Challah
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Learn how to make the best homemade challah with this easy recipe and step-by-step braiding guide—perfect for Shabbat, holidays, or any occasion!
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
Challah is the bread of celebration in Jewish tradition, but I put it in the matzo ball soup and bagel category: it appeals to everyone. It’s a rich, slightly sweet loaf with a shiny, golden crust and pillowy-soft interior. But what makes it truly special is its distinctive braid, which symbolizes, among other things, the joining together of family and friends.
Rest assured, challah looks like far more trouble than it actually is. Think of it as a once-in-a-while baking therapy project. Kneading and braiding the dough, smelling the challah baking in the oven—it really is satisfying. And when the long braided loaf is presented at the dinner table, it is a sight to behold!
I owe much of the credit for this recipe to Nanci Hirschorn, one of my lovely readers, who has been perfecting her challah recipe for over thirty-five years. Thank you, Nanci, for all the pointers! Heads up: this recipe makes one 16-in loaf. It’s huge! If you have leftovers, use it to make challah French toast.
What You’ll Need To Make Challah
- All-purpose flour: Forms the base of the dough.
- Instant/rapid-rise yeast: Helps the dough rise, giving the bread a light, airy texture—and it works faster than regular active dry yeast. You can find it in jars or packets, but if you’re not a frequent baker, packets are the way to go. Just keep in mind this recipe calls for 1 tablespoon, which is more than a single packet provides.
- Salt: Enhances the flavor
- Lukewarm water: Hydrates the flour, activates the yeast, and helps bind the ingredients together to form the dough.
- Vegetable oil: Adds richness and moisture to the bread, contributing to its soft and tender crumb.
- Honey: Sweetens the dough and adds moisture, while also contributing to the flavor and helping with browning.
- Eggs: Provide richness, moisture, and structure to the dough, giving the challah its characteristic golden color and tender texture. Be sure your eggs are room temperature; this dough is slow to rise and cold eggs will slow it down even further.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Start by whisking together the lukewarm water, oil, honey, two eggs, and the egg yolk until well combined, then set the mixture aside.
Using a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Give it a quick mix to evenly distribute the ingredients.
Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture in the stand mixer. Knead on medium-low speed until the dough becomes sticky and clings to the bottom of the bowl, which should take around 5 to 7 minutes. If the dough seems too wet, don’t worry—it’s meant to be that way.
Generously flour your hands before handling the dough, then transfer it to a lightly floured surface. Lightly dust the top with flour and knead until it forms a soft, smooth ball.
Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray, then place the dough inside and flip it to coat the top. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles in size, which may take 2 to 3 hours. Keep in mind that rising times can vary based on kitchen conditions like temperature, humidity, and kneading technique.
To braid the dough, first turn it onto a lightly floured surface, letting it deflate naturally. Lightly dust with flour, then divide it into four equal pieces. If you prefer precision, each piece should weigh around 9 oz (260 g). Braiding challah may seem intimidating, but a simple four-strand braid is both easy and pretty. If you’ve ever braided hair, you’ll have a head start, but even if not, it’s straightforward to learn.
Roll each piece of dough into a 20-inch rope and arrange them vertically in parallel. Pinch the top ends together and fan out the strands. If the ropes shrink, gently stretch them back to length. To start braiding, take the rightmost strand and weave it through the others using an over-under-over pattern. Keep repeating this sequence until the dough is fully braided. Tuck the ends under the loaf to give it a finished look.
Place the braided loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet and cover it loosely with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm spot until it’s about 1.5 times its size, which takes 1 to 2 hours. Toward the end of the rise, preheat your oven to 350°F with a rack in the middle. The loaf will continue to rise as it bakes. Beat the remaining egg and brush it generously over the dough. If you’d like, sprinkle poppy or sesame seeds before baking.
Place the baking sheet on top of another to prevent the bottom from over-browning. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the crust is deep golden and the internal temperature reaches 190°F to 200°F. Transfer the bread to a rack to cool. Challah is best enjoyed fresh, but leftovers can be stored in a sealed plastic bag for a few days.
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Homemade Challah
Ingredients
- 4¼ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off, plus more for dusting
- 1 tablespoon instant/rapid-rise yeast (see note)
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¾ cup lukewarm water
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons honey
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds to combine. In a separate bowl, combine the lukewarm water, oil, honey, 2 of the eggs, and the egg yolk. Add to the dry ingredients and knead on medium-low speed until you have a sticky dough that clings to the bottom of the bowl, 5 to 7 minutes. The dough may seem too wet but have faith—it’s supposed to be.
- Dust your hands generously with flour, then scrape the sticky, elastic dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Dust the top of the dough lightly with flour and knead briefly into a soft, smooth ball. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl, flip it over once so the top is lightly oiled, and then cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it's puffy and doubled in size, 2 to 3 hours.
- Invert the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and dust with flour. It will deflate. Cut the dough into four even 9-oz (255-g) pieces, and then stretch and roll each piece into a rope about 20 inches (50 cm) long. Lay the ropes parallel to one another (vertically). Pinch them tightly together at the top, and then fan them out. If the ropes shrink a bit, just work them back into their original length.
- Begin by taking the strand farthest to the right and weave it toward the left through the other strands using this pattern: over, under, over. Take the strand furthest to the right and repeat the weaving pattern again: over, under, over. Repeat this pattern, always starting with the strand farthest to the right, until the whole loaf is braided. Tuck the ends under to give the loaf a finished look.
