Learning how to make bread can be one of the most rewarding experiences in the kitchen. Not only is there a huge variety of bread that you can make but if you or your family eats bread on a daily basis you can save huge amounts of money every year by making your own.

On this page I will go over just the basics that apply to making many types of bread by taking you through the step-by-step process of baking a basic French bread with a crispy crust. It's recommended to start with a bread made of all-purpose flour, this is due to its high gluten content allowing for quicker and easier rising. I don't like using bleached flour as I don't care for all the extra chemicals that end up in it.

While you're still learning the basics of how to make bread I would recommend not changing the ingredients from the recipes you try, at least until you understand what the texture should be at different stages. Plus, don't forget the menu to the right for more information on the ingredients used in bread and how and why to use a bread starter.

French Bread with a Crispy Crust
Yield: 1 large loaf or 2 long, skinny loaves

Ingredients

Directions

1. I've found that when making bread I screw up less if I make sure I have everything out and ready before I start mixing anything. I've learned that some breads have a lot of ingredients and it's easy to miss things if I'm not prepared.
2. The first step when making most breads is to get the yeast mixture going. Put the yeast, lukewarm water and honey in a small bowl and let it set for a while until foamy and called for in the recipe. It's very important to make sure that your yeast isn't expired, expires yeast can screw up your bread.
3. Put hot water, salt and 2 cups flour in a large mixing bowl, mix well. Stir in wheat germ.
4. Stir in foamy yeast, just make sure it's had time to get nice and foamy or the bread won't rise properly, if you need to, let it set a bit longer before adding it.
5. Add 1 1/2 cups flour, a bit at a time, mixing thoroughly.
6. Typically when you make bread you'll want to save 1/2 to 1 cup flour for the last kneading part. So here is when you'll knead the final 1/2 cup of flour in on a clean, floured counter-top. Continue kneading for 10-15 minutes until dough is nice and smooth and non-sticky.
7. Add 1 tsp. of the corn oil to a large bowl, roll the dough into a ball and place in the oil, turning it so as to cover the entire ball of dough. This is done to prevent the dough from sticking to the side of the bowl as it rises and to keep it from drying out. Cover the bowl with a hot, damp cloth and place in a warm area and let dough rise until it's doubled in bulk, the time required will depend on the type of bread, the room temperature and the type of yeast you're using. This particular recipe will need about 2 hours to fully rise. Remember that the slower the rise the deeper the flavor of your bread will be.
8. Punch down the dough and knead it a couple times to get the air out. Repeat the last step with the oil, cover again as before but this time only let it rise for about an hour.
9. Knead the dough for 1-2 minutes.
10. Now you must decide if you want 1 or 2 loaves.
    • If you want to make one large loaf you should flatten it out with the palms of your hands on a floured surface. Once you've spread it out into a nice rectangular shape and gotten all the air bubbles out of it you can roll it up tightly. Pinch the seam and the ends. Butter a baking sheet and sprinkle it with the cornmeal and place the loaf on it, seam side down.
    • For two loaves you can either make them similar to the one loaf method, only smaller, or you can roll them up into a ball and flatten them slightly.
11. Cover the dough with a dry towel and let it rise for about 30, or until it doubles in bulk. While the bread is rising preheat the oven to 400°F. Place a pan of hot water on the bottom shelf, while the bread is baking the steam will help create that wonderful crisp crust.
12. After the dough has doubled in bulk, take a sharp knife and cut into the top of the dough 1/2" deep. As long as the slashes go from end to end or side to side it should be fine, you can make X shapes or shapes that look like stitches, whatever you wish. Just make sure you don't cut too deep or the dough may fall then you'll have to knead it all over again and let it rise again.
13. Since for this bread we want a nice crisp crust we have to bake it in a special way. First brush the loaf with salt water and bake at 400°F for 15 minutes.
14. Brush loaf again with salt water and bake for another 15 minutes.
15. Remove the pan of water and lower the heat to 350°F. Brush with salt water again and bake yet another 15 minutes.
16. Brush one last time with salt water and let bake for the final 10-15 minutes. You will have to use your best judgment baking time, if the bread is very long and thin or if you made two loaves, bake less time, maybe cut 15 minutes, if it's round, bake the full 60 minutes. When done they will be a lovely golden brown and will sound hollow if you tap on them. Note: When baking soft crust breads you can bake them without the pan of water and in one shot, no need to take them out during baking.
17. To get the best crust you should place them on wire racks directly in front of a fan blowing cold air. This will crackle the crust.
18. Unlike soft crust breads, you can't store these in plastic bags or a breadbox or the crust will rapidly soften. The best you can do is place them in a paper bag in the refrigerator.

The Autolyse Variation

Some bakers will wait to add the salt until after a first rise, or autolyse (AUTO-lees). Autolyse is a term used to describe a time where the dough rests during the kneading cycle. Waiting to add the salt until after the autolyse is claimed to have the benefits of better flavor and texture.

Salt will hinder the developement of gluten and thus if added after a resting period the dough will absorb more water, thus smoothing itself out and reducing the required kneading time.

To incorporate this method simply prepare the dough as normal, without the salt, knead it for a couple minutes then cover and let it rest for 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes have passed you can slowly add the salt and continue to knead for several more minutes.

It is said that whole wheat breads benefit more from this system, but I leave it to you to decide which method you prefer.

Just remember, when learning how to make bread, start simple, understand the basics and work your way forward one step at a time. And if you're really serious about it you might want to get a book on the subject. Amazon.com sells a ton of wonderful books, a great one being The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread