Imagine a loaf so amazing that even your toaster will do a double-take. Behold the marvel that is Amish White Bread—a bread so delightfully fluffy and subtly sweet, it could charm the crust off a baguette. Join the 2,500+ home bakers who call this their go-to white bread. You’ll see why after the first slice.
You’ll find the printable recipe card a little further down—but if you want the story (and the secrets), keep reading.
🎧 Too busy to scroll? listen instead
Pull up a chair, grab your coffee, and hit play—I'll walk you through the Amish white bread recipe with tips, tricks, and a few flour-dusted secrets. Then we’ll head on down to Picklefork, Texas, where the bread’s hot, the stories are hotter, and childhood memories bake up fresh every time.
Table of Contents
🎥 Watch and cook: step-by-step video tutorial
This soft, fluffy Amish white bread is pure comfort in loaf form—perfect for sandwiches, toast, or slathering with butter while it’s still warm. Be sure to watch the video to catch all the tips for getting that perfect rise and golden crust every time.
🧾 Gather your ingredients: what you'll need
If you are looking for the homemade equivalent of Wonder Bread you'll definitely want to try this classic Amish white bread!
Ginger’s totally optional—it won’t flavor the bread, promise. It just gives the yeast a little motivational pep talk to get rising faster.
🍞 Do I have to use bread flour?
All-purpose works in a pinch, but bread flour gives you a fluffier rise. If you’ve got vital wheat gluten on hand, swap in a tablespoon per cup to help boost it.
Be sure to download the free Amish White Bread Cheat Sheet with tips, faqs, storage, and more.
📖 Recipe
Amish White Bread Recipe
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 cup water, 110F
- 1 pinch powdered ginger, optional - activates yeast
- 1 cup milk, 110F
- ⅔ cup sugar, (you can use less)
- 1 ½ tablespoons active dry yeast
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ cup vegetable oil, coconut oil works really well here (melt it first and let it cool to 100F)! OR use melted butter
- 5-½ cups bread flour, you may need a little more or a little less
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
Instructions
Conventional method
- Dissolve the sugar in the warm water and milk in a large bowl.
- Whisk in the yeast (and ginger if using).
- Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the yeast mixture gets foamy.
- Stir in 1 cup of the flour.
- Whisk in the salt and oil.
- With the mixer running add the remaining flour, one cup at a time, until the dough pulls away from the bowl.
- Knead by machine about 5 minutes.
Hand kneading
- If you are hand kneading mix in the flour until you have a sticky dough, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic - adding flour as needed.
Rising and shaping
- Oil a large bowl and place the ball of dough in it.
- Oil the top of the dough and then cover with a damp cloth.
- Allow it to rise until it has doubled in bulk. This will take about an hour.
- Punch the dough down.
- Knead for three minutes or so and divide in half.
- Let rest for five minutes.
- Shape into loaves and then place in greased 9x5-inch loaf pans.
- Brush the tops with the melted butter.
- Let rise for 30 minutes, or until the dough has risen an inch or so above the pans.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until loaves sound hollow when tapped. An instant-read thermometer will register 190℉ when poked into the center of the loaf when it's done.
For a soft crust
- For a soft crust butter the tops and place a clean tea towel over the baked loaves as soon as you take them out of the oven. Let them cool for about 5 minutes and then take them out of the pans to finish cooling, covering them back up with the tea towel.
Bread machine instructions
- Add ingredients to your bread machine in the order the manufacturer recommends.
- Select white bread cycle.
- Press "start".
- When the dough has risen once and second cycle of kneading begins, turn the machine off. Press "start" again to reset the machine.
- The dough will rise a second time before it bakes.
Notes
- If you want something less sweet you can cut the sugar in half. It will change the texture a bit but will still be great.
- This is one recipe I don't often use butter in. I use organic extra-virgin coconut oil because it adds just a little flavor to the bread. A light vegetable oil will work, too. Try it with coconut oil, light vegetable oil, or melted butter and just see what you like best. Make sure whatever you use is melted and cooled to 100F before adding.
- Ground ginger helps to activate the yeast and really get it going.
- Potato water strengthens the structure of the dough allowing it to rise higher.
- Click through to 5 Ingredients to Help Your Bread Rise to find more great ideas including a recipe for a natural dough enhancer -
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
🔪 How to make Amish white bread
Since this recipe freezes so well you can make several batches to have on hand when you need them.
- Mix the yeast, sugar, and warm water.
- Let it get foamy.
- Mix in the flour and knead until it is soft and elastic - squeeze a bit between your thumb and forefinger. Weird but true - if your dough feels like your earlobe, you're in the zone. (Welcome to the exclusive club of people who fondle their own ears while baking.)
