All about Brioche

Brioche is a bread with an identity crisis. Simultaneously cakey, yeasty, bready, and sweet, brioche offers a unique richness that comes from being laden with butter. In fact, our master recipe uses 50% butter, though brioche can be made with as much as 100% butter for an even more decadent experience.

With its enriched dough, brioche serves as the foundation for many other breads, making it the granddad of sweet, enriched breads. From infused butters and cheese to nut butters and even olive oil, this versatile dough can handle a wide array of fats. Brioche can also be shaped into individual portions, baked into loaves, laminated like a croissant, or even fried or microwaved. The possibilities are nearly endless. As an additional bonus, brioche like other enriched breads has a longer shelf life than direct breads, making it a great option for holiday meals since it can be made a day ahead of time.

Despite its adaptability, brioche isn’t easy to master. Though you might see fast-food hamburgers served on brioche buns, a truly well-made brioche requires a careful balance of technique. It’s a dough that must be handled with care to ensure the crumb is strong enough to support the structure without overbaking, which would result in a thick, disappointing crust. Achieving that perfect, rich, and satisfying loaf means understanding how to develop the gluten while incorporating the butter without compromising the dough’s integrity. The reward, however, is found in tearing off soft, delicate strands of freshly baked brioche—a simple pleasure you won’t get from other breads. If you’re new to making brioche our sablée brioche recipe is a good place to start.

The Sweet Side of Brioche

It’s impossible to work with brioche dough without veering into sweeter territory. One classic example is panettone, which is essentially brioche dough packed with sweet additions like chocolate and dried fruit. Panettone’s sugar content is nearly double that of standard brioche, yet its preparation follows many of the same principles—although it also requires building a multiday preferment.

Beyond panettone, we’ve explored other sweet loaf breads like Colomba di Pasqua and Portuguese Sweet Bread. Many of these festive breads begin with a variation of brioche or sandwich bread dough, made special by the addition of toppings or a sweet crust. Traditionally tied to holidays, these breads celebrate the spirit of the season and showcase how brioche can be transformed into the dessert of the bread world.

In short, this endlessly versatile dough can take on many forms, both savory and sweet, which makes it an essential addition to any baker’s repertoire.

Attributes of a Well-Made Brioche

A well-made brioche is pillowy and tender, luscious and rich, and deeply satisfying. It should display these key features.

1. The crust color should be a barley-malt brown, not bien cuit. Brushing the crust with an egg wash or a starch glaze will help protect the surface from drying out while also creating some shine. However, too much egg wash can stiffen with heat and create tear marks.
2. The shape should be uniform, with no crumple zones that indicate trapped pockets of air. If the sides and the base look like they’ve imploded, it’s likely because the brioche cooled off for too long in the pan, leaving the steam with nowhere to go but into the crust. You should also avoid seeing drips or pools of dried egg wash at the base—this suggests an over-application of the wash.
3. When biting into brioche, the crust should yield easily and be tender. It shouldn’t shatter, and you shouldn’t hear a crunch. A thick and tough crust is a sign that the brioche has been overbaked. The color should be a deep brown, and for challah, the crust should have a noticeable shine. There should be no rips on the crust, as these are typically caused by underproofing or baking at too low of a temperature.
4. Traditional brioche contains a lot of butter, but it shouldn’t taste overwhelmingly like pure butter. Thanks to the Maillard reaction, the butter combines with other ingredients to create an almost nutty flavor.
5. Brioche has a rich, heady aroma, dominated by the scent of butter. It should not smell overly eggy, but you should be able to detect how the egg enhances the overall aroma of the bread.
6. The crumb of a well-made brioche shouldn’t have large alveoli; instead, the holes should be small and evenly spaced. It should be pillowy, tender, and delicate, with a light-yellow hue.

Keys to a Successful Brioche

• Start baking brioche at a higher temperature, then lower it to prevent the crust from setting too quickly and hindering expansion.
• In a home oven, position your rack just below the center for optimal heat distribution. Use an oven thermometer to verify the correct temperature.
• Prepare your loaf pan with oil and parchment, or oil and flour, unless using a nonstick pan, where oil alone is sufficient.
• Use a modified starch glaze to prevent drying during proofing and baking. It doesn’t need precooking and won’t retrograde like other starches.
• After bulk fermentation, chill the dough for 2 hours or up to 24 hours, or freeze for up to a month. Chill dough on an oiled silicone mat or plastic tray to prevent sticking and discoloration.
• Use flour that develops a strong gluten network to counteract the fat in the dough. Many of our recipes use bread flour or high-gluten bread flour.
• Start with cold milk and eggs, but room-temperature butter, to prevent it from separating during mixing.
• Use an electric mixer; hand mixing could melt the butter.
• Add eggs in stages to avoid a sloppy dough and ensure proper mixing.
• Begin adding butter when the dough has reached low-to-medium gluten development to avoid delays or difficulty incorporating the fat.
• Add butter in portions to create an emulsion, similar to making mayonnaise or vinaigrette.

In Modernist Bread, you’ll find even more exciting recipes, such as panettone, babka, and a range of brioches made with 25% to 100% butter, along with creative purée-infused variations like purple sweet potato, mango, hazelnut, and more.

Our books offer a rich assortment of brioche that cater to various tastes and preferences. Modernist Bread at Home features 12 unique recipes and variations, including our master brioche, Hazelnut Butter Brioche, Corn Brioche, Oil Brioche, and Sablée Brioche. We even provide gluten-free and vegan gluten-free options for those with dietary needs.