Making French Bread Dough

This straightforward bread dough can be made in a stand mixer or by hand.

• Warm water
• Yeast (instant or active dry yeast)
• Bit of sugar and oil
• Salt
• Flour (all-purpose or bread flour)

At the start, the dough will look shaggy and rough.

But as it kneads, it will become soft and smooth.

The most important part of this dough (and other yeast doughs) is to judge the amount of flour by the look and feel of the dough rather than the exact amount of flour called for in the recipe.

Factors such as humidity, elevation, room temperature, how we each measure flour, and more can affect the amount of flour added. So don’t stress about precise flour measurements and continuously feel the dough to achieve a soft dough that is slightly tacky but doesn’t leave a lot of residue on your fingers.

Too little flour and the dough will be a mess to handle. Additionally, the bread won’t hold its shape as it rises and bakes.

Too much flour and the dough won’t rise well and the bread will be tough and dense.

Two Methods for Dough Rising

In the recipe, there are two methods to letting the dough rise:

1. Leave the dough in the mixer, cover with a lid or towel, and let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Stir it down by turning on the mixer for 10 seconds or so. Repeat the “rest and stir down” cycle five more times.
2. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel or greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until doubled, about an hour or so, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

I alternate between the two methods depending on my mood. The 10-minute increment rising method is unique to this original French bread recipe. The idea is that allowing the dough to rise this way produces a lighter crumb.

But the more traditional rising method also results in a delicious, fluffy loaf.

How to Shape French Bread Loaves

The question I get asked the most about this easy homemade French bread is how to shape the loaves.

The loaves can really be made any size or shape; I usually end up making 12-inch loaves, but if they end up being a bit thinner or chubbier, it’s no big deal!

Press each portion of dough into a flat rectangle and fold the bottom edge up and over the dough, pressing the seam flat with your hand.

Then, roll the dough up again to meet the top edge.

Fold the top edge over and press or pinch lightly.

Take the end of the bread dough and fold it up and over an inch or two to give an even thickness all the way down the loaf.

Pinch to seal the end. Repeat on the other end of the dough.

Then, deliberately and thoroughly pinch and seal the entire length of the loaf.

How to Score the French Bread Dough

Scoring the bread dough (in my house, also called: slashing or gashing) helps the dough rise better AND prevents it from cracking in unexpected places while baking.

Using a bread lame for this task is extremely helpful. A bread lame is a long stick or utensil with a razor blade on the end. The razor is used to make thin cuts in the dough.

If you don’t have a bread lame, using a clean, sharp razor blade or an extremely sharp kitchen knife can work. Be aware that if the knife isn’t sharp enough, it’ll likely deflate the dough.

The bread loaves can be scored before or after the final rise. I prefer to do the slashing and gashing before they rise as I’ve had one too many loaves of risen bread deflate at the first touch of the razor, and there is nothing so soul crushing as when that happens.

Easy Hack for Crusty French Bread

For a delicious golden crust, immediately before putting the bread in the oven, toss 3-4 ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven. Add the bread and quickly (but gently!) close the oven door.

The steam as the ice cubes hit the toasty bottom of the oven will lightly crisp up the outer crust as the bread bakes.

Important Note! Please consult your oven’s manual for details or caution on putting ice/water on the bottom of the oven floor – I’ve never had a problem, but everyone should do their own research and use their own best judgment (also take care not to toss the ice cubes on the glass oven door as it could crack). 

If you are struggling to get a deeper golden crust on the French bread, try:

1. Increasing the oven temperature by 25 degrees and/or
2. Moving the oven rack up one position (I find my bread browns the best in the middle or upper middle area of my oven)

Whole Wheat French Bread

As noted in the recipe, French bread works quite well using whole wheat flour. I’ve found the best results are when using white whole wheat flour (red whole wheat flour makes a denser, heavier loaf).

I recommend subbing in half whole wheat flour to start and then adding more whole wheat flour as you continue to make subsequent batches of bread.

If using whole wheat flour, add a 2-3 minutes to the kneading time to help develop the gluten (also, adding a couple tablespoons of vital wheat gluten/gluten flour can also help the whole wheat bread bake up light and fluffy).

Perfect Homemade French Bread

With over 2,500 5-star reviews, this homemade French bread has become a favorite for so many of you.

Hundreds of you have let me know that you have been intimidated by homemade bread until you found this recipe! It is easy, foolproof, and will make you feel like a bread making rock star.

Helena says: Finally, after 5 failed bread attempts using other places recipes, this is THE recipe to use! Happy dance! Thank you for sharing this awesome recipe! Delicious bread!

Valerie writes: Such a fantastic, easy recipe. The “hands on” time is minimal and it comes out perfect every time. Thanks for sharing a recipe that’s become my “to do” dinner bread! 

Nichole says: Followed instructions exactly! First time making any sort of bread ever. The bread turned out perfect!!!!

Pia commented: Hands down my go-to bread recipe. Today’s edition is 1/3 dark rye flour, with Italian herbs and caraway seeds mixed in and sprinkled with everything bagel topping. Yum! Best bread recipe ever, and so easily customizable!