Homemade Soft and Fluffy Sandwich Bread Recipe
This classic Sandwich Bread recipe results in soft, fluffy, and perfectly golden loaves ideal for everyday sandwiches. Using simple ingredients like bread flour, yeast, and butter, the dough is kneaded, allowed to rise twice, shaped into loaves, and baked to perfection. The crust is tenderized with a buttery finish, making it a delicious, versatile bread that pairs well with any filling.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 42 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 2 loaves (1 lb each) 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 6½ cups bread flour
- 3 teaspoons instant yeast
- 3 teaspoons sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- 2 cups lukewarm water (may substitute with 1 cup milk and 1 cup water)
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 2 Tablespoons honey
For Baking
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter for brushing on the bread
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter for greasing the loaf tins
Instructions
- Prepare dry ingredients: Add bread flour, instant yeast, and sea salt into the stand mixer bowl fitted with the dough hook.
- Add wet ingredients: While mixing on low speed, slowly add lukewarm water, honey, and softened butter last. Knead for 5-7 minutes until dough is smooth, tacky but not sticky, and pulls away from bowl sides.
- First rise (bulk fermentation): Shape dough into a round ball, lightly oil the bowl and dough, cover with plastic wrap, and place in a warm spot for 2 hours until doubled in size.
- Prepare loaf pans: Butter the entire inside surface of two 1lb loaf tins and set aside.
- Shape the dough: Punch down the risen dough, transfer to a clean surface without flour, divide into two equal portions (~670g each). Flatten each piece into a rectangle matching loaf tin width, roll tightly into a log, fold edges in, and seal the seam.
- Second rise (proofing): Place each dough log seam side down in prepared loaf tins, press gently to remove bubbles, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise for 40 to 60 minutes until dough rises above the pan edges.
- Preheat oven: During proofing, preheat oven to 350°F (176°C).
- Bake the bread: Remove plastic wrap and bake for 40-42 minutes until loaves turn deep golden brown.
- Finish & cool: Brush tops of hot loaves with softened butter (optionally honey for sweetness) to keep crust soft. Leave bread in tins for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
- Serving and storage: Slice once completely cool for best texture. Store leftover bread at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Use a scale and metric measurements for best accuracy when measuring flour and dough weights.
- Do not add extra flour when handling dough after the first rise to maintain softness.
- Oil your fingers to handle sticky-tacky dough more easily during kneading and shaping.
- Bulk fermentation develops flavor and gluten structure; proofing improves volume and crumb.
- Butter brushing after baking keeps crust soft and adds flavor; brushing honey adds sweetness.
- Slicing warm bread can lead to gummy texture; wait until fully cooled.
Keywords: sandwich bread, homemade bread, soft bread, bread flour, yeast bread, easy bread recipe
