Brioche Recipe

Wealthy and buttery, but amazingly mild and chic, Brioche is a crown jewel of conventional French baking. Taught to me by JB, our resident French Chef, this recipe makes unbelievable boulangerie high quality brioche straightforward – no extra overpriced, underwhelming store-bought variations!

When you’ve ever questioned what makes Brioche totally different from most different breads, the reply is butter. Unsurprising actually, given the French origins of this scrumptious bread!

Enrichening bread with butter and eggs is what offers Brioche its croissant-like flavour, its uniquely smooth crumb and its signature crust that’s paper-thin and an attractive, burnished mahogany. 

Retailer-bought Brioche is most of the time a pale instance of what an excellent brioche needs to be like.

Retailer-bought Brioche isn’t solely costly however most of the time a pale instance of what an excellent brioche needs to be like. Mass-produced Brioche usually skimps on butter for value causes, for one. It’s additionally produced with out the care wanted to bake a very nice brioche.

Making your personal Brioche then again isn’t almost as exhausting because it sounds and infinitely rewarding. Incomparable style apart, while you bake your personal Brioche, the smells wafting by your own home are actually intoxicating. The candy scent of butter, sugar and toasty bread will immediately teleport you to a comfortable bakery in a quaint village with cobblestone streets, someplace within the French countryside. It’s …. simply … magical!

So, are you able to bake probably the most wonderful bread of your life?? Oui? Then let’s do that!!

For a recipe this iconic I wished to make sure I did it justice, making it the normal, real-deal French means. So this do-it-yourself Brioche recipe is one I created along with a classically-trained French chef residing proper right here in Sydney, Jean-Baptiste Alexandre.

We created this recipe with knowledge we gleaned from well-respected French cookbooks to reach at what we predict is the very best Brioche a house prepare dinner could make. The notable books we used are:

• Larousse Gastronomique;

• Escoffier’s Le Information Culinaire; and

• French Patisserie Grasp Recipes and Strategies from the Ferrandi Faculty of Culinary Arts.

Let me be upfront: Brioche isn’t a 30-minute shake-n’-bake job you may whip up after work. Brioche is a undertaking for a kind of homebody days while you plan to potter round the home all day doing chores or stress-free. It’s because it takes 8 1/2 hours from begin to end:

• Making dough: 35 minutes mixing + 10 minutes prep = 45 minutes

• Rise #1: 2 hours

• Refrigeration: 1.5 hours

• Rise #2: 3 hours

• Baking: 35 minutes

• Cooling: 45 minutes

• TOTAL = ~8.5 hours

The overwhelming majority of this time as you may see is actually fully passive, ie. ready round – for the dough to combine, proof, relaxation, bake, cool and so forth. The lively time is definitely a tiny proportion of the general course of. And I promise you the top end result makes it extra than definitely worth the time funding. Brioche actually is probably the most extraordinary do-it-yourself bread I’ve ever made. However make no mistake, it does require dedication!

Aside from the truth that there’s a substantial quantity of butter referred to as for – unsurprising given the attractive buttery flavour of this bread – there’s no uncommon elements in any respect in brioche. The distinctive half is within the making!

• Plain / all-purpose flour – An fascinating reality is that Brioche is fluffier, rises higher (about 15% taller) and has a softer crumb when made with plain / all-purpose flour slightly than bread flour (ie. excessive protein flour). The latter sometimes yields a greater end result for many breads corresponding to Artisan bread, Naan and Pide, to call a number of. But not for Brioche. We all know as a result of we examined bread flour vs plain flour variations of Brioche side-by-side!

  Solely bought bread flour? Brioche remains to be completely value making. It’s simply even higher with good previous plain flour!

• On the spot / rapid-rise yeast – On the spot / rapid-rise yeast known as for on this recipe. The recipe additionally works with normal lively / dry yeast, however the brioche doesn’t rise fairly as a lot and the crumb isn’t fairly as tender.

