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There are many bread machine recipes out there, but if you're looking for just basic and simple homemade white bread - this is the perfect recipe for you!
This is my reliable, "boring", proven recipe for a basic white bread. And, I also provide tips on how to make a homemade white bread less dense in a bread maker. In this recipe, all you do is spend 5 minutes to add ingredients to the bread pan and the bread machine does all the work, on an automatic cycle that is already programmed. That's the whole purpose of the bread maker, right? The end result is a tasty loaf of white bread just of the right density.
I do believe that the day will come when I will use a bread machine for something more sophisticated, but for once this week I am sharing the recipe that doesn't require too much thinking or meddling. Sometimes it's just nice to make certain foods almost on auto-pilot, especially for basic stuff, like white bread.
In the last 3 months I hardly bought any store-made bread, baking about a loaf every week at home, using bread machine recipes. And, I've noticed a couple of trends/issues when making bread: sometimes the bread comes out way too dense, or the loaf does not rise enough and, as a result, comes out even denser. So, here I will describe the homemade bread recipe that works for me to produce a less dense bread in a bread maker, using a basic cycle.
While making bread in a bread machine, make sure to consider these points:
- When you measure flour using cups, make sure not to pack flour too dense in a measuring cup, otherwise you will end up with much more flour than you need, and, therefore, the bread will come out denser. Measuring flour correctly will solve a lot of "dense" issues. The trick that works for me is that I use ⅓ measuring cup to carefully scoop all flour I need into the bread machine (usually about 3 cups), without over-packing it. Another way would be to weigh flour, which I don't do, but it's a solution.
- Use bread flour, not regular all-purpose flour for all bread machine recipes. Bread flour contains a higher percentage of gluten than regular all-purpose flour. Using bread flour will produce taller, less dense loaves. If you use all-purpose flour (which has smaller percentage of gluten than bread flour), your loaves will be flatter and denser.
- When adding yeast, make sure you add it last, and add it on top of dry ingredients (flour). Make sure the yeast does not reach wet ingredients. Basically, make a small indentation on top of flour and add the yeast to the indentation, just like this:
And here is the simple white bread recipe. I started with the recipe that came in a little booklet together with my Williams-Sonoma bread machine, and I tweaked the ingredient measurements based on my preferences. It takes 10 minutes to prepare all ingredients together, and then it takes 3 hours and 15 minutes to bake the bread in a bread machine.
Bread Machine Recipe: How to make homemade white bread less dense
Ingredients
- 1 cup and 3 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 ¼ cups white bread flour
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
Instructions
Important note about properly measuring flour using measuring cups:
- The proper way to measure flour using measuring cups is to aerate it first. This is done either by sifting flour, or aerating it by fluffing it up and whisking it well, then spooning it into the measuring cup, then carefully removing any excess flour with a knife. If you just stick that measuring cup in the bag of flour and scoop some out, you will get a lot more flour than what the recipe calls for. Do aerate the flour, or you will end up with dry dough!
How to make bread in a bread machine:
- Add water and oil into the bread pan. Add salt, sugar. Add flour.
- Make a small indentation on top of flour and make sure it does not reach wet ingredients. Add the yeast to the indentation.
- Keep yeast away from the salt.
- Insert the bread pan into the bread machine, press it down to snap. Close the lid.
- Use Basic bread, 1.5 lb loaf, medium crust cycle (3 hrs 15 minutes)
- When bread is done, remove the bread pan using oven mitts. Turn over the bread pan and shake it to release the loaf. Let the loaf cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes.
Notes
- The recipe is adapted from Williams-Sonoma bread machine booklet.
- I have recently tweaked this recipe and made a delicious rustic Bread Machine Garlic & Herb Bread (with fresh rosemary and thyme) - worth checking out!
My Other Bread Recipes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice.
Thank you so much for a great easy recipe! The bread is soooooo good!!! Better than a ready mix!!
Yussssss.....finally a bread recipe that is perfect. Have you ever tried adding seeds & at what quantities would you suggest?
Cheers,
Laura
This was my first attempt at making bread. OMG what a surprise I got, I was so pleased with it the result and called my neighbour over. He liked the taste and of course I did. The only change i made was using ground sea salt. The bread was good with my chicken casserole last night and I toasted a couple of slices for breakfast this morning.
