white bread recipe, how to make white bread, eggless white bread

By on December 20th, 2013

white-bread-loaf

white bread recipe – this step by step bread recipe i use often to make white bread at home. once you start making homemade bread then you might not feel like buying bread from outside. making bread at home is a lovely experience and is creative too.

i love baking breads at home. the whole process of making the dough, seeing it rising, the yeasty aroma when the bread is getting baked, the joy when you see the bread baked to perfection and finally the satisfaction when you serve the bread to your loved ones……  yes i love it all.

bread is one of the most important food in the whole world. every country has their own history, tradition and methods of making breads. in india we have flat breads like roti, phulka, parathas and even fried breads like poori, bhatura, naan. the french have their own array and varieties of breads. so do the italians, so do the greeks… so forth and so on.

the portuguese were the first one to bring yeast in india, which produces doubled bread loaves. we indians started calling these double roti or double bread. even today double roti or pav as we call is the most common indian bread which is had with some of india’s favorite snack food like pav bhaji, misal pav, vada pav, bhurji pav….

white-bread-loaf

in fact i never have memories of my mother baking bread…. but i do have memories of her making chapatis, parathas, pooris. mom would sometimes bake cakes, but in the pressure cooker. if the bread was needed in the house, it was purchased from outside. all the types of bread, my mom would buy from the bakery.

ditto is my mother in law. excellent in making indian breads. but for white or brown bread, it is purchased from outside. i guess most indian families are like mine. we hardly bake. no wonder the indian bread companies are doing so well in their businesses….

things are changing in the indian kitchen lately. with the internet, television, mass media… one comes to know of so many things which otherwise one would have not known. just search brown bread on google and see the millions of results you will get. so just at the touch of a fingertip you have the recipe in the comforts of your home. now its your decision to make it or not. comforts & luxuries of technology….. hence baking is catching up in india, with most homemakers making their own cakes, cookies and breads.

white sandwich bread

so what does it take to make a perfect loaf of white bread

unseen intangible ingredients:

  • love…. yes… the most important ingredient… not only for bread but for any food that you make.
  • time – not much – just 15 minutes… the rest of the time the bread is getting leavened on its own without you doing anything… plus baking where the oven does all the work.
  • patience – yes, some patience is required… patience in waiting for the bread to get leavened and then getting baked.

seen tangible ingredients

  • flour – a good quality all purpose flour/maida.
  • yeast – good quality and within the expiration date.
  • warm water – remember warm… not hot or cool… warmth is the key…

what else is required….. nothing else… so why don’t you try making your own bread at home in your oven. doubtful or nervous? there is nothing to doubt or fear. if the yeast is good, the water is warm… success at first step, which brings you success at the last step… when you slice the bread loaf for your family.

white loaf

trust me… there is nothing like a home baked bread. once you start making breads at home, you won’t buy them from outside, atleast from the indian bakeries or breads from the indian bread companies. the readymade white breads are so dry and dull. also you don’t know what goes into it or how it is made or how much hygienic it is.

once the husband got a very healthy brown bread with oats & extra fibre… i checked the ingredients and they had used preservatives, additives, soy flour and extra gluten. it was also made with margarine…. margarine is alright to me but not soy flour or the preservatives and additives….. some bakeries even use lard (pig fat). plus you never know the quality of flour, water that is added. i understand that many of us have a hectic lifestyle and making homemade bread is never on our list.

once you make your own breads, you won’t buy from outside, unless you are very very very very busy and occupied neck deep. i have stopped buying breads from out. all i have to do is just spend 15 minutes…. now 15 minutes is not 1 hour. even for making rotis or phulkas i spend 20-30 minutes. also to make some dal or sabzi i might spend more than 30 minutes. so it is just 15 minutes… out of the 24 hours i have 15 minutes to make a perfect loaf of bread for our breakfast, brunch and light evening dinners. so what say… wanna give a try?

