Homemade French Bread
Simple, quick, and easy homemade French bread recipe.
Kids can even make this bread. For real. It's that easy. Making any bread from scratch can be a daunting task and it's easy to be intimidated by the whole process. I am going to break it down and hopefully ease any worries. You may even become a master bread maker!
This Homemade Bakery French Bread can be done in a little more than one hour which means you can have hot, fresh bread straight out of the oven when the kids get home from school even if you don't start baking until afternoon. You won't need to run to the bakery for your french bread anymore when you can make better bread at home....in no time flat.
I taught a culinary class for kids in both Texas and Arizona and I've watched 7-year-olds tackle this homemade French bread recipe. I loved seeing the pictures those kids sent me showing the french bread masterpieces they made for their families.
As a child, I remember riding my bike home from school and opening the back door to the smells of homemade bread baking in the oven. My Mom always said that she could live on bread alone so bread was always essential in our home. There's nothing more comforting than a hot piece of bread straight from the oven covered in churned butter and homemade strawberry jam.
Let's get down to the basics so you can start baking.
How to make quick and easy homemade bakery french bread:
- Making sure the yeast proofs is essential. Using fresh yeast is important and mixing with warm water (not too hot, not too cold) will ensure success. Yeast loves sugar so add a pinch of sugar to the mixture. Let it work for about 10 minutes.
- Adding flour one cup at a time is important so you can see when the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. That's when you know it's ready. Put flour down on the counter so the dough doesn't stick. That isn't fun. I love my Bosch mixer and can find a great deal on one below.
- Using rolling pin, roll out into a 9 x 12 rectangle. Roll up lengthwise and mold into french loaf. I love this marble rolling pin.
- The loaves don't have to look perfect. I rolled these babies in 7 ½ minutes flat before I sprinted to my little girl's performance. Don't forget to make 3-4 diagonal cuts with a sharp knife before placing on silpat or greased cookie sheet. These silicone baking sheets make it so easy to remove the bread from the baking sheet. Let rise for 30-40 minutes.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 18-22 minutes until lightly golden brown. Watch it carefully to turn a light golden brown color.
Homemade Bakery French Bread
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Yeast
- ½ cup Warm Water
- 2 cups Hot Water
- 3 Tablespoons Sugar
- 2 ½ teaspoons Salt
- ⅓ cup Oil
- 6 ½ cups Flour
- 1 Egg for brushing on bread
Instructions
- In a small bowl, dissolve your yeast in ½ cup warm water. Make sure that your water is warm (not too cold, not too hot). Let proof for 10 minutes.
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine hot water, sugar, salt, oil and 3 cups of the flour and mix together. Add the yeast mixture to a bowl.
- Add the remaining 3 ½ cups of flour, one cup at a time, mixing after each addition. Watch for it to start pulling away from the bowl to know it's ready. Once all of the flour is added, let sit for 10 minutes.
- Separate your dough into 3 pieces. On a floured surface roll each piece into a 9x12 rectangle. Roll it up like a jelly roll. Shape into a french bread loaf and smooth out edges.
- Place the dough on a greased baking pan or a Silpat, seam side down. Using a knife, make 3-4 diagonal cuts about ¼ inch thick in bread. Brush with your beaten egg.
- Let dough rise uncovered for 30-40 minutes in a warm place.
- Bake at 375 for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown.
Video
Happy Baking, my friends! I can't wait to hear what you think about this quick and easy homemade french bread.
Valerie
Thank you for sharing this recipe!! Easy, quick and very tasty. ????????????????????
Lyn
My very first time to bake a bread. The bakery near our apartment is temporarily closed due to covid-19 and we already finished our bread. It’s good that I bought flour and yeast weeks ago. I decided to use this recipe on a Sunday morning. My husband babysat our 3 months old baby while I was preparing in the kitchen. My husband loves the outcome of the bread and we enjoyed it with a cup of coffee. Thanks to this recipe! I will be baking in the future with added flavours together with my daughter.
Carol
I have used rapid rise yeast twice, and the bread turn out great. You should be OK with it.
Hollie
I am TERRIBLE at making bread, and have been looking for a fool-proof recipe to help build my confidence and make bread to drop off for loved ones. This is THE RECIPE I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR! From the pictures to the well worded instructions this bread is literally fool proof. But the best part is it is DELICIOUS and you can put you own twist on the flavour so easily. I did one loaf with everything bagel seasoning, one with extra sea salt sprinkled on top, and the last with rosemary and sea salt. They were all a hit! Will definitely be making this a staple in my recipe book!
Stacie
Really soft and light bread. I will definitely make this recipe again. My family loved it. Do you think it would be possible to make 1 of the loaves into hamburger sized buns instead of 3 loaves of bread? Would it take less bake time or about the same?
