development will allow you to stretch the dough so thin you can almost see through it. This is called the window pane effect.
Pull the dough from the bowl onto a bench and form it into a ball. Place the dough ball into a clean bowl, cover it with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel, and let it rise for 1.5-2 hours (depending on room temperature) until doubled in size. Deflate the dough gently and reshape it into a ball again. Cover it with a lid or plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator overnight. This step can be shortened, but an 8-12 hour fridge proof gives the best flavor.

Cold Proof

If you want to skip the overnight proof, the dough will still need an hour of fridge rest after room temperature proofing. This cold rest will let the butter stiffen, resulting in much easier shaping.
Pull the proofed dough from the bowl and tip it onto a lightly floured bench. Shape it into a round, then divide this into two equal portions. Line two 8.5 x 4.5 inch (21x11cm) loaf pans with parchment paper.

Shaping options

Option 1. Divide a portion of the dough into 8 equal-sized pieces. Roll each piece into a tight ball and place the balls in a lined tin, side by side, in two rows.
Option 2. Divide a portion of the dough into 3 equal-sized pieces. Roll each piece into a long roll, about 30cm in length. Braid the three lengths together, tuck in the ends, and place the braided dough into the lined tin.
Let the shaped dough rise in a warm spot until it has doubled in size.

Baking

Preheat the oven to 375°F/190 °C and gently whisk an egg and one tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Brush the tops of the dough with the egg wash.
Bake the brioche bread for approximately 30 minutes until a deep golden brown.
Once baked through, it should sound hollow when tapped. If you have an instant-read thermometer, you can check for an internal temperature of 195°F / 90°C. Let the brioche bread to cool before slicing.

Notes

Cup Sizes. The cup sizes are US size, which is smaller than metric. For best results, use scales.

Flour. This recipe works best with flour with around 11% protein. All-purpose flour protein levels can vary between brands, and the name of the flour itself can vary between countries. It’s best to check protein levels rather than just the name of the flour

Kneading by hand. Brioche bread can be made without a stand mixer. It can be kneaded by hand, although it may take longer and require more effort. It’s a very sticky wet dough, so don’t be tempted to add more flour, or it will ruin the texture.

Storing. Brioche can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. Alternatively, it can be frozen for future use.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 463kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 12gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 163mgSodium: 402mgPotassium: 159mgFiber: 2gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 757IUVitamin C: 0.01mgCalcium: 48mgIron: 3mg

Keyword brioche bread, french bread

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