Soft, buttery, and rich brioche made using a sponge method. The rich, buttery flavor and light, fluffy texture make brioche a versatile bread that can be enjoyed on its own or used in a variety of sweet or savory dishes.
This recipe makes 2 loaves or 16 large buns or 18 - 24 dinner rolls. You can halve the recipe but It's a bit harder to knead a small amount of dough in a stand mixer. You may have to readjust the dough throughout the kneading process, but it's possible.
Ideal room temperature for making brioche is about 75 F (24 C). If you live in a tropical country, an air-conditioned room is definitely recommended
I do not recommend kneading by hand or using a breadmaker to make this recipe. The dough is too delicate and soft for hand kneading and for a breadmaker
Prepare the sponge (a least 2 hours before):
Combine all ingredients for the sponge. The consistency is like a thick batter. Cover loosely and let it ferment for at least 2 hours. You can also let it ferment for 1 hour and then put it in the fridge for 24 hours until the next day when you are ready to prepare the dough. Just make sure to wrap it tightly with a cling wrap
Prepare the dough:
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Turn the mixer to low speed (speed 2 on KA) and let it run until a rough dough is form. Let it knead for another 10 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic. Do not crank up the speed. We need to make sure the dough is not overheated, which will melt the butter later.
With the mixer still running, adding few pieces of butter at a time. Like a small pat at a time in about 20-30 seconds interval. Once all the butter is in, let it knead again for another 15 minutes on speed 2 until the dough comes together but not entirely leaves the sides of the bowl. The dough will be very very soft, elastic, shiny, and tacky to the touch but it shouldn't stick to your fingers too bad. Please do not attempt to add more flour. This is the way it supposed to be. It will firm up once you chill in the fridge
Important tips:
If your dough starts to get very oily, you know that the butter has melted and the temperature you are at is probably warm too. You can chill the dough in the fridge for few minutes and then continue the kneading. Which is why is important to maintain cool room temperature and to mix on a low speed
First proofing:
Oil your hands and pick up the dough. Place the dough in a large, lightly greased straight-sided bucket with a tight-fitting lid if you have one or any container with a lid. Cover and let it ferment until double or near double in volume at a warm place, but not too warm. Try not to exceed 75 F (24 C) (we don't want the butter to melt). This may take 1-2 hours or a bit longer.
Chill the dough (at least 6 hours is mandatory):
Gently deflate the dough in the container using a lightly oiled spatula. Scoop the edge and fold it to the center to deflate the gas. Round it up into a dough ball and put it back into the container. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and put this in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or up to 48 hours
Shaping:
You can use two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 size loaf pans. You can also use two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans but the brioche will be shorter if you don't mind that
Remove the dough from the fridge. Let it sit for about 30 minutes at room temperature, not warmer than 75 F (24 C). We don't want to shape a very stiff dough The dough is very easy to work with now because it's cold and the butter is hardened and it won't make a mess
To make two bread loaves, divide the dough into two portions of equal weight. Work with one dough at a time and keep the other one covered while you are working with the other one
I didn't do braiding with this brioche. I did the "faux" braiding. Divide each dough into 12 equal pieces. Work with one dough ball at a time, pull the edges towards the center, flip it over so the seam side is down and roll it round with your palm into a tight dough ball. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls
Arrange the dough balls into one loaf pan, 4 on one side and 4 on the other side, kinda in a zig zag pattern. Then arrange another 4 on the center. Repeat with the other dough balls in another pan
Shaping varieties:
To shape into hamburger buns, simply divide the dough into 16 equal-weight dough balls. Work with one dough ball at a time, pull the edges towards the center, flip it over so the seam side is down and roll it round with your palm into a tight dough ball. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls
Arrange 6 doughs on each baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You will need three baking sheets and proceed to final proofing
To shape into dinner rolls, you can use two 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 pans lined with parchment paper. simply divide into 18 or 24 (mini rolls) equal-weight dough balls. Work with one dough ball at a time, pull the edges towards the center, flip it over so the seam side is down and roll it round with your palm into a tight dough ball. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Arrange them in a 3 x 3 format (for 9 pieces each pan) or 3 x 4 format (for 12 pieces each pan)
Final proofing:
Cover the pan with plastic wrap sprayed with a bit of non-stick spray to prevent the dough from sticking to the plastic wrap as it rises. Let it ferment until double in size. It will almost reach the rim of the pan if you use 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pan
How to tell if the dough is done fermenting:
When you gently push on the dough, it springs back SLOWLY and leave some indentations. It won't fully spring back. The dough is ready to be baked. If it springs back immediately, it needs to ferment a bit longer. This may take 2-3 hours. Check it at one hour mark and see. It will be faster if you use SAF gold instant yeast
If you gently push on the dough and it deflates the dough, it has been over-proofed. What you can do is to go ahead and deflate the dough and shape it again and start again. The result won't be optimal anymore, but it's better than baking an over-proofed dough, which will collapse later after baking and you end up with a dense gummy loaf
Baking:
When you see that the dough is almost double, start preheating the oven to 350 F (180 C) for conventional oven, 330 F (165 C) for convection oven
Brush the top of the loaf with an egg wash for that shiny golden crust. Sprinkle with some Swedish pearl sugar on top or skip it if you prefer. I only have turbinado sugar and that's what I use and I also sprinkle some white sesame seeds. These are not traditional, just my own touch LOL!
You can bake loaf pans or 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 pans side by side if your oven is wide enough, otherwise, I recommend baking one pan at a time. I get better results when I bake side by side or one pan at a time. For hamburger buns, bake one tray at a time. You can park the other proofed dough in the fridge to prevent them from over proofing while waiting for the oven
Bake in the middle rack (4th rack from the top for me) for 30-35 minutes for a bread loaf, 15-18 minutes for hamburger buns, 12-15 minutes for dinner rolls, or until an instant thermometer inserted into the middle of the bread registers 190 F (88 C)
If the top browns too quickly halfway through baking, tent with an aluminum foil, shiny side up
Cool down:
Remove from the oven and let them cool down in the pan for 2-3 minutes and then remove to a cooling rack to let them cool down completely. Do not attempt to slice the bread while it's still warm. Allow at least 2 hours