• Butter – Plenty of it … The quantity of butter is considerably greater than most breads, and is what offers Brioche its signature intense, buttery flavour. 150g / 10.5 tablespoons of butter to 300g / 2 cups of flour right here, which is a minimum of 5 instances as a lot as a median white bread recipe! (Excessive 5! 🙌🏼 😂)

  Softened / room temperature butter is required. The butter have to be softened and never fridge-cold, so it incorporates extra simply into the dough. Goal a temperature of 20 – 22°C / 68-71.5°F (in case you have a thermometer).

  Nevertheless the butter should not be so smooth that it’s melting, in any other case the dough will find yourself greasy. It needs to be agency sufficient so you may choose it up together with your fingers however smooth sufficient which you can solely simply achieve this, and may squish it pretty simply;

• Sugar – Brioche is technically a Viennoiserie, a category of wealthy, candy breads and pastries that features Danishes and croissants. The extent of sweetness you encounter in Brioche can range. For me, I prefer it on the much less candy aspect, straddling the road between candy and savoury. I really feel this manner it’s not too candy when unfold with say, jam (a conventional French accompaniment for brioche), and nonetheless additionally appropriate for savoury meals (eg. for burgers, sliders, breakfast rolls and so forth);

• 1/2 cup (125 ml) eggs, at room temperature – This recipe very particularly requires 1/2 cup (125 ml) of eggs which is roughly 2 1/2 eggs. I attempted rounding as much as 3 (it was too eggy and it dried out the crumb) and rounding all the way down to 2 (the crumb was too free).

  So, sorry people! 2 1/2 eggs it’s!

  A couple of pointers:

  – Learn how to measure the eggs out: Simply crack 3 eggs right into a bowl, whisk, then measure out 1/2 cup (125 ml). We’ll use the remaining egg for the egg wash, don’t fear!
  – Use at room temperature: Eggs must be at room temperature and never fridge-cold, so that they incorporate higher into the dough. 
  – A fast option to heat up fridge-cold eggs: Place eggs in a big bowl, cowl with heat faucet water (simply heat, not scorching) and depart for five minutes. Wipe dry (to keep away from residual water dripping into bowl), then use per recipe.

To make brioche correctly, you will want a stand mixer as a result of the recipe requires 35 minutes of kneading which is what makes brioche wealthy and buttery, but an extremely tender crumb. (Theoretically I suppose kneading by palms is feasible, however I can’t start to think about how lengthy it is going to take! You’ll must be both a masochist or an Olympic rower … )

Don’t have a stand mixer? Don’t fear! This may be made utilizing a meals processor in 5 minutes flat. It rises about 10% much less however the outcomes are nonetheless distinctive!

Half 1: Bloom yeast

1. Combine on the spot yeast with heat milk and sugar: As soon as combined, depart it for 10 minutes to bloom, ie. change into foamy. This isn’t a typical step you see in bread-making when utilizing on the spot yeast. Often the entire level of on the spot yeast is which you can add it straight into dough with out mixing with heat water or milk and letting it foam first.

   However when creating the Naan recipe and likewise Pide, we discovered that blooming on the spot yeast in a heat water and sugar answer first makes flatbreads fluffier and softer. The identical additionally applies to brioche.

   Blooming the yeast first can also be a precious insurance coverage coverage to verify the yeast is alive and properly earlier than baking. Think about setting apart your day to make this Brioche solely to seek out it hasn’t risen as a result of the yeast is useless! 😱 Don’t even go there … !

2. Foam check: So we do our yeast foam check to keep away from all this potential heartbreak. That is what it appears like after 10 minutes. Foamy? Good!

Half 2: Make the dough (it’s tremendous smooth!)

Heads up: Sure actually, the dough takes 35 minutes to combine utilizing a stand mixer. It can appear like a sticky, unusable paste for the primary 25 minutes, and even as soon as prepared it is going to nonetheless be a really, very smooth dough. Click on right here to leap to the part explaining why the dough is smooth.

