This easy white bread recipe, AKA man bread, is so easy to make! Create an awesome, man-sized loaf or a dozen rolls of homemade bread in just a quick 90 minutes. This is the perfect bread recipe for beginning bakers.
Written by Mr. Crumbs
Usually, Mrs. Crumbs is the one experimenting in the kitchen, but occasionally I take a turn too. And this is one kitchen experiment that turned out pretty awesome: Man Bread.
It’s crusty on the outside, and soft on the inside. When we pulled the first loaf out of the oven, Mrs. Crumbs and I were like, “Holy moly! That is one huge loaf…wonder if it’s any good?”
Well, I’m going out on a limb by saying this may be the BEST and easiest sandwich bread we’ve ever made. At first bite, we rejoiced. After the second bite, we knew we had to share it with you.
So, after some deep decision-making (AKA choosing between butter or peanut butter while taste testing) and recipe refinement (AKA eating a few more loaves of bread), we proudly present:
Man bread.
MAN BREAD AKA EASY WHITE BREAD RECIPE
This white bread recipe is so easy, that even a man can make it. It was, after all, developed by one!
It’s just as easy (if not easier?) than the No-Knead Overnight Artisan Bread, which many say is the easiest bread in the world.
And if you doubt me and say “Baking bread is too hard” or “I’m scared of yeast,” I’m here to tell you that making homemade bread isn’t too bad! This loaf is your new best friend (and here’s a beginner’s guide on using yeast).
WHY IS THIS RECIPE FOR BASIC BREAD SO GREAT?
- There’s no refined sugar. It’s sweetened with honey and has a tasty hint of coconut oil. A healthy bread recipe developed by a man who once survived on Doritos and soda? Proof that picky eaters really can switch to real food!!
- You can make it fast. You can treat yourself to this ginormous, football-sized loaf of delicious goodness in just 90 MINUTES. That’s a quick rise, little effort, and yum-o in your belly in no time.
- It’s pretty foolproof. This recipe for basic bread was a complete accident. Which means it’s highly unlikely you can get it wrong. Perfect for the novice cook, or fellow husbands out there.
Despite its size, it holds up to the hacking of a knife and smearing of butter and peanut butter very well. Granted, we love our Potato Bread, Maple Oatmeal Bread, Rosemary Olive Oil Bread (and more) – but this is just SO much easier!
Even funnier: we’ve made 3 loaves of this stuff in 2 days.
The first was obliterated by the family with a couple of sticks of butter. The second loaf was used for grilled sandwiches.
The third was a final test loaf to ensure we could replicate this recipe and that it wasn’t too good to be true. I’m eating that one as I type this.
WHITE BREAD RECIPE INGREDIENTS
The ingredients list for man bread is pretty simple.
- Warm water (105-115 degrees).
- Honey. Just a tablespoon helps to activate the yeast.
- Active dry yeast.
- Coconut oil. You can use melted butter or olive oil instead, although the flavor will be slightly different. Rest assured; this bread does NOT taste like coconut oil.
- All-purpose flour or bread flour. You can also use up to 50% whole wheat flour.
- Salt.
- Vital wheat gluten (optional). This makes for a softer, more pliable loaf. If you are using bread flour, you don’t need to include this. Otherwise, add 1 tablespoon for every cup of all-purpose flour to make homemade bread flour.
Note: Believe it or not, coconut oil is mildly sweet and tricks the taste buds into thinking it’s eating something sweeter than it actually is (cinnamon also does the same thing). That’s one reason why this loaf is loved by so many people who only eat white bread. Store bought bread has added sugar, but this homemade loaf TASTES sweet – despite the fact it only has 1 tablespoon of honey.
Psst…Did you know that many salts contain MICROPLASTICS? It’s a sneaky toxin that may be in your everyday salt, and thus your everyday food (um, gross). I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because their salt is FREE of microplastics, and it tastes delicious! PLUS, you can get your own 8 oz bag of salt FREE on this page! (Just pay shipping)
HOW LONG TO BAKE BREAD
How long to bake bread will depend on which type of pan you use.