white sandwich bread recipe

i am sure once you try you will at least think twice before buying any bread from outside. this is a basic recipe of making white bread at home, which is excellent for making toasts & sandwiches.

this white bread recipe is eggless and dairy free. though if you want, you can add some milk also (proportion mentioned in the details below). you can also make it into sweet bread by adding extra sugar. if all of the above unseen and seen ingredients are added to the bread, you will have a perfect loaf which is soft, moist and heavenly.

lets begin step by step homemade white bread recipe:

1: heat up 1 cup of water till warm. take it in a bowl. now how do you know if it is warm or not. check it with thermometer? nah… do it indian style… the way your’s and mine grandmothers would do. dip your little finger in the water. make sure it is clean … lol if you feel the warmth and mellowness, the water is warm. if you feel a little heat or hotness, the water is not warm.

wait for some seconds or a minute and then check again. add sugar to warm water and dissolve it. now add yeast. mix it well. you can keep the spoon in the bowl if it gets stuck with yeast. keep in a warm place for 10 minutes till the yeast becomes frothy.  i have added golden sugar and thus the bread has a brownish tinge to it.

white bread

2: in the meantime seive the flour with salt. add oil and just keep aside.

white bread

3: aha… the yeast has become frothy…

yeast for white bread

4: add the frothy yeast to the flour.

add yeast to white bread

5: first mix with a wooden spoon. the dough will be sticky. then knead into a soft smooth dough. if the dough becomes sticky add some flour. if the dough is dry add some warm water. grease the dough with some oil. cover loosely with a kitchen napkin and keep in a deep large bowl at room temperature for 11/2 or 2 hours. i used the same bowl in which i kneaded the dough.

white bread dough

6: yay… after 2 hours the dough has doubled up and well risen.

white bread dough

7: now grease a loaf pan. on a lightly floured surface, turn out the dough. this will deflate the dough. no need to knead or do anything. shape the dough and place it in the loaf pan. my loaf pan is slightly bigger for the dough. again cover and keep in a warm place for 45 minutes.

white bread preparation

8: the loaf will double up again… with a serrated knife make a long slash lengthwise on the center of the dough not more than 1/4 inch deep. this will give the dough more room for expansion while baking. time for baking now. preheat the oven at 190 degrees C. place the loaf pan in the oven. bake for 40 to 45 minutes till the loaves are golden brown in color and the sides slightly contract from the pan.

white bread loaf

9: hurray… the bread is baked… my oven browns the surface very quickly. so after 20 minutes i had put aluminium foil on the top of the loaf so as to avoid more browning. but the oven did its browning job :-)

baked white bread

10: yet still some checking is required. remember the bread is hot and so is the pan. use oven gloves or thick kitchen towels. lift one end of the loaf to check for an even browning at the bottom. if the bottom of the loaf is pale, then keep it directly in the oven for 5 more minutes. check again. also tap the bread and it should sound hollow. transfer the loaf from the pan immediately and keep it on a cooling rack. if you keep it inside the pan, the bottom gets soggy. let the loaf rest for 15 minutes to allow the excess moisture to evaporate.

baked white bread

11: now have the joy of having bread with your favorite curry or soup or just making one of your favorite toast or snack like i did. i made bombay veg sandwiches again with the homemade white bread.

bombay-sandwich-made-with-homemade-white-bread

if you are looking for more bread recipes then do check 100% whole wheat bread, pita bread, garlic bread rolls, italian basil focaccia bread and garlic bread.

white bread recipe details below:

4.0 from 3 reviews
white bread, how to make white bread (vegan recipe)
 
