CHALLAH BREAD RECIPE (2024)

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Classic Challah Bread recipe made with flour, milk & eggs. Easy Challah with step-by-step instructions for perfect bread with a lovely soft, feathery texture.

I love bread (if you couldn’t tell by the name of this site). But what I love more than eating bread is making it! Everything from the smell of the yeast proofing to the freshly baked from the oven smell and beautiful rich caramel-colored crust and spongy soft bread inside is like heaven to me. This challah bread recipe is one of my favorites and I’m sure it will soon become one of yours too. It’s sooo much fun to make (and eat).

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What is Challah bread?

Challah bread is a Jewish loaf of eggy bread that has been braided together to create a beautiful loaf. The eggs in the recipe cause it to have a yellow color as well as a deeper flavor that is unlike most other breads. Despite looking difficult, this is actually a fairly straight-forward bread recipe to master.

How do you Pronounce “Challah?”

Challah is pronounced “haa-luh.” The exact pronunciation has more of a throaty sound to it, but as long as you don’t actually pronounce the “ch” sound at the beginning, people should know what you’re talking about!

Challah Bread Ingredients

-Flour: We will need 3 cups of unbleached bread flour to make this dough. While all-purpose would work, the results won’t be the same as bread flour has a higher protein and gives a better rise and chew.

-Yeast: We only need 2 teaspoons of instant yeast to help this bread rise. For reference, a packet of instant yeast usually has about 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast inside.

-Salt: Just 1/2 teaspoon of salt will help the bread to have a much nicer flavor.

-Sugar: 1/4 cup of white granulated sugar will help to sweeten the dough and feed the yeast.

-Milk: We need 1/2 cup of milk to go in the bread dough (it adds moisture!) but you may need an extra teaspoon if the dough is too dry. You can use almond or oak milk if you prefer.

-Oil: Just 1/4 cup of oil is enough to help add some fats into the bread dough and give it a nicer texture.

-Eggs: We need 2 large eggs to go into the bread dough, this will be enough to change the flavor and make it more traditional-like.

For the Egg wash you will need:

-Egg: We only need one beaten egg for the egg wash.

-Milk: Just a tablespoon of milk to help water the egg down and give us a nice golden color on top of our braided bread.

-Sesame Seeds: If desired, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of white sesame seeds over the bread to give it an even nicer look!

How to make Challah Bread

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a fitted dough hook, combine all of the dry ingredients.

Mix the Dough

On low speed, add in the wet ingredients in this order- eggs, milk and then followed by oil. If the dough is still too dry, add in the additional 1 teaspoon of milk, but do not add in any more. 2 teaspoons of milk would cause the dough to become very wet!

Mix until the dough starts to come together and then pulls away from the side of the bowl. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl if needed.

Increase your speed to medium-low and then mix until the dough is smooth but still sticks to the bottom of the bowl. This should be approximately 3-4 minutes.

Transfer your dough to a lightly floured surface.

First Rise (1.5- 2 hours)

Turn the dough seam side down in a lightly greased or plastic wrap lined large mixing bowl.

Cover tightly and then let the dough proof until it’s doubled in size. This should be about 1.5-2 hours.

Shape the Dough into a Braid

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface again and then divide it into 2 pieces. One piece should be about 1/3 of the whole while the other is 2/3rds.

Starting with the bigger section of dough, first, cover the smaller section with plastic wrap to prevent drying out. Then stretch the larger dough and roll it out into a log. Slice it into 3 equal sized pieces.

Continue to stretch and roll each log individually. Start by rolling from the middle toward the edge of the log into a long rope.

Make sure that the rope is still shorter than your baking pan.

Arrange the dough into 3 ropes that are perpendicular. Pinch together the ends on one side. Braid the ropes by picking p the left rope and putting it over the middle.

Then pick up the right one and put it over the one in the middle again, repeating until you have reached the end and then pinch that end to seal it as well.

