Homemade Brioche Bread Recipe

Become a great baker and learn how easy it is to make delicious buttery homemade brioche bread right from your own kitchen.

Just like with the puff pastry recipe I made, it’s been a while since I’ve made brioche.  If you’re like mand are a huge bread maker and eater fan then for sure see my sourdough or white bread recipe.

What is Brioche Bread?

Much like a lot of bread enjoyed today, it’s a traditional French recipe that is made in really the same process as most other loaves of bread are made.  It uses a warm liquid, yeast, and flour.  Brioche is a sweet dough consisting of:

• Milk
• Yeast
• Flour
• Eggs
• Sugar
• Salt
• Butter

Obviously, in brioche bread, there are a few other ingredients to add to the richness of it, like eggs and butter.  While there aren’t specific dates on when brioche was brought onto the scene, many think it was introduced in the 15^th century but that’s simply because the word was first used then.

Other accounts in later centuries refer to things such as sweet or spiced bread, which would certainly lend credibility to this recipe.  Brioche is widely made and eaten in the form of loaves, buns, or rounds and is enjoyed at breakfast, dessert, or as a bun during the main course.  It is probably one of my favorite bread recipes out there and if you’re a big fan of this as well then you for sure need to check out this recipe!

What Makes it Different?

The biggest difference between brioche and other bread recipes is using enhancing ingredients to further the flavor and texture of it.  It is a sweeter, richer bread resulting from fat and sugar that are added to the dough.  The main additional ingredients are:

• Eggs
• Sugar
• Butter

What Is it Good For?

While brioche is absolutely amazing eaten by itself it is also a great bread to use as an ingredient in other recipes.  Here are my favorite recipes to use it in:

• Toast
• Peanut Butter and Jelly
• French Toast
• Bread Pudding
• Cheeseburger Buns
• Lobster Roll Buns
• Hot dog Buns

How to Make It

If you’ve ever wondered how to make brioche bread, then you’ve definitely come to the right place.  As I stated earlier, brioche bread is pretty easy to make but it just requires some time, so please follow these instructions:

Whisk together some warm milk, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer and let sit for 5 to 7 minutes to create a raft.

Add in some of the flour and mix with the hook attachment on low speed until combined to create a sponge.

Wrap in plastic and place in the oven with only the light on and the door cracked to get the perfect proofing environment, and proof for 60 minutes or until more than doubled in size.

Place the bowl back on the stand mixer and add in eggs, flour and sugar on low to medium speed until completely combined.

Once the dough has come together slowly add in chunks of softened unsalted butter until it is completely mixed in.

Remove the dough and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to let the butter hardened up.

Take the dough out of the fridge and place it on a clean surface dusted with flour.

Divide the dough into thirds and taking one of the pieces of dough spread it out to form a rectangle, about 14 x 8 inches.

Roll the dough over to form a taught loaf.

Place the bread in a buttered loaf pan and place a towel over top back in the oven with the light on and the door cracked and proof for a further 45 minutes.

Brush the dough with an egg wash of milk and egg and bake at 375° for 30-35 minutes or until it reaches 190°F internally.

Cool on a rack and serve.

How to Make Brioche Buns

If you want to make a classic Sicilian style brioche roll, here is how you do it:

1. Using the last third of the brioche dough, take about a ½ cup-sized amount and roll it up until it’s about the size of a tennis ball and then place it onto a sheet tray lined with parchment paper.

2. Be sure to save a little of the dough at the end because we are going to make a smaller dough ball to go right on top of the bigger one. It will literally look like a snowman without the middle ball, to put it as simply as possible.

3. Brush these brioche buns up with some egg wash, sprinkle on a tad bit more sugar and bake at 375° for 18-20 minutes or until they are golden brown.

