Homemade Challah Bread Recipe - Self Proclaimed Foodie (2024)

FAQs

Why is my homemade challah so dense? ›

This can happen if you used too much flour by accident or if you are using whole wheat flour that has a higher bran content. Make a hole in the center of your dough by pulling it open with your hands. Pour some very warm water and a teaspoon of oil into the hole.

Challah is almost always pareve (containing neither dairy nor meat—important in the laws of Kashrut), unlike brioche and other enriched European breads, which contain butter or milk as it is typically eaten with a meat meal.

The process involves two long room temperature rises: the first, 8-10 hours and the second, 4-5 hours. I suggest kneading the dough Thursday evening, letting it rise overnight, then forming the loaves Friday morning. With this timing, you are ready to break the challah around 12/1PM on Friday.

Make it ahead: Prepare the loaf up to the point where it's braided and on the pan. Tent it with greased plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator overnight. Next morning, remove the dough from the refrigerator (keep it covered). Let it warm and rise at room temperature for 60 minutes before baking as directed.

Myrna's original recipe calls for all-purpose flour, and you can substitute that here. But I find bread flour gives the challah a nice chew without making it tough, and also helps the braided loaf maintain its shape after baking. For some novice challah makers, that braid can seem like the hardest part.

If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking. Then dip your index finger in the egg wash, then into poppy or sesame seeds and then onto a mound of bread. Continue until bread is decorated with seeds.

Challah Bread Origins

The original challah was the part of bread that was removed. In ancient times, this dough was baked into beautiful loaves and donated to the Cohanim (Priests) who worked in the Temple in Jerusalem.

Translation: Blessed are You, L-rd our G‑d, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to separate challah. Separate a small piece of dough, approximately one ounce, and say: "This is challah."

Challah functions as a physical metaphor for manna from heaven at the sabbath meal. It is baked for sharing during shabbat; candles lit, wine poured, blessings made and prayers shared.

Overrising the first rise, which is when the dough is still just a dough, can occur. Usually if it overrose just a bit, say, for an hour extra in a cold kitchen, it doesnt really matter. You simply punch it back down and go on to the shaping.

Can I let my challah dough rise overnight? ›

So that's why I always say to leave your dough in the fridge, and it'll have a colder, slow rise because the yeast still eats away at the sugar, but it's at a slower rate than when you're keeping it at room temperature. Dough can stay in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

Be careful not to over proof your loaves; if they proof too much, the air bubbles get too big, causing them to pop and then deflate in the oven.

Allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it's puffy and doubled in size, 2 to 3 hours. Keep in mind that when baking yeast breads, rising times are only a guide. The temperature in your kitchen, the humidity level outdoors, and how you knead the dough will all affect the rising time.

Keep folding the dough into itself until the flour is worked into the dough. If the dough feels too dry or crumbly, a little bit of oil works wonders to bring moisture and pliability back. Spray your workspace with cooking spray as well.

Make sure the dough is in a large enough bowl or container and has plenty of room to rise, because it will. Refrigerate it overnight. When ready to bake, remove the dough from the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Braid it and let it do its second rise for 20 to 30 minutes before putting it in the oven.

There may be several reasons for a dense, cake like texture in bread. It may indicate the kneading wasn't enough for the gluten to develop properly, or the dough was proved for too short a time or the dough may have been too dry. It is also worth checking the flour you used.

Too Much Flour

Even if you select the correct flour, if you overdo it your bread will come out heavy and dense. The addition of too excessive flour in the dough is a common error, particularly for those who are new and don't know how it is what bread dough ought to look like.

If your dough is not kneaded enough, the right amount of gas will not be released and it will result in a very dense bread with little moisture.