I make Sandwich Bread at least once a week, sometimes twice. My biggest pet peeve about bread making is the amount of time some recipes take, like the ones that make you wait till the next day to actually bake the bread. I don’t know about you, but I do not have the kind of time. My homemade white bread recipe (or wheat) takes way less time and can be completed in one morning. Additionally, you will only need 5 simple ingredients, in addition to the warm water.
Why Should I Make My Own Bread?
Homemade bread is generally better than store-bought bread because you are able to control the ingredients. Have you ever looked at the amount of ingredients in store-bought bread? There’s a lot of unnecessary ingredients and additives. Homemade bread does not have any of that junk.
Sure, the first time you make it, it might be a little bit difficult. But the smell of fresh bread throughout your house and the delicious taste using this classic white bread recipe will be so worth it. Plus, after making it a few times, it will be like second nature. I promise.
What Ingredients Do You Need to Make Fresh Bread?
The Perfect White Bread is so easy and simple to make. You will only need a few pantry staples. You can also use this recipe to make whole wheat bread, it all depends on the type of flour you use. I have used whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, bread flour, and a mixture of whole wheat and all-purpose to make a loaf of bread with this recipe.
- Active Dry Yeast or Instant Yeast
- Flour
- The kind of flour you use is really not all that important. With this homemade bread recipe, you can use standard whole wheat flour to make whole wheat bread, all-purpose flour or bread flour to make white sandwich bread. The only thing I recommend is ensuring that your flour is unbleached.
- Fine Ground Sea Salt
- Fine ground is easier to incorporate with the rest of the ingredients.
- Unsalted Butter
- I like to use Unsalted Sweet Cream Butter. It really does not matter which butter you use, and you could even use your choice of oil (like olive oil) if you wanted too. Butter is just my preference.
- Sugar
- Room Temperature Water
- Warm water is essential, Hot water will kill the yeast preventing your bread from rising properly.
What Kind of Equipment Do You Need to Make the Best Homemade White Bread?
The good news is that you will not need a fancy bread machine, bread maker, or any other fancy equipment to make your own bread. You will only really need three things.
- A Bread Pan or Loaf Pan
- My preference is to use a glass bread pan. However, you can absolutely use any bread pan that you want.
- Stand Mixer with a Large Bowl and Dough Hook Attachment
- Usually, a stand mixer comes with all of those things. However, if you thrifted yours or it was given to you–perhaps it doesn’t. If you do not have a stand mixer, you could also use a large bowl and a wooden spoon. You will also want to use a clean lightly floured surface. Using this method you will need to knead the dough by hand.
- Instant-Read Thermometer
- Using a thermometer will help when you are deciding if your bread is done or not. This will avoid cutting into bread with an undercooked center. After experiencing this a few times, I ordered this Instant Read Thermometer. The internal temperature of cooked bread will be between 195 degreed F to 220 degrees F. I prefer just over 195 for a softer texture.
You may also want a wire rack; however, it is not necessary. I let mine cool in their pans for about 10 to 15 minutes, then I remove them and set them on the counter to let the bread cool. You could also use parchment paper; I just don’t do that.
Let’s Get Cooking!
5 Ingredient Same Day Homemade Sandwich Bread
This 5 Ingredient Same Day Sandwich Bread is so easy to make that you will never spend money on store-bought bready again.
Ingredients
- 2 Cups of Warm Water
- 1/2 Cup of Sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons of Dry Active Yeast
- 1/4 Cup Melted Unsalted Butter
- 6 Cups Unbleached Flour
Instructions
- Combine Yeast, Sugar, and Water. Let mixture rest for 5 minutes so yeast is able to bloom.
- Add Butter, and Salt. Combine.
- Add in flour 1 Cup at a time. You may need more than 6 cups depending on the climate you live in. Your dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl and form a cohesive ball. This is a sign that the dough has achieved proper hydration and gluten development. In other words, the dough is ready to be kneaded or shaped, and it's no longer sticking to the bowl. If you've added the full 6 cups and it is not doing this, continue adding in 1/2 cup increments.
- Oil a mixing bowl and let your dough rest inside the bowl in a warm place for approximately one hour or until it has doubled in size. Cover with a towel during this to avoid any pests.
- Punch Down Bread and fold into a ball.
- Cut the ball in half.
- Oil two bread pans.
- Shape both halves into a loaf and place in the pans.
- Let the loaves rest until they double in size again, approximately 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the tops appear golden brown.
- Using an instant read thermometer, ensure the internal temperature of the bread is between 195 degrees and 220 degrees.
- Allow bread to rest in their pans for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Transfer to a wire cooling rack or a clean counter space.
- Allow to cool completely prior to cutting. Cutting too soon could resuly in gummy bread.
Notes
- When Using a Stand mixer, Low to medium speed is completely fine.
- Do not overmix the dough, this will give you dense bread.
- If your yeast does not bloom, discard and try again with cooler water. If it fails to bloom again, you will need new yeast.
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