Easy French Bread

Name: Easy French Bread
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 200 min
Ingredients: 2 tbsp white granulated sugar; 2 tsp kosher salt; 2 tbsp unsalted butter; 2 ½ cups boiling water; 6-7 cups all-purpose flour; 2 ¼ tsp (1 pkg) instant yeast; 1 large egg; 1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

Table of Contents

Why this recipe works.
Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.
Here’s how to make this recipe.
These pro tips will make this recipe a success.
Frequently asked questions about this recipe.
You'll love these other bread recipes.
Watch how to make this recipe.
Have I convinced you to make this recipe?
Easy French Bread Recipe

While bread may seem like an overwhelming recipe to bake, this easy French bread can be made by anyone. With a light and delicious interior crumb texture, this bread can be used for anything that comes to mind: sandwiches, toast, stuffing, croutons, open-faced pizzas, and more. This is truly a versatile recipe that you’ll want to have in your repertoire!

Why this recipe works.

Choosing to make bread is a big deal. There are many ways to purchase bread quickly, and some of it is pretty good. Making bread at home means you want to hone a craft and produce a loaf that has superior flavor and texture while choosing the ingredients that are used for quality. Easy french bread is a great beginner bread. This is not a traditional french baguette. This is an American-style french bread. The ingredients are pantry staples, all-purpose flour, salt, water, butter, and instant yeast. The key is kneading and working the dough to develop flavor and gluten. This dough is forgiving and easily becomes smooth. Once risen and shaped the loaves are brushed with an egg wash for color and baked to perfection.

Loaf of baked French bread sitting on marble surface with slices of some of the bread to the side with small glass bowl of sesame seeds as well.

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

Salt imparts flavor into the bread itself. Flour alone does not have much flavor, so the salt adds flavor to the recipe. Salt also helps tighten the gluten strands in the dough and create a stronger texture.
Butter adds richness to the dough and imparts additional flavor to the bread. The small amount of butter helps tenderize the dough for a soft interior.
Instant yeast does not need to be bloomed in water for it to be activated. Unlike traditional active yeast, instant yeast skips the blooming process and instead works when liquid is added along with all other ingredients.
All-purpose flour is a pantry staple. The flour will create a strong texture but still gives the right soft interior.

White marble surface filled with all ingredients needed to make French bread including egg, flour, yeast, water, sugar, butter, salt, and more.

Here’s how to make this recipe.

Mix together the wet ingredients. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar, salt, butter, and boiling water. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes while the hot water melts the butter and sugar. Then give the mixture a stir to make sure everything is dissolved. When the mixture is between 100°F and 110°F, it is ready for the next step.

Metal bowl with sugar and butter in bottom sitting on white surface with wood cutting board in background.

Hand holding wooden spatula mixing together butter with sugar and water after being melted in metal mixing bowl.

Add the dry ingredients and mix. To the warm liquid, add all of the flour except for one cup. Then add in the yeast right over the top of the flour. See the note below regarding the difference between instant yeast and active yeast. Place the bowl on the stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Begin mixing the dough, slowly at first, then increasing the speed once the flour has been worked into a cohesive mixture. After the dough has been kneaded for three to five minutes, begin adding in the remaining cup of flour, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Note: If using active yeast, reserve ½ cup of warm water and let the yeast bloom in this before adding it to the flour mixture. This should only take a few minutes (around five) for the blooming to occur. Once the yeast is foaming, it should be ready.

Large metal mixing bowl filled with melted butter and sugar and topped with flour and yeast before being mixed together with stand mixer all on wooden surface.

Stand mixer fitted with a metal bowl with dough hook mixing together white colored dough in bowl with most of dough sticking to the sides.

Knead the dough by hand. When the dough clings almost entirely to the dough hook, turn off the mixer, and remove the bowl from the stand mixer. Sprinkle your board (workspace) lightly with some flour, and remove the dough from the bowl. Begin kneading the dough by rolling it back on itself, pushing it forward with the heel of your hand, then turning it and repeating the process. Continue kneading the dough until it is no longer sticking to the countertop.

Hand kneading dough on wooden cutting board with one hand pushing down firmly on top of squished dough.

Hand kneading dough by hand by pushing dough away all on wood cutting board.

Let the dough rise. In a large glass bowl, drizzle in some flavor-free oil and work it around the sides of the bowl with your hand. Then add in the kneaded dough with the nice side facing down into the bowl, then flip it over so that side is covered with oil. Cover the bowl with a cloth and place it in a warm place until it has doubled in size.