How to Serve It

You can serve this sliced and buttered up as is with any meal.  The classic Sicilian way to eat this is with granita and espresso.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: This bread is incredibly eaten as soon as it is slightly cooled but you can make this baked up to 2 days ahead of time.  You can also choose to place it uncooked in the loaf pan in the refrigerator 2 days before baking.

How to Store: Store covered at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.  This will freeze well covered for up to 3 months.  Thaw at room temperature until soft before serving.

chef notes + tips

• You can add up to 1 more pound of softened unsalted butter to this recipe when adding butter to make it richer in flavor.
• The more butter you add to this recipe the stickier and harder to work with it will become.
• You can also add up to ¼ more cup of sugar to sweeten the bread even more.

More Amazing Breakfast Recipes

• Fried Eggs
• Homemade Gravlax Recipe
• Huevos Rancheros Recipe
• Coffee Cake
• Hoe Cakes

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Homemade Brioche Bread Recipe

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5 from 11 votes

Become a great baker and learn how easy it is to make delicious buttery homemade brioche bread right from your own kitchen.

Servings: 20

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

For the Sponge:

• 8 ounces of warm milk, 112° to 116°
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon active yeast
• 8 ounces all-purpose flour

For the Dough:

• 2 pounds all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 12 eggs
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 16 ounces softened unsalted butter
• 1 egg whisked with 2 tablespoons whole milk

Instructions

• Add the milk, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk just until combined.
• Let it sit for 5-7 minutes or until it forms a raft.
• Pour in 8 ounces of the flour and mix on low speed with the hook attachment until combined to create a sponge.
• Wrap the bowl in plastic wrap and proof in the oven with only the oven light on and the door cracked and proof for 60 minutes or until more than doubled in size.
• Remove the bowl and plastic wrap and place back onto the stand mixer with the hook attachment and add in 1 egg at a time over low speed until slightly mixed in and the eggs are completely whisked.
• Next, stop the mixer and add in the remaining 2 pounds of flour, 1/3 cup of sugar and salt and mix on low to medium speed until completely combined and smooth.
• Slowly add in the softened unsalted butter until it is completely mixed in, about 5-7 minutes.
• Place in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes to harden up the butter.
• Remove and place the dough onto a clean floured surface and divide the dough into thirds.
• To make loaves of bread, take one of the pieces of dough spread it out to form a rectangle, about 14 x 8 inches, and roll the dough over to form a taught loaf.
• Next, place it in a buttered loaf pan and place a towel over top back in the oven with the light on and the door cracked and proof for a further 45 minutes.
• Remove it from the oven and brush the dough with an egg wash of milk and egg and bake at 375° for 30-35 minutes or until it reaches 190°F internally.
• To make individual Sicilian style buns: take about a ½ cup-sized amount and roll it up until it’s about the size of a tennis ball and then place it onto a sheet tray lined with parchment paper.
• Be sure to save a little of the dough at the end because we are going to make a smaller dough ball to go right on top of the bigger one. It will literally look like a snowman without the middle ball, to put it as simply as possible.
• Brush these brioche buns up with some egg wash, sprinkle on a tad bit more sugar and bake at 375° for 18-20 minutes or until they are golden brown.

Notes

Chef Notes:

• Make-Ahead: This bread is incredibly eaten as soon as it is slightly cooled but you can make this baked up to 2 days ahead of time. You can also choose to place it uncooked in the loaf pan in the refrigerator 2 days before baking.

 

• How to Store: Store covered at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. This will freeze well covered for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature until soft before serving.

 

• You can add up to 1 more pound of softened unsalted butter to this recipe when adding butter to make it richer in flavor.

 

• The more butter you add to this recipe the stickier and harder to work with it will become.

 

• You can also add up to ¼ more cup of sugar to sweeten the bread even more.

Nutrition

Calories: 427kcalCarbohydrates: 47gProtein: 10gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 148mgSodium: 438mgPotassium: 119mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 728IUCalcium: 42mgIron: 3mg

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: French, Italian

Author: Chef Billy Parisi