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step by step recipe of basic white bread.
Author:
Recipe type: bread
Cuisine: world
Serves: 1 large loaf of bread
Ingredients (american measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)
  • 3 cups all purpose flour/maida
  • 1 cup water
  • ½ tbsp dry yeast
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1.5 tbsp vegetable oil. i used olive oil. but you can add sunflower oil or even melted butter.
  • 1 tsp salt
if you want to add milk to the bread, then substitute the 1 cup water mentioned above with:
  • ¼ cup warm water
  • ¾ cup milk
Instructions
  1. warm the water.
  2. dissolve sugar in the water.
  3. sprinkle the yeast and stir.
  4. keep aside for 10 minutes or till the yeast bubbles up and froths.
  5. while the proofing is happening, seive the flour with salt.
  6. add the oil to the flour.
  7. now add the frothy yeast.
  8. with a wooden spoon mix everything.
  9. the dough will be sticky.
  10. now use your hands and knead the dough.
  11. the dough has to be smooth and light.
  12. grease the dough with oil.
  13. keep in a large bowl and cover loosely with kitchen napkin.
  14. keep aside for 11/2 or 2 hours until the dough doubles up.
  15. if it requires keep aside for some some more minutes.
  16. take the dough on a lightly floured surface. this naturally deflates the dough.
  17. now shape the loaf and place it in a greased pan.
  18. cover again loosely with the kitchen napkin and let it rise again for about 45 minutes till it fully doubled up.
  19. preheat the oven to 190 degrees C and bake for 40-45 mins till you get a golden brown bread.
Notes
you can divide the dough into parts and also make dinner rolls or pav. if the top surface of the bread browns quickly than place aluminum foil or butter paper on the top. this will avoid further browning. i prefer to knead dough with my hands, but you can knead the dough in a food processor or in an electric mixer with paddle attachment.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 4


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{ 78 Responses }

  1. Rashmi says

    Hello Dassana,

    I am a big fan of ur recipes and have tried many recipes of urs and have never been disappointed by the results… Have recently started baking and have tried ur whole wheat pav and bread recipes and they turned out just too perfect.
    Need ur help in this recipe. I have instant yeast so can I follow the same steps as mentioned for whole wheat bread? also can I Use curd for white bread also,as m sure it helps make bread soft as u had mentioned in the whole wheat bread recipe. If not plz let me know the time I should leave the dough to rest after using instant yeast. Will await ur response. Thanks

    • says

      thanks a lot rashmi. the amount of instant yeast required is much less as compared to dry active yeast. in this recipe you need to add 1 tsp of instant yeast. you can also use this online yeast conversion tool to get the amount of instant yeast for future reference – http://www.traditionaloven.com/conversions_of_measures/yeast_converter.html

      you can add curd in white bread. they will become soft. but just little curd. about 1/2 tbsp. as white bread is already soft when made without curd. after kneading the dough, keep it to leaven for about 35 mins. if the temperature is cool or cold outside, you can keep for some more minutes. after the second rise, make a loaf and then again keep for the second rice for 20 to 25 minutes or more if the temperature is low. then bake in a preheated oven.

  2. Shalini Ratan says

    Hi my yeast didnt get frothyI tried trice.please tell where i went wrong.

    • says

      shalini, the water has to be warm. if the water is hot or not enough warm the yeast will not get activated. the quality of yeast also matters.

  3. Christie says

    If your bread became hard find a bread bag or a closed container to store it in once it’s cooled down….. I have the same problem but once i do this it cuts nicely. How ever i do not use canola oil…. i use organic sunflower oil but all in all an amazing and great recipe…… few ingredients and great directions/pictures to follow.

  4. Prashant says

    Hi,

    Could you please let me know how to bake bread in microwave as I have LG GRILL MICROWAVE.

  5. Suparna says

    Hi dassana
    Easy recipe to try. I just baked it today. Texture was alright … It raised well too. Because my pan was round and small, I baked them as smaller buns . Their outer crust was hard and could nt cut them at all due to this. Wonder what went wrong. I baked at 170 c for 40 minutes on convection mode . Do u think I should have reduced the temp further as their size was smaller ?

    Suparna

    • says

      hi suparna. the buns have got over baked and thats why the outer crust was hard. small buns take less time to bake than a whole loaf. the temperature is fine. but the time should have been less. next time you can just bake for 25 to 30 mins. when the top gets browned, just tap the buns. they should sound hollow.

  6. Jisha says

    Hi Dassana,
    Happy to spot ur bread making site which I was searching from a very very long time,!!!

    ! I have had many attempts with 100 percent whole wheat n which all wer all very dense
    l
    later 2cup maida n 1 cup wheat turned out to b somewhat k.

    When I use 2teaspn yeast for 3 cup flour it s smelling yeasty,but the commrcial. Breads never smells so. Any idea? Also wen u say I 1 cup , how it’s n ltrs or mg

    Cd u tell me

    Ur locatn as wen we keep the dough for 3-4 hrs for rising in India ,it can make. It too sour as the climate is hot
    If u don’t mind my last question is, I use a convection microwave 200 degrees for 45 mts doesn’t cook well near sides ,can u suggest me an ideal temp n time for baking n preheating, my
    Crest is always correct but below dat I seed some thing powdery n looks like. Uncooked
    Thanks in advance!love to hear from u!!!!
    Cheers !!!!!
    Jisha

    • says

      hi jisha

      whole wheat bread will be dense. you can try the whole wheat bread recipe from the blog and this one is not dense. apart from yeast, a lot of additives and preservatives, gluten enhancers are used in commercial bread. thats why they don’t have a yeasty aroma. 1 cup is 250 ml. but when you weight a dry substance, the weight differs as per the density of the substance.

      if the climate is hot or very hot, then you have to keep for a less time than mentioned in the recipe. the dough should be doubled. once its doubled, you can make the loaf and keep again for some minutes.

      i suggest you to keep the bread covered with butter paper or aluminium foil and bake for a longer time. it seems your breads are not getting baked thoroughly. you can bake from 180 to 200 degrees C in your microwave oven in the convection mode. preheating should be atleast for 15 to 20 mins.

  7. Nidhi Karia says

    What a wonderful recipe. But actually I am looking for a white bread recipe without yeast. Can you help me out with that please?

    • says

      till now i have never made any bread without yeast. so i am unable to help you. there are soda breads, beer breads which do not use yeast, but i have never tried them.

  8. waheed says

    I have tried to follow the recipe but when i backed it in microwave oven the end result was not satisfactory. the bread was not presentable

  9. sapana says

    Hi.. loved your recipe.. tried first with maida.. came out great only thing is crust gets very very hard.. can you tell me how to make soft bread like we get in store? also in brown bread I had to cook it longer so crush was ver hard again and bread was very dense.. please tell me proper ratio of yeast and water for 3 cup of whole wheat flour.. and how to make it less dense(I know as for whole wheat it will be dense)

    Thanks in advance

    • says

      hi sapana. let me know which oven you use. regular oven/OTG or the convection mode in microwave. i generally use 1/2 tbsp of dry active yeast for 3 cups of whole wheat flour. check this recipe for 100% atta bread where i have used yogurt to make the bread light & soft – http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/100-whole-wheat-bread-atta-bread/

      for the brown bread, depending on the type and quality of flour, you can increase the quantity of water. a slightly moist and wet dough is good and does not make the bread dense while baking. again the yeast must have not proofed well, which might have contributed to the denseness. the yeast should bubble up and cover the whole bowl.

      • Anonymous says

        Hi Dassana,
        Thanks for replying! I made it in convection mode in microwave. I have added 1/2 tbsp Gloripan yeast in 1 cup of water and not used yogert at all.. I used ashirwad atta 3 cups and added yeast mixture and it was too thick so i have added little milk to make it soft but bread came out very very dense…
        Also My biggest problem is hard crush.. When my bread is cooked it very hard to cut through..
        Please tell me what temperature I need to cook it and for how long. Also suggest me how to make less dense whole wheat bread.. Yeast I use is fantastic quality.. anything else I can do to make it less dense?
        BTW , I tried your pizza recipe.. Its FANTASTIC :) .. Everyone loved it… the pictures u take are tooo goood :)