The only trouble is the bread is so Moorish you have to watch your daily intake 🙂
Great to discover this. I will try this soon on my bread maker BM 150 (Kenwood). All previous breads following its recipes turned out into a dense bread. I hope this is better. A question: There is no time control in my bread maker. It is preset to just 3 settings where the longest is 2 hours 40 minutes. But your recipe calls for 3 hours 15 minutes. Will it work? Thanks.
We just did this and the 3 hours is perfect! The bread is lush!! Light and fluffy with a nice crisp crust. Highly recommended!!
The bread comes out almost perfect. Tastes good and is light and fluffy but the top keeps collapsing. Any ideas?
It's your water, it has impurities in it. Boil ahead of time and let cool to room temperature before trying again.
Too much sugar, like Julia's top collapsed...yeast got activated too fast for the automatic program you are using...It lasted too long. More sugar faster the yeast, but if too fast result is top collapse.
Extremely dry crust. Very heavy loaf. Threw out the last half because was just too dry. Worst loaf ever!!
Add a tablespoon less water.
Use 1.5 Tbsp sugar instead of 2
That's a problem I had until I used INSTANT yeast. I rarely have a flop now unless I make a mistake measuring something.
Could I use olive oil instead of vegetable oil? Thanks!
Most likely olive oil will work. I used Canola and mine came out great!
Yes! We do sometimes. It changes the flavor a bit.
yes
Julie,
Tried your recipe, made a couple of slight alteration through not having the correct ingredients? I used Extra light olive oil and a high grade standard flour.
It was perfect, the best white bread I have made everything was even, the loaf was light with a equal density.
Will use again
Thankyou
Ian
5 Stars
I can't give a rating because I haven't tried the recipe. I probably won't, either, because as far as I know from everything I have read, there is about as much nutrition in a loaf of white bread as there is in a roll of toilet paper. I honestly don't understand why people still eat it. I make multigrain bread. However, I have made "white bread" when I make raison bread. My frustration is that the crust always comes out harder than I would like it to; harder than what you can buy in stores. I don't like a hard crust; I feel like it is scarring my gums.
The other thing is that breadmaker bread is only really good the first day. So moist and delicious; but by the second day it has started to dry out and can only be used for toast. Also, having no preservatives, it goes moldy really fast.
all I have to say is WOW! Great comment thanks so much♀️
Carol, you're much like my first loaf, crusty and dense. Why comment on a white bread recipe if you haven't tried the recipe and don't like white bread.
Carol - If you aren't going to make the recipe or rate it when why reply?
I thought the recipe was great and had no problems at all
I eat white bread because I like it. Everything does not have to be nutritious. Sometimes it's fun just to go for the gusto. I also eat red meat four times a week. GASP! Not sure why you commented! You don't like white bread or machine-made bread. Nor have you made this recipe. Seems bizarre you took the time to write. P.S. I love this recipe and I love how the bread turns out. It is delicious.
So you don't like white bread or bread makers AND you don't care for the nutritional facts but want more preservatives!?! Why did you navigate to this site in the first place!! Thank you filling up the internet with nonsense comments! Take your soft gum, bread hating, tomfoolery away from here!
I hope you find the perfect bread that you so richly deserve.
Many of us eat white bread because it is easier to digest than whole wheat. Many of us suffering with IBS eat white bread for that reason.
Seriously, Carol? I got the last bag of flour in the store. No bread to purchase. Get off your high horse. This is a very good recipe for those of us who specifically needed a bread machine recipe and today without eggs because there’s no eggs in our grocery stores either!
Thank you again, Julia for a great bread recipe.
You know what I learned from your comment? Nothing! Don’t comment on a recipe bashing it if you haven’t done it. Nobody cares that you don’t like basic white bread.
People eat it because it tastes nice. It provides carbs, though, as you say, little nutritional value otherwise. But you can put stuff on it or eat it with a stew or soup or whatever that carries the nutritional baton. Not everything you eat has to be jam-packed with nutrition, Imagine a world without white flour pasta - it would be a sadder place. And please don't tell me that wholewheat pasta tastes better - it does not, and everyone who is honest with themselves knows it. That is a case of the nutrition obsessed telling themselves (and often their long-suffering children) that because it is "better for you", it must taste better.
I noticed this as well . Even the smallest sized loaf is too much to finish in one day and then the loaf goes bad . The problem that I have been having is my bread turns out to be too fluffy. I dont have an issue with dense bread .