- Place in an oiled bowl and cover.
- Let rise until doubled.
- Check by pushing your finger in. If the indent stays it has doubled.
- Punch down.
- Shape and place in a greased loaf pan - let rise. Bake.
Marye's Tips
The dough has been kneaded enough when it feels somewhat like your earlobe when you pinch it. When you gently pull on it, the dough will stretch a little instead of breaking off.
If you've had trouble with homemade bread recipes before be sure to read these posts on troubleshooting and tips:
Don't forget to to download the Amish White Bread Cheat Sheet with tips, faqs, storage, and more. It’s packed with secrets I wish someone had told me before my first sad, under-risen loaf. Snag it now—it’s free and fabulous.
📚 More Southern comfort: related recipes you'll love
Once you make your own bread you'll want to try your hand at different types of yeast baking! Here are some of my favorites.
- Vienna rolls are an old-fashioned yeast roll that were served at fancy restaurants. They are delicious as sandwich rolls, finger rolls, or made into a loaf. Perfect for fancy Sunday suppers.
- There's nothing like hot from the fryer homemade donuts! Saturday morning childhood memories in fried form.
- Angel biscuits are a cross between a dinner roll and a biscuit. They're a southern favorite. Great with leftover ham or butter and honey.
Have you made this bread? Did you sneak the first slice warm from the oven like I do? Tell me in the comments—Reva Mae says it doesn’t count as stealing if it’s still cooling.
Michele says
Does this work with rice flour?
Michele
Marye says
No Michele, it needs the gluten to rise.
Kathy says
Made this today. So good. A little too good. I can’t stay out of it. My husband loves it too. Thanks for the recipe. Will be making this again and again.
TJ says
This is a great recipe; it provides consistently good results for me. This is the third or fourth time for me. I made it today and tried two cups of whole wheat flour to replace two cups of the bread flour. It turned out really great. I typically make two loaves at a time. If you are on the fence, I say go for it.
Kitty says
Can you make this in a bread maker?
Marye says
I don't have a bread maker and I prefer not to make recommendations.
Donna says
So you're saying let it rise in the bowl, punch it down, let it rise again, punch it down, then put it in the loaf pan for it's final rise before baking??
Elaine Pennoyer says
I can’t wait to try this
Carla says
I like be making this bread it always turns out great!!!
Johanna says
Soooo good!! How do you thaw from frozen?
Marye says
Just remove from the freezer and thaw on the counter at room temperature if it's baked. If unbaked thaw overnight in the fridge.
Sarah says
Love how this bread turned out! I saw you said it can be used to make hamburger buns also, how long should those bake for?
Marye says
about 15 minutes.
Jessie says
In the blog post, after punching down, it skips the kneading step, but in the recipe steps, it says to knead about 3 minutes after punching down. I did the 3 minute knead and my second rise didn't go well, so I am going to try again without kneading after the first rise. I thought it was odd to knead after punching down. Should have gone with my gut.
Marye says
Hmmm. - Well it's how I've been doing it for 40 years - sorry it didn't work for you.
Jeanne says
This was delicious. I made one with a sourdough yeast and ions with regular yeast. Both were great!
Lanie N Howie says
I substituted the oil and sugar for honey and butter and it turned out really good.
judith a judge says
after you remove bread from pans and cover again how long do you leave the towel on
Marye says
I leave it on until they've cooled but you could probably take it off before that.
Drew says
Instead of using sugar can I use honey?
Marye says
If you want to use honey make the honey buttermilk bread - it's formulated for it. https://www.restlesschipotle.com/buttermilk-bread/
Richane says
How much ginger do you add and when do you add it?
Marye says
Just a pinch.
Marti says
This is great. It made perfect loaves that were easy to slice and it tasted delicious too.
Sarah says
The recipe is good and easy to follow but way too sweet.
Marye says
you can cut the sugar in half or even a little more if you want to.
Bob says
Just pulled it out of the oven and couldn't wait to slice it up.
The anticipation was definitely warranted. Tried a different recipe prior to this but will be putting this at the top of the list. 👍👍
Shirley says
Can you use all purpose flour. I don’t won’t to buy bread flour cause I won’t use it much
Marye says
Yes. It may not rise quite as much but it will still be delicious.
Jessica Gunn says
I use all purpose and it works just fine!
Micaele says
Sooo excited to try this! The recipe calls for oil but I can’t find if you put it in the dough or just use it to coat the bowl and dough for when it’s rising.
Marye says
Instruction #5 in the recipe card at the bottom of the page - whisk in the oil. 🙂