        ~ sapana

        • says

          hi sapana. from your description, its looks like the bread was very very dense. i have also made whole wheat bread without adding curd etc. they were dense but not too much. i think its the flour quality. i know gloripan yeast is good. i use the same brand for active yeast. now for the crust, the issue here is both the denseness as well as the baking time. i keep bread loaf at 200 or 220 degrees C and bake for about anywhere between 35 to 60 mins, depending on the recipe and the size of the bread.

          since you use convection mode, i suggest you to use -10 to -20 degrees less than what the recipe mentions. since microwave have fans in it. so if the recipe calls for 180 degrees in aregular OTG, you can bake for 170 or 160 degrees C. bread should not be hard to cut through.

          whole wheat bread has a denseness. it cannot be as light as the ones made with maida or all purpose flour. the denseness will vary though. if you can get your hands on vital wheat gluten, then it helps to leaven the bread well. then you can also use some yogurt or vinegar. they also help in the gluten development.

          i have also seen two methods of making bread which help to make the bread lighter and softer. one is a japanese tangzhong method and the other uses a sponge and biga mixture. one link from my friend nag’s blog for the japanese tangzhong method and the other one from a blogger friend sangeetha. i hope it helps you. the japanese bread use maida, but you can make them with whole wheat flour too. i haven’t tried any of these methods, but i know these work.

          1. http://www.cookingandme.com/2013/03/hokkaido-milk-bread-recipe-soft-bread.html
          2. http://www.spicytreats.net/2013/10/100-whole-wheat-sandwich-bread-whole.html

  10. resval says

    Hi! Thanks for your detailed recipe. Luv to try it. Pls tell me if baking has to be fm top and bottom or bottom alone. Eagerly waiting for d response…

    • says

      when i bake breads at home (which i make every week), i keep the bread in the center rack and both the top as well as the bottom heating elements are on. for this bread however, i used the convection mode in the microwave oven and only the top element is heated.

  12. shalu says

    Hi Dassana

    Wanted to know if we can try this with any other flour. My husband has gluten allergy hence wanted to bake bread at home with other flours such as ragi / rice/ rajgira/ jowar flour.

    • says

      hi shalu, breads can be made with other flours, but the proportion of the ingredients have to be changed. the whole recipe becomes different. in the market there are gluten free flours available. these are used for making breads and cakes. let me know and i can send you the online links. if you live in india you can buy online. if you live in america then you will be able to get them in the stores.

      if you use exclusively ragi or jowar or rajgira, the results are different. i usually combine ragi with wheat flour to make ragi breads. however i have seen that when i increase the proportion of ragi, the bread becomes way too dense.

  16. Rohit Sarvadnya says

    I have tried it but my bread became very hard…

    I am not even able to cut it…

    Please suggest some thing to avoid it….

    • says

      the bread become hard as the yeast did not get activated. generally this is the number one reason for bread becoming hard.

  17. Shilpa says

    Yet another great recipie. Tried this and came out very well in convection itself

  19. says

    hi dassana,
    thanks for this recipe.. i tried it yest and it was really good.. i have posted it in my space too.. do check it out in your free time :)
    “http://jopreet.blogspot.in/2013/02/white-bread-my-first-baking-experience.html”

  20. Rima Ghosh says

    hi Dassana,thanks a lot fr ur white bread recipe.i tried it in microwave ,it cm out vry well.it was soft n all my family members lovd it vry much.all ur recipes are fabulous.i hv tried sm.pls cn u post me th recipe of [atta] brown bread.th expirence of making th bread was great,n th taste n texture was too gud.u just made my day.
    Thanks a ton.

    • says

      thats nice rima. i will post the atta bread soon. bread making is a very satisfactory and lovely task. in fact i make so many breads at home, but just never take pics. there are a few bread recipes in drafts that i will post soon.