Hand placing white towel over the top of a glass bowl with unrisen dough inside all on white surface.

Hands removing white cloth from the top of glass bowl with risen dough inside that's almost double the size of the bowl.

Roll out the dough. Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down by turning it over on itself. Remove it from the bowl and divide it into two equal dough balls. Add some additional flour to your board, take one of the dough balls, and roll it out into a rectangle until it measures 10 inches by 13 inches. Then begin rolling up the dough, starting with the long side and tightly rolling it back on itself. Once rolled, find the seam and pinch it together. With the ends, roll them back on themselves and pinch them as well. If the dough seems a bit sticky at this point, simply put some flour down on the board and roll the dough in it to lightly coat the exterior. Repeat this process for the second ball of dough.

Two hands with wooden rolling pin about to roll out dough placed on lightly floured white surface with wooden cutting board in background.

Large rectangle of dough after being rolled out with rolling pin sitting on lightly floured white surface with rolling pin to the side.

Finish up the dough. Place each loaf of dough on its own parchment-lined baking sheet. Take a beaten egg and brush it all over the top and sides of each loaf. Optionally, sprinkle the top with some sesame seeds. To finish, add five relief cuts along the top of the loaf, slicing with a serrated knife approximately ½-inch deep into the dough. Place the loaves back in a warm place and give them a second rise.

Hand using brush to brush on a beaten egg to the top of a loaf of French bread sitting on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Hand sprinkling sesame seeds on top of loaf of French bread sitting on parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake the bread. Once the loaves have risen for a second time, place them in the preheated 375°F oven and bake for 20 to 30 minutes until the internal temperature reads between 195°F and 200°F. Once baked, remove the bread from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack.

Unbaked loaf of French bread sitting on parchment-lined baking sheet right before going in the oven.

Baked loaf of French bread sitting on piece of parchment on a baking sheet with golden top with relief marks on top.

These pro tips will make this recipe a success.

Yeast needs the correct temperature to work correctly. Ensure the boiling water, butter, and sugar mixture is between 100°F and 110°F before adding the yeast. If the liquid is hotter than 110°F, it could kill the yeast, preventing the bread from rising correctly.
When mixing the dough in the stand mixer (or by hand), do not be worried if it is sticky. The stickiness is exactly what should occur as the dough develops gluten. Reserving the final cup of flour and adding it slowly after the dough has been mixed allows for a certain level of control depending on your kitchen’s circumstances (humidity level, elevation).
When letting the dough rise, use a glass bowl. This way, you’ll be able to see what is transpiring in the bowl without removing the cloth on top or moving the bowl itself.
To achieve the perfect warm place for my dough, I turn my oven on the lowest setting for two or three minutes until it has begun to heat and has an internal temperature somewhere between 85°F and 95°F. Then I turn it off and stick the unrisen dough inside. This will provide a lightly warm space in which the dough can double in size faster than it would simply sitting on the countertop.
While rolling out the dough, if it seems to be springing back, simply let it rest for five minutes. If it is resisting being rolled out, it is not ready, and letting it rest will allow the gluten to rest.
Let the bread cool on a wire cooling rack so that air can pass along the bottom of each loaf. This will prevent the bottom of the bread from trapping in heat and becoming soggy, wrinkled, and slumped.

Slices of baked French bread resting on white marble surface with bowl filled with sesame seeds and orange linen napkins.

Frequently asked questions about this recipe.

Can this dough be made by hand rather than in a stand mixer?

Yes, the dough can be made by hand. The amount of time to knead will vary but can be easily executed.

Is there a way to make this bread whole wheat instead of white?

Partially. It can be difficult to achieve the correct texture when using 100% whole wheat flour. In this recipe, you can substitute up to 1 ½ cups of whole wheat flour without too much effect on the texture. Any more than this, and the texture will begin to change noticeably.

Can more than two loaves of bread be made with this dough?

Yes, the dough can be shaped into smaller individual loaves or medium-sized ones. The rising time and baking will change accordingly, though.

Can this bread be frozen once baked?

Yes, this is the perfect bread to make and freeze so that the loaves can last for longer. I prefer to slice the loaf before freezing to make removing the amount desired as easy as possible.

Large loaf of French bread sitting on white marble surface with top of bread golden brown showing sesame seeds all over the top.

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Watch how to make this recipe.

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