BEST Eggless Brioche Bread Recipe

Ingredients Notes & Substitutions

Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).

• Flour:  Standard all-purpose flour works best here; skip the bread flour and wheat flour.
• Sugar: Regular white granulated sugar o caster sugar.
• Yeast: I recommend and use instant yeast since it doesn’t need to be activated; just mix it with the dry ingredients.
• Salt: I prefer kosher or sea salt. If you only have table salt handy, I recommend reducing the amount to half.
• Evaporated Milk: You don’t have evaporated milk? No problem!! Check out my post about How to Make Evaporated Milk at home. 
• Sweetened Condensed Milk: Make sure you use the full-fat version.
• Vanilla Extract: For optimal flavor, reach for pure vanilla instead of imitation. Even better, try homemade vanilla extract!
• Butter: I prefer to use unsalted butter, but if you only have salted butter handy, you can use it. In this case, skip the salt called in the recipe.

Step By Step Recipe Photo Tutorial

Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).

1 – Make the Dough

Toss the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl and give them a stir. 

Add warm evaporated milk to the bowl with the flour mixture. Beat with a dough hook on low speed for 2 – 3 minutes until combined.

Add the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla and mix with the dough hook until a dough forms. Keep mixing for 8 – 10 minutes, until the dough looks smooth and elastic. 

Then, add the butter with the mixer running, one tablespoon at a time, and make sure each piece incorporates before adding the next. I like to add one tablespoon of butter and mix for 2 minutes; I even set the timer on my phone to make sure I am mixing long enough. 

After adding all the butter, keep mixing the dough for 10 – 20 minutes, or until the dough passes the windowpane test.

2 – First Rise

Roll the dough into a ball and place it in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let it set in a warm place for 1 – 2 hours, or until double in size. 

To bake the same day: Once the dough has doubled in size, turn it out onto a floured surface and punch down the dough. 

To bake the next day: Once the dough has doubled in size, punch down to deflate the dough completely, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for up to 48 hours. 

3 – Form The Loaf

There are many ways you can shape your brioche. You can make a plain loaf, a braided loaf, individual buns, etc…Totally up to you!

Letter Fold Loaf: Divide the dough into six equal pieces (140 g each approx.). Flatten each piece into a rectangle, then fold short ends in towards each other. Flatten again and tightly roll into a log. Repeat with all pieces. Grease 8”-x-5” loaf pan with butter. Place 6 pieces of dough seam-side down in one straight row into each prepared pan. Cover. 

Braid: Divide the dough into three equal pieces (280 g each approx.). Roll the pieces out into long strands that are about 1 1/2 times as long as your pan. Pinch one of the ends together. Braid the three pieces together, and then pinch the other end together. Tuck the ends underneath and transfer the dough to a lightly greased loaf pan. Cover.

Mini Buns: Divide the chilled dough into 12 pieces (70 g each approx.) to make mini brioche buns. Place individual balls over a baking tray. After arranging the dough balls on your baking trays, flatten them slightly. Cover the buns loosely with plastic wrap. This is important to prevent skin from forming on the dough, as it rises.

NOTE: If you refrigerate the dough overnight, it might be a bit stiffer to work with, so you can use a rolling pin to help shape it into the desired width and length.

4 – Second Rise

Cover the shaped bread and let it set in a warm place for 1 hour, or until double in size. 

This process might take longer depending on the temperature of the dough. If you refrigerate the dough overnight, the second rise can take up to 3 hours. 

Be patient! The second proof is important to get a beautifully risen, airy, and light bread loaf. If you under-proof the bread dough, you’ll end up with a smaller bread loaf that is denser and has less volume. 

How To Know When Your Bread Loaf Is Ready to Be Baked

The bread is ready to bake when it has doubled or tripled the size, and when you press into the dough with your finger, an indentation is formed, and it remains. If the dough bounces back without leaving an indentation, then the dough is under-proofed. If the indentation causes the dough to deflate, then the dough has over-proofed, and you may need to re-knead and re-form the dough and proof it once again.

5 – Bake

Preheat your oven to 375º F (190º C) and place the oven rack in the lower half. If your bread is too close to the top of the oven it will get too brown.

Eggless “Egg” Wash: Mix 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk + 2 tablespoons of melted butter in a bowl. Brush the surface of the loaf with eggless “egg wash”.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, tenting with foil after 15 to 20 minutes. The internal temperature should read between 180ºF-190ºF, and up to 205°F for a crustier loaf. 

OPTIONAL: Mix 2 teaspoons of sugar with 1 tablespoon of water until the sugar is completely dissolved. As soon as the bread comes out of the oven, brush it with the sugar mixture to give it that shiny finish.