For a bread lover, gluten allergy is a life sentence. In my recent experience of learning about this allergy, I was drowning between devastation and acceptance.
I don’t get the bread from a bakery when I am making elaborate meals for weekends; I like my bread kneaded and crafted personally. Hence, I explored many food blogs and, after many failed attempts, tears, and trials, came up with the 4 best gluten free bread recipes.
You can thank me in the form of freshly baked bread goodies; only gluten-free, please.
Table of Contents
Why We Love These Gluten-free Bread Recipes
- The chewy feel that you longed for from the first bite was finally there. The ever so gorgeous and open crumbs, the pillowy soft texture – hallelujah!
- You cannot expect the same flavor from this bread. But the uniqueness and flavor of this bread make you curious. It is not on the run away from my side; in fact, I want more of this kind.
- The crisp: oh, that beautiful crackle. The caramelization of the layer to that perfect crisp is the dream for all bread lovers.
Like I said, it has been a process to get best gluten free bread recipes.
The gluten-free flour lacked that chewy interior and crisp exterior in some flour types. Achieving the perfection was so heart-warming.
Don’t worry about the uniqueness of its flavor. The bread tastes great with hummus, butter jam, or simple peanut butter and jelly. And if you are worried about your toddler, they wouldn’t feel anything is different.
My 4 Best Gluten Free Bread Recipes
Here are my work of sweat, sorrows, doubts and happy results: 4 best gluten free bread recipes. Save the blog so you can always look back at it until you memorize it all.
While i wrote these 4 best gluten free bread recipes, i cannot fanthom the devastating loss of Chanman
and how Monica would yell at me for my disoriented recipe guide and thoughts. Here we go…
The One Where We Fell in Love with Psyllium Husk
- Active dried yeast – 8 g
- Sugar – 20 g
- Warm water – 390 g
- Potato starch – 100g
- Psyllium husk – 20 g
- Brown rice flour – 90 g
- Salt – 10 g
- Buckwheat flour
- Apple cider vinegar – 12 g
Before you switch tabs to Google search what is Psyllium husk, I would save some internet cookies. Psyllium husk is a soluble fiber famous to fix dietary issues and acts as a laxative. You can find it in stores and online very easily.
I believe I cannot suggest any substitute for psyllium husk. Because the gel it forms when mixed with water mimics the sticky texture gluten flour gets. It also gives the chewy bread-like taste and helps lock the yeast in for perfect fermenting action. You can use the coarse form of psyllium husk, which we usually find in stores.
Enough about psyllium husk. Let’s knead that bread!
First, I would love it if you mix the sugar yeast and half a cup of warm water in a mixing bowl. Within ten minutes, you will see the concoction becoming bubbly without any interventions.
I am sorry if your mixture did not bubble even after fifteen minutes. This is a clear sign of expired yeast; discard it and get a fresh one.
Similarly, prepare the psyllium husk mixture in one cup of water. Let it sit to get the gel-like gooey consistency.
Now, take potato starch, brown rice flour, buckwheat flour, and salt and combine them in a bowl. Make a well in the mixture and pour psyllium mixture, yeast mixture, and apple cider vinegar.
It is time to combine these elements into one happy ball of dough; mix and combine until you see the dough coming from the sides and making a ball. It may not be as happy and stretchy as gluten-free bread bu, but due to psyllium husk, we are close to that consistency.
Fact: If this recipe is turning out to be a psyllium husk promotion: this is not the intention.
On an oily surface with slightly oily hands, take the dough and slightly roll it into a ball. Place it in a bowl and leave it for bulk fermentation.
More Bulk Fermentation
After some hours, you will see the bread is doubled in size. For best results, keep the dough in warm temperatures somewhere between 80-90 Fahrenheit. You can achieve the temperature by placing the dough and warm water in a microwave. No, you will not start the task in the microwave; it just sits there in a cozy, warm room.
Take it out from the oven on a surface dusted with some flour. Knead and roll it again in the ball, making sure you kneaded all the edges in, giving it a nice smooth look. Time to put it back in a bowl, cover it with a damp tea cloth, and leave it for another hour or until it doubles in size.
Show Time
- Prep the oven roughly 45 minutes before you bake the bread. Preheat the oven to 480 Fahrenheit. You can use the traditional baking pan or an iron skillet.
- I use a baking tray with water in it for the first few minutes of the baking. This cool trick helps bread achieve that perfect crust.
- Use baking paper on the skillet, baking pan, or Dutch oven.
- It’s time to put dough in its final resting place. Score the dough.