Most breads call for loaf pans, but we used our pizza stone. This is the one we have. It’s over 5 years old, has been through hundreds of pizza nights, and is still going strong. No cracks, despite moving across the country!
Plus, it makes your pizza and bread taste pro-artisan (a.k.a. makes you look like you know what you’re doing).
You can also bake this easy bread recipe in loaf pans. After the first rise, split the dough into two loaves and place into two greased bread loaf pans. Rise again and bake as directed.
This recipe can also be used to make dinner rolls. Split into rolls after the first rise. Rise again and bake for 12-15 minutes. Your baking time might vary depending on the size of your rolls, so you’ll know they’re done when they’re golden brown and reach an internal temperature of 220 degrees, just like the single loaf of man bread.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE WHITE BREAD RECIPE
Step 1: If your kitchen is not warm, turn your oven to low. This is simply to warm your kitchen up a little bit (since it’s cool where we live).
Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl, add warm water, honey, and yeast. Stir a few times until the honey dissolves. Once the yeast starts foaming (5 minutes or so), add flour, melted coconut oil, and salt. Once your bread dough comes together using the dough hook, knead for 10 minutes on low/medium-low. Leave your dough ball in the bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 30 minutes.
Step 3: After the first rise, scoop your dough ball on a lightly floured surface. ( Knead your lump of dough by hand a few times, until it forms a firm ball. Cover this ball of dough with a towel.
Step 4: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, make sure this is in the oven to warm up. Alternatively, you can use a cast iron skillet while the oven is preheating, or two loaf pans (see notes above).
Step 5: Let the bread rise for 30 minutes.
Step 6: After the second rise, place the dough ball directly onto the pizza stone, cut two slits on the top of the dough ball, and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. If you are using loaf pans or a cast-iron skillet, the cook time may need to be increased by an additional 10-15 minutes. (The bread is done when the internal temperature is 220 degrees on an instant-read thermometer).
Step 7: Let cool on a wire rack and enjoy.
Note: We move this dough from the counter to the pizza stone, but if you don’t feel confident in that transition, flour a piece of parchment paper, and shape the dough on that for the second rise. Then move the entire paper with the dough to the oven for baking.
CUTTING THE MAN BREAD
Making this recipe will likely yield a Joe Montana-sized football-loaf-of-bread. Which means cutting it can be awkward. Here’s how we do it:
- Cut the whole loaf in half lengthwise.
- Take one of your halves and cut into slices. Trust me, the slices are plenty big for your sandwich. These are man-sized slices.
- Smear with lots of butter.
Homemade white bread doesn’t keep for very long because it doesn’t have the preservatives of store-bought bread. Store in a breathable container or bag (not airtight) at room temperature for 3-4 days. If you have any left, that is. Or go ahead and make double or triple if you want to save some for later. Trust me.
FREEZING INSTRUCTIONS
You can freeze this simple white bread recipe in whole loaves, slices, or unbaked dough. Here’s my full tutorial on freezing bread if you like to read more details but here’s the quick version:
- Whole loaves: Wrap in plastic wrap to help protect against freezer burn, then place in freezer-safe bags.
- Slices: After cooling, slice bread. You have two options, lay the bread out on a sheet pan to allow each slice to freeze and then pack in a freezer bag for storage. Or place a small sheet of parchment paper between slices to keep them from sticking together.
- Dough: After the first rise, shape the dough into desired loaf. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the counter and let rise. Bake as directed.
Be sure to label your freezer bags!
WHITE BREADS FAQS
Why is white bread so soft?
The optional vital wheat gluten in this homemade bread recipe helps make a soft, pliable loaf.
Can you make white bread in a bread machine?
I haven’t tried this white bread recipe in a bread machine. Honestly, this recipe is pretty easy on its own, so even if you’re a beginner at baking bread, I bet you can do it!
How do I know if the bread is done rising?
Following the rise times listed in this post should get you a yummy loaf of bread. To check if the bread is done rising, gently press your index finger into the dough. If it bounces back and fills in the indentation, it needs more rise time. If the indent stays, it’s ready for the next step.
Why is my bread so dense?
Your bread could be dense for a couple of reasons. You may have added too much flour. Or the bread might have needed more rise time. Luckily, bread is a great frugal baking recipe to learn with, so you can try it again. Dense bread still tastes good toasted or as French Toast or Croutons!
MORE FAVORITE BREAD RECIPES
- The Best White Sandwich Bread
- Soaked Whole Wheat Bread
- Maple Oatmeal Bread
- Rosemary Olive Oil Bread
- Cinnamon Raisin Bread
- Simple Sourdough Bread
- Homemade Hamburger Buns
- Light and Fluffy Hawaiian Rolls
Crush Inflation Challenge!
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Man Bread: Homemade White Bread
This easy white bread recipe, AKA man bread, is so easy to make! Create an awesome, man-sized loaf or a dozen rolls of homemade bread in just a quick 90 minutes. This is the perfect bread recipe for beginning bakers.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 1 loaf or a dozen dinner rolls 1x
- Category: Breads
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups of warm water (105–115 degrees)
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 ¼ tsp active-dry yeast
- 2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- Vital wheat gluten – 1 Tbsp per cup flour (optional)
Instructions
- If your kitchen is not warm, turn your oven to low. This is simply to warm your kitchen up a little bit (since it’s cool where we live).
- In your mixer bowl add warm water, honey, and yeast. Stir a few times until honey dissolves. Once yeast starts foaming (5 minutes or so), add flour, melted coconut oil, and salt. Using dough hook, knead for 10 minutes on low/medium low. Leave your dough ball in the bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 30 minutes.
- After the first rise, lightly flour a surface and scoop your dough ball on it. Knead your lump of dough by hand a few times, until it forms a firm ball. Cover this ball of dough with a towel.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, make sure this is in the oven to warm up. Alternatively, you can use a cast iron skillet while the oven is preheating – as one reader had great luck with! (Note: We have only tested this recipe with a pizza stone.)
- Let rise for 30 minutes.
- After the second rise, place dough ball directly on pizza stone, cut two slits on the top of the dough ball and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. If you are using a loaf or cast iron skillet, the cook time may need to be increased an additional 10-15 minutes. (bread is done when the internal temp is 220 degrees).
- Let cool on a wire rack and enjoy.
Notes
- We move this dough from the counter to the pizza stone, but if you don’t feel confident in that transition, flour a piece of parchment paper and shape the dough on that for the second rise. Then move the entire paper with the dough to the oven for baking.
- Vital wheat gluten is optional but helps create a more pliable, softer loaf.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 179
Tonnie
I love bread and have made the overnight Artisan Bread many times. I like the shorter time factor for this bread. Have you tried it with instant yeast as that is what I usually use and have on hand. If so, how much did you use? If not, I’ll just go out and purchase the regular yeast! Can’t wait to try it!
Wendy
We try to stay away from white flour but I have been having a hard time finding a good whole wheat flour bread recipe. Does this one works with whole wheat flour? Any one tried it yet?
Cristi
Hi Tiffany, I’ve been watching & enjoying your “Kinda Crunchy” periscopes this month (not sure why you showed up on my feed one day). Today is the first day that I actually made the link / jump to the blog. (I’m kinda slow 🙂 ) So in honor of the “make something from scratch challenge, I made this. 🙂 I didn’t have bread flour or vital gluten, so I just used what I had which was 2 cups of AP and 2 cups of King Arthur’s white whole wheat. Combining that with my old yeast I didn’t get a super huge loaf. But I made homemade bread from scratch! Win for me for today.
Tiffany
A win is a win Cristi – way to go!! (And so glad you found me and made the link and jump – welcome!!! )
Carla
I was able to get good results making this recipe on my bread machine on the fast cicle. I also used 3 cups bread flour and 1 cup whole wheat. I love that I get a big bread and it lasts longer, otherwise I need to make bread every other day. Having the bread done in 2 hours instead of 4 or 5 (on the normal cicle) is a plus!
Crunchy Mama
We have made this recipe 3 times, as-is, and I successfully made a swap-out for 1/2 whole wheat, last night (subbed 2 cups of the bread flour for 2 cups minus 2 Tbs of white/wheat flour and 2 Tbs of gluten); the 1/2 whole wheat version was my highest rise, yet. This bread makes perfect sandwich bread or toast. Absolutely lovely for BLT’s!
We have been using the unglazed tiles as our baking stone for several years and have only had one tile break (I accidentally dropped an ice cube on a preheated tile, when adding ice to my broiler pan for steaming a loaf of crusty bread); I simply grabbed a new tile from the box and we were good to go.
M.
Tiffany and Mr. Crumbs, I have to say this is an EXCELLENT recipe. DH, most of my children, and I make this bread with regularity. Really, even the children have mastered this recipe. It’s beautifully simple and some of the BEST bread we’ve EVER enjoyed! When making our weekly menus, it almost seems as if we try to think up meals that NEED this bread with them. It’s part of our regular “rotation” of bread recipes. I cannot thank you enough for this recipe. God bless you for your generosity in sharing this! Have a wonderful day.
Autum
This is the best recipe. We make 3 loaves a week and the only reason my boys eat it is because it’s man bread. I really work hard to keep them eating whole foods, its a huge struggle, and this was one thing they didn’t fight me on. Its the only bread we make and is perfect for our busy schedules. Thank you!
Melissa
Oh my goodness, this is so yummy! And it was super easy. Only my second time making bread, and this turned out a whole lot better than the first. I ate some as a snack with some oil & vinegar and it was perfect. Tonight we are having meatloaf, and it will probably turn into meatloaf sandwiches!
Shannon
2 questions.
1 – is the coconut oil necessary? I dislike (intensely) the stuff so I’m curious if it’s needed or can be omitted.
2 – I don’t like honey very much, can I use anything else in replacement? Is the flavor very strong or not so much that I may not notice too much?
Tiffany
Hi Shannon!
Both the coconut oil and honey give the bread the unique texture of sandwich bread, but you can sub another fat (olive oil, melted butter) and sweetener if you’d like. The coconut oil taste is BARELY there, but I can’t taste the honey (and I usually can).
Rachael
I’ve found you can replace the coconut oil with another oil, I’ve used light olive oil and extra virgin olive oil. Also, I have used regular sugar in place of honey when I was out and it’s worked just fine. I hope this helps!
Simona
Why do you think I’m doing wrong? The bread usually comes out flat. It rises but wide not high.
Tiffany
Does your yeast get foamy when you mix it with honey and hot water?
Simona
Yes, it does
CM
Could I replace the coconut oil with butter? We don’t like the taste of coconut.
Tiffany
Yes you can!
Anna
I just have a quick question about the Hodgson bread flour. It says on the package high protein and high gluten. If I’m trying to stay away from gluten this probably wouldn’t be the right choice of flour then correct? Can you tell me which brand you use.
Tiffany
If you’re staying away from gluten Anna, you’ll need to avoid any wheat-based flours – that includes all-purpose, bread flour, whole wheat, spelt, triticale, etc. Gluten is a protein in wheat, and flour is wheat berries ground up. Baking with non-gluten flours is not an easy undertaking. I don’t want to discourage you by any means, but it’s not as easy as a 1-1 swap.
Simona
Yes, it does
Anna
This recipe makes quite a nice loaf. A tad sweet with a soft crumb, it’s a winner. I’ve been making bread for a year or so now and have a few tips to make the process go a little smoother.
If not using a mixer, try using a Danish Wisk. It’s perfect for heavier batters and I use it for all my bread recipes.