Thanks!
Stacie
UPDATE: I tried it. I made 2 of the loaves a little smaller and used the rest for hamburger buns and they were delicious and squishy. YUM!
georgina perez-huesca
Can I freeze the dough before baking? I think one loaf a day will be enough for my family but not sure if I can freeze the rest to bake another day?
Bridget
Yes, you can freeze it. I did this with mine. I made a full batch, cut into 4 small loaves, baked two and froze two. I did this after the first rise and before rolling out. I just wrapped them in parchment paper, placed in a large ziploc and put in the freezer. To finish off, take one out and allow it to defrost and come to room temp, then continue with rolling, shaping, and the second rise. Bake per recipe. ????
Brandy
I’ve made this bread several times with my kids and it always turns out great. Easy and delicious bread recipe. Thank you
Sakura
First of all, I am a bread snob. I particularly have a thing for asian bakery and European bakery breads. Since I cannot currently travel, I have tried numerous bread recipes out there since this pandemic began - and this has been the easiest, tastiest bread recipe!
Jacqueline
Does anyone know what type of flour you use for this recipe please
Dee
I want to try this French bread but I only have rapid rise yeast packets. What adjustments do I need to make to the recipe? I’m so anxious to try this as my bread supply is low and I can’t get out. Any help would be appreciated.
Linda McGinnis
I made this bread they looked beautiful they were just a little dense. How do I fix this? Want to make again.
Lori
What type if yeast would you use for this. It did not indicate which one to use.
nancy
Made this today to go with chicken soup that I made. Covid 19 makes us want comfort food and this fit the bill perfectly. Bread was a little dense but delicious. Thanks so much for this great recipe. It's a keeper!
Marie Clark
I have noticed that some of you guys are stating that the bread is dence I'm wondering are you from the UK because we have different cup measurements to the US which would mean the bread would be bence due to to much flour.
So 1 cup of US =240ml
1 cup of UK =250ml
There is also a difference between teaspoon,
UK arnt the only ones that have different measurements Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Europe, New Zealand and South Africa.
So you would have to look up the conversion.
Happy Baking
Rebecca
Oh my god I didn't know this. I kept wondering why it seemed sooooo dry before adding in the 6th cup. This explains it as I'm in Canada
Thank you!!!
Trisia
Help,
I don’t know what I did wrong but the loaves are not rising. I followed exactly, but was confused that there wasn’t any kneading after the bread pulled away from side of mixer. Can anyone shed light?
April Larson
For me it's usually a yeast issue or that I didn't let my flour mix long enough between cups. So I "activate" my yeast first for about 10 minutes, while that is activating I mix my other ingredients in bosch mixer on low; (2 cups hot water, oil, salt, sugar and 3.5 cups flour) make sure you add your flour slowely and 1 cup at a time. After that's mixed up I check on my yeast and if it's ready I'll add to my mixer along with remaining flour but again, slowely and 1 cup at a time. I let mix until dough starts pulling away from bowl, transfer to another greased bowl and let rise covered for about 30-45 minutes. I punch down and sometimes let rise again before I separate dough. I hope this helps, it's honestly the easiest bread recipe I've ever found...I am NOT a bread maker, LOL!!
Jenny
Your water could have been too hot and killed the yeast. In that case, the bread will not rise.
Miccah
This is delicious, and so much easier than traditional French bread. I sent pictures of my loaves to my French grandmother and she told me they look just like the bread she used to eat as a little girl in Bordeaux. Thank you for this recipe!
Debi smith
Turned out perfect despite being my first bread attempt. Thanks for sharing
Sara
Thank you for this recipe! I have made it twice and the second time was definitely more of a success (I used the mixer rather than mixing by hand. One question, my husband would like a crisper crust. I find that the loaves deflate a little and lose a little firmness when I take them out of the oven. Do I just need to cook them longer?
Danielle D.
I had never made bread before, but I decided to try this today. The process was so fun, and I am SO happy with how it turned out. It was the absolute perfect texture and so so tasty. I used a little less flour than was called for and I wound up putting rosemary and sea salt on top of one of the loaves. I wish I could post photos because, on top of being delicious, they were absolutely beautiful, too! I'm definitely going to try baking bread more often in the future!
Beth
Please cak you tell me what flour you used? I can't find in the recipe what flour is needed.
I'm assuming white bread flour? Thank you!
Lindsey
I made this exactly how the recipe is written. PERFECT BREAD!!!! Thank you so much for the recipe! I’m making round number two right
now because the first batch is already gone.
Laurie
Do you need to let the dough rise before baking?
Lindsey
Yes only for 10 minutes