1. Make dough: Within the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the flour, eggs, salt, remainder of the sugar and the foamy yeast. Combine on Velocity 1 simply till elements are mixed;

2. Mixing – Half 1 (quarter-hour): After the elements are mixed, then combine on Velocity 1 for five minutes then on Velocity 2 for 10 minutes. Sure actually, for quarter-hour!

   (Click on right here to examine why it takes this lengthy. In brief, it’s as a result of the excessive quantity of butter on this dough inhibits the formation of gluten that happens once we knead dough which makes breads rise. So we’ve got to knead for for much longer than typical breads for the the gluten to kind.)

   What ought to the dough appear like at this stage? Tremendous sticky and pasty, and completely un-dough-like. No means might you knead it together with your palms. You’re heading in the right direction!

Subsequent, we add butter:

3. Slowly add butter: With the stand mixer nonetheless on Velocity 2, drop butter cubes in steadily. Do that over about 90 seconds to 2 minutes, giving the dough an opportunity to combine a lot of the butter in. Don’t dump all of the butter in a single go as it is going to take for much longer for the butter to include;

4. Incorporate butter: Preserve mixing till the butter is absolutely included – about 1 minute. At first the butter will likely be pushed across the sides however finally it is going to combine in.

   What ought to the dough appear like at this stage? Even stickier and pastier! Chances are you’ll begin to doubt me … however have religion! The dough will agency up later to the purpose we will simply deal with it after kneading with the stand mixer (see subsequent step).

5. Mixing – Half 2 (20 minutes): After you may now not see lumps of dough, combine on Velocity 2 for 20 minutes. Sure, a complete 20 minutes! Click on right here to examine why it takes this lengthy.

   Scrape down the edges of the bowl every so often, as wanted. I do it about 3 instances initially of the blending when the combination is caught all around the aspect of the bowl. In direction of the top of the blending time, the dough will come collectively and the edges of the bowl will likely be clear;

6. What ought to the dough appear like at this stage (completed)? We wish the dough as smooth as potential however simply agency sufficient and un-sticky sufficient to deal with. Mushy dough = smooth brioche! The next images present what the dough appears like earlier than and after mixing.

Brioche dough initially (left) and finish (proper) of blending:

And right here’s one other photograph in the direction of the top of the blending time. You possibly can see how the dough has come collectively and are available away from the aspect of the bowl (ie the dough isn’t so pasty it’s caught all on the bowl).

The “window pane check”: The “window pane” check will inform you in case your dough can also be sufficiently elastic which suggests it has been kneaded sufficient. Take a walnut dimension piece of dough and stretch out into a skinny movie utilizing your fingers. When you can see mild by it and do that with out the dough breaking, then it has been kneaded sufficient. If not, hold kneading!

Typically it takes longer to knead the dough, relying on the heat and humidity of the kitchen. I haven’t pinpointed actual temperatures but, however typically the warmer a kitchen, the longer the dough takes to knead till prepared. 20 minutes is the time it has constantly taken me in a ~21 – 23°C (70 – 73.5°F) kitchen.

Half 3: Rising and shaping the loaf

Dough made, it’s now time to let it rise and to kind the loaf.

1. Rise #1 (2 hours): Form the dough right into a ball, put it again into the stand mixer bowl. Cowl with cling wrap and put it in a heat place for two hours till it has doubled in dimension.

   When searching for a heat place to let the dough rise, do not forget that the hotter it’s, the quicker it is going to rise. Don’t put it in direct daylight. The warmth is just too sturdy and can dry out the dough.

   CHEEKY TIP: Use your dryer! Run it for a couple of minutes to heat it up, then place the dough in and shut the door. It’s a draught-free, heat and cosy surroundings your dough will love!