Make sure your yeast is fresh. If you buy the bottles, as I do, you’ll want to use it up within a year and be sure to check the expiry date before you buy it. Just to be safe, proof the yeast the first time you use it (see “A beginner’s guide to using yeast” from this same blog — thank you Mr. & Mrs. Crumb!)
I kneaded by hand (both actually) for about 12 – 15 minutes.
For my last rise, I put the round boule atop a sheet of parchment paper that was placed over my pizza peel so when it was ready to pop in the oven, I just used a quick motion back out of the oven for minimum handling and deflation of the risen dough.
Just before I placed it in the oven, I slashed deeply with a sharp knife, then spritzed with water and sprinkled on some coarse salt (flaked works nicely too). I like the speed of this recipe but it doesn’t take into account that it has to cool slightly before cutting into it (the hardest 20 minutes of the recipe).
Bravo! Great recipe!
Tiffany @ Dontwastethecrumbs
Anna,
Thanks so much for the feedback! I’m make sure to pass the compliments on to Mr. Crumbs. Glad that you liked the beginners guide to yeast guide as well 🙂
How does water affect the loaf? I like the idea of sprinkling a little salt on the top – a little extra goes a long way!
Anna
Water will brown up your loaf and make the salt stick. I generally slash first, then spritz, add salt, and pop in the oven. I also preheat the oven with a small cast iron pan in it (as was mentioned by someone here) and pour about a cup of hot water into the cast iron pan and shut the door quickly. This produces an amazing amount of steam. Not sure what the steam does but a friend swears by it. He even puts a chain in the pan so there is more surface area and more steam. Sometimes I do what I’m told 😉
Bryan
Mr and Mrs Crumbs, I have a question. How do you adjust this recipe for when you are using Einkorn all-purpose flour? I also have a request. Would it be possible to alter the print version of the recipe (and others) just a bit to include a black font vs gray and increase the font size a bit to take advantage of a full 8 1/2 x 11 page? My vision isn’t what it used to be! (Oh, the days of 20/12 near and far! I lament your passing!)
Thanks!
Tiffany @ Dontwastethecrumbs
Bryan, we haven’t tried this recipe using Einkorn, but I wouldn’t recommend it! Einkorn is tricky by itself.
Joyce
I can’t get active dry yeast in my area for weeks now. Not even online. I’ve purchased all of the other ingredients. I subscribe to your blog. You are amazing. I bought Fresh Yeast. Can I use it?
Bread Man
[This comment has been edited in order to maintain the positive environment we strive to maintain.]
Thank you Crumbs!
Brandy
um… is it just me or did the recipe disappear??? I made it three times in two days and was about to make it again, we love it! I didn’t copy it down though! help
Tiffany
It’s back!
Alissa
I have made this 3 times in the past week. 1st time=boule, 2nd time=2 sandwich loaves, 3rd time=1 sandwich loaf. 1 loaf worked best for me at 15 degrees less and baking until 215 with thermometer. The 2 load attempt ended with burnt too small loaves. Cutting when absolutely cool is key to easy cutting. Love the recipe!
Tiffany
Thanks Alissa! Glad you loved it!
CarolSue
This recipe is fantastic! Generally I don’t use bread flour for making bread– I just don’t think to buy it. I did use it this time and the texture is amazing. My daughter and husband loved it . Definitely making this bread again. Thank you so much.
Tiffany
You are so welcome! Glad that you and your family loved the recipe!
debra
Hi, If I added a lot of garlic cloves, would it still bake up nicely do you think? Any known problems i would encounter? Thank you.
Tiffany
I think so, it’s pretty forgiving bread! Give it a try and post your results!
Amber
Hey! I made this today for the first time and I did the whole thing in my breadmaker. I put it on the expressbake (89 min) and it turned out perfect! I will definitely be making this again! Thank you so much!!
Tiffany
Woo hoo! You’re welcome 🙂 Glad you loved it!