Soft and Fluffy Sandwich Bread — This sandwich bread is soft, fluffy, light, and moist. It’s made with a secret ingredient that keeps it moist and fluffy — oatmeal! It’s the perfect bread for a PB&J or grilled cheese sandwich!
Easy Sandwich Bread Recipe
I realized I didn’t have a recipe for classic sandwich bread on my site. Not that I eat that many sandwiches, but I may start after tasting this bread.
This homemade sandwich bread is soft, fluffy, and light. It’s made with a secret ingredient that keeps it moist and fluffy: a cup of oatmeal is kneaded into the dough, which also lends a bit of chewiness and texture. When you bite into the finished bread, you definitely don’t think, oh there’s oatmeal in here. It’s a stealth operator ingredient.
It’s the homemade, healthier, vegan version of white Wonder bread. I’ve never been a crusty baguette person. Give me soft and tender over jaw-ripping crustiness any day.
This easy white bread recipe makes one modest loaf, perfect for our family, and uses just 2 cups of flour for the entire loaf. Sometimes I read bread and roll recipes and they start off with ‘Add 5 to 6 cups of flour’. Gulp. We don’t need that much bread at once.
It’s so soft and fluffy, with a slight chewiness, thanks to the oatmeal. You’d never know oatmeal was the secret ingredient and even when mixing the dough, you’ll think there’s no way this whole cup of sloppy oatmeal is going to just disappear, but it magically does.
It would make great French toast or grilled cheese. It’s wonderful toasted and with butter, jam, or honey. I made BLT’s minus the bacon and used cheese, and they were met with rave reviews.
Up next, using it for a homemade peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
What’s in Sandwich Bread?
To make this soft and fluffy bread recipe, you’ll need:
- Water
- Old-fashioned oats
- All-purpose flour
- Canola oil
- Light brown sugar
- Instant dry yeast
- Salt
How to Make Sandwich Bread
Begin by boiling water, pouring it over oats, and let the mixture come to room temperature, about 15 minutes. I urge you to use a thermometer. You don’t want to add overly hot oatmeal to the yeast because you’ll kill it. Yet it has to be warm enough so the yeast activates. For me, this is in the 130F range because I used Red Star Platinum yeast. The brand of yeast used dictates the temperature.
Add the warm oatmeal to a mixing bowl containing all-purpose flour, yeast, brown sugar, oil, and a splash of water. I allowed my stand mixer to knead it for about 6 minutes, and if you’re kneading by hand, knead for 10 minutes, or until it comes together, adding as little additional flour as possible.
After kneading, place the dough into a greased bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 90 minutes, or until doubled in size. Create a warm environment by preheating your oven for 1 to 2 minutes to 400F, then shutting it off. This creates a 90F-ish warm spot.
Slide the bowl in and wait while the yeast works. Just make sure your oven is off.
After the dough has doubled, punch it down, turn it out onto a floured surface or Silpat and knead it for about 3 minutes. With your fingers, shape it into a 10-inch by 6-inch rectangle, just eyeball it. It’s being baked in an 8-by-4-inch pan and you want the long side slightly longer than the pan, about 10 inches.
Fold the short sides in so the dough is about 8 inches in length, and roll to form a tight cylinder. There’s not much to roll, about 3 turns.
Place the cylinder in the pan, cover it, and allow it to rise until doubled, 60 to 75 minutes. Optionally, when rolling it, sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger. Or go savory with dill, chives, or thyme.
Bake it for about 30 minutes or until domed, golden, and puffy. When tapped, it should sound hollow.
Technically, the internal temperature should reach 210F, but I have issues stabbing my beautiful bread with the long, dagger-like spear of the thermometer, so I rarely do this unless I’m very uncertain and rely on visual cues and tapping.
Because the cooling process is actually part of the cooking process with bread-making, let the bread cool completely before slicing into it, tempting as it is to tear into it asap.
How to Store Sandwich Bread
I store homemade sandwich bread by wrapping a fully cooled loaf in plastic wrap, and then I place it inside a gallon-size Ziplock, where it stays fresh for about 5 days.
Can I Freeze Sandwich Bread?
Yes, this easy white bread freezes very well and can be made from start to finish, cooled, and placed in a freezer-safe airtight container or a ziplock for up to 3 months.