2. How the dough takes care of Rise #1: It has doubled in dimension.

3. Divide the dough into 3: Punch the dough dough to launch all of the air. Scrape out onto a frivolously floured work floor. Fold the skin of the dough in 6 instances. Form right into a log then reduce into 3 equal parts and form right into a ball (~225g / 7.9oz per piece);

4. Elective: Place in fridge (1.5 hours): Line a deep container or roasting pan with baking/parchment paper that’s been frivolously sprayed with oil. Place dough on paper, cowl with cling wrap or a lid, frivolously sprayed with oil. Refrigerate for 1.5 hours.

   This step makes the butter within the dough harden which in flip makes the dough firmer and simpler to deal with. This makes it simpler to form right into a braid and makes the floor of the brioche smoother.

   It’s an optionally available step as a result of you may proceed straight onto forming the loaf and Rise #2. When you skip it the within of the brioche will come out precisely the identical, however the floor of the brioche will likely be barely extra streaky (just like the crust of croissants). It’s additionally just a little more durable to deal with as a result of the dough could be very smooth.

   To be sincere, I love the crust of brioche that hasn’t been refrigerated as a result of it flakes like croissants. However in pursuit of perfection, I’ve included the refrigeration step!

6. Place in loaf pan: Spray a 21.5 x11cm (8.5 x 4.3″) loaf pan well-coated with oil spray (this works higher than butter to make sure it doesn’t stick), then place the dough in.

   Calmly spray cling wrap with oil, then cowl the dough. (Oiling the cling wrap stops the dough from sticking to the cling wrap. If it sticks, it is going to causes the dough to deflate while you take away the cling wrap.)

   Completely different dimension loaf pans are high-quality to make use of, however it is going to have an effect on the form/top of the brioche. You can too bake it freeform (ie. simply on a tray) however keep in mind it is going to unfold out extra so it will likely be wider than it’s tall;

7. Rise #2 (3 hours): Rise in a heat place for 3 hours or till it’s simply over double in dimension. In my loaf pan, the dough rises to 1cm / 0.2″ above rim at highest level of the dough.

   This rise takes longer than you would possibly anticipate as a result of the dough first wants to come back to room temperature (ie take away fridge chill) earlier than it begins to heat up and truly rise.

   Right here’s a comparability of earlier than and after rising within the loaf pan:

Now, we’re able to bake!

Half 4: Baking

1. Egg wash: Brush the brioche gently with leftover egg. That is what offers the brioche the signature deep golden color and glossy end;

2. Bake uncovered quarter-hour: Place a shelf so the brioche will sit within the lowest 1/3 of the oven. If it sits greater, the highest goes just a little too golden too rapidly.

   Bake uncovered for quarter-hour at 200°C/390°F (180°C fan). The brioche needs to be a bronzed, mahogany color.

3. Bake lined 20 minutes extra: Take away the brioche from the oven and canopy loosely with foil. Bake for an additional 20 minutes (thus 35 minutes in whole).

   Cooked inside temperature – The inner temperature of cooked brioche is 88°C/190°F. That is barely decrease than the goal temperature of 93-96°C /200-205°F of most breads as a result of it’s an enriched dough (ie. excessive in fats). Decrease fats breads have a better cooked inside temperature.

4. Relaxation baked brioche: Instantly flip completed brioche out onto a rack. Don’t depart it sitting within the loaf pan as it is going to overcook and the crust will even go soggy.

   Depart the brioche to chill for a minimum of 45 minutes earlier than slicing (or tearing!) to serve. It is a key step for any bread to permit it to complete cooking inside and settle. When you reduce bread as quickly because it comes out of the oven, the within remains to be doughy and moist.

And now for the most effective half – EATING IT!!!

Brioche is a singular bread, and with it comes a singular manufacturing course of. So on this part, I’m sharing some further background data stating among the quirks and options of brioche typically as properly this recipe particularly. I hope it might curiosity these of you interested by the why on the subject of baking. 🙂

1. It is a conventional French Brioche recipe – with one exception

This Brioche recipe is a conventional French brioche recipe excluding one factor: the yeast. Skilled French patisseries and bakeries historically make brioche with recent yeast, which isn’t available to all residence cooks. Additionally, working with recent yeast requires succesful baking expertise.

