The Real Difference Between Challah And Brioche - Mashed (2024)

The Real Difference Between Challah And Brioche - Mashed (4)

Shutterstock

ByMolly Harris/

If you have ever searched for the best French toast recipes, then you might have seen both challah and brioche breads mentioned in a smattering of those recipes. Those of you who have tried both kinds of bread before might have noticed that they taste remarkably similar and have a similar crumb or texture inside. While both breads are a lot alike, there is a major distinction between the two types of loaves.

The most important distinction is likely that challah bread is a part of Jewish tradition. It's a kosher bread, meaning that it is made without any dairy, such as butter or milk, so that the challah can be eaten with all meals (via MyRecipes). Challah is made with just eggs, flour, sugar, yeast, water, and salt. Once the dough is made, it's often braided into a long strand, though it is sometimes made into a round. Finally, the loaf is topped with an egg wash to give the dark brown exterior a nice shiny finish. When you break challah bread open to eat on its own or in another recipe, you'll find a yellowish color and a light and airy texture (via Chowhound).

Brioche is made with a lot of butter

The Real Difference Between Challah And Brioche - Mashed (5)

Shutterstock

While both breads are rich yeasted breads, brioche is French and much richer than challah. They share similar textures, both inside and the crust, but brioche is made with plenty of butter. The butter helps to give the bread an even lighter, fluffier texture and a sweeter flavor — almost like a hybrid of bread and pastry, really.

Brioche is made with many of the same ingredient as challah — eggs, flour, and sometimes sugar– but it also includes butter, milk, and cream, which means the bread is not suitable for all meals if you're concerned with keeping kosher. In France, where it originated, brioche is often eaten plain or with butter and jam. It can, however, be made with mix-ins like fruit or nuts. Sometimes brioche is also used to make sweet pastry-like buns or rolls. It's an incredibly versatile bread that can be both sweet or savory.

The next time you're looking for a light bread to amp up a recipe, consider challah and brioche. Just note that brioche will certainly be richer than challah, thanks to its butter content.

Recommended

See Also
Challah
The Real Difference Between Challah And Brioche - Mashed (2024)

FAQs

The Real Difference Between Challah And Brioche - Mashed? ›

Holiday Challah is similar to brioche, the main difference is the use of oil instead of butter. Ultimately, the baked result is very similar; yellow-hued crumb that is soft, moist, and mildly sweet.

How is brioche different from challah? ›

The key difference between challah and brioche, per Masterclass, is that brioche is typically made with all three enriched ingredients we mentioned before (eggs, sugar, and butter), but challah often replaces the butter with oil to keep kosher.

What makes better French toast, challah or brioche? ›

For a solid French toast, aim for sturdy bread with a uniform texture and a soft crust. Hearty sandwich bread, brioche, challah, and shokupan (Japanese milk bread) are all great choices. Avoid rustic loaves with thick crusts or large holes in the interior.

What makes challah bread different? ›

Challah is almost always pareve (containing neither dairy nor meat—important in the laws of Kashrut), unlike brioche and other enriched European breads, which contain butter or milk as it is typically eaten with a meat meal.

What are the two basic differences between a sweet dough and a challah? ›

Traditionally, the delicious kalács, other Eastern European sweet breads, and tsoureki are made with butter and milk. Challah, however, is often parve, in keeping with the laws of kashrut, and made with oil (or margarine) and water, instead. All require two risings.

What makes brioche different? ›

Brioche is a classic French bread distinguished by the addition of butter and eggs, which makes it an “enriched” dough. The high fat content results in a bread with an exceptionally tender crumb, pillowy softness, and rich flavor.

Why does brioche bread taste different? ›

Brioche is made from an enriched dough that uses eggs, sugar, and butter. These additional ingredients make the bread taste dense, soft, and sweet. The crumb (the pattern of holes in a slice of bread) is also much tighter (lots of small holes) in brioche than in a baguette (large, irregular holes).

Why do Jews eat challah bread? ›

The term “challah” is applied more widely to mean any bread used in Jewish rituals. On the eve of Shabbat, two loaves are placed on the table to reference the Jewish teaching that a double portion of manna fell from heaven on Friday to last through the Saturday Shabbat.

Why is my homemade challah so dense? ›

Amount of flour: The key to a soft loaf that isn't dense is to use as little flour as possible.

Why does challah have to be braided? ›

Challah loaves are often braided. The three strands of the braid may represent truth, peace and justice.

What flour is best for challah? ›

Which flour is best for challah? No special flour required to make the perfect loaf. Some challah recipes call for bread flour, but I use all-purpose flour and it works perfectly every time.

Can you overproof challah? ›

Be careful not to over proof your loaves; if they proof too much, the air bubbles get too big, causing them to pop and then deflate in the oven.

Is brioche the same as sourdough? ›

Brioche is a classic French bread with a buttery, tender crumb. It's made with a rich enriched dough with lots of eggs and butter, resulting in a bake that's a cross between a pastry and bread. Brioche has a much finer crumb and softer texture than a regular loaf of sourdough bread.

What bread is closest to brioche? ›

Challah bread is very similar to brioche, since it is made with eggs. It has a slightly sweet flavor and a soft, pillowy interior. Another substitute for brioche are croissants. Although these are not bread, but pastry, brioche is said to be more similar in texture to croissants than bread.

What bread is closest to challah? ›

Yes, challah bread is similar to brioche. Challah bread is typically a Jewish bread that is kosher with no dairy in it. On the other hand, brioche is a french bread made with similar ingredients and it included butter rather than an oil such as vegetable oil. Overall, they taste pretty similar.

Why do restaurants use brioche buns? ›

A brioche roll is a form of enriched dough. That means that it's made the same way as a regular roll of bread, but lots of butter and eggs are added to it. This gives it a richer flavor with a tender crumb and soft texture.

Why is it called brioche? ›

The name "brioche" comes from the old French word "brier," which means "to crush the dough". Over the centuries, brioches spread to many regions, and there are now over 30 different types of brioche in France, with almost every region having its own specialty.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Jamar Nader

Last Updated:

Views: 6499

Rating: 4.4 / 5 (75 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Jamar Nader

Birthday: 1995-02-28

Address: Apt. 536 6162 Reichel Greens, Port Zackaryside, CT 22682-9804

Phone: +9958384818317

Job: IT Representative

Hobby: Scrapbooking, Hiking, Hunting, Kite flying, Blacksmithing, Video gaming, Foraging

Introduction: My name is Jamar Nader, I am a fine, shiny, colorful, bright, nice, perfect, curious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.