How to Make A Challah
3-Braid Loaf
Have you been intimidated by the pretty challah? Not any more. Today, I share with you the easiest three-braid challah bread recipe you will ever make. This recipe uses just six ingredients, which are regular pantry staples and the process is surprisingly simple and easy.
If you love bread, then today I have a new bread recipe to add to your baking skills. While this one looks intimidating, it is surprisingly simple and easy to make.
The challah bread is one that always makes an impressive centerpiece to any dinner table. Try different braids with the same dough to show off your baking skills. This bread is a Jewish staple and a must-have for every Friday dinner.
What is challah?
I bet you’ve seen this bread at every bakery and thought it was just a pretty designed bread. Right? Well, there is more to challah.
It is a Jewish bread made every week on Friday to celebrate Shabbat, the Jewish weekend, as well as on festive occasions except Passover. It’s an enriched dough made with flour, oil, and eggs and gets a slight yellow color from the eggs. Traditional challah is made with water because Jews do not eat dairy and meat together. But if you’re not keeping kosher, try milk to make this bread, it is quite delicious.
About this challah recipe
This is the easiest challah bread recipe you will ever make. As you can see in the video and step-by-step pictures, the ingredients are simple pantry staples and the process is like any other bread.
The real magic of this bread is the braiding. They start from one braid right up to 10 braids. Some very easy and some a little complicated. This is a three-braid challah, which is similar to braiding your hair or yarn. That is why I said this is the easiest challah you will ever make.
The timeline and process for making this challah is quite straight forward. It takes about 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
- Make the dough – 10 minutes
- First rise – 60 minute (can be made overnight)
- Shape the loaf – 15 minutes
- Proof the bread – 45 minutes
- Bake the bread – 25 minutes
Braiding the challah
This is what makes this bread different from all other bread – the braiding. While a fancy 6 or 10-braid challah will be a great way to impress family and friends, a simple 3-braid is the easiest. It’s as simple as braiding your hair or yarn.
Often, during the festive season, you will find round challah, which is the long braid coiled into a circle. I will share that one with you soon and it’s very pretty.
The secret to baking a perfect challah bread
There are two things that contribute to good challah bread.
- The density of the dough when making this bread. Unlike our pizza or focaccia bread, where we add more water, this dough has less water. Unlike our dinner rolls, where we make a light and airy bread, this one is denser. That’s because we want the dough to hold its shape. So, when you knead this dough, you want to take note of the density of the dough. It must be soft but still have a good body, not as squishy as pizza dough.
- When shaping the loaf, don’t just roll it into a long rope. Take that moment to roll it out, then into a jelly roll as I have in the video. This gives you a well-formed and shaped loaf. The final bread will hold better as I like to call a good looking bread.
What can you do with leftover challah bread?
Challah is often the best bread to make French toast or bread pudding. Personally, I love making sandwiches with leftover challah as well as toasting them as croutons for soup.
Useful tips and tools
- A small mixing bowl or measuring cup to activate the yeast. I prefer to use glass over metal. If the metal is cold, it can lower the temperature of the liquid ingredients. Not a big deal. And yet, it’s nice to get the yeast activated quickly and move on with the recipe.
- I like mixing bread dough by hand. It’s quite therapeutic. But bread dough can be difficult to handle. Not just because it needs more kneading but also because it’s often a soft, sticky mess. And yet, keeping the dough soft and sticky is important for good bread baking. So, I highly recommend using a stand mixer such as Kenwood, or kitchen-aid. Personally, I also have a hand mixer. And yet, I don’t use it for baking bread. Because bread dough is dense compared to cakes. So, it might harm my hand mixer. (recommended read – which stand-mixer is good for home bakers)
- Baking bread is a science. So, measuring ingredients correctly is important. Also, do not wing the measurements. Use a measuring cup for liquid ingredients and measuring spoons for dry ingredients.
- And, a good baking tray is as important to bread baking as it is to other baking. Therefore, buy a good quality baking tray that’s not too thin. The thick ones will prevent the bread from burning on the bottom. Sometimes you can even add a second tray on the bottom to prevent it from getting burnt.
- Every oven works differently. So, the baking times are just guidelines. In the case of bread, a hollow sound on the bottom of the bread is a great indication. If the bread bakes too quick or too slow, compared to the time given, it might be a good idea to check if your oven needs calibration. An oven thermometer is a great little gadget to help keep the oven temperature in check. All you need to do is adjust the temperature accordingly.
Ingredients and substitutes (Save/Pin)
- Flour – I like using bread flour for this challah. It gives a soft chew bread with a tender crust. But, for years I have made this with all-purpose flour and it works wonderfully too. So, use either bread or all-purpose flour.
- Water – As I said above, traditionally, challah is made with water but the same amount of milk works just as well.
- Instant dry yeast – I like to use instant dry because I’ve always had great success with it. If you have to use active dry yeast, you will need 2 1/4 tsp or one packet. And if you use fresh yeast, you will need about 21 grams. Also, it’s not necessary to activate the yeast, but I like to take the guesswork out and make sure my dough will rise.
- Sugar – The sugar here is not really to add sweetness. So no, the one tablespoon won’t make your homemade dinner rolls sweet. The sugar and fat in the recipe are there to feed the yeast. Just as you need warm liquid to activate the yeast you need sugar and fat to strengthen it and let it grow. If you prefer, you can substitute sugar with 2 tbsp of honey.
