Dairy-Free Bread

This post may feature affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Make this soft, tender, and dairy-free bread recipe using just 5 simple ingredients. Once you try a slice, you’ll never go back to buying store-bought again. It’s perfect for sandwiches, avocado toast, and much more!

❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe

• Simple and affordable: Just like sourdough bread, no fancy or expensive ingredients are required.
• Beginner-friendly: This recipe is great if you’re new to homemaking bread. It’s very forgiving and comes out delicious every time!
• Fluffy and tender: Each bite is tender, light, and flavorful. It really goes to show how much better making your own bread is.
• Allergen-friendly: No only is this bread dairy-free, but it’s also egg-free, making it 100% vegan-friendly.

🍞 What is dairy-free bread?

Dairy-free bread is one of the simplest at-home bread recipes you can make. If you’re like us and don’t always have the time or patience for long ingredient lists and instructions, you’re going to love this one.

The only necessary ingredients are sugar, water, yeast, oil, flour, and a touch of salt. Everything is made by hand, so you don’t even need to own a bread machine! This recipe is an old-fashioned classic.

We love using this bread for French toast, torrejas, and capirotada. It also pairs well with vegan cream cheese, hummus, or guacamole. The options are endless!

⏱ Do I have to proof bread?

Since this recipe uses yeast, it’s important to let the dough proof. Without it, the yeast won’t have time to release carbon dioxide, and the end result will be flat, dense, and rubbery.

Proofing bread results in a better crumb, a more complex flavor, and a lighter texture. You don’t want to skip this step!

🌱 Is bread vegan?

In its most basic form, bread contains just flour, water, yeast, and sugar. So, it is inherently vegan-friendly. Some common bread varieties that are vegan include ciabatta, sourdough, pita, baguettes, and Ezekiel.

However, not all bread is created equal. Some varieties contain dairy, and others contain eggs. If you’re unsure, always double-check!

🛒 Ingredients & substitutions

Lukewarm water — To activate the yeast. Don’t use boiling hot water as it will kill the yeast, and cold water won’t activate it properly. The ideal temperature is 120-130 degrees F for instant yeast.

Instant yeast — Make sure you are using instant yeast for this bread recipe. While it isn’t entirely necessary to proof instant yeast in water, it helps determine if the yeast is still active. You can find out more about the types of yeast from Season and Suppers.

Cane sugar — Feeds the yeast and enhances the bread’s flavor. You can use regular granulated sugar, but you will need to confirm that it’s vegan-friendly.

Vegetable oil — Oil creates a light, tender, and moist bread texture while imparting more flavor. We typically use neutral oils like sunflower or canola, but you can use olive oil instead (the taste will be more prominent).

All-purpose flour — Use unbleached all-purpose flour. We haven’t tested this recipe with whole wheat flour or any gluten-free flour blend, so we can’t speak to the results.

Salt — For flavor enhancement.

For a complete ingredient list and step-by-step guide, scroll down to our recipe card.

📝 Instructions

Step 1 — Combine the warm water, yeast, and cane sugar in a large mixing bowl. Cover with a clean towel and set aside for about 10 minutes to bloom.

Step 2 — In the meantime, whisk the salt and flour together in a large mixing bowl.

Step 3 — Once the yeast looks frothy, add it to the dry ingredients. Add oil and knead the dough by hand or with an electric mixer (with a hook attachment) until a smooth dough forms.

Step 4 — Add more flour a little at a time until the dough is no longer sticky. For reference, we typically use 6 ¾ cups.

Step 5 — Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl (we use our Instant Pot insert), and cover it again. Let the dough double in size, which takes about 40-45 minutes in a warm place.

Note: We prefer letting the dough rise in our Instant Pot set to Sous Vide at 80 degrees F, but another good place is an oven with the light on.

Step 6 — Gently punch the air out of the dough and shape it into a ball again. Transfer it to a well-floured surface, and divide it into even halves.

Step 7 — Form each one into a loaf shape, then add them to 2 lightly greased loaf pans, and let proof for another 30-35 minutes.

Step 8 — In the meantime, preheat your oven to 425 degrees F, then lower the heat to 350 degrees F before putting the bread in.

Step 9 — Bake each loaf for 30-35 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Remove them from the oven, letting them cool on a wire rack before slicing. Happy eating!

If you have questions about making this dairy-free bread, check out our FAQs or leave a comment down below!

🧈 Ways to serve bread

Spreads — Enjoy a slice with vegan butter, cream cheese, strawberry compote, blueberry compote, or PB & J.

Soup — Nothing goes better with soup than sliced bread! Try yours with potato soup, butternut squash soup, lentil soup, split pea soup, or shell pasta soup.

Pasta — You can never have too many carbs, right? Serve this bread with a simple lemon garlic pasta, white spaghetti, or red spaghetti.

🌡️ Storage & reheating

Follow these storage tips to keep your bread tasting fresh and tender:

Room temperature — Keep dairy-free bread at room temperature for up to a week. It’s best to keep it in an airtight freezer bag to keep the moisture locked in.

Fridge — It’s best to leave homemade bread out on the counter because it will become stale and hard in the fridge.

Freezer — Once you’ve baked the bread, let it cool completely before wrapping it in foil or cling wrap. Once covered, store it in the freezer for up to 4-5 months. Thaw the loaf in the fridge overnight before slicing and reheating it.

Reheating — If you’re short on time, reheat the loaf from frozen in your oven at 250 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until it is no longer frozen in the middle.

♻️ Variations

Gluten-free — Try your hand at making a gluten-free version by replacing all-purpose flour with 1:1 gluten-free flour. Our personal favorite is King Arthur Baking Measure for Measure.

Whole wheat — Instead of all-purpose flour, try Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat flour. Note: We have not tested the recipe with whole wheat flour, and the results will vary.

Add seeds — For an additional health boost, top each loaf with sunflower seeds, poppy seeds, pumpkin seeds, or flaxseeds.

🧑‍🍳 Top tips

Weigh the ingredients — For consistent results, weigh the ingredients on a kitchen scale. Although it’s a forgiving recipe, it’s always best to weigh ingredients for bread and other baking.

Scoop the flour — If you don’t have a kitchen scale, measure using the spoon method. Instead of using the measuring cup to scoop, spoon the flour into the cup, then level it off with a knife.

Choose the right pan — Ideally, use an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan so the bread rises higher. However, we only had a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan on hand, which resulted in a slightly flatter loaf (but equally delicious). Our point is to use whatever you have available!

Slice with a serrated knife — When slicing bread, it’s best to use a bread knife with serrated edges. This design is meant for foods that have a hard exterior and a soft interior. In other words, it’ll make perfect slices instead of smooshing the loaf flat.

🍴 More recipes like this one

If you enjoyed this dairy-free bread recipe, be sure to check out some other simple vegan basics like these:

• Sourdough bread: A simple, no-knead bread made with fermented sourdough starter instead of yeast.
• Vegan garlic bread: A savory, garlicky, and cheesy garlic bread recipe.
• Vegan cornbread: Sweet, tender, and moist cornbread without dairy.
• Corn tortillas: Soft, tender, 3-ingredient tortillas that will change your taco game.
• Flour tortillas: A heartier version of corn tortillas perfect for fajitas and burritos.
• Blue corn tortillas: The same great shape as white corn tortillas but with a more rustic flavor.
• Vegan pizza dough: A quick and easy pizza dough recipe.
• Vegan biscuits: Flaky, tender, and soft buttermilk biscuits made vegan.