Easy Homemade French Bread
Homemade French bread has never been easier! This simple recipe produces a light and fluffy loaf of French bread that will rival any bakery!
This easy homemade French bread is so simple and perfect for a bread making beginner.
But as you can see from all the comments below, it’s just as valued by expert bread makers, too!
Making French Bread Dough
This straightforward bread dough can be made in a stand mixer or by hand.
- Warm water
- Yeast (instant or active dry yeast)
- Bit of sugar and oil
- Salt
- Flour (all-purpose or bread flour)
At the start, the dough will look shaggy and rough.
But as it kneads, it will become soft and smooth.
The most important part of this dough (and other yeast doughs) is to judge the amount of flour by the look and feel of the dough rather than the exact amount of flour called for in the recipe.
Factors such as humidity, elevation, room temperature, how we each measure flour, and more can affect the amount of flour added. So don’t stress about precise flour measurements and continuously feel the dough to achieve a soft dough that is slightly tacky but doesn’t leave a lot of residue on your fingers.
Too little flour and the dough will be a mess to handle. Additionally, the bread won’t hold its shape as it rises and bakes.
Too much flour and the dough won’t rise well and the bread will be tough and dense.
Two Methods for Dough Rising
In the recipe, there are two methods to letting the dough rise:
- Leave the dough in the mixer, cover with a lid or towel, and let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Stir it down by turning on the mixer for 10 seconds or so. Repeat the “rest and stir down” cycle five more times.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel or greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until doubled, about an hour or so, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.
I alternate between the two methods depending on my mood. The 10-minute increment rising method is unique to this original French bread recipe. The idea is that allowing the dough to rise this way produces a lighter crumb.
But the more traditional rising method also results in a delicious, fluffy loaf.
How to Shape French Bread Loaves
The question I get asked the most about this easy homemade French bread is how to shape the loaves.
The loaves can really be made any size or shape; I usually end up making 12-inch loaves, but if they end up being a bit thinner or chubbier, it’s no big deal!
Press each portion of dough into a flat rectangle and fold the bottom edge up and over the dough, pressing the seam flat with your hand.
Then, roll the dough up again to meet the top edge.
Fold the top edge over and press or pinch lightly.
Take the end of the bread dough and fold it up and over an inch or two to give an even thickness all the way down the loaf.
Pinch to seal the end. Repeat on the other end of the dough.
Then, deliberately and thoroughly pinch and seal the entire length of the loaf.
How to Score the French Bread Dough
Scoring the bread dough (in my house, also called: slashing or gashing) helps the dough rise better AND prevents it from cracking in unexpected places while baking.
Using a bread lame for this task is extremely helpful. A bread lame is a long stick or utensil with a razor blade on the end. The razor is used to make thin cuts in the dough.
If you don’t have a bread lame, using a clean, sharp razor blade or an extremely sharp kitchen knife can work. Be aware that if the knife isn’t sharp enough, it’ll likely deflate the dough.
The bread loaves can be scored before or after the final rise. I prefer to do the slashing and gashing before they rise as I’ve had one too many loaves of risen bread deflate at the first touch of the razor, and there is nothing so soul crushing as when that happens.
Let the bread loaves rise until noticeably puffy before baking.
Easy Hack for Crusty French Bread
For a delicious golden crust, immediately before putting the bread in the oven, toss 3-4 ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven. Add the bread and quickly (but gently!) close the oven door.
The steam as the ice cubes hit the toasty bottom of the oven will lightly crisp up the outer crust as the bread bakes.
Important Note! Please consult your oven’s manual for details or caution on putting ice/water on the bottom of the oven floor – I’ve never had a problem, but everyone should do their own research and use their own best judgment (also take care not to toss the ice cubes on the glass oven door as it could crack).
If you are struggling to get a deeper golden crust on the French bread, try:
- Increasing the oven temperature by 25 degrees and/or
- Moving the oven rack up one position (I find my bread browns the best in the middle or upper middle area of my oven)
Whole Wheat French Bread
As noted in the recipe, French bread works quite well using whole wheat flour. I’ve found the best results are when using white whole wheat flour (red whole wheat flour makes a denser, heavier loaf).
I recommend subbing in half whole wheat flour to start and then adding more whole wheat flour as you continue to make subsequent batches of bread.
