This Classic French Bread recipe will have you making your bakery-style loaves in no time. These loaves are soft and chewy, with a perfectly crisp and golden crust.
If you love making homemade bread, be sure to try our amazing White Bread Recipe, Focaccia Bread, Honey Wheat Bread and our Rustic Cheddar Bread.
Classic French Bread Recipe
Is there really anything better than freshly baked bread? We think not, especially when you can make it right in your very own home. And do NOT be intimidated! This French bread recipe is simple enough for anyone to make, whether you are new to bread baking or a seasoned pro.
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Eat it fresh for dinner with Baked Penne Pasta, use it as the base for French Bread Pizza, or freeze leftover bread to use for breakfast in this Best French Toast Bake.
If you love to try dips for your homemade bread, try our Olive Oil Herb Dip, Homemade Alfredo, or Homemade Pesto Sauce, so good! No matter what, your family will love this homemade bread recipe.
Homemade French Bread Video Tutorial
Key Ingredients
- Water – you want your water to be between 95-105 degrees F, so a touch above lukewarm. This helps activate the yeast.
- Sugar – yeast loves sugar and makes it nice and bubbly. You can also substitute honey if you’d like.
- Yeast – you want to use active dry yeast in this recipe.
- Oil – we chose to use olive oil, but you can use any other cooking oil you’d like.
- Flour – we like unbleached all-purpose flour for Classic French Bread.
- Eggs – we use whole eggs, rather than just egg whites to make our egg wash it to give it that nice golden shine.
- Water – this is mixed with the eggs for the egg wash.
How to Make This French Bread Recipe
- Proof the yeast. Add warm water (between 95-105 degrees Fahrenheit), sugar, and yeast in the bowl of a standing mixer. Stir, and let sit for a few minutes or until frothy.
- Mix the French bread dough. Add the oil, salt, and about half of the flour. Mix on low for 1-2 minutes, or until all the flour is mixed in. Continue to mix on low and add flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Once the dough pulls away from the sides, mix on low for about 2 minutes. If the dough feels sticky, add a little more flour until the dough is no longer sticky but is still soft.
- Let the dough rest. Turn the mixer off, cover the bowl with a towel, and let the dough rest for about 15 minutes.
- Shape the loaves. Remove the dough from the bowl and separate into 2 equal pieces. Gently roll each piece of dough into a rectangle using a rolling pin—about 14″ x 8″. Using your hands, roll each rectangle up, starting from the longer edge and gently pressing out large air bubbles with the heel of your hand until you have 2 long narrow loaves.
- Let the loaves rise. Carefully place the dough onto lightly greased baking pans with the seam sides down. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let the dough rise in a warm place for 30-40 minutes or until the dough has doubled.
- Prep the loaves. Once your bread has doubled in size, remove the towel and brush egg wash all over the loaves using a pastry brush. Score each loaf by making about four angled slashes with a baker’s lame (or a razor blade).
- Bake. Put your baking pan in the hot oven and carefully place 5-6 ice cubes in the bottom of the oven, then quickly shut the oven door. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the bread is golden brown and baked through.
- Serve. Remove from the oven and let cool before slicing. Enjoy!
How to Score French Bread Loaf
Scoring bread dough isn’t just decorative, it’s a way to control where the gas escapes that is produced when yeast hits the hot oven. It can be a little intimidating, so our advice is this:
- Score it just before you put the bread dough in the oven.
- Move your blade quickly and decisively to get the cleanest cuts.
- Your cuts should be about ¼” – ½” deep and at a 30-45 degree angle.
- For French Bread, you want your cuts to be longer and almost parallel to the long edge.
The best tool to use is a baker’s lame (French for blade). This tool has a very sharp blade with a little curve to it, which helps make a thin and shallow cut in the dough. They can be purchased for under $20 online, so it’s a good investment if you plan on making a lot of French bread.
In a pinch, you can also use a sharp razor blade or even a sharp filet knife.
Tips on How to Get Crusty French Bread
The key to crusty French Bread is steam. Since you probably don’t have a fancy commercial oven at home, we have a couple of tricks that you can use for your home oven to give you that perfect, crispy crust.