Can I Make This In a Bread Machine?
I don’t know because I don’t have one and have never tried.
Do I Have to Use All-Purpose Flour?
I used all-purpose flour because I wanted really soft bread. Bread flour will produce a loaf that’s chewier. I don’t know how whole wheat flour would work. If you try it, I suggest not using more than 1 cup (50% of the total amount). I fear it won’t rise well and could get very heavy and dense.
Can I Use Gluten-Free Flour?
I haven’t tried this soft sandwich bread recipe with gluten-free flour so I cannot comment or make recommendations. I’ve never baked homemade yeast bread with gluten-free flour, so it’s out of my wheelhouse entirely. I’d use your favorite blend and hope for the best!
Do I Have To Use Instant Yeast?
I have only made this recipe using the yeast mentioned and haven’t tried it with other forms of yeast. I can’t speak to your results if you use active dry yeast that’s not labeled as instant.
I use this instant yeast with great results.
Tips for Making Fluffy Sandwich Bread
This is a fairly moist and sticky dough, but manageable. With bread-making, the less flour added, and the more you tolerate sticky dough, the lighter and fluffier the bread will be. Sure, I could have added another half-cup or more of flour, but refrained and dealt with the stickiness. And I have a light, fluffy loaf in return.
If your sandwich bread doesn’t rise properly, it could be because your yeast wasn’t fresh or you killed the yeast by adding too hot of water to it.
It’s vital that you let the bread cool completely before slicing into it, otherwise you may flatten the bread when you try to slice into it.
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Soft and Fluffy Sandwich Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 cup old-fashioned whole rolled oats, not quick cook or instant
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, bread flour may be used and will create a heartier, chewier bread
- ¼ cup water, from the tap, not hot and not cold
- 2 to 3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
- 2 ¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast (one 1/4-ounce packet, I use Red Star Platinum
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
Instructions
- In a small bowl, pour boiling water over oatmeal, stir to combine. Set aside and let cool until temperature reaches about 130F, about 15 minutes. (I use Red Star Platinum Yeast which necessitates this temperature; allow mixture to cool to the ~100F range for other types of instant dry yeast, or to package directions).
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook (or a large mixing bowl and knead by hand for about 10 minutes), combine flour, 1/4 cup water, oil, brown sugar, instant dry yeast, and cooled oatmeal.
- Knead for 5 to 7 minutes on low speed, or until a moist, shaggy dough forms. The dough is fairly moist and sticky, but resist the temptation to add additional flour, unless it's so moist that it won't combine. Conversely, if it's too dry, add up to one-quarter cup water. Erring on the side of too moist is always preferable to dry in bread-making.
- After kneading, turn the dough out into a large, greased bowl, cover with plasticwrap, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 90 minutes, or until doubled in size. Create a warm environment by preheating your oven for 1 to 2 minutes to 400F, then shutting it off. This creates a 90F-ish warm spot. Slide the bowl in and wait while the yeast works. Just make sure your oven is off.
- After the dough has doubled, punch it down, turn it out onto a floured surface or Silpat and knead it for about 3 minutes. With your fingers, shape it into a 10-inch by 6-inch rectangle, just eyeball it. The long side should be slightly longer than the baking pan. Then, fold the short sides in so that dough is about 8 inches in length. Roll to form a tight cylinder. There's not much to roll, about 3 turns. Optionally, when rolling, sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger. Or go savory with dill, chives, or thyme.
- Spray an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan with floured cooking spray (or grease and flour the pan) and place the cylinder in the pan, seam side down. Cover with plasticwrap, and allow dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 60 to 75 minutes.
- In the last minutes of rising, preheat oven to 350F. Bake for about 30 minutes or until domed, golden, and puffy. When tapped, it should sound hollow. The internal temperature should reach 210F. Let bread cool in pan for 5 to 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Notes
- I store bread by wrapping a fully cooled loaf in plasticwrap, and place it inside a gallon-size Ziplock, where it stays fresh for about 5 days.
- Bread freezes very well and can be made from start to finish, cooled, and placed in a freezer-safe airtight container or a ziplock for up to 3 months.