So I’ve chosen to create a brioche recipe made with dry yeast to make this extra accessible to residence cooks.

2. Butter in brioche: Go large or go residence

One factor that places this brioche recipe firmly within the “genuine French” camp versus most recipes you’ll discover on the web is the amount of butter used. This recipe requires 150g / 10.5 tablespoons of butter per 300g / 2 cups of flour which is a ratio of 1:2.

Many recipes will name for under round half the butter this recipe makes use of (1:4 butter to flour) which makes the dough simpler to work with (as a result of it’s not as smooth as it’s on this recipe). On the flip aspect nonetheless, it considerably reduces the richness and buttery flavour of the top end result.

Butter is the guts and soul of an excellent brioche. In my humble opinion, if we’re going to all the hassle to bake a brioche, let’s do it proper!

3. Why does brioche dough must be kneaded for thus lengthy?

Brioche dough takes 35 minutes to kind utilizing a stand mixer due to the quantity of fats within the dough from the butter and eggs. This implies it requires far longer for the gluten to kind by the kneading course of than common bread.

Brioche dough known as an enriched dough which has greater quantities of fats (butter), sugar and dairy than typical breads. Brioche has round 5 instances as a lot butter as a median white bread recipe!

Fats inhibits the formation of gluten which is shaped once we knead dough which is required to make breads rise so that they’re smooth and fluffy. So brioche dough is required to be kneaded for longer than regular to develop the gluten.

4. No standmixer? No worries.

When you don’t have a stand mixer you should use a meals processor as an alternative! It’s additionally a lot faster, taking simply 5 minutes flat. Instructions within the recipe.

The Brioche rises barely much less, however it tastes precisely the identical. Under is a visible comparability of the outcomes.

Comparability: Meals processor (5 minutes kneading) vs stand mixer (35 minutes kneading)

So why I didn’t share the meals processor model as the bottom recipe if it’s so good? A very good query and my reply is that this:

Brioche is an iconic recipe, one of many nice breads on this planet. I wished to indicate you the way it’s made correctly and historically. The actual fact stays that the meals processor model is not fairly pretty much as good as making it with a stand mixer as a result of it doesn’t rise fairly as properly. However the distinction is marginal. So given how a lot time you save, to not point out being a superb different to these of you who don’t have a stand mixer, I absolutely endorse the meals processor methodology as a wonderfully acceptable compromise!

5. “Assist! My dough appears too smooth! Is that this regular?”

Calm down. The dough for brioche is way softer than typical bread doughs and that is the key to the terribly smooth crumb of actual brioche.
In reality, the dough is so smooth that for more often than not the dough is being labored within the stand mixer it is going to have a paste-like consistency. It is going to be so moist and sticky that it’s unimaginable to deal with as a result of it will simply persist with your palms.
As you proceed to knead the dough within the stand mixer although, the dough corporations up. It can come to some extent the place it might probably now be dealt with. It is going to be easy and nonetheless very smooth – a lot softer than typical bread doughs – however shouldn’t persist with your palms.
The dough can also be refrigerated partway by the making of the Brioche to help in shaping by hand earlier than inserting into the loaf time, so we get a pleasant easy crust.
You’ll discover “straightforward” brioche recipes on the web which have firmer doughs which are simpler to work with. However you’ll additionally discover the crumb of these breads isn’t as smooth as an actual brioche. Sure, we made a LOT of brioche in latest months!!

6. Inside an ideal brioche: “Cotton sweet” strands

Nevertheless slightly than being chewy, the crumb is smooth and giving like cake. Much more engaging is the distinct cotton candy-like strands of the inside that peel away while you tug at them. These strands are actually mesmerising, to each play with and eat! To me, it’s one of many options that makes brioche so particular and completely in contrast to another bread. Maybe like popping bubble wrap, it appeals to the internal youngster inside me – I discover these strands irresistible!