One of the best tricks we’ve learned for getting that bakery-style crusty golden bread is to put 5-6 ice cubes on the bottom of your oven as soon as you put your bread in. Once the ice cubes are in, shut your oven door as fast as you possibly can! This instantly creates instant steam as the ice melts.
Another trick to try is to very carefully placing a roasting pan with about 1-2” of boiling water in the bottom of your oven a few minutes before you add your loaves. When you go to add your bread, oven the oven door very carefully. You don’t want the hot steam hitting you in the face!
Frequently Asked Questions
For this Classic French Bread recipe, we recommend you use all-purpose flour. It has a slightly lower gluten content (usually between 9-11%) that is perfect for creating the soft chewy crumb. You can absolutely try using bread flour if you would like, but keep in mind that you may need to add a little less than the amount of all-purpose flour.
You have a couple of choices when it comes to pans to bake your French bread loaves:
Baking sheet – use a lightly greased regular baking sheet
French Bread or Baguette pan – you can find these for sale online for relatively cheap and they are a great option for a home oven. Many are non-stick but it’s still a good idea to spray lightly with baking spray.
Wrap it loosely in saran wrap, and store at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also freeze French bread! Just wrap the entire loaves in saran wrap, or a freezer bag if it will fit, and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
The French bread will thaw pretty quickly at room temp, but if you can’t wait you can toss it in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes.
To soften up french bread that has gotten a little harder than you’d like, Just spritz your loaf with a little fresh water and cover it with foil. Put it in a preheated oven at about 300 degrees F. for 10-20 minutes, until it’s warmed. Remove from the oven and let it cool while still wrapped in foil.
One of the main differences between the two is their shape. French bread is typically in more of a long and lean baguette shape while Italian bread tends to be flatter and rounder. French bread also tends to have a little lighter crumb, where Italian bread is often denser.
What to make with Leftover French Bread
- French Toast Bake- Cinnamon French Toast Bake, Blueberry French Toast Bake or Coconut French Toast Bake.
- The Best French Toast– Perfect to use if your french bread is a little stale.
- French Bread Pizza– This is a quick and easy appetizer or dinner recipe.
Homemade French Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 2½ cups water, warm (95-105 degrees F)
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/4 tablespoon salt
- 5½ cups all-purpose flour
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- In the bowl of a standing mixer, add warm water (between 95-105 degrees Fahrenheit), sugar, and yeast. Stir, and let sit for about 10 minutes, or until frothy.
- Add the oil, salt, and about half of the flour. Using the dough hook, mix on low for 1-2 minutes, or until all the flour is mixed in. Continue to mix on low and add flour 1/2 cup at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You may need up to 1/2 cup of additional flour.
- Once the dough pulls away from the sides, mix on low for about 2 minutes. If the dough feels sticky, add a little more flour, until the dough is no longer sticky but is still soft.
- Turn the mixer off, cover the bowl with a towel, and let the dough rise for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, lightly spray a large baking sheet or French bread loaf pans.
- Once your dough has risen, remove it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Separate the dough into 2 equal pieces.
- Gently roll each piece of dough into a rectangle using a rolling pin, about 14" x 8". Using your hands, roll each rectangle up, starting from the longer edge and gently pressing out large air bubbles with the heel of your hand until you have 2 long narrow loaves.
- Carefully place the dough onto your prepared baking pans with the seam sides down. Cover with a kitchen towel, and let the dough rise in a warm place for 30-40 minutes, or until the dough has doubled.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
- While the bread is rising, make your egg wash by beating the egg and water together in a small bowl. Once your bread has doubled in size, remove the towel and brush your egg wash all over the loaves using a pastry brush. Make sure you get all along each side.
- Score each loaf by making about 4 angled slashes with a bakers lame (or a razor blade).
- Put your baking pan in the hot oven and carefully place 5-6 ice cubes in the bottom of the oven, then quickly shut the oven door.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and baked through.
- Remove from the oven and let cool before slicing. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Did you make this?
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This Classic French Bread is soft and chewy on the inside, with a perfectly crisp and golden crust. Best of all, it’s simple enough for anyone to make, whether you are new to bread baking or a seasoned pro.
This is by far the best French bread I’ve ever made. Soft crispy crust and moist inside. It is so easy to make! This will definitely be in my rotation of bread recipes.
