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–+ servings
A slice of butter bread
5 from 1 vote

Best Homemade Butter Bread

This homemade butter bread has a soft interior and an extra chewy crust. It's the perfect sandwich bread and is made with simple ingredients.
Xena Kai
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Resting Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Servings: 1 Loaf
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Ingredients
 

  • ½ Cup (120 ml) Water warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
  • ½ Cup (120 ml) Whole Milk warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
  • 1 Tbsp (13 g) Granulated Sugar
  • 2 ¼ tsp (7 g) Active Dry Yeast
  • 2 Tbsp (28 g) Unsalted Butter melted
  • 1 (1) Egg
  • 2 Tbsp (42 g) Honey
  • 1 ½ Tsp (9 g) Salt
  • 3 ¾ Cups (468 g) All-Purpose Flour or Bread Flour plus more as needed

Instructions
 

  • Bloom the Yeast: Whisk the warm water, milk, sugar, and yeast together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Cover and let sit for five minutes. The yeast should turn foamy.
  • Add the butter, egg, honey, salt, and 1 cup of flour. Knead on low speed for 30 seconds. Then, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula. Then, add another cup of flour. Knead on medium-low speed until relatively incorporated (it's okay if the ingredients aren't fully integrated yet). Add the remaining flour and continue to knead.
  • Knead The Dough: Continue to knead the dough in the stand mixer and beat for an additional 5-8 minutes. If the dough is too sticky, add an additional 1 teaspoon of flour at a time. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky. Do NOT add more flour than you need! After kneading, the dough should feel soft. You can also perform a "windowpane test" to check if your dough has been kneaded sufficiently. Simply tear off a small piece of dough, about the size of a golf ball, and gently stretch it until it becomes thin enough for light to pass through. Hold it up to a window or light source—if the light shines through without the dough tearing, it's ready to rise. If it tears before becoming translucent, continue kneading.
  • First Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl, cover it, and let the dough rise in a warm place for roughly one hour. You are ready to move on to the next step when the dough has doubled.
  • Lightly grease a 9x5-inch loaf tin with butter or non-stick spray.
  • Shape the Bread Dough: Punch the dough down to release the air. Lightly flour your work surface, a rolling pin, and your hands. Place the dough onto the lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, roughly 8x15 inches. Roll it up into an 8-inch log and place it into the 9x5-inch bread pan. This is called the "jelly roll." (See the video on my blog post for a visual).
  • Second Rise: Cover the shaped loaf with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until it's roughly 1 inch above the top of the loaf pan, about 1 hour.
  • Preheat Oven: Adjust the oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). (It's best to bake the bread towards the bottom so that the top does not burn.)
  • Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top. If the top is browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. The bread loaf is done when you tap it and it sounds hollow. For a more accurate reading, use an instant-read thermometer and poke the center of the loaf. It should read 195°F(90°C) when the loaf is done baking.
  • Remove from the oven and allow the loaf to cool out of the pan on a wire cooling rack. It is recommended to let it cool for one hour or until it is at room temperature.
  • Cover leftover bread and store at room temperature for four days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.

Video

Notes