This simple oat bread recipe turns out moist, fluffy, and slightly chewy for the perfect sandwich or side to your bowl of soup. Slather it with butter and enjoy a slice hot out of the oven!
In our house, we like to eat homemade bread. It’s healthier than store-bought bread, made of real food ingredients, and it’s simply delicious!
However homemade bread takes time. Between work, family obligations, kids’ school activities, and household duties, who has the extra time to make bread from scratch?
I started making homemade oat flour quite some time ago. I often substitute a cup or two for all-purpose flour in muffin and cookie recipes without a huge impact on flavor. In fact, oat flour often keeps the baked goods from drying out so quickly!
This simple oat bread is the best combination of everything I’ve learned about bread baking and oat flour so far! It’s slightly sweet and chewy and my family gobbled down a whole loaf in one day!
EASY OAT BREAD RECIPE
Not only will your family devour this delicious oat bread recipe, but it’s also a great recipe to try because:
- Oat flour breads are full of fiber and minerals, which increases the nutrition of your homemade bread!
- It’s easy! Without complicated ingredients and techniques, this oat bread is perfect for beginning bread bakers. That’s why we call it “very little bother oat bread” – it doesn’t take much effort to whip up a loaf or two!
- Holds up well for slicing. This oat bread makes great sandwich bread or French toast.
- It’s just plain yummy! With a slightly sweet and nutty flavor, oat bread is perfect plain, with butter, or even for sandwiches.
OAT FLOUR BREADS INGREDIENTS
- Water**. See the note below if you’re using a different wheat flour – einkorn behaves a bit differently, so you’ll need to adjust the amounts of water and flour.
- Granulated sugar. I like coconut sugar. You can also substitute honey for honey oat bread.
- Yeast. We’ll use active dry yeast and proof it first before adding the rest of the ingredients.
- Oat flour. Here’s how to make homemade oat flour – it’s really easy! Old fashioned rolled oats or quick oats work best for making oat flour.
- All-purpose einkorn flour**. See the note below if you’re using a different wheat flour – einkorn behaves a bit differently, so you’ll need to adjust the amounts of water and flour.
- Vital wheat gluten. Oat flour breads turn out a bit denser and chewier, so adding vital wheat gluten helps the bread to turn out soft and tender.
- Salt. If you’re going to use salt, make sure it’s a good one like Ava Jane’s Kitchen that doesn’t have microplastics! You can get a free 8oz. bag of sea salt right now (just pay shipping and handling!).
- Butter, soft or melted. A little bit of butter in the dough makes for a richer, melt-in-your-mouth bread.
**If you’re using modern wheat (whole wheat flour, bread flour, or all-purpose flour) you’ll need to increase the water, and you may also need additional flour to get the right consistency for your bread dough. See the recipe card below for specific amounts.
HOW TO MAKE OAT BREAD
Step 1. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast, water, and sugar and let sit until foamy.
Step 2. Add salt, butter, oat flour, vital wheat gluten, and 3 cups of flour. Mix until a sticky dough forms. Gradually add the remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, until the dough is slightly sticky but thick, smooth, and elastic.
Step 3. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise for 30 minutes, then punch down.
Step 4. Cover the bowl and let rise again for 30 minutes, then punch down.
Step 5. Preheat the oven. Split the dough and shape it into two loaves. Place the loaves seam side down into 2 lightly greased loaf pans. Cover the pans with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes. You can sprinkle additional rolled oats on top of the oat bread before baking.
Step 6. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. Allow to completely cool on a cooling rack before slicing (if you can!).
This oat bread recipe is best the day it’s baked, but it will keep for up to 3 days in a resealable bag or airtight container at room temperature, or you can store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
SERVE WITH HONEY OAT BREAD
This honey oat bread is delicious on its own spread with butter or for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
It’s also a great accompaniment to these:
- Hearty Minestrone Soup
- Roasted Vegetable Kale Salad
- Cheeseburger Soup
- Easy Waldorf Dinner Salad
- Northern Beans and Ham Soup
- Pork and Potato Soup
- Instant Pot Beef Stew
You can also make a great batch of French toast with oat bread!
This oat bread recipe has a perfect slightly sweet and chewy texture that also inspired two more bread recipes – Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread and Maple Oatmeal Bread!
FAQS FOR BREAD RECIPES WITH OATS
Is oats bread good for you?
Yes! This article from The Harvard School of Public Health talks about how healthy oats are. Not only that but this oat bread recipe is made from simple real food ingredients from scratch. Simple, unprocessed real food ingredients provide the best fuel for our bodies.
Can you make bread with oat flour?
Yes, but you also need wheat flour. Oats don’t have any gluten at all, so without the wheat flour, you’d be left with an incredibly dense loaf of oatmeal. The proteins in the wheat flour expand as the bread rises, making the loaf light and fluffy.
What do bread recipes with oats taste like?
Oats have a naturally nutty and sweet flavor. This bread is soft, moist, and chewy with a hint of sweetness.
Does this bread use leftover oatmeal?
No, but you can use it make this oatmeal bread recipe!
MORE EASY BREAD RECIPES
Ready for more delicious bread? Try one of these easy homemade bread recipes:
- No-Knead Overnight Artisan Bread
- 90 Minute Man Bread
- Rosemary Olive Oil Bread
- No Yeast Bread
- Homemade Pita Bread
Fight Inflation Workshop!
