100% whole wheat bread or atta bread recipe with step by step photos – a recipe to give you a really good wheat bread with the ingredients you have at home.
this is a soft bread with a light crumb. the recipe does not have the typical denseness and heaviness which is found in 100% whole wheat breads. there is a special & secret ingredient in the recipe that helps in the gluten development.
i embarked upon this ingredient one day when i was making naan. typically the indian naan and bhatura have one ingredient that helps in the leavening process and gives a soft texture, even when the naans are made without yeast. i thought why not try using this ingredient in a bread. and it worked like a charm.
later while studying more about bread baking, i came to know that an acidic medium in limits, helps in gluten development. so no wonder that this ingredient worked. so before you ask me what is the secret… let me tell you – its curd or yogurt.
well the bread has a slight taste of yogurt, but really it does not matter. later i experimented with another acidic ingredient – vinegar and this one too worked very well. again the bread had a slight taste of vinegar, but we had no issues. as a vegetarian, you can use dairy yogurt and as a vegan you can use cashew yogurt or vinegar.
to make this bread, i have used instant yeast. i have mentioned the proportions of dry active yeast, as well in the recipe details and the method too. i brought the instant yeast from gourmetco.in. this is a really good yeast brand.
with instant yeast the leavening and rising time is faster than compared with dry active yeast. you also don’t need to proof the instant yeast like the dry active yeast. you just add the yeast into the flour and knead the dough. thanks to divya of easycooking of letting me know about the availability instant yeast in india.
i kneaded the dough with hands just to show you the texture of the dough. you can use a food processor or stand mixer also to knead the dough. at times i use kitchenaid to make dough for white bread, brown bread and whole wheat sandwich bread.
i have also used chakki ground(stone ground) organic atta. you can use any good quality atta to make this bread. i made veg sandwich, paneer bread roll and cheese chili toast with the atta bread.
if you are looking for more similar recipes then do check:
wheat bread
INGREDIENTS FOR wheat bread
- 3 cups 100% whole wheat flour (atta)
- 1 to 1.25 cups water - i used 1.25 cups water
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast OR ½ tablespoon dry active yeast
- 1 teaspoon regular salt or rock salt (sendha namak)
- 1 tablespoon regular sugar or unrefined cane sugar
- 2 tablespoon ghee or oil or butter
- 2 tablespoon curd (yogurt or dahi - dairy or vegan) OR 1.5 tablespoon vinegar
- some milk for brushing the top of the bread (dairy or vegan)
HOW TO MAKE wheat bread
preparing bread dough with instant yeast
- sieve the flour with salt or just mix the flour with the salt.
- add the 1 tsp instant yeast and just lightly mix.
- then add sugar, oil (or oil or butter) and curd.
- first just mix everything lightly and then slowly adding water in intervals knead to a smooth, soft dough.
- add more water if required. the dough should be slightly sticky.
- brush some water all over the dough and keep in a deep wide bowl covered with a lid or kitchen towel for 30-35 minutes.
- remove and then lightly punch & knead the dough again.
- make a log of the dough and seam the edges.
baking wheat bread
- place it in a greased loaf pan for 40-45 minutes.
- cover and let it rise.
- preheat the oven at 220 degrees C for atleast 20 minutes.
- once the bread has risen in the loaf pan, keep in the oven and bake for 22-25 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped.
- if the wheat bread begins to brown from the top, then cover with butter paper or aluminium foil.
- when whole wheat bread is still lightly hot, remove from the loaf pan and keep it on a wired tray to cool.
preparing bread dough with dry active yeast
- warm 1 or 1.25 cups of water.
- add 1 tbsp sugar and dry active yeast.
- stir and let the yeast activate.
- this usually takes about 10-12 minutes.
- sieve both the flour with salt.
- add the proofed yeast mixture, ghee/butter/oil and yogurt.
- mix all the ingredients first.
- then begin to knead the dough.
- add more water if required. the dough should be slightly sticky.
- continue to knead, till you get a smooth dough which when stretched doesn't tear.
- rub or brush water all over the dough and keep in a covered bowl to leaven for 1.5 to 2 hours.
- after 1.5 to 2 hours, remove the dough and punch and deflate it lightly.
- roll a single log of the dough.
- tuck the edges down on both sides of the bread loaf.
baking wheat bread
- place the bread in a greased loaf pan (9×5 inches) with the tucked edges facing downwards.
- cover the loaf pan and let the dough leaven for 40 minutes to 1 hour.
- preheat the oven at 220 degrees C for at least 20 minutes.
- once the bread has risen in the loaf pan, give a 2 to 5 mm cross or slits on the bread and lightly brush with milk.