If using whole wheat flour, add a 2-3 minutes to the kneading time to help develop the gluten (also, adding a couple tablespoons of vital wheat gluten/gluten flour can also help the whole wheat bread bake up light and fluffy).
Helpful Tip: If you’ve struggled with your bread flattening out while baking instead of holding the perfect shape, you might try these French bread pans {aff. link}. I have them and LOVE them. I don’t use them every time I make this bread, but I do pull them out quite often (I also use them for this rosemary bread).
Perfect Homemade French Bread
With over 2,500 5-star reviews, this homemade French bread has become a favorite for so many of you.
Hundreds of you have let me know that you have been intimidated by homemade bread until you found this recipe! It is easy, foolproof, and will make you feel like a bread making rock star.
Helena says: Finally, after 5 failed bread attempts using other places recipes, this is THE recipe to use! Happy dance! Thank you for sharing this awesome recipe! Delicious bread!
Valerie writes: Such a fantastic, easy recipe. The “hands on” time is minimal and it comes out perfect every time. Thanks for sharing a recipe that’s become my “to do” dinner bread!
Nichole says: Followed instructions exactly! First time making any sort of bread ever. The bread turned out perfect!!!!
Pia commented: Hands down my go-to bread recipe. Today’s edition is 1/3 dark rye flour, with Italian herbs and caraway seeds mixed in and sprinkled with everything bagel topping. Yum! Best bread recipe ever, and so easily customizable!
FAQs for Homemade French Bread
Yes! Halve all the ingredients straight across – just keep an eye on the amount of flour and judge the final amount by the look and feel of the dough.
Yes, it freezes great (after baking and cooling).
Moving an oven rack up or down can help. In my oven, the bread browns best in the upper half of the oven. Also, you can try increasing the oven temp by 25 degrees.
Absolutely! You can mix the ingredients in a bowl with a spatula or spoon and knead by hand.
I always use the same amount interchangeably. Recently, I’ve heard that active dry yeast doesn’t need to be proofed in liquid first, but I always still do when using active dry yeast (no need to proof with instant yeast).
Yes, just keep an eye on baking time – smaller loaves may need less baking time.
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Easy Homemade French Bread
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups warm water, 110-115 degrees F
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast (see note)
- 2 ¼ teaspoons salt (see note)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, canola oil, vegetable oil or avocado oil
- 5 ½ – 6 cups (781 – 852 g) all-purpose flour or bread flour (see note)
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the water sugar and yeast. If using active dry yeast, let the mixture bubble and foam before proceeding (this can take 3-5 minutes). If using instant yeast, proceed with the recipe (no need to let the yeast activate).
- Add the salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and mix. Add in 2 1/2 to 3 more cups of flour gradually. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl and form a soft ball that doesn't leave a lot of dough residue on your fingers.
- Knead for 2-3 minutes until the dough is smooth. If the dough starts to cling to the sides of the bowl (or the center column if using a Bosch or other mixer with a center), add 1/4 cup of flour at a time until a sturdy but soft ball of dough forms.
- Rising Method 1: Leave the dough in the mixer, cover with a lid or towel, and let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Stir it down by turning on the mixer for 10 seconds or so. Repeat the "rest and stir down" cycle five more times.
- Rising Method 2: Instead of letting the dough rest for 10 minute spurts and then stirring it down, transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel or greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until doubled, about an hour or so, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly greased surface and divide in half. Pat each section into a thick rectangle, 9X13-inches or thereabouts (doesn't have to be exact). Roll the dough up starting from the long edge, pressing out any air bubbles or seams with the heel of your hand, and pinch the edge to seal. Arrange seam side down on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper (I use separate baking sheets for each loaf).
- With a bread lame, razor blade or VERY sharp knife, cut several gashes at an angle on the top each loaf (you can wait to score the bread until after it rises, but it can easily deflate if the razor/knife isn't sharp enough).
- Cover the loaves with greased plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, and let rise until noticeably puffy and nearly doubled in size, about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and make sure an oven rack is in the center position. If you find your bread isn't browning as much as you like, preheat the oven to 400 or 425 degrees and/or move the oven rack up one position (watch carefully so the bread, especially the bottom, doesn't burn).
- Optional: for an extra golden, crisp crust, place the loaves in the preheated oven and immediately toss 3-4 ice cubes on the bottom of the oven. Close the oven door quickly but gently. (See note below!)
