Learn how to make simple white sandwich bread with just a few basic ingredients like flour, water, yeast, salt, and milk. Follow along with step-by-step pictures, a full video tutorial, and plenty of helpful tips. Bread flour gives this loaf a super soft inside and an extra chewy crust. The recipe makes just 1 loaf, so it’s perfect if you only have one loaf pan.

Let’s make homemade sandwich bread. It’s a basic staple in any bread baker’s collection, but it’s also a recipe you shouldn’t skip. Nothing in the world compares to homemade bread, and my recipe is pure perfection—rising tall, tasting buttery-soft, and making the most amazing sandwiches. Honestly, it’s the best homemade bread I’ve ever had, and it only takes 7 ingredients. If you’re nervous about baking with yeast, I promise this no-fuss recipe will finally make you feel confident.

This Sandwich Bread Is:

• Soft white bread with an extra chewy crust
• Crisp right out of the oven!
• Made from 7 simple ingredients
• Golden brown with an impressive rise
• Amazing on its own or as sandwich bread
• Easy to make
• Great for making ahead or freezing

Just 1 Loaf of Bread

Besides how simple it is, you’ll love that this recipe makes just 1 loaf. You don’t need tons of flour, multiple loaf pans, or a bunch of extra bread lying around. (Though, let’s be honest—extra bread isn’t exactly a bad thing.) Just one loaf to mix, rise, shape, and bake—easy, approachable, and straightforward. My recipes for multigrain bread, homemade cinnamon swirl bread, and honey oat bread also make just one loaf each.

Overview: How to Make Sandwich Bread

1. Make the dough. (More details on this below.)
2. Knead the dough. Need help? Watch my How to Knead Dough video tutorial.
3. Let the dough rise. It takes about 1-2 hours in a warm spot.
4. Punch down the dough to release the air.
5. Shape the dough into a rectangle, then roll it into a loaf.
6. Let the loaf rise for about 1 hour.
7. Bake for 30-34 minutes until golden brown.

Sandwich Bread Ingredients

You only need 7 ingredients—almost the same as my homemade cinnamon swirl bread, but with less sugar. They’re also similar to my soft dinner rolls, but to get a bread that rises tall and holds its shape, we’ll skip some of the fat, swap some milk for water, and leave out the egg.

• Water: Liquid activates the yeast. I use mostly water here because we need a bread with good structure. Using all milk (like in my dinner rolls) would make a softer, less sturdy loaf.
• Milk: A little fat keeps the bread soft. Just ¼ cup of milk does the trick—low-fat works, but whole milk gives the best texture.
• Yeast: You can use active dry yeast or instant yeast. Active dry takes a bit longer to rise. I love Platinum Yeast from Red Star—it’s instant yeast with natural dough improvers, and it’s my go-to for all bread.
• Sugar: Feeds the yeast, boosts its activity, and tenderizes the dough.
• Salt: Essential for flavor!
• Flour: All-purpose flour works, but bread flour gives a chewier crust. No other changes needed if you use bread flour—it’s what I always use for artisan bread. If you want whole wheat, try my whole wheat bread recipe instead.

After kneading, let the dough rise, then punch it down to release the air.

Next, roll it into an 8×15-inch rectangle.

Roll it up tightly from the 8-inch side (unlike cinnamon rolls, where you roll the longer side). This gives you an 8-inch log that fits perfectly in a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Let it rise until it’s about 1 inch above the pan’s rim.

Bake for 30-34 minutes until golden brown.

Uses for Homemade Sandwich Bread

• Any sandwich (like Ross Geller’s Turkey Moist-Maker Sandwich 😉)
• BLT or grilled cheese
• Avocado toast or bacon & egg sandwiches
• Soup dipper
• Homemade croutons
• French toast or Blueberry French Toast Casserole
• Savory dishes like Breakfast Casserole or Sausage & Herb Stuffing

But our favorite way? Just warm toast with butter or honey butter & jam. Seriously, mass-produced bread doesn’t even come close—you can actually taste the soft, buttery crumbs here. Or try it in a simple turkey sandwich—store-bought bread can’t compete.

I get that store-bought bread is convenient, and I’m not saying you should only bake homemade bread from now on. But give this a try just once. It takes a few hours (mostly hands-off while the dough rises), smells incredible, and tastes even better. I truly believe there’s no better baked good than this perfect loaf. You won’t regret it.

More Easy Bread Recipes

• Focaccia
• Multigrain Bread
• Artisan Bread
• Cheesy Breadsticks
• Pizza Crust
• Homemade Soft Pretzels
• Bread Bowls
• Homemade Breadsticks
• Olive Bread
• Cranberry Nut No-Knead Bread