Sign up for my FREE Fight Inflation Workshop and learn simple strategies to save money, even with rising food costs!Easy Oat Bread
This simple oat bread recipe turns out moist, fluffy, and slightly chewy for the perfect sandwich or side to your bowl of soup. Slather it with butter and enjoy a slice hot out of the oven!
- Prep Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 2 loaves 1x
- Category: Breads
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups water** (see notes below if you’re not using Einkorn)
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp yeast
- 2 cups oat flour (how to make homemade oat flour)
- 3 – 3 ½ cups all-purpose einkorn flour** (see notes below if you’re not using einkorn)
- ½ cup vital wheat gluten
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- ⅓ cup butter, soft or melted
Instructions
- In a stand mixer bowl, combine yeast, water, and sugar and let sit until foamy. Add salt, melted butter, oat flour, 3 cups bread flour, and vital wheat gluten. Mix until a sticky dough forms. Gradually add the remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, until the dough is slightly sticky but thick.
- Cover bowl with a towel and set aside in a warm place to rise for 30 minutes; punch down.
- Cover bowl and let rise again for 30 minutes; punch down.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On the work surface, split the dough and shape it into two loaves. Place the loaves seam down into lightly greased loaf pans. Cover pans with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
- Bake the bread for 30 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool completely before slicing (if you can!).
Notes
** If you’re using modern wheat (whole wheat, bread flour, or all-purpose flour), increase the water to 2 ¼ cups. You may also need to increase the flour to up to 5 cups.
Nutrition
- Calories: 2754
Hi Tiffany,
I would like to leave out the modern wheat gluten, and add xanthan gum, instead. Whaddya think??
Shelley
I have quick oats on hand and wondered if I can make my own oat flour from it by grinding it. Have you tried that or know if it would work? Can’t wait to try this recipe – it looks amazing! 🙂
Thank you!
Absolutely Michele!
Can I make this with only oat flour???✨
Unfortunately no Yuri – oats don’t have any gluten at all, so you’ll be left with an incredibly dense loaf of oatmeal. 🙁
Ok*Thank you!!😃
No where in the recipe does it say to knead the bread, do you not have to in this recipe? I would like to try this recipe. Thank you!
Linda, the kneading is done in step 1 where it says “mix until a sticky dough forms.” This bread doesn’t require the extensive kneading that a typical bread recipe calls for.
Thanks, Tiffany. I would never have thought that “mix” and “knead” meant the same thing.
Linda.
I am going to make this bread tomorrow! I was wondering if I could sub any wheat flour for the all purpose? I am not against white flour but my son loves wheat bread and I would like to keep the flavor there!!
Yes, you can! One thing to keep in mind is that oat doesn’t have gluten, so you have to combat that w/grains with gluten. Whole wheat is heavier than AP, so I leaned towards AP to ensure it rose well. If you sub, I’d start with 50/50 for the first time and then adjust from there. Awesome that he likes wheat bread – way to go mama!
I was looking for a oat bread recipe and I am so glad I checked here! I decided to try yours because I have had so much success making several of your bread recipes, this one was no different! I think this might be my all time favorite bread recipe now! So yummy!
I used AP Flour instead of the bread flour, and then added in another 2 tbsp vital wheat gluten per cup of flour and it turned out awesome! I will be making this again! Thank you again for these great recipes! I will be back to try others 🙂
Aw, your excitement is contagious – thank you! So glad you liked the recipes… I think this one is my favorite too!
You’re welcome!
BTW, I already have orders from a few friends for loaves of this bread! LOL they loved it as much as I did. It looks like I will be making more in the next few days 🙂
Oh wow! That’s a pretty darn good compliment! You know you’ve struck gold when friends ask you to make it for them. 😉
Hello! I just wanted to say that my family love love loves this bread! It is my go to bread every week because not only is it tasty for toast, french toast or just plain with honey, but also holds up great as a sandwich. I did want to add that I have found that using coconut sugar actually makes the bread even tastier! I use the same amount called for regular sugar and just sub the coconut sugar. Thank you for all the delicious recipes and money saving tips! God bless!
I’m so glad you liked it Taylor! I’ll have to try coconut sugar in this the next time I have it. I know it’s one of my favorites too – something about the oat gives it such a new chew!
Just out of curiosity, the oil you refer to in the instructions part of the recipe is the butter? I”m so excited to try this recipe. Thanks!!!
Hi there..I am new to home bread baking; do you know if I can skip the stand mixer and hand mix the dough? Thanks!
Yes you can Tabitha! Any of my bread recipes can be converted to by-hand, unless otherwise noted. 🙂
In the directions it says to add oil but I don’t see oil in the ingredients list. Is the oil supposed to say butter or do we add oil and butter? Thanks
That should say butter. Thanks for catching my typo Nicole!
Is it possible for me to make this recipe in my breadmaker?
I haven’t tried it personally Christina, but if you use this recipe and follow the instructions for the machine, I’m betting you’ll still get something pretty tasty. 🙂
I dont have a stand mixer, is it even possible to make homemade bread with out one?? Thanks for this wonderful site you have put together!
Yes, it is! It certainly takes more arm work, but it’s entirely possible. Just mix everything in a bowl until the spoon won’t turn, then start kneading. 🙂 Thank you Deanna!!
Love this recipe! I tried it for the first time today with my kids and wow – amazing. Wow do we buy the bread from the store? Thank you for posting!
You’re welcome Natalie! Happy to hear you enjoyed it!