I just made your French Bread recipe and it came out perfect!! I made two short stubby loaves like Italian Bread and it came out perfectly! With about 5 minutes before done, I perished the top with melted garlic butter I’m telling you it won’t last long! Thank you so much for this recipe!
I made this bread yesterday and it was delicious and very easy to make. I was very surprised that I was able to make it! My family loved it. I will never buy store bought again! Thank you!
I made this bread it came out just like you said soft on the inside crusty on the outside and very easy. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I love this bread! I make it at least once a week give or take. It makes great toast and grilled cheese sandwiches. I’d add a picture but I don’t know how lol
Can you swap out sugar for honey?
You bet!
Thank you for this recipe! it is my new go to recipe. Easy and turns out wonderful everytime!
I made this bread today. love it. going to make garlic bread out of it for our Christmas Eve Italian theme dinner. bravo!!!
Can you use this recipe to make cinnamon rolls?
Sure But I also have a Cinnamon Roll Tutorial that makes really soft and fluffy cinnamon rolls. You can get all the details here… https://thecarefreekitchen.com/the-best-cinnamon-rolls/
I made this bread last it came out so good crusty on top and soft on the inside just like you said and very easy. thanks for sharing this recipe.
I just made this and love it! I’ve been trying to make bread and have never been happy with the outcome. Your video helped me so much. Showing how to gauge the amount of flour to use was the trick. Can you use this recipe to make rolls?
you bet, it makes great rolls!
I have to correct my comment. The recipe is outstanding and I brushed the top of the loaves with garlic butter! The recipe does make a delicious Italian bread!
Made this recipe today, turned out great. I liked it more than the chewy french bread from the store. This recipe was super soft and perfect ! Just wanted to know if I could make one large loaf and how long I would cook it for ? Really hope you reply. Thank you (:
The only problem I see with one large loaf is that you can’t really fit it on a baking sheet. 2 loaves fit pretty well on a large baking sheet. If you made it into a large ring or shape it in another kind of loaf, just watch for signs of it being done, the bottom should be golden brown and the top should be a dark, rich golden color too. If you want to get technical, you could use a probe thermometer and take the tempreture of the loaf, it shoud read 190 degrees F.
This is so delicious.so quick and easy too. I used half whole wheat and half white and it is still delicious. My husband and grandchildren love it, thank you for this recipe.
Is it ok to use fast acting yeast?
yes!
You are so right! This is the best and possibly the easiest French bread recipe that actually works! Trust me, I’ve tried them all! I added few teaspoons of “dough conditioner” to make my bread last longer on the shelf. Thanks for posing this!
Tracy, thanks for taking the time to let me know! So happy you liked it!
Your directions say to do the cuts & egg wash after the 2nd rise but in your video you do it before. Does it make a difference?
Either way will work great! Just be gentle if you do it after, the results are similar but if you do it before the second rise, there may be a few areas you missed.
I just made this bread and it is so good. I noticed in the video the loaves were scored and got the egg wash before the second rise but in the written directions that’s done right before it goes in the oven. Does it make a difference?
Either way will work, and it won’t really affect the taste either way. The egg wash just gives it a little more of a crusty crust and a deeper glossy color.
IS BREAD FLOUR BETTER OR DOES IT MATTER
Regular all-purpose flour is great.
Great recipe! My son (11 years old) says it’s the best bread he’s ever had! Thanks for sharing!!
love this recipe! has anyone tried to cut the recipe in half and just make one loaf? how would that change the water/yeast measurements? that always seems to be a problem for me when I just make half of a bread recipe.
You can certainly cut the recipe in half. Just cut the yeast measurement in half too. Instead of adding 1 Tablespoon of yeast, add 1 1/2 teaspoons. You could also make the whole recipe, freeze the other half of the dough, and use it later. This dough is great for breadsticks and rolls.
Super soft bread, which is what I’ve been looking for! This is my new go-to recipe. I put mine in a loaf pan because otherwise I find it spreads too much horizontally instead of vertically and half the recipe to just do one loaf so we can always have it fresh, but I have made it probably 4 times in the last 2-3 weeks! Thanks!
Hooray! So glad you love it as much as we do!
Love this bread! It makes amazing French toast and tastes great just to eat by itself. Was wondering if I could make it into rolls?