- Put the bread and the baking tray with water, preferably warm water, in the oven.
- Close the oven door and let the magic begin.
After twenty minutes into bake time, remove the baking tray with water and bring the temperature down to 450 Fahrenheit. Let it sit in the oven for another 40 minutes.
The Beauts!
After you take the bread out, you have to let it cool – absolutely 100% because it makes the gluten-free bread develop that crumb and fluff if cooled all the way. I wouldn’t say it out loud because that would sound bias, *but this is my best gluten free bread recipe by far.*
The One Where Poppy Seeds Made It Fancy
When you craving those fancy artisan breads, it’s time to bring your inner Martha Stewart and bake the bread.
- Gluten-free all-purpose flour – 540 g
- Whole grain gluten-free flour – 540 g
- Yeast – 10 g
- Salt – 20 g
- Raw cane sugar – 30 g
- Warm water – 1080 g
- Poppy seeds – 1 tablespoon
- Hemp seeds – 1 tablespoon
Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl, adding water to the dry mixtures. Take a big blob of dough and plop it on the parchment paper. Knead the flour into a smooth round ball with wet fingers.
Let it rest for an hour. Preheat the oven for 20 minutes before you put the dough in to bake. Make your trademark lines on the bread and set it inside the oven with another baking tray with some warm water.
The warm water tray helps the bread maintain its crackle and texture. After 45 minutes in the oven, the bread will look all brown and ready to come out. Make sure you don’t cut right into it and let it rest.
This is the best gluten free bread recipe for holidays and having guests over. Trust me, poppy seeds make it fancy!
The One Where No Animals Were Harmed
For many vegans, having gluten-free bread comes with its own set of challenges. Also, it is Pheobe-approved best gluten free bread recipe for vegans. Here is the recipe, you would need:
- Active dry yeast – 7g
- Maple syrup or sugar – 20 g
- Warm water – 100 g
- Olive oil – 15 g
- Psyllium husk – 20 g
- Arrowroot or Tapioca flour – 60 g
- Potato starch – 80 g
- Sorghum flour – 150 g
- Quinoa flour – 50 g
- Brown rice four – 140 g
- Sea salt – 12 g
Time for Action
First, you would need to activate the yeast. Mix it with warm water and maple syrup. The mixture would start bubbling in ten minutes.
Now, take the psyllium husk, the coarse one, not the powder, and mix it with olive and water to form a gel.
In a big bowl, take all the dry ingredients and mix them well as you add the psyllium mixture and activated yeast. Knead your heart out and place the dough on the loaf pan to proof. Leave it for an hour to rise.
If you are using a Dutch oven, that’s us hinting at a recommendation: place the dough in with a parchment. If you bake it for 1 hour and 15 minutes, last 15 minutes, remove the lid.
When baking in a pan or skillet, set another baking tray in the oven with warm water. As you take the bread out, let it cool on the cooling rack.
The One Where We Butter Things Up
Now, this one is a good road to nostalgia for good old PB&J or BLT. If you are missing those white bread slices to make a sandwich and French toast – this one is for you!
Here is what you should add to your next grocery shopping list:
- All-purpose gluten-free flour – 468 g
- Granulated sugar – 35 g
- Salt – 8 g
- Xanthan gum – 7 g
- Instant yeast – 11g
- Milk – 227 g
- Butter softened – 57 g
- 3 large eggs
You can make this dough using an electric mixer, too, this recipe is Rachel approved for cutting back on manual work, and Joey think it is the best gluten free bread recipe for all the use of butter.
Add all the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl. Gradually add milk to the mixture. It will be very crumbly at first, but then it starts looking acceptable.
It’s time to butter things up by adding the butter. When it is all combined, add each egg to make its way into the mixture. The batter would look thick, nice, and even (ish).
It is advised to leave the batter in a bowl to rise. It’s best to let it sit for at least an hour.
Now, take the loaf pan. Scoop all the dough into the pan and even the surface using your hands. If you want finesse, you can use a spatula. Preheat the oven and let it bake for approx. Forty minutes at 350 Fahrenheit.
Once baked, let it cool on the cooling rack. This bread doesn’t have a long shelf life, so make sure to consume it soonest.
Parting Thoughts
This change in lifestyle wasn’t welcome. But what do we gotta do when gluten-free bread messes up with the auto-immune disease and fogs up the brain?
Yeah, that, too. Good health leads to a good quality of life, and when I braved the situation, I could figure out some of thebest gluten free bread recipes that would blow your mind.