Perfect Homemade French Bread only requires a handful of simple ingredients for perfect, bakery style bread at home!
There’s nothing quite like homemade bread. This homemade French bread is perfectly soft, with a nice chewy crust. It’s also incredibly simple and easy to make at home using just a handful of ingredients that most bakers will already have on hand. It really doesn’t take much time either. Yes, it’s nearly 3 hours from start to finish, but your actual hands on time is quite minimal. A few minutes here, a few minutes there, and you have deliciously perfect homemade french bread at home.
Pan Options for Homemade French Bread:
If you don’t have a French bread pan, you can always use a regular baking sheet. Just be sure to give your loaves enough space in between them so that they don’t end up connected.
If you come to love homemade french bread, I highly recommend investing in a french bread pan. It is perforated (has a lot of holes) which allows for even heat circulation. This ensures the best, highest quality of loaf at home. I highly recommend purchasing one. They are cheap and make a world of difference in the end result.
All-Purpose vs. Bread Flour:
Both all-purpose and bread flour can be used in this recipe interchangeably. Bread flour has a higher protein content which will produce more gluten, giving you a slightly chewier crumb and crust.
Why is my dough the wrong consistency?
We know how frustrating it can be to follow a recipe and still have it not look like it is supposed to. With bread, you want to look at any recipe simply as a guide. Altitude, humidity, and temperature, among other things, can all impact homemade bread. Because of this, you always want to go off of the feel of the dough rather than following the recipe exactly. If your dough is at the perfect consistency and you haven’t used all of the flour, don’t worry about it. If you’ve added all of the flour required and your dough is too sticky, go ahead and add more until it is the right consistency. You will get a good idea of what your bread needs the more you make it!
Scoring the Bread:
This bread loaf requires you to cut slits into the top of the bread before baking. This process is called “scoring the bread.” As bread bakes, it expands and scoring helps release some of that pressure so that the bread can expand without awkward bulges.
- Use a sharp knife or even a clean razor blade for scoring.
- Rely on the blade itself rather than applying pressure to the bread.
- Don’t go too deep or too shallow. 1/4 inch should be perfect.
Storage Instructions:
Due to the fact that there are not any chemicals or preservatives in homemade bread, it does not last more than a few days before going stale. The secret to keeping bread fresh is to have a little bit of airflow in whatever container you choose. Old school bread boxes are great for this, as well a linen or cotton bread bags or towels to wrap in.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious bread recipes:
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
This bread is incredibly delicious. It never ceases to amaze me how easy it is to make. My family asks for it regularly. I’ve also made it to accompany a hostess gift when visiting friends for dinner. It is ALWAYS enjoyed by all. Thank you for this recipe!!
Excellent recipe Rachael! Thanks for sharing. We love this bread! I worked in the restaurant business where we used an egg-butter mix to brush the top of the bread. That’s the only enhancement we made to the bread.
Really great recipe. Love the bread. Thank you!
Can you do the final rise, then refrigerate overnight before baking the next day?
Yes, you can refrigerate the dough overnight after the final rise! Cover it with plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out. Let it come to room temperature for about 30-60 minutes before baking the next day.
I’ve made this bread twice now and the dough does not leave the side of the bowl clean when using the dough hook on my stand mixer. After adding more flour I’ve kneaded it cause it was a dry shaggy consistency. That did the trick! Anyway, I’ve got it baking now and can’t wait to see the final result. The first batch was delicious! The recipe has made it to my keep file!
The only instant yeast I could find was in the packets. How many packets would work for this recipe?
Packets contain 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast, so for this recipe you’d need 2 packets.
I am not a bread maker, but always wanted to be. This is the second time I made this recipe. I was shocked this first time I made bread second time my family wants it all the time now. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
I tried this recipe last night and it was absolutely fantastic! The whole family said this was dangerous to have around! 🙂 Thank you so much!
Have you by chance tried substituting some or all of the all purpose flour with whole wheat or a mixture of the two?
Unfortunately, whole wheat makes the too dense for my liking. If you do try whole wheat, only swap out a portion.
Excellent. Had it for dinner, and everyone loved it.
Although now I have to order a french bread pan……
Took the entire 600g of flour. Had a panic attack when I noticed it took instant yeast. I used my bread machine instant yeast, and it overflowed my bowl when it finished rising.
I love all of your recipes and you! You’re Amazing! Thank you
Your video was so clear and to my surprise the first batch turned out beautifully. My family gobbled it up.
I’ve since made this several times and it never disappoints.
Thank you for making us have the confidence to bake. I have always shied away from baking bread. You are amazing. Thank you!!!!