- then keep in the oven and bake bread for 22-25 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped.
step by step 100% whole wheat bread recipe
1. mix the whole wheat with salt and add in the instant yeast.
2. add in the yogurt, ghee/butter/oil.
3. first mix well and then knead into a soft dough adding water at intervals. the dough will be slightly sticky but after the initial rise, it will be fine.
4. keep the kneaded dough in a wide bowl and just lightly brush water all over it.
5. keep covered for 30-35 minutes. the bread dough after the first rise.
6. later punch and lightly knead the dough. make a log of the dough and seam the edges.
making wheat bread
7. place the dough log in a greased loaf pan of 9 x 5 inches and let it rise for 40-45 mins.
8. the bread after the second rise.
9. make a 2 to 5 mm cross or slits on the bread and lightly brush with milk.
10. bake the whole wheat bread in a preheated oven for 220 degrees C for 22-25 mins.
when the wheat bread is still hot, remove from the pan and keep it on the wire rack to cool. once cooled, serve the bread or wrap in a cling film or keep in a bread box. serve wheat bread whenever required. you can also use this atta bread to make various recipes like bread pakora, bread rolls etc.
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I just found this blog and I think I’m in love. I love how you gave a vegan replacement for yogurt.
This, and other things I’ve noticed show that you really care about your readers (-:
thank you marilyn 🙏
How to make breads without yeast ? Any substitute to yeast coz v dont use yeast
to make bread without yeast, a starter has to be made with curd, flour, baking soda or baking powder. this is fermented overnight and then added to the dough. the dough is then kept at room temperature till it doubles or triples. there is no substitute to yeast. hope this helps.
Thanks for this much awaited recipe…
Query 1:I have Morphy Richards 40 litre otg …The ‘bake’ mode in my ofg heats up only the bottom element..
‘Convection mode’- Heats up Top ,Bottom and Fan…
Please let me know which setting should I keep and time and temperature and which tray as well please..
Query 2:I want to buy a good quality aluminium bread loaf pan in india…Can you please guide me on this..(To save time is it possible to bake two loaves together..How can I buy two bread pans based on the size of otg).
Question is so lengthy…But please don’t ignore..Also please don’t display my email id while posting … Thank you..
welcome.
1. you can use both baking mode or convection mode. with convection mode the top of the bread loaf may get browned more and become crusty. with baking mode the top won’t get browned much. so if you want to get a golden browned top, then towards the end of baking change the mode to convection mode. keep the pan in the second last rack or in the center rack. time will depend on your oven. so you will have to keep a check. for temperature it the same temperature as mentioned in the recipe.
2. i got the loaf pans from a local store. you can buy them online too. check amazon.in and they have aluminium loaf pans. yes you can bake two loaves together. in a 40 litre OTG two regular sized bread pans can easily be placed.
3. i never ignore queries from readers. i always try my best to answer them. don’t worry. your email id is not displayed.
Hi I have an OTG so I would like to know the setting for baking bread as I am a beginner for bread baking, should I use convection mode or any other mode
use the baking mode of the OTG and bake the bread. using the baking mode, preheat the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. after preheating place the loaf pan in the center rack or the second lower rack and bake the bread.
Hi, thank you very much for such an excellent recipe. My question is I have a breadmaker at home and would like to make this in the breadmaker. Should I follow the wholemeal bread setting or the white bread setting?
welcome. follow the wholemeal bread setting.
Hi dassana. I use a lot of your recipes and am very happy with the results. In this one I did not notice the step by stap and used only the written instructions. Unfortunately there is no mention of brushing milk on the bread before baking. OS my bread is now baking and I m sure it ll dry. I just wanted u to know that it needs the edit for this step. I m a fan, so keep doing the Greta job u always do.
thanks radha. don’t worry the bread will be fine and won’t be dry. i make breads often and i don’t use milk at all times. sometimes i just keep the bread in the oven without brushing milk. i will update this point in the recipe card. somehow i missed adding it. but brushing of milk or water or melted butter on top of bread loaf dough is an optional step and can be skipped. hope this helps.
This is the first time ever I baked bread. It came out well except for a little hard crust. Since I used convection oven, I baked at a temperature of 170° at 35 mins. After the first 15 min of baking I covered the top with an al foil to prevent too much browning.
thanks gowri for the feedback. in convection ovens since the baking is quick, the crust gets too browned and thus hardens. next time you can bake at 165 degrees celsius. its good you covered with the foil or else the top would have got more browned and hard. right from the beginning of baking also you can cover the top with a foil.
Hello Dasana,
I don’t have an oven at home. Is there any other way to bake this bread ?
you can bake in a pressure cooker. you can even make bread rolls and bake them. follow this method o how to bake in a pressure cooker – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/pav-recipe-in-pressure-cooker/