- I like this bread toasted and with butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon-sugar or Cinnamon-Sugar Butter. It makes great Grilled Cheese, French Toast, and Homemade Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Bread Recipes:
Easy Sourdough Bread — This easy sourdough bread recipe uses yogurt and sour cream in place of a traditional sourdough starter, which makes it possible to prep a loaf in less than a day!
Overnight Cinnamon Rolls — These overnight cinnamon rolls are ultra soft and fluffy thanks to the buttermilk in the dough. Top them with homemade cream cheese frosting and enjoy!
Easy Cheddar Sourdough Bread — Unlike most sourdough recipes that require a starter and weeks to complete, this recipe requires neither. The sourdough taste comes from a combination of Greek yogurt and sour cream that ferments the dough rather than using a starter.
Raisin Bread for Raisin Lovers — A soft, slightly sweet bread that’s packed to the brim with raisins. Made entirely by hand, no mixer
Easy Cheese Bomb Bread – Soft, buttery bread brushed with garlic butter and stuffed with CHEESE! So good, mindlessly easy, goofproof, and ready in 10 minutes! A hit with everyone!!
Cinnamon Swirl Bread – As close to cinnamon buns as bread gets. Filled with a sweet cinnamon-sugar butter mixture that’s swirled throughout, this is a tender, buttery, sweet loaf that novice bread-makers can successfully tackle
Honey Dinner Rolls — My favorite dinner roll recipe, lightly sweetened with honey, soft and chewy. A family favorite and a very goof-proof yeast recipe because this dough loves to rise
Originally published April 9, 2013 and republished May 16, 2020 with updated text.
That looks so fluffy and yummy! I really am looking for vegan bread recipes for my family. It’s not only delicious, it’s nutritious too. Thanks for sharing.
I made this today and it was a big fail. It’s flat, dense, and doughy inside. I make bread once a month or so and this was my first failure. Impossible to knead it’s so sticky. Doubt I will bother trying a second time.
I’m sorry that you didn’t have good luck with it. If it was so sticky that you couldn’t knead it, then you probably should have added additional flour so that you could knead it. Because without kneading it properly, you didn’t develop the gluten; hence it not rising well or being flat and dense. Doughy inside also sounds like you may have under-baked it.
With bread-making, it’s always more important to watch your dough than to hold steadfast to a recipe if you think it needs more/less of something. Thanks for trying the recipe.
I am an experienced bread maker – making every other day or so – I have to say this is wonderful bread. I have made it a couple of times now changing out the white flour for wheat ( a little at a time). I increased the ingredients to make a large 9×5 loaf and have used 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat and 1 cup of all purpose. It is still a wonderful fluffy bread. Gota tell you – made it the other day and decided to allow it to rise the first rise on the counter ( air temp about 72 – 75 degrees) I needed to be absent for about 2 hrs. Came back and the bread had risen almost out of the large bowl I had it in. Since the bowl was a pyrex – I baked it then. Wonderful, fluffy bread and only on one long rise. This recipe doesn’t work in a bread machine(at least not mine) oatmeal is to heavy to mix well. Thanks again for a great bread recipe – we will be using it for a long long time.
I love this comment. Thank you for spelling it all out! First that you’re an experienced bread maker, it’s nice to know that this isnt your first rodeo and you still love it and that you’ll keep making it for a long time to come. Yay!
That it doesnt work well in a bread machine due to oats being too heavy; I can see that. I dont have a bread machine but I can imagine.
1.5 c whole wheat + 1 cup white AP, and it still puffed up so nice…that is awesome. And I love it when you get an unexpected (but welcomed) PUFFBALL out of no where, that just blows right out of the bowl. God I love that feeling :) Glad that the 1 rise worked great with that, too! If you make any more bread of mine, LMK!
I know in about 10 days I’m going to have a coconut milk recipe sort of like this one coming up :)
Hello! I was wondering how much more ingredient you used for the 9×5 pan. Its the only size I have and I would appreciate it greatly to know the measurement variations. Thank you!
It’s impossible with a yeast-based recipe to just start cherry-picking and tweaking the recipe to account for a slightly larger pan. I’d either go buy an 8×4 (they’re about 3 dollars at the grocery store in the baking aisle) or just bake in the 9×5. Enjoy!