Repeat steps 11-13 for the smaller section of dough. Then place it on top of the bigger loaf.

Second Rise (1- 1.5 hours)

Transfer the larger braided loaf to a rimmed baking pan lined with parchment paper.

Cover the pan loosely and the dough proof until the size increases by at least half. This should be about 1-1.5 hours.

Bake the Bread

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and then brush the top of the bread loaf with the egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake the bread in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through baking.

the bread should have a nice deep golden brown color when it has finished baking.

Let the bread cool down to room temperature before slicing and serving.Enjoy!

Challah Bread Recipe

Classic Challah Bread recipe made with flour, milk & eggs. Easy Challah with step-by-step instructions for perfect bread with a lovely soft, feathery texture.

5 from 1 vote

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Ingredients

Bread

3 cups unbleached bread flour
2 tsp instant yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk, plus 1 teaspoon
1/4 cup oil
2 large eggs

Egg Wash

1 tbsp milk
1 large egg

Other

1 tsp white sesame seeds

Instructions

Combine all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook.

Mix Dough

On low speed, gradually add all wet ingredients followed by this order: eggs, milk, and oil. If the dough is still dry, add the extra tsp of milk. Don't use more than 2tsp or the dough will become very wet.
Mix until the dough starts to come together and pull away from the side of mixing bowl. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the bowl if needed.
Increase the speed to medium low and mix until the dough is smooth but still sticks to the bottom, approximately 3-4 minutes.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface.
Start kneading the dough with your hand. Use your fingertips and gently lift and fold edge of the dough that's farthest away from you toward the middle.Turn the dough 90 degrees and fold again.
Repeat the process of turning and folding the dough until it forms a smooth dough, approximately 30 to 45 seconds.

First Rise (1.5- 2 hours)

Turn the dough seam side down in a lightly greased or lined with plastic wrap large mixing bowl.
Cover tightly and let it proof until the size increases at least by half, approximately 1.5 to 2 hours.

Shape Dough into Braid

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in 2 pieces. One piece is 1/3 while the other is 2/3 the total size of the dough.
Work with the bigger piece first, remember to cover the other one with plastic wrap or damp towel to prevent it from drying out.
Stretch and roll the dough into a log, then cut it into 3 equal pieces. Make sure the rope is shorter than your baking pan.
Arrange 3 ropes perpendicular and pinch 1 ends together. Braid the ropes by pick up the left string and put over the middle string. Then pick up the right string and put it over the one in the middle again. Repeat the process until you reach the end of the rope then pinch the remaining together.
Repeat step 11 to step 13 for the smaller dough. Then place it on top of the bigger loaf.

Second Rise (1- 1.5 hours)

Transfer the larger braided loaf to a rimmed baking pan lined with parchment paper.
Cover the pan loosely and let the dough proof until the size creases at least by half, approximately 1 to 1.5 hours.

Bake Bread

Preheat oven to 375F. Brush the bread lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with white sesame seeds.
Bake the bread for 20 to 25 minutes, remember to rotate the baking pan half way through the process.
The bread should have a deep golden brown color when finish baking. Let the bread cool down at room temperature completely before serving.

Notes

1 loaf = about 12 servings

Nutrition

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Is challah bread sweet?

Yes, this bread has a sweetened flavor to it that makes it great for snacking or even turning into french toasts! The eggs and the sugar in the dough really help to add that special “something extra” into the flavor of this bread.

Can challah bread be frozen?

Yes, challah bread once it has been cooled completely can be wrapped well in plastic wrap and then stored in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Then thaw and enjoy.

How to store challah bread

Challah bread is best stored at room temperature in a safe airtight container. This will keep it from drying out and help to prolong its life a little more. Storing it in the fridge will cause the moisture to leave the loaf and dry out even faster.

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Classic Challah Bread recipe made with flour, milk & eggs. Easy Challah with step-by-step instructions for perfect bread with a lovely soft, feathery texture.