- Carefully transfer the braided loaf to a parchment-lined 13 x 18-inch (33 x 46-cm) baking sheet. Cover the loaf loosely with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm, draft-free spot until about 1.5 times the size, 1 to 2 hours. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position. (Note that the loaf will continue to rise significantly in the oven.)
- In a small bowl, beat the remaining egg and brush the beaten egg generously over the risen dough. (Note: If you like, sprinkle poppy or sesame seeds onto the challah before putting it in the oven.) Place the baking sheet atop another baking sheet; this will prevent the bottom crust from browning too much. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the crust is a rich brown color and the internal temperature is between 190°F and 200°F (88°C and 93°C) on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the bread from the oven and place it on a rack to cool. Challah is best enjoyed fresh, but leftovers will keep for a few days in a sealed plastic bag.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This recipe has been a hit with family and friends. It is the perfect bread for open-faced sandwiches and pairs well with avocado and tomato. However the first attempt was fairly dense. On the second attempt I let the yeast bloom on its own with the water. I would highly recommend activating your dry yeast in water, if you use the same Fleishmann’s brand pictured above. I know the author mentioned instant yeast does not need to bloom pre-mix but in my experience it has made for a much fluffier and palatable bread.
Can you make this bread in loaf pans and not braided?
Hi Dani, I haven’t tried it, but I think you could bake this in 2 loaf pans without braiding it. I suspect it should take about 30 minutes but keep a close eye on them! Please report back and let me know how they turn out!
Hi there! I have a couple questions. I tried your recipe, loved the flavor. But I didn’t get as good a rise as I would have liked, and the challah could have been a little lighter. I think that maybe I needed a bit more flour – it was a little stickier than most doughs I have made. First question – do you have weights for the flour? I converted to weight by multiplying by 125 grams. Is this the right weight? Or are your cups more or less packed than average? Second question – I’m using active dry yeast that is definitely alive. Maybe I should try adding to the wet ingredients instead of the dry? Or proof it in the water with a bit of the honey first? Thank you!
Hi David, sorry that you didn’t get quite the rise or texture that you were looking for. I don’t think it’s necessary to add the yeast to the wet ingredients or proof it in the water with honey. How long did you let the dough rise? Also, on the day that you made it, might your kitchen have been a bit cool?
And the dough is definitely a bit sticky so it doesn’t sound like you went wrong there. I do have measurements in grams – To view them, scroll down to the recipe, and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements. Please LMK if I can help in any other way!
Thank you, Jenn! I didn’t see the weight toggle, and I used a bit less flour than you recommend. Yes, my kitchen was (and always is) a bit cool. That might have been the problem with a slow rise. Will try again with the oven on and the right weight and see how it goes. Thanks!
Thank you for your recipe and braiding instructions. I followed your directions carefully even turned on the oven to make sure the dough sitting on top of the range was warm enough. I waited over 3 hours for the dough to double, it did not. I decided to go ahead and braid the bread. Your instructions were Very easy, I then waited almost 2 more hours prior to baking. The final product looked beautiful, tasted perfect, but the bread was very dense or heavy as it did not rise enough. Should I have proofed the yeast first with warm water and a little of the honey? Or used more yeast? I’m truly not sure how to make a great challah. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, thank you, Penny Hays
Hi Penny, Enriched doughs like challah can take a while to rise, but over 3 hours does seem long! Instant yeast does not need to be activated with warm water first, so I don’t think that’s the issue. Is it possible your yeast is expired or on its way out? If you want to test it, add a few teaspoons of the yeast to a half cup of warm water along with a teaspoon of sugar, and give it a stir. Let it sit for about 10 minutes. If it foams up vigorously, the yeast is alive; if not (or if the foam is “wimpy”), it’s expired.
Thank you for a fantastic challah recipe. I recently bought a challah for $12 that was so dry and disappointing that I was committed to finding a recipe for one I’d love and I’ve now made yours twice. The first time I forgot the salt but it still came out tasty. This time I added the salt but one less egg and am looking forward to tasting the difference!
Letting the dough rise clearly makes a huge difference as well so my advice to other bakers is …patience!
I don’t really leave review on a lot of recipes but I had to with this one. This is my new go to Challah recipe EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. Look no further, this will be a soft, delicious, amazing pull apart challah that will get a satisfaction sound every-time someone breaks a piece and eats it. Amazing recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Great recipe but it was a little bit too sweet for me. Definitely will make this again but with less honey. Thank you!
Followed the recipe exactly and it came out perfect, wish I could post the picture. House smells wonderful can’t wait to try it. Thanks Jenn, happy holidays!!
I am a very experienced bread maker, always make my own bread always have,
There is not enough flour in the recipe to give the results as photograph. The amount in the recipe gives a pancake consistency – no way could it be kneaded. I had to over double the flour, reduce the honey to 4 tbs add more year – a packet is 7 gm.
I followed the photographs but only roughly the recipe which would be confusing for anyone inexperienced.
I just made this, and would completely agree with everything you’ve said. Not near enough flour!
I had the opposite happen to me. I am not super experienced with baking. I grew up making bread with my grandma. Idk what I did wrong but mine was dry. Had to add some more water. Gonna try again. Mine was just dense and thick. Had to bake longer than 30 minutes, think it was in for 45 and still had some questionable areas of maybe it’s cooked but maybe it’s not. I think many things went wrong.
Luv all of your recipes. Getting ready to retire and will have more time to cook and bake. If u take requests please consider developing a recipe for pretzel challah. Charlotte
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