In France, brioche is often served for breakfast and afternoon tea. Suppose heat slices of brioche with butter (as a result of, properly, you understand, there’s simply not sufficient butter in brioche as it’s! 😂) and a great smear of do-it-yourself jam.

Conventional which may be, however in my world the purposes of brioche are a lot broader! Right here’s how else I like to make use of brioche:

• Breakfast, morning tea, afternoon tea, and all snacking instances in between – Both slices of a heat loaf or toasted and unfold with butter and high quality jam. I personally discover honey too candy with brioche, however that’s simply me …

• Bread on the aspect of meals – Apparently that is “not performed” in France, I presume as a result of it’s all a bit a lot. “A bit a lot” by no means stopped me although, and nor ought to it you! Think about mopping up the garlic butter on a plate of Garlic Prawns or Baked Fish with brioche … Yerrrrrsss!!

• For sandwiches, sliders, burgers – Brioche buns are all the trend at stylish bistros!

• Eggs – Topped with scrambled or poached eggs (strive it with Eggs Benedict!);

• The final word Bread and Butter Pudding; or

• Probably the most unbelievable French Toast of your life.

• Serve with chicken liver parfait or smoked fish pâté – a development you see at nouveau French eating places lately, as an alternative of crackers or toast.

Principally, something you’ll eat with bread will likely be higher in case you substitute it with brioche! You simply can’t go mistaken. – Johnsat x

Brioche Recipe

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Serves: 10 Prep Time: 45 minutes Cooking Time: 35 minutes 35 minutes

Nutrition facts: 231 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 tsp instant/rapid rise dried yeast (other yeasts see Note 1)
• 4 tbsp milk , warm, full fat (Note 2)
• 2 cups plain/all purpose flour (not bread flour, Note 3)
• 3 1/2 tbsp caster/superfine sugar (Note 4)
• 1/2 cup eggs (2 1/2 eggs) , lightly whisked, at room temperature (Note 5)
• 1 tsp salt (cooking/kosher salt, not table salt Note 6)
• 150g / 10.5 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 1.25 / 1/2" pieces, softened (but not melting, Note 7)
• Oil spray , anything neutral flavoured (canola, vegetable, not olive oil)
• 1/2 leftover egg , lighter whisked (Egg Wash, use leftover egg from above)

