Easy Sourdough Brioche [enriched with butter + eggs]
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This easy sourdough brioche loaf is enriched with butter, milk and eggs. The dough is rich in buttery flavor, but soft and cotton candy like in the middle.
You can use sourdough brioche for to make a lovely breakfast loaf - but it's also perfect for creating brioche rolls and buns and even filling with chocolate or jam.
The leftover sourdough brioche bread makes the most amazing French Toast or Sourdough Bread Pudding! Plus, if you make a double batch of dough, you can make these sourdough brioche blueberry cheesecake tarts or even this sourdough chocolate star bread. You might also enjoy this sweet braided sourdough bread.
I've got lots of ideas to use sourdough brioche dough in this post.
What Type of Sourdough Starter Do You Need For Brioche?
You can use a regular sourdough starter to make sourdough brioche - so long as it is fed and bubbly. You do not need a stiff starter or to build a levain or leaven - this is unecessary.
Of course, like anything, you can do these things if you wish - but honestly, you won't see too much difference in the result.
If you want to try something a little different, you could use a chocolate sourdough starter.
The main thing to remember when making sourdough brioche is that you starter needs to be fed, happy and at its peak (doubled) before you add it to your dough.
How To Make Sourdough Brioche
Sourdough brioche dough is often made out to be super complicated.
In reality, it's quite easy to make. The kneading can be a little challenging, but once you've made it a few times, you'll get the hang of it.
I've also added lots of tips in the next segment to help you with the kneading aspect.
Here's how to make sourdough brioche:
- Warm the milk slightly and mix the sugar into the milk until the sugar is fully dissolved.
- Now add the sourdough starter, eggs and flour to the milk and sugar and bring it together into a rough dough.
- Let the dough sit for around 30 minutes.
- Now add the butter and salt to the dough and knead it (preferably with a stand mixer) until it's smooth and elastic. This can take time (see notes below for tips on kneading).
- Once the dough has formed a window pane, cover the bowl and allow the dough to ferment.
- When the dough has risen, divide the dough into equally weighted balls and use them to form a loaf in a tin (see notes on shaping).
- Allow the dough to proof and get nice and puffy.
- Once risen, brush with egg wash, bake in a moderate oven for approximately 30 minutes or until golden.
- Brush with butter as soon as it's out of the oven.
Tips for Kneading Sourdough Brioche Dough
Kneading sourdough brioche dough can be overwhelming, especially if you aren't familiar with working with a butter rich dough.
I highly recommend using a stand mixer (I use a Thermomix). Using a stand mixer makes it much easier to incorporate the butter into this dough.
You can knead it by hand of course, but you'll need to bring your A game.
Much like sourdough hot cross bun dough, sourdough brioche dough will feel like it's never going to come together - like a big sticky mess!
You have to push through and trust that it will come together!
Whether you're using a stand mixer or kneading by hand - do not be tempted to add extra flour! This will make your baked bread tough and dry.
At any point if you feel the dough is getting too warm, pop it in the fridge. You don't need it to get cold - but just 10 minutes in the fridge can help to stop the dough getting too hot and sticky.
You can see how the dough behaves for me in the photo below. When I add the butter it looks like a big sticky mess that will never come together.
I keep the mixer going and after 8 to 10 minutes it eventually comes together and becomes beautiful and silky.
Do You Need A Window Pane When Making Sourdough Brioche?
You don't necessarily need a window pane when making sourdough brioche - however achieving this can demonstrate the brioche dough has formed a strong gluten network and is ready for fermentation.
To check for a window pane, wait until the dough has come together and you feel it is sufficiently mixed.
Allow it to rest for 10 minutes before you check for the window pane.
Take a piece of dough and stretch it between your fingers. You should be able to do this without it tearing. You should also see light through the dough.
I have demonstrated the window pane in the photo below.
Shaping Sourdough Brioche Dough
Brioche dough is quite versatile. There are many ways you can shape this dough, but the easiest is to create a loaf in a bread pan.
The easiest way to do this is to divide the dough into 100g balls of dough.
Shape each piece into a ball (they don't have to be perfect, they will even out in the proofing process).
Place the balls into a bread pan. Make sure they are snug and touching each other. As they rise they will form a loaf.
You can see process in the photo below.
The tin I have used is a 1 litre bread pan (it's this Jamie Oliver one). I love this pan for so many things! I actually have 2 I use them so often. It's also the perfect size for this sourdough banana bread.