Having two teenage boys, you can imagine the amount of sandwiches we go through in a week, what with 2 sandwiches per boy, per lunch bag, per day! That’s just sandwiches, mind you! There is also toast for breakfast (3 pieces per boy sometimes) and toast for a snack before bed. That’s a lot of bread!
Anyway, I have made homemade bread for my kids since they were small. No, not all the time, but when I can, I do so and homemade is the boys’ favorite, hands down. (Whose isn’t?) Having made a lot of homemade breads over the years, I feel like I can say from experience, that this is the best loaf of bread I have made for sandwiches, ever. The directions are fool proof and when followed exactly, the bread turns out just like the photos! I have been so tempted to skip the rising process on homemade bread before, maybe not entirely, but shaving off a little time here and there when it has to rise in stages. Don’t skip the rising part! Make the time to just do it right and you got yourself one heck of an awesome loaf of bread! Or in our case, 2 loaves at a time! Awesome recipe, Averie. :-)
I am in love with this comment and that your boys and you are in love with this bread and that it’s the best loaf of sandwich bread you’ve ever made AND that you’ve already made it tons…and I did that math…for 1 boy, that’s 4 slices for the sandwiches at lunch, 3 slices for breakfast, and possibly 2 for snacktime. That’s a 9 slice per day habit, PER KID! WOW!!! No wonder you need to start baking your own. If I had your family and their appetites, oh, the things I could make and bake, Michele :)
I am sooo happy that it worked out so well for you AND that the boys love it. And not skipping the rising…right. Cannot do that! Or you end up with a much denser bread. Thanks for this! xoxox
I made the bread and it rises great but when I put it in the oven to bake it doesn’t rise. This is the first time I’ve made sandwich bread. So I have yummy bread but the shape isn’t pretty
Not sure if you’ve made bread in general before or if this is your first time making sandwich bread or first time for any yeasted bread making…but there is something then going on with your oven, your yeast, your dough, or how long you let it rose either the 1st or 2nd rise. So many variables and it’s hard for me to troubleshoot from a far what exactly went a bit wrong in the process. If it rose well out of the oven, but not IN the oven, that leads me to believe it’s possibly an oven issue. Or, could you have let it rise TOO long on the 2nd rise. There is that possibility and then it won’t rise as much in the oven and could collapse on itself. Google over-rising bread and read about that and see if that could have been your issue. Glad you like the taste though!
This is so good! We’ve eaten half the loaf already, and I want more. This may be my new go-to sandwich bread. I did cheat a bit. I make all our bread, but I use the Emeril bread maker. I used room temp water and quick oats, because that’s what I had. I used about 1/4 c. more bread flour, because “gloppy” doesn’t do as well in the bread machine. I also only used about 1 1/2 t. of yeast, because that’s what the machine calls for in a loaf this size. I just dumped everything in the machine and hit start! I thought it would be tiny! But it was a nice, full sized loaf, emphasis on was! Soft on the inside with a nice brown crispy crust. Just like I love it! Thank you!
So glad to hear you had success with this in the bread machine and with using room temp water and quick oats. Sound like the bread machine likes a bit less yeast than without using it, and a bit extra flour. Glad your tweaks worked and that you love it so much! Thanks for trying it and coming back to LMK!
I think I messed something up… my suspect is my yeast as it did not rise a 2nd time. Is it possible for the rising temp to be too warm??
If it didn’t rise well, it’s more than likely too cold in your house than too warm. If your house is 70F give or take at room temp, that’s colder than the 90F-ish that yeast likes. However, it is possible you killed the yeast by adding oatmeal that was too hot.
Is it possible for the rising temp to be too warm?? <-- That's unlikely if you just had it on the counter, or tucked it into an oven that had been preheating for 1-2 mins, just to take the edge off the cold air. Pay closer attention to all temps next time and I bet you'll be just fine. And also, check your yeast for freshness.
I made this bread yesterday and gave my husband the first slice. He said to tell you it’s “incredibly good” and I totally agree! I have a feeling this loaf won’t last long. The dough did seem a little more wet than what I am used to and I would have been tempted to add more flour, but as the mixer did its thing, it all came together with good elasticity–so what you said about all that was very helpful. I decided to let it rise in my dehydrator (just to try it). Worked like a charm! Also, thanks again for sharing your experience with red star platinum–it really does give great results.