- Bake the loaves for 25-30 minutes until golden and baked through.
- If desired, brush melted butter over the hot loaves (this softens the crust a bit, so if you want a crispier crust, don't butter the top).
Notes
Recipe Source: adapted slightly from The Sister’s Cafe
Ice, try preheating a small pan on the bottom rack and toss the ice cube in that.
If I use convection oven to bake 2 loaves, do I change the oven temperature?
Sometimes it is recommended when using convection bake to drop the temperature 25 degrees. Each oven is different. In my current oven, I would leave the oven temperature the same (but that’s because it tends to cook on the cool side of things vs the hot side of things). Also if you are baking the bread on separate oven racks, I’d recommend switching oven racks halfway through so both loaves brown evenly.
If I use
Just perfect!! Thanks for the recipe!
This was just ok. I think two tablespoons of sugar to feed the yeast is excessive as my loaves came out tasting much sweeter than I would have liked.
I was wondering about that, I’ve seen recipes that only used 1 and a half teaspoons so I wasn’t sure if that was a typo or if it was going to come out on the sweeter side
Can you freeze this dough and then use it later?
I haven’t tried that, but many yeast doughs like this freeze well, so it should work pretty well.
Amazing bread works every time
So I made this recipe and it looked beautiful. I egg washed and sprinkled “Everything Bagel” seasoning on top. Hard lesson learned tho, after second rise I touched unbaked loaf and POOF…Fell flat.
Tastes yummy anyway, just not pretty.
Instead of using ice cubes which could harm your oven, I keep a cheap sprayer filled with water close to my oven to spritz inside of my oven. If I rotate the pan, then I spritz again.
Instead of using ice cubes which could harm your oven, I keep a cheap sprayer filled with water close to my oven to spritz inside of my oven. If I rotate the pan, then I spritz again.
I have made this recipe for years and it’s great. Pulled it up online today and noticed an alternate proofing method has been added…. which is much easier, esp if you want to mix the dough and then run an errand, pick up a kid, etc. while it’s proofing. Do the different proofing methods result in any significant difference to the final bread structure?
I haven’t done a side by side comparison, but I don’t think the end results are very much different from each other.
Recipe tasted meh at best, found a much better recipe on YouTube with clearer and more concise instructions.
I have never made bread before and I was so pleasantly surprised by how delicious, even better then hot store bought. Maybe try again. It was super easy even for a beginner who knows nothing like me
Awesome recipe! Will absolutely make again. I used this loaf for garlic bread and it was great, but I think next time we will just eat it as is! Very easy, and the dough rose up beautifully. I didn’t have a bakers lame or a sharp knife to score with, so I just used a normal knife I had and cut the bread after I formed it into a loaf before it rose. Worked great! I wish I could post a picture.
Comes out wonderful every time
And EZ
Love it bake one every weekend
“French Bread Law:
Bread may only contain 4 ingredients: wheat flour, water, salt and yeast.”
Tastes similar to French bread but is not traditional French bread.
Correct, adding fat (olive oil) and sugar make it Italian bread. Good recipe regardless but, I would not use as much sugar to feed the yeast, maybe tsp. or 2 of honey.
This was the best bread I’ve ever made. It tastes just like the fluffiest fresh bakery bread with a flaky crusty crust- just perfect! I used bread flour and weighed it as directed. This makes two huge loaves.
A wash should be added before the baking process and temp needs to be higher
Fantastic! I used 1/2 water and 1/2 buttermilk and used the ice cube trick. Turned out amazing. I paid attention to the details and read his blog about yeast and the proper consistency of the dough. Very educational and helpful to know when to stop adding flour. My previous breads were always so dense because I over floured the dough. Highly recommend reading up on that if your a first time bread maker.
I have made this recipe but my bread isn’t soft inside and a good crust on the outside why I use the cold water under the bread and even spray it before it goes in hot oven what I’ m I doing wrong
I make this almost once a week! It’s the best!
Do you have instructions on how to bake after freezing? Like oven temp and time?
I’m not much help for that because usually I bake and then freeze.
No problem! How do you bake it after baking and freezing?
I don’t bake it again after baking and freezing…I just thaw and we slice and eat it or reheat lightly in the oven or microwave.
Best French bread I have ever made.
Could I form this dough into breadsticks? Made it once as loaves of bread and it was delicious I would love to be able to make individual breadsticks…
I haven’t tried it, but I bet you could!