Why Is Brioche Yellow?
Sourdough brioche is a rich dough made from butter, eggs and milk, along with flour and sugar.
The color of your dough will depend largely on the type of eggs and butter you use.
If you use free range, orange yolked eggs, you're more likely to get a darker color.
I have actually used homemade butter and free range eggs in my dough - and it's still not as yellow as some brioche doughs. It still has the rich taste however.
How To Use Sourdough Brioche Dough?
Most of the time, I use this sourdough brioche dough as a simple breakfast loaf - it makes the most perfect toast to go with bacon and eggs!
But, if I have some dough leftover - or I'm feeling a little creative - I also love to do the following:
- Divide the dough into 50g pieces and add small piece of chocolate or nutella to the centre. Bake and then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar before enjoying! Seriously so good! They are very similar to these baked sourdough brioche chocolate donut balls.
- Plait the dough into small plaited sourdough brioche rolls - these are elegant little morsels perfect on their own or even lovelier spread with butter and jam. I've used 50g portions of dough in the photo below. You can see how I've made plaited sourdough brioche buns here.
- Divide into 100g portions and make sourdough brioche burger buns (similar to these sourdough discard hamburger buns).
- Why not add chocolate chips to your dough and make sourdough chocolate chip brioche. You'll learn how to make this recipe into rolls or a loaf.
Sourdough Brioche Loaf
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 100 g Sourdough Starter fed and bubbly
- 540 g Bread Flour
- 2 Eggs
- 120 g Salted Butter soft
- 200 g Milk whole milk
- 50 g Sugar
- 10 g Salt
Toppings
- 1 Egg plus 1 tablespoon water to use as egg wash
- Butter extra for brushing after baked
Instructions
- Warm milk to around 37C (you don't want it to be cold, but not too warm either). Add the milk and sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer and mix until the sugar is dissolved.
- Now add the sourdough starter, flour and eggs to the bowl. Mix into a rough dough and let it sit for around 30 minutes.
- Once the dough has sat for a little while, add the butter and salt and use the stand mixer to knead it really well. You want the butter to mix all the way through and the dough to become very soft and elastic.Depending on the type of mixer you use, this could take 3 minutes, it could take 20 minutes (see notes in the article above).
- Once the dough is silky and elastic (it can be slightly sticky) it should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Transfer the dough into a large bowl for bulk fermentation. Cover with plastic and set aside.
- Once the dough has risen a bit (it doesn't have to double, 50% rise is ok in this instance) you'll need to shape the brioche dough.
- Turn the dough onto the counter and divide into equally weighted balls of dough.
- Use the instructions in the post above for shaping (you can choose to shape as a loaf or into individual rolls).
- Once shaped, allow the dough to proof and get nice and puffy. This can take quite a while due to the butter, milk and eggs.
- Once the dough is puffy, it's time to bake!
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- While the oven is preheating, mix an egg with 1 tablespoon of water and brush the dough generously with this egg wash.
- Bake the sourdough brioche at 180C/350F for around 30 minutes. This loaf will burn easily so keep an eye on it. If the top of the loaf starts to get to dark, cover the loaf with foil and turn the oven down to 160C to allow it to cook through without burning.
- Once the loaf is out of the oven, brush with lashings of butter while still in the pan. Cool on a wire rack.
Nutrition
I loved the way this dough comes together. Mine was not as airy and fluffy as yours. I did split it and make 2 half loaves. Should I have adjusted the time? Gonna try again tomorrow.
Hi! Thinking of trying this soon, do you have to let it cold ferment or just “bulk” ferment on the counter or ferment once it has been shaped? Thank you!
30 minutes was not enough time to bake the loaf thoroughly. I needed at least one hour to bake this through.
What if this dough takes many hours to rise - is it safe to leave it out of the fridge even though it has milk and eggs?
Yes it's safe to leave out 🙂
Hi, May I know if you are using thermomix to mix, what are the setting? Thanks so much
Just use the knead function (dough function) to knead the dough 🙂 The TM makes it with ease. If the jug gets too hot, just pop in the freezer for a bit to cool things down.
