Homemade buttermilk bread has a slightly tangy and rich flavour and a wonderful soft crumb. Make as 2 loaves or try one loaf and one loaf of pull-apart rolls.
Rising and Resting Time:: 3 hourshrs20 minutesmins
Total Time: 4 hourshrs15 minutesmins
Yield: 20servings
Ingredients
4cups(520g)unbleached bread flour, *see Note 1 below for all purpose flour usage guidance
2teaspoonsInstant yeast, *see Note 2 below for Active Dry Yeast usage guidance
3Tablespoonswhite granulated sugar
1 1/2teaspoonsfine salt
1 1/2cups(375ml)buttermilk, at room temperature
1/4cup(60ml)vegetable oil, or melted and cooled butter
1largeegg
For brushing before baking:
1largeegg
1teaspoonwater
For topping before baking:
Sesame or poppy seeds or a dusting of flour, optional
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Instructions
Take the buttermilk out of the fridge well ahead and set on the counter to come to room temperature before you begin the baking temperature. Cold buttermilk will greatly extend the rising time. It is not recommended to try to warm buttermilk, as it curdles very easily.
In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add about 3 cups (400g) of the flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix together with a spoon or the mixer paddle. Add the room temperature buttermilk, oil (or melted and cooled butter) and egg. Using a spoon or the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until well combined and all the flour is moistened. Remove the paddle attachment and cover the bowl with a clean tea towel. Let stand 20 minutes in the bowl.
Switch to the kneading hook and gradually add the remaining 1 cup (100g) flour and knead in for about 5 minutes, until you have a sticky dough that wraps around the kneading hook, but doesn't clean the bowl or the bottom of the bowl. Remove the dough to a floured work surface and knead for several minutes, adding a small bit of additional flour only if needed to prevent the dough sticking to your hands or the work surface. Form dough into a bowl.
Place dough ball into a greased bowl or measuring cup. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, anywhere from 1-2 hours (or a bit longer if the buttermilk was still a bit cold when you started). Be patient. Allow it to rise until just doubled, however long that takes.
Remove dough to a lightly floured work surface.
For two loaves: Divide the dough evenly into two equal pieces (I like to weigh the dough, then calculate half and weigh out two exact weight pieces). Grease two 8x4-inch metal loaf pans. Take one of the dough pieces and press into an oval shape, roughly 9-inches long and about 4 inches wide. Pull the long sides of the oval towards the centre and pinch together well. Flip over so the smooth side is up and place into a prepared loaf pan. Repeat with the other piece of dough.
For a one loaf and one loaf of rolls: Divide dough in half (as above) or alternatively, you can divide 60/40, using the large portion for a loaf and the smaller portion for the loaf of rolls. For the loaf, shape as detailed above for two loaves and place into a greased 8x4-inch metal loaf pan.
For the rolls, divide the dough piece into 8 equal pieces (I like to weigh the dough and divide by 8 and then weigh out the 8 equal pieces). Take one of the 8 dough pieces and form into a ball by stretch the dough piece out until smooth, then flipping it over and pinching up the sides and pinching together. Flip over and place into an 8x4-inch loaf pan. Repeat with the remaining dough pieces, arranging them in the loaf pan in 4 rows of 2, as shown in the step by step photos above.
For two roll loaves: Divide into 16 equal pieces and arrange between two 8x4-inch loaf pans, with 8 in each pan in 4 rows of two.
For free-form rolls: Rather than place into a loaf pan, arrange the dough balls several inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
For all, cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and allow to rise until just shy of doubled in size. *This can take as little as 20-30 minutes for free-form rolls or 1-2 hours for loaves or roll loaves. Be patient and let it rise as long as it needs to almost double in size.
Preheat oven to 400F (regular bake/not fan-assisted).
Brush the tops of the loaves or rolls with the egg mixed with water and if desired, sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Alternatively, you can leave plain (no egg wash) and dust with a bit of flour.
When ready to bake, REDUCE THE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 350F (or 375F for free-form rolls) and place the loaves in the oven. Bake about 35-40 minutes for loaves (or 15-20 minutes for free-form rolls), rotating the pans front to back halfway through baking. Bake until the loaves are deep golden and reach about 205F internal temperature.
Remove from oven and immediately remove from pans and place onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Bread and rolls freeze beautifully up to 3 months!
Notes
1. For Active Dry Yeast, very, very carefully warm the buttermilk to just about 90F and add the yeast to the buttermilk. Let stand a few minutes, then combine with the rest of the ingredients. Don't over-warm the buttermilk or it will split.2. You can use all purpose flour in place of the bread flour, though the texture of the bread will be slightly different. You may also find that you will need to use slightly more flour over-all to achieve the correct dough consistency.You'll also find more tips and step-by-step photos above this Recipe Card that you might find helpful!