Not french bread. French bread is a lean bread. No oils also it is made with a poolish
This is by far the best French bread recipe I have EVER tried! My bread turns out perfect every time! But I’d love to find out how to sweeten this bread for cinnamon rolls.
By far the best bread recipe I have found. My fist batch got deflated but my 8 year old said I should open a bakery. It tastes great even when you mess it up. ❤️❤️❤️
Nah, never use this again.
Hey. Sounds like you just didn’t make it right
The bread came out so well I’m incredibly impressed! The dough fluffed up perfectly and the loaf tasted heavenly. This was my very first attempt at baking bread and I was not disappointed. I ended up halving the measurements to make only one loaf, but ended up with enough to make 2 slightly smaller loaves. Definitely worth giving this recipe a try, even for a beginner like me!
The recipe was easy to follow and the French Bread was amazing!
I made this recipe but ended up with 2 loaves that were completely as long if not slight longer than the bread mold suggestion in the post. I live in the Southwest USA at 5000 ft. elevation. Any suggestions of why the loaves were so huge? By the way the flavor of the bread was to die for.
You can split the dough into four loaves if you’d like. It could be that I roll them a bit thicker and not quite as long.
Love this recipe! Followed to the letter and came out beautifully! My family asked immediately when they could have a slice!
It passed the Hilary test (our daughter is very picky!). Thank you, Mel! I appreciate all your baking and look to you first for a very good recipe to use for my family and friends.
Amazing recipe! We liked ours on the lighter side.
Great!! I use half buttermilk half water to give it that twang French bread has. Can do tsp lemon juice or vinegar as well! I only use instant yeast so I cut both rise times in half. Also a good old fashioned straight razor is what I use can be found at any beauty supply “sallys” for under $3 pack of 10 will last forever if just using for bread!
Also you can brush with beaten egg b4 you bake if you want a darker crust
I’ve made this bread several times in the past few months and I get perfect bread every time. This time, however, I switched things up. I added more salt as the recipe is a little bland, and this time I seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, sage and Italian seasoning after I rolled the dough out, just before rolling it up to form the loaf. And just before popping it in the oven I added the same spices to the top. Never in a million years did I think it would be possible for me to bake bread this well!
Used it several times. Now it is my forever french bread recipe
i really love this recipe! can i double the batch?
Yes, it doubles great!
What weird animals do you have at your farm?
Hey Eliza, we have miniature donkeys, kunekune pigs and a wide range of specialty chickens (not necessarily weird, I guess, just kind of fun and unusual)
Delicious and so easy, very good directions !
which do you prefere ap or bread flour
I almost always make this with unbleached all-purpose flour.
Made this today, turns out perfect just as u mentioned. Love this French loaf so much. TQVM
French bread does not contain sugar or oil.
This one does and it’s AMAZING
I followed the instructions, just used a sharp knife to slit the top. Came out GREAT!
I have made this multiple times and it’s always a hit. Taste great the next few days too and makes good toast.
Thank you 🙂
Excellent but it needed more salt 🙂
This is the best French bread recipe! I have made it multiple times and always cut dough into 3 pieces so I have three lovely loaves. I make them a bit longer and cut the slashes in right then, never after they rise. They freeze beautifully (so make a full recipe) as long as you let the loaves fully cool. I double bag them for freezer.
Is 1 tablespoon of yeast the same as 1 packet of yeast?
I think I it’s 2&1/4 teaspoon so almost a tablespoon
Hi Barb, a packet of yeast is 2 1/4 teaspoons and one tablespoon is three teaspoons.
I was so excited for this bread. My bread never freaking rises but this one did. Then I made the slashes and it deflated 🙁 I should have read the instructions better. Since I don’t have a bread slashing tool and my knives aren’t the sharpest I should have done it before the second rise. This is like my 4th batch of bread and I swear the 5th batch will finally be perfect. Lol
You’re supposed to score the bread before the hour of proofing; I worked at Subway and if you score when it’s big it’ll deflate. I forgot this and the same thing happened to me lol
No I haven’t where is the recipe looked all over
Made 1 loaf last night, Used a Kitchenaid for the mixing. Sprinkled 5-6 chopped cloves of garlic before rolling up and then served with lasagna. Excellent. Thanks.
Yes I halved the recipe it was fair . Definitely did not look like your loaves.