Bread Machine Challah (Jewish Egg Bread)

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Bread machine challah is a simple way to enjoy this flavorful traditional egg bread without spending all day in the kitchen.  Add the ingredients and press start, and your loaf will be ready in just a few hours.

My family absolutely loves challah, but making it is a labor of love.  Sometimes my children will ask for this rich soft bread late in the day, hoping to have it that evening and the leftovers the following day for challah french toast. 

That’d be an impossible request if we have other things on the agenda, at least without my bread machine.

Making bread machine challah turns what seems like a daunting task into 5 minutes of prep work, followed by 3-4 hours of hands-off time while the machine does the work.

If you’d like braided challah, you can always use this recipe just on the dough setting and then remove the dough to shape and rise on the counter (before baking in a conventional oven). 

I personally love the convenience of just set it and forget it.

I’ve considered making a version that’s kneaded in the machine and then hitting “pause” after the last punch down.  I’d take the dough out, shape it into a short braid, and place it back into the bread machine for baking. 

That seems like a good compromise, still letting the bread machine do just about all the work with the exception of a short pause right before the last rise.

That said, you’d have to catch the machine at that point…it hasn’t happened yet for me.  I’m not too worried about it though, as braiding may be traditional, but this bread machine challah tastes amazing even without the braided top.

This time I did manage to catch the bread machine during the last rise (rather than before it), and I brushed the top of the loaf with the remaining egg white and sprinkled it with poppy seeds. 

It adds a festive look to the challah with only a few seconds of work.  It’s optional of course, but if you happen to be by the machine during the final rise it only takes a moment.

This recipe is adapted from The Bread Lover’s Bread Machine Cookbook, which is my absolute favorite bread machine recipe book (and I have quite a few). 

The book actually contains five different bread machine challah recipes, from traditional loaves to variations with whole wheat, chocolate, apples, and even pumpkin challah.

Beyond that, it also has a number of other traditional egg bread recipes, including:

• Zopf (Swiss Egg Bread that’s similar to challah but includes dairy)
• Franskbrød (Nordic White Bread with eggs)
• French Brioche (a Buttery Enriched Bread with Plenty of Eggs)
• Egg Bagels (Kneaded in the machine but shaped and cooked separately)

4.52 from 35 votes

Servings: 10 slices (2 lb loaf)

Bread Machine Challah (Jewish Egg Bread)

By Ashley Adamant

Soft, golden, egg-rich challah in the bread machine. An easy way to enjoy this traditional Jewish bread for Shabbat dinner, holiday meals, or French toast. Includes amounts for 2-pound and 1 1/2-pound machines.

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 2 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Total: 3 hours hrs

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Equipment

• Bread Machine

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

In the bottom of the pan

• ▢ 1 cup water
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ 1 large egg yolk
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. honey, see note
• ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil

floated on top of the liquid ingredients

• ▢ 4 cups flour, bread or all-purpose
• ▢ 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• ▢ 1 1/2 tsp. SAF Instant Yeast, or 2 tsp active dry yeast

Optional toppings

• ▢ 1 egg white, from separated egg above
• ▢ 1-2 tsp. poppy seeds

US Customary - Metric

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Instructions 

• Add the liquid ingredients to the bread pan first: water, whole eggs, egg yolk (reserve the white in a small dish for later), honey, and olive oil.
• Add the flour on top, covering the liquid completely.
• Make a small well in the center of the flour. Place the salt on one side and the yeast on the opposite side, so they aren't in direct contact.
• Select the Basic White cycle and medium crust setting. Set machine to its 1 1/2-pound or 2-pound loaf size setting.
• Press start. Watch the first 2 to 3 minutes of kneading. The dough should form a ball that pulls away from the sides; it will feel slightly stickier than plain bread dough because of the eggs. Add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time if the dough is too wet, or 1 tablespoon of water at a time if too dry.
• Optional: about 1 hour before the cycle ends (after the last punch-down, during the final rise), open the lid, brush the dough top with the reserved egg white, and sprinkle with poppy or sesame seeds. Close the lid quickly.
• Let the machine complete the cycle.
• Remove the loaf onto a wire rack. Cool completely (at least 1 hour) before slicing.

Notes

For a 1 1/2-pound bread machine, use these smaller amounts:

• 3/4 cup (180 ml) water, lukewarm
• 2 large eggs (whole)
• 1 to 2 Tbsp honey (your preference)
• 3 Tbsp (42 ml) olive oil
• 3 cups (420 g) bread flour or all-purpose
• 1 tsp (6 g) salt
• 1 1/4 tsp (4 g) SAF instant yeast

Yeast conversions:

• SAF instant yeast or bread machine yeast: 1 1/2 tsp (2-pound machine) / 1 1/4 tsp (1 1/2-pound machine). Same product; interchangeable 1:1.
• Active dry yeast: add 1/2 tsp more, dissolved in the water for 10 minutes until foamy. Not compatible with the delay timer.

Flour measurement matters. Challah is sensitive to flour amounts because the dough is wet from the eggs. Spoon flour into the cup and level rather than scooping (which compresses), or use a scale: 1 cup = 5 oz / 140 to 150 g. Multiple readers have reported needing an extra 1 to 4 tablespoons of flour during kneading.

High altitude: at 5,000 feet or higher, reduce yeast by 1/4 to 1/2 tsp and add 1 to 2 Tbsp extra water.

Storage: 3 to 4 days at room temperature in a bread bag. Do not refrigerate. For longer storage, slice and freeze. Day-old challah is the absolute best for French toast.

Common troubleshooting:

• Loaf overflows the machine: you used the larger recipe in a too-small machine. Always size down.
• Loaf collapses in the middle: over-rise (reduce yeast 1/4 tsp), water too warm, or dough too wet (add 1 Tbsp flour during kneading).
• Dense loaf: old yeast, too much flour from compressed measuring, or salt touching yeast.
• Dry result: add 1 to 2 Tbsp extra water, or use bread flour (which holds moisture better than AP).

Braided challah variation: Use the dough cycle. When dough cycle finishes, divide into 3 pieces, roll into 14-inch ropes, braid, place on parchment-lined sheet. Rise 30 to 45 minutes, brush with egg white, sprinkle seeds, bake at 375°F for 25 to 30 minutes.

Round challah for Rosh Hashanah: Same dough-cycle method, but shape into a long rope and coil into a tight spiral.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 267kcal, Carbohydrates: 42g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Trans Fat: 0.003g, Cholesterol: 52mg, Sodium: 308mg, Potassium: 86mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 73IU, Vitamin C: 0.03mg, Calcium: 21mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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