This Gluten Free Brioche is pillowy soft, mildly sweet, and rich with eggs and butter which give this bread that tender crumb and dark golden flaky crust. It is great for sandwiches, French toast, or on its own. This is the perfect yeasted bakery-style bread!
why this recipe is so good
It’s easy to make. You can make this bread even if you don’t have a lot of experience with baking.
It requires only a few simple and easily accessible ingredients. I don’t know about you, but I love recipes that use only a few ingredients and more importantly use ingredients that I can find them in my local supermarket. This recipe checks both boxes.
Rich with eggs and butter. This bread might not be healthy but it is so indulging, comforting, and delicious. However, if you are looking for a slightly healthier yeast bread recipe with less butter, then I recommend you to try these gluten-free dinner rolls.
Healthier than other brioche bread recipes. This recipe uses honey or maple syrup instead of sugar, which makes it slightly healthier, especially if you are watching out on the sugar.
You can’t tell it is gluten-free. You know that a gluten-free recipe is a good recipe when you can’t tell the difference from the regular non-gluten-free version.
You can make it dairy free. Even though brioche bread is rich in butter you can easily make this recipe dairy free with just two simple swaps.
You can make gluten-free brioche burger buns. This recipe makes great brioche burger buns or brioche rolls.
Ingredients and substitutes
Gluten-free flour blend. I recommend that you use either my homemade gluten-free flour blend or Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour. However if you can’t get them then you can use any gluten-free flour blend, just make sure that they contain xanthan or guar gum, or you add in a teaspoon separately. Please note that if you use different flour than the ones I recommend you might need to add some extra flour or water to get the right consistency because all the gluten-free flours are different.
Cornstarch. Makes the dough easier to handle and shape. I haven't tried substituting cornstarch with any other starch so I wouldn’t know if it will work.
Xanthan Gum. The recipe requires 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum. You can substitute this with 2 teaspoons of psyllium husk.
Instant yeast. This is a yeast bread and therefore it can’t be made yeast-free. It requires instant yeast and it cannot be a substitute for a wild yeast sourdough starter. If you want to make brioche bread that is yeast-free or uses wild yeast sourdough starter then you will need a recipe developed specifically for that.
Eggs. The eggs are what makes this bread so light and fluffy. Brioche is not egg-free friendly and there is no good substitute for the eggs.
Milk. The best option would be to use full-fat milk, however, if you can’t, then you can also use low-fat, lactose-free, or dairy free if needed. I don’t recommend that you substitute the milk with water.
Honey. This recipe is slightly healthier than the original brioche recipe as it uses honey. However, you can also use maple syrup, agave, or regular sugar. If you use sugar you will need to add an extra 100ml of milk.
Butter is the backbone of brioche bread, there simply won’t be a brioche without butter. However, if you need to make it dairy-free then you can use a vegan butter alternative. Make sure that you use unsalted, room-temperature butter. If your butter is very cold, you can warm it up in the microwave for 20 seconds.
How to make gluten-free brioche
STEP 1: PREPARE
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment add the flour, xanthan gum, yeast, and salt. Whisk to combine.
- Add the eggs, milk, butter, honey (or any other liquid sweetener).
- Place the bowl in the stand mixer and beat on medium-high for about 5 minutes. The dough should feel slightly sticky to the touch, but you should be able to form a ball from it.
- Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rise for about 40 to 60min. The amount of time that will take for your dough to rise will depend on your environment. If it's hot and humid the dough will rise faster, if it's cold it will take longer.
STEP 2: SHAPE
- Transfer the dough to a floured surface. Divide the dough in half, roll each half into a log and divide each log into 4 equal portions.
- Roll the dough portions on your work surface until you have smooth dough balls. You need to get 8 smooth dough balls.
STEP 3: ARRANGE AND PROOF
- Place the dough balls in the loaf pan in a zig-zag manner. After arranging the dough balls in the loaf pan, flatten them slightly. If you don’t want to shape the bread in this way, you can also just transfer the entire dough directly into the prepared pan.
- Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the dough be proof one more time. You might have heard that gluten-free dough can rise only once, however, this dough can be proofed 2 times without any issues. In fact, it makes this bread even more fluffy.
STEP 4: BAKE
- When the dough has reached the end of its rise, preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Brush the loaf with an egg wash.
- Bake until golden and firm, 40-50 minutes. To test if it’s baked, instep a knife all the way through, if it comes out lean then your bread is done.
- Remove the bread from the oven and immediately brush with melted butter.
- Place the loaf (in the pan) on a wire rack and cool until no longer hot to the touch. Remove it from the pan slice and serve.
Storage
This bread is best to eat when is freshly baked. You can store the bread tightly wrapped at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week.
The baked bread can also be frozen and enjoyed later. Reheat the slices in a toaster and they would be as good as when it is freshly baked.
shape & Flavor variations
- Make sweet buns or burger buns. This recipe for Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Brioche Buns is so good!
- Mix in chocolate chips or raisins
- Add a teaspoon of cinnamon
recipe Tips
Ingredients temperature. For all the ingredients to mix well, they need to be at room temperature.
Milk. It needs to be lukewarm (120-130°F) (50-55°C) for proper yeast activation. Make sure that it is not too hot because that can kill the yeast.
