Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Rich, ever so slightly sweet, and perfect with dinner or as French toast in the morning.
Texture: Moist and tender yet firm.
Ease: The steps are relatively easy they just require some patience. I always thought challah was extremely difficult to make but after watching someone do it in school I realized it shouldn’t be that intimidating.
Appearance: Challah is one of the most beautiful loaves of bread and this recipe creates a fantastic but uncomplicated braid.
Pros: So much better than store-bought challah and much more satisfying (both in terms of taste and accomplishment).
Cons: Requires pretty much a whole day to make,
Would I make this again? I’ve made challah probably 5 times at home already.
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I’ve made challah bread way more times than I care to admit after learning how to make it in culinary school.
It’s such a gorgeous and complicated-looking bread that I was never really confident enough to try it.
This recipe is actually pretty easy, even if you’re not a super experienced bread baker.
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I wanted to make a video about challah because I feel that once you see how easy it really is your at-home challah baking will be much more successful.
Be sure to save some day-old challah because it makes killer French toast!
*Please note: I am not Jewish so I am not claiming this is traditional or authentic challah.
Challah Bread
Ingredients
- 3 to 3 1/4 cups (15 to 16 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant yeast
- 1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) sugar
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 3 large eggs, one egg separated (reserve the white for the egg wash)
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon water, at room temperature
Instructions
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together the 2 whole eggs and 1 egg yolk, melted butter, and 1/2 cup of the water until combined. Gradually add the flour mixture. Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough comes together. Knead for about 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic, adding up to a 1/4 cup more flour if the dough is too wet and sticky. Mix the egg white and the remaining 1 tablespoon of water and cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Shape the dough into an even ball and place in a lightly oiled ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Gently press down on the dough to deflate it then cover with plastic and let rise until doubled again, about 40 to 60 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Divide the dough into 2 pieces, one about half the size of the other (the small piece should weigh about 9 ounces, the larger should weigh about 18 ounces). Divide the large piece into 3 equal portions. Roll each portion into a 16-inch long rope. Line up the ropes and pinch them together at one end. Braid the rope pieces, pinching the other end together to seal the braid. Place the braid on a parchment or silicone mat-lined baking sheet. Repeat the exact steps with the remaining 3 smaller pieces of dough. Brush egg wash onto the large braid then carefully place the smaller braid on top. Loosely drape the loaf with plastic wrap and let rise until puffy, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Meanwhile, adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat to 375°F. Brush the loaf with the remaining egg wash. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the loaf is golden brown and registers an internal temperature of 190°F with an instant read thermometer. Let the loaf cool completely before slicing.
Made this for Easter dinner and it was amazing. I was worried I did something wrong with my dough because it didn’t seem to double inside the way it should. In the end everything came out great. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Hi Tessa, this bread looks amazing! I was trying to find recipes to make Challah french toast for Easter, and this one looks like the winner. In the video, you recommend using it day-old for french toast. I was just curious how it should be stored. If we took it out of the oven right before bed, would we just leave it on a rack overnight exposed, or should we let it cool a while and wrap it in plastic wrap or something. Thanks for putting together this video — cant wait to tackle my first challah!
I was going to try to make Babka, but its intimidating. This bread sounds delicious and I have all the ingredients right now. Will try this tomorrow. Love the video. Thank you.
If I have regular dry (not quick) yeast, should I put it with the water and sugar to foam? Then how should I proceed?
Shape the dough into an even ball and place in a lightly oiled BALL
don’t you mean ‘place in a lightly oiled BOWL ??
This is probably the best challah I’ve ever made! I’ve never been able to make a challah that was good; so, I was so shocked when this one was. I had to write a review.
I didn’t follow the recipe exactly because I accidentally added too much water at the beginning, but it still came out great. I also used honey instead of sugar. Texture was good, light but sort of stringy, beautiful color. It was only in the oven for 20 or so minutes, but my loaves were smaller.
I will definitely make again! I might actually follow the recipe next time lol, or see how oil instead of butter changes things.
I’ve made this twice within the last 2 days. I used oil instead of butter. And a tad of honey in my eggwash. Its absolutely amazing. Hands down the best recipe ever!
can you use active dry yeast?
Outstanding and well explained
Been trying tons of recipes on and off for years. Finally found the perfect one. It is so delicious and perfect.
I like the flavor, but no matter the oven I’ve baked it in, the outside has burned by 30 minutes. I’m going to try it at 350 next time, maybe 5th times the charm.
Family loved it they said it was the best bread ever