Bahahah or course your name is “Carol.” With a scathing review like that!
Lol thanks Karen
Why did you even bother reading the recipe then, Carol? If you're so much better than all of the people making "white bread" why don't you keep scrolling. Judgmental much.
♀️
Pretty much no one asked you. Where did you learn your manners, a barn?
Why would you put such an ignorant comment? If you don't like white bread, don't make it. To get on a soap box about your personal preferences, misguided as they may or may not be, is just ignorant.
I still make white bread because I like the taste. So do others I'm sure.
Thanks for the recipe!
Its homemade and white bread is a comfort food, put something nutritious on it or eat it with something nutritious, like a home cooked vegetable soup. But some homemade garlic butter on it with some cheese and toast. Eat with your favorite pasta dish. To keep it from going stale for a couple days make sure you seal it in a plastic bag after 1 hour cooling.
Wow are you a downer. Fresh bread is always amazing and after the 1st day the toasted version of fresh bread rivals the warm fresh status. Fresh bread crust is hard which gives it an amazing crispy thin exterior. But if you store it correctly in a bread bag the crust gets as soft as the middle of the bread. Why would you even comment about a bread recipe you’ve never made, let alone negatively. I’m sorry for whatever hateful events have transpired in your life. Jeepers. Downer.
What kind of flour do you use? I'm not finding anything that says bread flour in our local markets.
I used regular all purpose flour and it came out delicious.
Megan, I'm having the same problem here but a friend of mine said to sift the regular flour in a mesh metal strainer/sifter. I'm going to try this as all the other recipes I tried we're bland and no flavor. I wish I could use my mom's receipe in this but it calls for 6 cups of flour
I am asking the same question as Megan, from March 17,2020.
Where is bread flour?
You can use “strong white flour”. The strong refers to the higher gluten count as mentioned above.
High grade
Hi Megan,
Just to share with you
I'm using plain flour, hope it helps...
Have it in the bread maker now. I made a loaf earlier from the recipe book that came with the machine, so I'm following up with this one to see the difference. The other recipe called for butter and dried (powdered) milk. And I didn't sift the 3 cups of flour the recipe called for. So it's pretty dense. I found it interesting that 3 cups of flour once sifted (for this recipe) actually turns into about 3 1/2 cups (but I only used 3 1/4 as you said to)! Can't wait to taste this one.
Pillsbury... it will have a banner under “Pillsbury” that says bread flour, but it looks just like a regular bag of flour.
Made bread today using 1 cup whole wheat flour, ( best for bread flour- whole wheat flour) 1 3/4 cups white flour (best for bread homestyle white flour) and added 1 egg beaten. Awesome bread. Love it. Your white recipe is awesome also. Make both very often. Can not get enough- really good. Thanks for recipe.
Fantastic easy to make worked perfectly. Will never buy store bought bread again
Thank you so much for such a simple but tasty recipe. I'm curious about the Nutrition Facts you thoughtfully provided. Exactly what is the weight of a serving or how many slices per loaf and how many slices per serving?
Hi there I made bread today using your recipe and it turned out great just wanted to say thanks so much!!!!!
Looks like a great recipe. We tried it on another brand bread machine and it has to be mixed or it does not rise. We will try again mixing it first but thanks for the recipe!
Forgot to rate this recipe
I made this today and the flavor of the bread was really good. I am new once again using a bread machine. I had one 7 years ago at least and used it quite often. I have not baking for years and bought a new inexpensive model that has yeast and nuts/fruit dispensers. It also has programming for many types of bread. One of the 15 types is homemade recipe where you pick all the time settings for each part of the bread making such as stir, rest, stir, rest, ferment, rest, ferment, rise, rise, bake. Your time of total time from start to finish 3 hrs 15 min or 195 min. The default time for the 1.5 loaf in machine was 140 min so I adjusted time for 2nd stir, 2nd rest, 2nd ferment and increased time to bake from std 50 min to 75 min. Needless to say I somehow got it right and it turned out great. Will watch the sifting of flour so bread maybe be a little lighter in weight. My sister whom I live with thought it was extremely good. Thank you for our basic white bread recipe we will use. You never get too old to learn new ways of doing things.
Thank you, Charlene, for such a thoughtful and kind comment! So glad you found this recipe useful. Homemade bread is the best!