Instructions

1. Bloom yeast (Note 1): In a small bowl, mix 1 tsp sugar, yeast and milk together. Cover with cling wrap and set aside in a warm place for 10 minutes until foamy.
2. Dough making methods: Base recipe method uses a Stand Mixer. See Note 5 for faster food processor method.
3. Make dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the flour, eggs, salt, rest of the sugar and the foamy yeast. Mix on Speed 1 until ingredients are combined.
4. Mixing Part 1: After the ingredients are combined, then mix on Speed 1 for 5 minutes then on Speed 2 for 10 minutes, (Yes really, 15 minutes, see Note 8!)
5. Slow add butter: With the stand mixer still on Speed 2, drop butter cubes in gradually, over about 90 seconds to 2 minutes, giving the dough a chance to mix most of the butter in. (Note 9)
6. Incorporate butter: Keep mixing until the butter is fully incorporated- about 1 minute. Dough will be pasty and sticky!
7. Mixing Part 2: Then mix on Speed 2 for 20 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl every now and then.
8. Dough goals (Note 8): At first the mixture it will be very pasty and stuck to the sides of the bowl. By the end, the dough should come together, caught up in the dough hook, and not be stuck on the sides of the bowl. Very soft, but able to pick it up. You should be able to do the "window pane" test using a walnut size piece (Note 10). If not, keep kneading! (Note 11 trouble shooting)
9. Rise #1 (2 hrs): Shape the dough into a ball, put it back into the stand mixer bowl. Cover with cling wrap and put it in a warm place for 2 hours until it has doubled in size.
10. Cut into 3: Punch the dough dough to release all the air. Scrape out onto a lightly floured work surface. Fold the outside of the dough in 6 times. Shape into a log then cut into 3 equal portions and shape into a ball (~225g/7.9oz per piece).
11. Fridge (1.5 hrs): Line a deep container or roasting pan with baking/parchment paper lightly sprayed with oil. Place dough on paper, cover with cling wrap/lid and refrigerate for 1.5 hours (Note 12).
12. Braid: Remove dough from fridge. Place on a lightly floured work surface and roll each piece into a 35cm/14" logs. Braid the logs, and tuck the ends under to make them tidy.
13. Loaf pan: Spray a 21.5 x11cm (8.5 x 4.3") loaf pan well coated with oil spray, then place the dough in. Lightly spray cling wrap with oil, then cover the dough.
14. Rise #2 (3 hrs): Rise in a warm place for 3 hours or until it is just over double in size. (Note 13)
15. Preheat oven: Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan) when dough is almost ready.
16. Shelf position: Position shelf so loaf will sit in the lowest 1/3 of the oven.
17. Egg wash: Brush the brioche surface very gently with whisked egg.
18. Bake uncovered 15 min: Bake brioche for 15 minutes, uncovered, until a beautiful deep golden.
19. Bake covered 20 min: Remove from oven. Loosely cover with foil. Bake for a further 20 minutes or until the internal temperature is 88°C/190°F. (Note 14)
20. Turn out and cool: Immediately turn brioche out onto a rack. Cool for at least 45 minutes before slicing (or tearing!) to serve (still warm).
21. Serving: Best served warm, with butter and lovely jams, the French way! Either slice warm loaf, or toast slices. (Note 16) See in post for more serving ideas – savoury, sweet, breakfast, lunch, dessert!
22. The crust will be delicately crusty and flake gently when you slice it. It will be ultra soft inside, much softer than usual breads, with a pale yellow colour from the butter and eggs. Though traditionally sliced to serve, a unique characteristic is that if you tear the bread, it shreds like cotton candy. This is the sign off a well made traditional French brioche that you will not find in run-of-the-mill grocery store cheap brioche! Subtly sweet with a beautiful butter flavour (another thing store bought lacks!).