- Butter – I like adding butter not just to feed the yeast but also to add flavor. You can substitute the butter for 2 tbsp of oil in this recipe.
- Egg – Adds a lot of flavor to the bread, gives a tender crumb and strengthens the texture. The egg is also a leavening agent that helps the bread rise. You can omit the egg if necessary, but you will need to use less flour than the recipe states as the egg is a liquid ingredient.
How to make the easiest challah bread recipe (save/pin)
Please note, I am not Jewish (my husband is). I do not claim this recipe to be authentic or in any way traditional to Judaism.
For the dough
- Combine flour and salt – and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, honey, oil, and eggs – combine well with a whisk.
- Then, add the flour – combine well with a fork.
- Transfer to a well-floured work board and knead for 5 minutes until, smooth, soft and springs back. (see video)
- Make a ball and place in an oiled bowl.
- Cover and let rise for 60 to 90 minutes or until double in volume.
Shape the loaf
- Transfer to a un-floured work-surface.
- Divide the dough into 2 for 2 loaves.
- Then divide each into 3 portions. They need to be approximately the same weight.
- Form each into a ball. If necessary let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Roll each piece with a rolling pin on a un-floured work surface.
- Then, roll like a jelly roll into a rope (see video) – This will give us a beautiful texture for the loaf.
Braiding the challah – 3 strands
- Place all three ropes in such a way that they intersect each other in the center.
- Then braid one half from the center down – flip over and braid the second half as shown in the video.
- This braid is similar to braiding your hair – starting from the middle in towards the ends makes it easier, prettier and less complicated.
- Cover and let proof for 30 to 45 minutes.
Bake
- A half-hour before baking, preheat the oven at 170 C / 340 F.
- Brush the challah with beaten egg.
- Bake each for 20 to 25 minutes until you have a nice golden brown (the internal temperature of about 195 F ).
- Remove and let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
- Then, cover with a clean kitchen cloth to keep it soft.
- Enjoy!
Frequently asked questions
The challah will keep at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Once cut, make sure to wrap the cut side of the bread well to prevent drying out.
Absolutely, I do it every week. I cut the bread into slices. Place it into a re-usable silicon storage bag in the freeze. When I need I just thaw slices in the microwave for 15 to 30 seconds.
Yes, raisins, dried cranberries, and almonds are very common in challah and taste delicious.
Of course, I have made challah bread for years with all-purpose flour before I had the luxury of bread flour and it works equally well. Bread flour does give a softer, chewier bread with a tender crumb.
Yes, if you want you can make one large challah as well. Personally, I prefer to make two for our family.
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Challah Bread Recipe – 3 Braids
Print Pin RateDescription
Ingredients
Makes 2 laofs
- 250 ml (1.06 cups) Water warm 110F
- 2 1/4 tsp Instant dry yeast
- 2 tbsp Honey
- 2 tbsp Oil cooking or olive
- 2 Eggs large
- 510 grams (4.08 cups) Bread flour or all-purpose flour
- 60 grams (0.48 cups) Bread flour or all-purpose flour for kneading
- 2 tsp Salt
Instructions
For the dough
- Combine flour and salt – and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, honey, oil, and eggs – combine well with a whisk.
- Then, add the flour – combine well with a fork.
- Transfer to a well-floured work board and knead for 5 minutes until, smooth, soft and springs back. (see video)
- Make a ball and place in an oiled bowl.
- Cover and let rise for 60 to 90 minutes or until double in volume.
- Shape the loaf.
- Transfer to a un-floured work-surface.
- Divide the dough into 2 for 2 loaves.
- Then, divide each into 3 portions. They need to be approximately the same weight.
- Form each into a ball. If necessary, let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Roll each piece with a rolling pin on a un-floured work surface.
- Then roll like a jelly roll into a rope (see video) – This will give us a beautiful texture for the loaf.
Braiding the challah – 3 strands
- Place all three ropes in such a way that they intersect each other in the center.
- Then, braid one half from the center down – flip over and braid the second half as shown in the video.
- This braid is similar to braiding your hair – starting from the middle in towards the ends makes it easier, prettier and less complicated.
- Cover and let proof for 30 to 45 minutes.
Bake
- A half-hour before baking, preheat the oven at 170 C / 340 F.
- Brush the challah with beaten egg.
- Bake each for 20 to 25 minutes until you have a nice golden brown (the internal temperature of about 195 F ).
- Remove and let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.
- Then, cover with a clean kitchen cloth to keep it soft.
- Enjoy!
Equipment
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
About Videos – most recipes has two videos – a quick version & longer detailed version. Sometimes a similar recipe video may be used
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Anita
Challah is one of my favorite bread. It’s good as is, turned into morning toasts, for french toasts, and for making bread pudding. 🙂
Veena Azmanov
That is so true, Anita. Love this as is as well as for French toast or bread pudding.
Suzy
We have been looking for homemade bread to make and this is just perfect! Love it!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Suzy
Rebecca
You make it look way easier than I’d thought it would be! I want to make it now!
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, Rebecca. It really is simple and easy
Kelly Anthony
This homemade challah bread recipe is sure to impress any guest. I have never attempted to make it before but I’m excited to make it.
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, it’s so easy Kelly, you must try.
Priya Lakshminarayan
I have always dreamed of making this bread..thanks for providing so many tips..will try it now.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Priya. I hope you try it.
Emily Liao
I’ve always wanted to learn how to make this kind of bread, and this recipe made it so easy to make! Will definitely have this on a weekly rotation
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Emily. I am so happy to hear that.