You can make it into rolls! It works great as rolls, breadsticks, or bread.
I can not get the Pin Tabs to work on this page, the only one working is the one on top right to follow on Pinterest. I would like to save the recipe but can’t seem to find it on pinterest page now. I just made this and it’s now rising can’t wait to taste it!
Perfect. Quick to make and tastes great.
Just made this and it turned out great. Thanks!
Can I make the dough ahead of time and refrigerate? I want to make it the night before. Thanks
I’ve made this recipe a half dozen times.it always turns out great.
No matter what I do my bread always tastes yeasty and smell kind like beer
I have decreased the yeast even in recipes and it still comes out like that what should I do what can I do I’m so discouraged
It is supposed to smell yeasty. It is yeast bread. The longer you let it rise the yeastyer it will smell.
I made this French bread tonight and OMG it was super delicious!! Nice n soft on the inside and crisp on the outside. I had quite a few pieces at dinner n my husband already asking to make a sandwich with it for his work lunch tomorrow. Thank you for the recipe!
i’ve made a lot of french bread and this is the best and easiest i’ve ever made. Great Recipe
This made my day! Thanks Kathe for telling me! Happy baking to you!
first of all thank you so much, for this recipe
I need to try it first then I will be back. to let you know.
and give my feedback and rating
see you.
Love this recipe! I had to end up using 6 cups of flour, but still turned out amazing.
Wow first time making bread and it turned out really good! One of the loaves were undercooked I noticed more towards the bottom and side facing the other loaf. Is there a way to check for doneness? A thermometer? Or a darker golden color?
Most yeast bread is done when it reaches 190 degrees internally. I use a thermapen instant read thermometer.
Tap on it. It should sound hollow. I always use a thermometer however. 190 to 210 degrees F.
Can I use bread flour?
Best bread every and super easy! First time ever making bread and I’ll do it every time if it’s this easy! Thanks for the recipe! It’s a keeper!
This is my go to quick bread recipe. I made it at lease once a month. So good and so easy. Cut the recipe in half and it fits in my kitchen bowl perfectly.
Can you put this dough in the fridge for over night?
A success, wish I could post the picture of my beautiful loaves, taste delicious.
Hi, I tried this recipe last night and it is really good, but like all the other breads I’ve made (previous ones have been in a breadmaker), the bread came out fairly dense. Is there a way to make it a little lighter/fluffier/less dense/less heavy? I used all-purpose flour, but did have to use 6 cups of flour to get it not to be real sticky. Also, the dough rose quite nicely. Not sure it got to 2x the size, but it was very close before I put it in the oven, where it rose even more. I did put some ice cubes in the bottom of the oven and used the egg wash. Thanks in advance for any advice.
I AM SO PROUD OF MYSELF. Thank you so much. I set my laptop up split screen with your video on one side and recipe on the other. FLAWLESS bread. I ended up needing about a half a cup more of flour for it to finally pull away from the sides. I’m looking forward to making bread loaves next! Thanks for sharing!
Everytime I click “go to video” it goes to cauliflower soup? I can’t find the video for the French bread?
Thank you! My first French bread and it turned out great! By the way, my Artisan KitchenAid mixer – the dough just climbed up the dough hook. So I finished by hand and it was still great.
This is my “go to” recipe for French bread and rolls. I also use it to make hamburger and hoagie rolls: I use a cup of milk (replacing one of the cups of water) and add a beaten egg (also reducing the water for the corresponding volume of the egg) to bump up the protein and to make a slightly denser roll. Your recipe will make about 15 generously sized hamburger or hoagie rolls. After I do the egg wash, I sprinkle sesame seeds on top of the rolls for that “restaurant made” look.
When I roll the dough to make French loaves, I generouly sprinkle the flattened dough with rosemary and garlic powder and then roll it up. Or, Italian seasonings and garlic powder. Yum.
Thanks for making bread so easy and delicious!
Oh well, I tried.
Looks wonderful!
Can you use instant yeast as well ?
Yup!
This recipe needs more salt. The bread came out bland.
Have you ever tried using gluten free flour to make this recipe?
Hi Kristen, no we have not but if you give it a try, let us know how it works! There are many gluten-free flours out there that can be used as an equal substitution – would be worth a try!
What about if you don’t have a hook mixer?