Bread Machine Brioche Bread

4.29 from 35 votes

Bread Machine Brioche Bread

Soft, buttery, egg-rich French brioche made easy in the bread machine. The trick: butter is added 10 minutes into the knead cycle, one tablespoon at a time, for a tender pull-apart crumb that rivals bakery brioche.

Prep Time10

Cook Time2 50

Total Time3

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Bread Machine, Bread Machine Dough Recipe, brioche

Servings: slices (1 1/2 pound loaf)

Author: Ashley Adamant

Equipment

Bread Machine

Ingredients

Liquid Ingredients (Add First)

1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 egg yolk

Dry Ingredients( On Top of Liquid Layer)

2 cups White Flour preferably bread flour
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons SAF Instant Yeast or 1 3/4 tsp active dry yeast

Mix-ins (Add after 10 minutes of kneading)

7 Tbsp butter unsalted, room temperature, cut into pieces

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Add the liquid ingredients to the bread pan first: milk, whole eggs, then the extra yolk.
Add the flour on top of the liquid, covering it completely.
Make a small well in the center of the flour. Add the sugar, salt, and yeast, keeping salt and yeast on opposite sides of the well.
Set aside the butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces at room temperature. Do not add yet.
Select the Basic White cycle and press start. Set a timer for 10 minutes from when kneading actually begins (not from the preheat cycle).
At the 10-minute mark, open the lid and add the butter one tablespoon at a time. Let each piece incorporate for about 15 seconds before adding the next. The full butter-add takes 1 to 2 minutes.
Close the lid and let the machine finish the cycle (about 3 hours total, varies by machine).
When baking completes, let the loaf rest in the machine for 5 to 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Cool completely (at least 1 hour) before slicing.

Notes

To make a two pound loaf (16 slices), you’ll need:

Liquid Ingredients (Add First)

1/2 cup milk, plus 1 Tbsp.
2 large eggs
2 egg yolks

Dry Ingredients( On Top of Liquid Layer)

2 3/4 cups bread flour
2 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 teaspoons SAF yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp bread machine yeast)

Mix-ins (Add after 10 minutes of kneading)

10 Tbsp butter, unsalted, room temperature, cut into pieces

1-Pound Loaf: Cut the 2-pound amounts (above) in half. Do not attempt smaller than 1 pound; the paddles can't knead effectively with less.

Yeast conversions (1 1/2 lb loaf base):

SAF instant yeast or bread machine yeast: 1 1/4 tsp (same product; interchangeable 1:1). Placed in the well on top of the flour.
Active dry yeast: 1 1/2 tsp, dissolved in the milk first (wait 10 minutes until foamy, then proceed). Not compatible with the delay timer.

Delay timer: NOT compatible with this recipe under any yeast type. The butter mix-in step has to be done live.

Butter temperature is critical. Use room-temperature softened butter, not cold or melted. Cold butter won't incorporate; melted butter incorporates differently and changes the crumb.

Flour: Bread flour is strongly preferred. All-purpose works but adds 1 extra Tbsp to compensate; the loaf will be slightly shorter and slightly less chewy.

Short-knead-cycle workaround: If your machine's first knead is less than 10 minutes (some older Breadman models), restart the cycle to get another knead, or use the dough cycle and bake shaped in the oven (375°F, 30-35 minutes).

Storage: 3 days at room temperature wrapped in a bread bag or dish towel. Brioche stales faster than plain bread because of the butter and eggs. Do not refrigerate. For longer storage, slice and freeze; frozen slices thaw beautifully for French toast.

Burger buns / dinner rolls variation: Use the dough cycle instead of Basic White (add butter at 10 minutes as usual). When dough cycle finishes, divide into 8 (buns) or 12 (rolls) pieces, shape, rise 30-45 min, brush with egg wash, bake at 375°F for 18-20 min (buns) or 15-18 min (rolls).

Common troubleshooting:

Sticky, greasy dough: butter added too early, or too much butter at once. Add 1 Tbsp of flour at a time until the dough comes together.
Sunken top: too much liquid, too much butter, or over-risen. Try 1 Tbsp less milk next time.
Dense crumb: old yeast, cold eggs/butter, or short knead cycle ended before butter was incorporated. Use fresh yeast, bring ingredients to room temperature, and confirm the knead cycle length.

Nutrition