Thanks for this comment, Paula, and what you did and that it worked out “incredibly good”. Love that. Yes, it’s a wet dough but I’ve learned with bread making, that as gloppy as you can stand it, in the end, is usually better. I love that you used your dehyd, too! I need to try that…although I wonder if mine would get TOO warm and too dry for it…but that’s a good tip! I usually let mine stay in the oven to rise and every 45-60 mins or so, I power on the oven for 1-2 mins to preheat, and shut off. A bit of babysitting, but it’s worth it and usually only have to do it once or twice on the first rise and once on the 2nd rise. Glad that you love the Platinum as much as I do!
I have an Excalibur dehydrator and it has a bread rising setting for 110 deg. I thought all that air from the fan would dry it out–but as long as the plastic wrap stays over the bowl, it works well.
That’s the kind I have! I literally need to dust it off and good to know that with plasticwrap, it doesn’t dry out!
What a beautiful looking loaf of bread, Averie! The addition of oatmeal is just perfect! Great job on this one!
Hi Averie,
I have a “quick” question (or two) for you.
What do you cover the bowl with when you let the dough rise the first time?
When you let the dough in the pan rise, where do you keep it, does it too need to be covered?
I’ve kind of parked myself here on your site. It feels like I’m sitting at that big country table like my grandma had, hanging with a friend who cooks more than I do, so I’m a sponge right now!
You may want to reread the recipe. The answers you’re looking for are already there. Enjoy the bread!:
…After kneading, turn the dough out into a large, greased bowl, cover with plasticwrap, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 90 minutes, or until doubled in size. Create a warm environment by preheating your oven for 1 to 2 minutes to 400F, then shutting it off. This creates a 90F-ish warm spot. Slide the bowl in and wait while the yeast works. Just make sure your oven is off.
After the dough has doubled, punch it down, turn it out onto a floured surface or Silpat and knead it for about 3 minutes. With your fingers, shape it into a 10-inch by 6-inch rectangle, just eyeball it. The long side should be slightly longer than the baking pan. Then, fold the short sides in so that dough is about 8 inches in length. Roll to form a tight cylinder. There’s not much to roll, about 3 turns. Optionally, when rolling, sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger. Or go savory with dill, chives, or thyme.
Spray an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan with floured cooking spray (or grease and flour the pan) and place the cylinder in the pan, seam side down. Cover with plasticwrap, and allow dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 60 to 75 minutes….
Erm… yeah, there it is. *G* Not a good day for me, can you tell? Thank you!
i love sandwich bread…your photo of the loaf looks perfect…like really perfect loaf of sandwich bread. thanks again for the tips with the yeast.
Thanks, Angela!
This sounds a lovely recipe and I plan to make it asap. The only thing I’m unsure about is the amount of sugar. 2 tablespoons?! That seems so much to me. I’m used to recipes with a couple of teaspoons. Part of me wants to reduce the amount of sugar but then would that have an impact on the yeast activation?
2 tablespoons of sugar in an entire loaf of bread is practically….nothing. The sugar is necessary for the yeast activation and it does moisten the loaf and adds a very tiny, tiny tiny amount of sweetness to the bread. It’s not a “sweet bread” by any means, but it’s also not bitter. As you can see from what I would call a darn near perfect loaf of bread, the recipe works beautifully and I would not tinker with it, one bit. Hope you try it!
I’m not going to lie, I sort of want to take a nap on this bread right now, ha! It’s been that kind of week. ;) I don’t eat white bread very often, but nothing beats white bread for classic PB&J, and also leftover turkey after Thanksgiving. I like the thought of kneading oats into the dough, as well!
Keeps it soooo soft and fluffy with the oats!
For that leftover turkey, Averie’s challah bread with craisins added is the bomb! We don’t wait until Thanksgiving, though! It’s a regular. I usually just toss it all into the bread machine, but it is fun to braid it once in awhile, too!
I need to make the challah with craisins. That sounds so good! Glad you love the challah as much as I do!
I LOVE sandwiches, and I’ve never even considered making my own bread. I especially love the oatmeal inside!! What an awesome idea Averie!
You would love this bread – and it’s vegan as a bonus!