Yeast. Be sure to use instant yeast. This type of yeast can be mixed directly with all the dry ingredients.
Proofing. Let the dough rise to room temperature. In the summer it usually takes less than 1h, however, in the winter it can take slightly longer. Do not put it in a low oven because you will likely kill the yeast.
FAQ
Can you make gluten-free brioche without eggs?
No, this bread is not egg-free friendly bread. The eggs are what make this bread so light and fluffy, and without them, you will not achieve this texture.
Can you make gluten-free dairy-free brioche?
Yes, this bread has a dairy-free option. You will just simply need to substitute the butter and the milk for a vegan alternative.
Can I make Brioche burger buns from this recipe?
Yes, you can use this dough to make brioche burger buns. Thanks to the xanthan gum and the cornstarch, this dough is easy to work with and holds its shape.
What kind of gluten-free flour should I use?
As I mentioned above, I recommend using this recipe for homemade gluten-free flour mix or this blend by Bob's Red Mill. However, if for some reason you can’t use those, you can use any gluten-free flour blend just make sure it contains xanthan or guar gum. Please note that if you use different flour than the ones I recommend you might need to add some extra flour or milk to get the right consistency because all the gluten-free flours are different.
Equipment needed to make this bread
- To make the kneading process easier, I recommend that you use a stand mixer such as this one.
- You will need a 9-inch x 5-inch loaf pan.
- If you don’t like to shape the bread yourself, you can also use this Challah Silicone Mold.
More Gluten-Free Bread Recipes
- Extra Soft Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls
- Chewy Gluten Free Bagels
- Fluffy Gluten-Free Hot Cross Buns
- Gluten-Free Garlic Knots
Recipe
Buttery Gluten Free Brioche Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups + 2 tbsp Gluten-Free Flour Mix
- 2 cups + 2 tbsp Cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon Xanthan Gum (in addition to the one that is in the gluten free mix)
- 1 tablespoon Instant Yeast
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup + 1 Tbsp Milk (lukewarm)
- 2 Eggs
- ½ cup Honey
- ¾ cup Butter (softened)
Instructions
- Butter and dust 9 x 5 inch, standard loaf pan with flour.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment add the flour, xanthan gum, yeast and salt. Whisk to combine
- Add the eggs, milk, butter, honey (or any other liquid sweetener).
- Place the bowl in the stand mixer and beat on medium-high for about 5 minutes. The dough should feel slightly sticky to the touch, but you should be able to form a ball from it.
- Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rise for about 40 to 60min. The amount of time that will take for your dough to rise will depend on your environment. If it's hot and humid the dough will rise faster, if it's cold it will take longer.
- Transfer the dough to a floured surface. Divide the dough in half, roll each half into a log and divide each log into 4 equal portions.
- Roll the dough portions on your work surface until you have a smooth dough balls. You need to get 8 smooth dough balls.
- Place the dough balls in the loaf pan in a zig-zag manner. After arranging the dough balls in the loaf pan, flatten them slightly. If you don’t want to shape the bread in this way, you can also just transfer the entire dough directly into the prepared pan.
- Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the dough be rise one more time.
- When the dough has reached the end of its rise, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°F). Brush the loaf with an egg wash.
- Bake until golden and firm, 40-50 minutes. To test if it’s baked, instep a knife all the way through, if it comes out lean then your bread is done.
- Remove the bread from the oven and immediately brush with melted butter.
- Place the loaf (in the pan) on a wire rack and cool until no longer hot to the touch. Remove it from the pan slice and serve.
Carla says
THANK YOU! I just made your recipe after countless tries of other recipes for gluten free yeasted dough and let me just say it has the lightest and most pillowy texture I have ever experienced in any gluten free yeasted dough. I missed brioche so much and this is definitely the closest thing to it that I baked since having to go gluten free!
Gluten Free Stories says
Hi Carla, I'm so happy to hear that you liked it! 🙂
Dinny says
If i dont have xanthan gum, can be replace with something else ?
Gluten Free Stories says
Hi Dinny, xanthan gum is quite important for the texture of this bread. You can replace 1tsp of xanthan gum with 2tsp of psyllium husk. However, psyllium makes the dough more crumbly and dry when refrigerated.
Ella says
This brioche recipe changed my life! Ever since I started eating gluten-free I struggled to find a good Brioche recipe. Your recipe is so good and authentic! I'm making it twice a week now haha. Thank you so much!
Faith says
Can you replace corn starch with any other starch like tapioca starch or potato starch? I’m looking forward to trying this recipe, I just wanted to see if I could get away with a starch I have here at home😂
Gluten Free Stories says
Hi Faith, I have never tried making it with tapioca and potato starch so I can't guarantee that it will work
Elizabeth says
Can you use non dairy milk in it, such as coconut or oat milk? I can't have dairy.
Gluten Free Stories says
Yes, you can use non-dairy milk (any dairy-free milk can work). You can substitute the butter with a vegan butter.
Viola Ritchie says
I wonder if you could use this recipe for hamburger buns.
Gluten Free Stories says
Hi Viola, yes you can use this recipe for hamburger buns.
Donna longo says
Thank you for sharing .wonderful bread