I made this today but I am a little confused. It may be a misprint but you say to divide the dough into 6 100g balls but there is almost enough dough to make two loaves as your ingredients add up to 1.1kg. It this supposed to make two loaves? I made my balls just under 200g each and fitted them in the loaf pan. I left it to rise in the fridge overnight but the next day it took 50 minutes in the oven and still was not fully cooked as it was a little stodgy. Ok toasted though. This was probably due to it not being at room temperature but may also have been because it was too big if indeed the balls were only supposed to be 100g each?
Can the shaped dough be put in the fridge and brought to room temperature for 2nd rise the next day? I’m wanting to try this badly but I don’t have enough time this afternoon to wait for the 2nd proof and I work early AM — would be about 24 hours from start until I could remove from fridge.
Great bread! It doesn’t take as long to make as other sourdoughs.
I’ve even made it with olive oil instead of butter and it’s beautiful.
Approximately how long are these rests? Is it supposed to sit longer in bowl or once divided and in loaf pan? Thanks so much for this recipe!!!
how can i add cinnamon to this?
Hello! Roughly how long should I bulk ferment for? And for the second proof, how long?
Thank you!
How long do you think I should estimate for bulk fermentation?
Can I make this recipe if it’s don’t have a mixer?
Can you replace the sugar with maple syrup or will that make it a sticky mess?
Can you shape these as these as two sandwich loaves in regular tins?
Absolutely yes you can 🙂
Have you tried replacing the sugar with honey? What would the measurement be for honey?
Can I use my discardand just add about 8 grams of yeast o the milk and let it proof?
My daughter has Celiac Disease. Have you ever made this with gluten free flour mix? I’m wanting to make the Christmas cinnamon sugar Star with this
Unfortunately I have not used gluten free flour for this. Gluten free flour is completely different to wheat flour, so you'd need to experiment 🙂
Can you freeze this? If so after or before baking
Do you ferment on the counter for 12 hrs or in the refrigerator over night.
Hello. I want to make this brioche, but I don't have a stand mixer, and I don't have a thermomix either. Can I do it in a home bakery machine or by hand? Thank you
I made this recipe and it came out even better than I hoped. Thank you for such a delicious recipe. The loaf was just so beautiful when I took it out of the oven and tasted amazing. I would recommend this recipe!
What do I do if I can’t get a window pane? Mixed in my kitchenaid mixer for almost 40 mins total with breaks for the motor.
Can I make this with 2% milk?
You can 🙂
About how long for each rise? I am wondering how long bulk fermenting is? Is it overnight? and then how long do I proof after shaping? Trying to set up a timeline 🙂
How long does it usually take to proof? Can you do an overnight refrigerator proof or better to do it at room temp on the counter?
I’ve now wasted 2 batches of very expensive flour and Kerry Gold butter just to get heavy, dense doorstops of dough balls that do nothing but tear whether I knead for 10, 30, or 60 minutes (I have to take breaks as my mixer is having trouble getting through it, it’s so dense). At no point does mine look as liquidy as yours (I even tried adding an extra teaspoon or so of milk as it became dry) and yes, I use a scale. I’ve about burned out my poor Kitchenaid mixer! I have a FANTASTIC and strong starter and have never had any issues with any other sourdough I’ve ever made (I’ve made enriched dough before, just not brioche), but I admit that I only have 2 recipes that I use a mixer for…the rest are stretch and folds. So what is going wrong?
Mine is in the oven now. However, my dough never became soft and stretchy; it was actually quite stiff to the point that it started to ride up the hook in the mixer and I had to stop and push it down several times. Can it be that my flour is too strong? Perhaps I should use more milk next time.
Ok Thank you doesn’t do justice for this recipe. I follow so many of yours and this came out perfect the 1st time. I had to leave my to rise overnight but in the morning it was ready to bake and WOW is it good. I adjusted the recipe for my food sensitivities, I used coconut sugar and raw goats milk & it’s AWESOME! Can’t wait to make French toast tomorrow morning
How do I prepare the loaf tins before placing the dough in them. This is my first attempt at making this bread. All I have ever done is the simple sourdough bread from your recipe.
How long does it take to rise after it has been shaped? The recipe just says “this can take quite a while…”. How long is “quite a while”? 1 hour? 5 hours? 12 more hours? How long am I letting it rest before shaping? I find the recipe to be vague and I’ve never made brioche before so I have no idea how long each step should take. Thank you!
I am making this right now, I did a triple batch, and my dough is not sticky like yours in the picture. It’s more dense and heavy (not floury or crumby) but it’s not sticky like yours. Is it going to be okay or is there anyway I can do to save it? I