Bread & rolls
Round butter brioche
Brioche contains considerably more butter and egg than ordinary bread.
- Total time
- 380 min
- Servings / pieces
- 1
- Topic
- Bread & rolls
Brioche contains considerably more butter and egg than ordinary bread. Add butter after the basic dough has come together. Chilling makes shaping easier without changing its soft, rich texture through unnecessary extra flour. The timing includes the stated rises, which can take longer in a cool kitchen. Watch volume and dough tension as well as the clock. Weigh flour and liquid, keeping extra dusting flour separate from the measured dough ingredients.
Method
Step by step
- 01
Mix
Mix flour, eggs, milk, yeast, sugar and salt. After five minutes, add butter gradually.
- 02
Develop the dough
Knead for about eight to ten minutes by hand or at low mixer speed. The dough should become cohesive and elastic. Brief pauses help if the mixture still tears readily while you are working it.
- 03
Let rise
Rise covered for 90 minutes, then chill for one hour. The dough should be noticeably lighter yet still shapeable.
- 04
Shape
Divide into six balls, arrange in the greased round tin and prove for 60 minutes. Mix yolk with milk and brush on thinly.
- 05
Bake
Bake at a preheated 180°C conventional for 30–38 minutes. Cover loosely if darkening too quickly. The centre should feel set and springy.
- 06
Cool
Cool on a wire rack so steam can escape from the underside too. Slice only once the crumb is no longer hot; cutting too early can compress the interior and make it seem gummy.
Times are a guide. Your hob, oven and ingredients affect the result; use the cooking cues as well as the clock.
Ingredients and dough texture
The buttery dough takes longer to become smooth. Stop the mixer and chill briefly if it becomes very warm. Do not melt the butter: an oily mixture is harder to stabilise than cool, elastic dough.
Serving and storing
Pull into portions or slice cold. Day-old brioche suits toast or French toast; do not store raw dough as though it were finished bread.
Kitchen questions
One more question?
Why is the dough so soft?
Butter and eggs soften it; the chilling stage helps.
Can I reduce the butter?
That makes a different enriched bread. Keep the quantities for this brioche.
Why add butter gradually?
Small portions incorporate more easily into developed dough. Wait until visible butter pieces disappear before adding more. One large cold mass makes even distribution considerably more difficult.