Notes

1. Yeast – recipe works with dry active yeast too, but the bread is a bit softer with instant yeast. Also note, rapid-rise/instant yeast normally does not need to activated in warm liquid but during testing of our naan recipe we discovered that by blooming instant yeast, breads are softer (in some cases) than adding the instant yeast directly into the dough. For brioche, not only is the bread softer, it rises about 15% higher when instant yeast is activated.
If yeast does not go foamy in the blooming step, then your yeast is dead. Time to get another!
To use normal active dry yeast, use the same quantity as instant yeast.
2. Milk – full fat / whole milk is recommended here.
3. Flour – Surprisingly (and unusually), brioche works better with plain / all purpose flour rather than bread flour. The crumb is softer and it rises better.
4. Sugar – caster/superfine works better as it incorporates more easily into the dough as grains are finer. But normal white sugar should work fine too.
5. Eggs – Crack 3 eggs into a bowl, lightly whisk, then measure out 1/2 cup / 125 ml. And yes, I really did try to make it work with 2 or 3 eggs, but it wasn’t as good! Leftover 1/2 egg used for egg wash.
6. Salt – if you only have table salt (ie finer grains), reduce to 3/4 tsp.
7. Softened butter – target 20 – 22°C/68-71.5°F (if you have a thermometer). Softened butter mixes through dough more easily. But if it’s melting, dough will end up greasy. Should be softened but still firm enough to pick up with your fingers.
8.  Long mixing time – Brioche is made with what’s called an “enriched dough” which is a dough that’s high in fat (butter). Fat inhibits the formation of gluten in flour from kneading which makes breads soft, fluffy and rise. This is why you have to knead brioche for so much longer – to make the gluten form before/after adding the butter.
Dough goals – Soft dough = soft brioche! We want dough as soft as possible but just firm enough to handle without it getting stuck all over your hands like sticky paste. Very soft, but able to pick it up without the dough sticking all over your hands. If it gets stuck to your hands, keep kneading.
You should be able to do the “window pane” test using a walnut size piece (stretch out into thin see through sheet without it breaking, Note 10). If not, keep kneading! (Note 11 trouble shooting)
9. Adding butter – If you dump it all in at once, it’s harder to incorporate the butter into the dough. It doesn’t need to fully incorporate as you’re adding it, but it should partially mix through.
10. Window pane test – This is a standard test in dough making that indicates you have kneaded it enough. Pinch off a walnut size piece of dough, then using both your hands, stretch it out into a sheet so thin you can see the light through it. The dough should be pliable enough to do this without breaking. If it breaks, the dough isn’t elastic enough = gluten not yet formed enough = keep kneading.
11. Dough consistency:
Too sticky – If at 20 minutes the dough is still really pasty, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough is still very soft but just firm enough to handle without it sticking all over your hands.
Too crumbly – If your dough is too crumbly at the beginning and never becomes pasty, likely you mis-measured something. This is tough to salvage (having made that mistake myself!). You can try adding warm milk, a bit at a time until you reach the dough consistency pictured in the photos/video. But actually, I would suggest starting over.
Greasy (melting butter) – if it’s very warm in your kitchen, the butter in the dough may melt during the mixing stage, causing the dough to become very greasy (you will see oil on the surface). If this happens, refrigerate the dough in the bowl for 15 minutes to firm up the butter slightly, then keep mixing.
12. Fridge step (optional) – This makes the soft dough much easier to handle in subsequent steps and also gives the brioche a smoother surface. Without this step, the surface is streaky and “croissant” like from the butter melted within the dough as you handle it. It’s mainly visual / ease of handling, which is why it’s optional. Read in post for more information.
13. Rise #2: In my loaf pan, rises to 1cm / 0.2″ above rim at highest point of dough
14. Internal cooked temperature of 88°C/190°F for brioche is slightly lower than the target temperature of 93-96°C /200-205°F of most breads because it is an enriched dough (ie high fat). Lower fat breads have a higher cooked internal temperature.
15. Reheating/storage: To reheat loaf, wrap whole brioche in foil and place in a 180°C/350°F oven for 10 – 15 minutes (depending on size), then slice fresh.
Brioche will freeze for 3 months. Thaw then reheat.
16. Food processor method: Place all ingredients (including bloomed yeast) except butter into food processor. Blitz on lowest speed for 1 minute. With motor running drop butter through feeding tube over 1 minute. Keep blitzing until butter is incorporated into the dough. Then blitz for 3 – 4 minutes on lowest speed until dough is firm enough to handle. Proceed with recipe for Rise #1.
17. Overnight rise: After dividing dough into 3 balls, refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days instead of just 1.5 hours. Take out of fridge, roll into logs and proceed with recipe. Braided loaf will take closer to 4 hours to do Rise #2 (because dough starts colder).
18. Recipe source: Recipe created with the assistance of a classically trained French Chef residing right here in Sydney, Jean-Baptiste Alexandre (“JB”). Read more about JB and working with RecipeTin Eats here!
We referenced well respected French cookbooks including: Larousse Gastronomique, Escoffier Le Guide Culinaire; French Patisserie Master Recipes and Techniques from the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts.
19. Nutrition per slice, assuming 16 slices.

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Sarah Miller

Hi, I’m Sarah Millar!
I’m a food blogger who loves creating quick and easy recipes that bring big flavor without the fuss. Cooking doesn’t have to be complicated — and I’m here to share simple, fast food ideas that anyone can make at home. When I’m not in the kitchen, you’ll usually find me tasting new dishes, exploring cafés, or coming up with fresh food hacks to make everyday meals more fun.

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