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One Hour French Bread Recipe
4.9 from 324 votes

One Hour French Bread Recipe

One Hour French Bread Recipe produces a soft, elastic dough bread with a lightly crusted surface, using simple ingredients like yeast, flour, butter, and salt. The method involves proofing yeast in warm water, gradually adding flour, kneading, shaping, and baking at high heat to create a golden crust. Optional egg wash enhances the crust color. It’s a practical bread recipe for those wanting fresh bread without extensive rising times, suitable for sandwiches or as a side.

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Rise Time
20 mins
Total Time
55 mins
Servings: 8
Calories: 200 kcal
Course: Bread
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 1 & 1/2 cups water warm
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar
  • 1 & 1/2 tablespoons yeast dry
  • 1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 & 1/2 tablespoons butter softened
  • 3-4 cups all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
  • 1 egg optional (for brushing, white

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Do it now so that your oven is nice and hot when you put the bread in.
  2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine warm water, sugar, yeast, and salt. You want the water to be like a nice warm bath water. Feel it with your wrist.
  3. Set your bowl on the preheating oven and wait a couple minutes. If you see bubbles from the yeast reacting, move forward. If not, you may have killed your yeast with too hot water. Dump it and start over!
  4. Add the softened butter and 1 cup of flour, and stir together with a wooden spoon.
  5. Use the dough hook (or continue with the wooden spoon) to stir in the rest of the flour. Start with 3 cups total in the recipe (including the cup you added in step 4). Then add the last cup 1/4 cup at a time to see how much you need. The dough should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl but still sticky. (see photos) I usually add most of the fourth cup.
  6. Knead for 6-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
  7. Prepare a baking sheet or baguette pan** with nonstick spray.
  8. At this point you can either shape the dough into one large loaf that is about 12-14 inches, or you can make 2 smaller loaves. (I made two smaller loaves to fit in my baguette pan.)
  9. Use a sharp serrated knife to make 3-4 half-inch slits on top.
  10. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for 20 minutes.
  11. When the loaf or loaves have roughly doubled in size, remove the towel.
  12. In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk up 1 egg white. Make it nice and frothy. Use a pastry brush to coat the tops and sides of the bread. You can use all or most of the egg white.
  13. Transfer the bread to the oven.
  14. Bake for about 20 minutes. You will know it is done when the top is shiny and golden, and the bottom of the loaf is browned. The longer you leave it in, the crispier your crust will be.
  15. Let cool for a bit and then devour hot with butter!

Notes

  • The recipe uses about 1.5 packages of dry yeast; bulk yeast from Red Star is recommended for convenience.
  • Baking in a baguette pan or standard French bread pan affects loaf shape and baking time; larger loaves will require longer baking.
  • Serving suggestion includes pairing bread with an olive oil and balsamic bread dip, which can be prepared quickly.

Nutrition Information

Serving 1serving Calories 200kcal (10%) Carbohydrates 38g (13%) Protein 6g (12%) Fat 3g (5%) Saturated Fat 1g (5%) Polyunsaturated Fat 1g (6%) Monounsaturated Fat 1g (5%) Trans Fat 1g (50%) Cholesterol 6mg (2%) Potassium 65mg (1%) Fiber 1g (4%) Sugar 2g (4%) Vitamin A 66IU (1%) Vitamin C 1mg (1%) Calcium 10mg (1%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 8 Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 200

% Daily Value*

Serving 1serving
Calories 200kcal 10%
Carbohydrates 38g 13%
Protein 6g 12%
Fat 3g 5%
Saturated Fat 1g 5%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g 6%
Monounsaturated Fat 1g 5%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Cholesterol 6mg 2%
Potassium 65mg 1%
Fiber 1g 4%
Sugar 2g 4%
Vitamin A 66IU 1%
Vitamin C 1mg 1%
Calcium 10mg 1%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.