  22. Ashwini says

    Hi Dassana,
    I tried the bread recipe last week and it came out good. I however could use only 3/4 cup of maida to 11/2 cup of wheat flour when using 1 cup of water….it could be because of the quality of the wheat flour or the weather like you mentioned. Nevertheless,it came out pretty good and everyone at home seemed pleased. The next day i made chaat style aloo cheese toast sandwich from the bread that i had baked and it not only tasted great but the whole experience was very gratifying…thank you.

    • says

      thanks ashwini. the quality of the flour does contribute to the bread’s texture. it is so much satisfying to bake your own bread for your loved ones and family. when the bread is baking in the oven, the aroma of the bread baking is soooo nice :-)

      the chaat style aloo sandwich is also a great option for sandwich. but at home i am so much partial to bombay sandwich, that i often make it, apart from bread pakoras.

      • Ashwini says

        Can you please post some recipes of whole wheat cookies…..sweet and savory ones.Thank you dassana.

        • says

          dear ashwini, there is one post in the drafts of cheese biscuits made from whole wheat flour. this one is like cheese straws. i had made these spiced biscuits some week ago, but still have to post them. i will also try to make some sweet cookies. i had made a few like banana cookies and semolina cookies. but did not take pics.

  23. Sinduja says

    Hi, I loved the recipe and thinking of trying it. Can I substitute bread flour instead of all purpose? Also do you think adding chillies, cilantro, onions will make the bread hard? Ypur bread looks soft and perfect

    • says

      sure sinduja, you can make the bread with bread flour. i have also made the same bread recipe with whole wheat flour many times and the bread was soft and moist always. you can add onions, herbs to the bread. they won’t make the bread hard. just chop them finely when adding to the dough.

    • says

      i don’t know which microwave oven you are using. if it is just microwave than you cannot preheat. if your microwave oven has convection/baking and grilling facilities in it than only you can preheat the oven in the convection mode. check the manufacture’s manual to know what kind of microwave oven you have.

      also this bread recipe cannot be made in the microwave… i mean it is not a microwave recipe.

  26. Bhavna says

    Hi Dasana,
    I made the bread this weekend it was just fantastic.The shape was a bit flat …next time will correct it as I cud nt slice but cut as Pav.The taste n texture was just too good.
    Thanks a ton !

  28. says

    hi Dassana,
    thank you for the links, probably i have done some mistakes as mentioned in the quaker oats link.
    my friends think the bread is quite good, may be i am being too critical. thanks again!
    happy recipe posting

  29. says

    hi dassana
    made wheat bread instead of white has come out well but appears a little dry, don’t know where i went wrong, hope it will turn out better next time

  30. ushanagarkatti says

    yes truly homemade bread aroma is simply worth making.and your pics wow!! they make it all the more tempting. one query which brand dry yeast is advised?

    • says

      previously i was using crown brand. but i did not like the results it gave. the bread would not rise to its optimum. currently i am using another brand. its very good. i made many breads with it and all were excellent.

      only these two brands are available where i stay. but i do not remember what is its name. i have been struggling hard to remember the name. i have a poor memory for names. i remembered the crown brand as i still have the plastic jar with me. i will update you once i buy the same yeast again.

  32. says

    those are some gorgeous pictures! love the light play.. and a gorgeous loaf. those intangible ingredients are so necessary:)

    Thanks for the comment on brendan’ s interview.. i wouldnt have been able to do it last year.. things are looking up this year,.. lets hope they keep looking up!

  33. sunita sil says

    i think in point no 14, you have mentioned 11/2-2 hours but i suppose it will be 1/2-2 hours

  34. sunita sil says

    Hi Dassana

    Wow what a lovely post and congrats on your 300th Post, its really great that u have completed so many fabulous recipes for we readers. Soon you will complete 500 and then 1000.

    take care
    sunita

  35. says

    There is nothing more comforting and delicous then the process, smell and taste of fresh baked bread. Your recipe sounds great! And your photos, WOW! I love the shadows and small highlights. Perfect all around.

    • says

      thanks a lot nancy…. i am a great admirer of your photography. feeling so good to hear such positive & encouraging comments from you :-)