I made challah for the first time during the COVID-19 lockdown when I had a lot of extra time on my hands. It’s actually pretty simple, except for the braiding, but even that got easier once I had done it a couple of times (I messed it up pretty bad the first time so then I got Justin to read me the directions as I braided the dough). It comes out looking super impressive so I think it’s worth the time.
Time: 4 hours
Serves: 2 challahs
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ packages active dry yeast (1 1/2 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil, more for greasing bowl
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 8 to 8 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Poppy or sesame seeds for sprinkling
Directions:
- In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.
- Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour. When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading. (You can also use a mixer with a dough hook for both mixing and kneading.)
- Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Clean out bowl and grease it, then return the dough to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until almost doubled in size. Dough may also rise in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off. Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.
- To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls. With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another. Pinch the tops of the strands together. Move the outside right strand over 2 strands. Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right. Take the outside left strand and move it over 2. Move the second strand from the right over to the far left. Start over with the outside right strand. Continue this until all strands are braided. For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath. For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together. Make a second loaf the same way. Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.
- Beat the remaining egg and brush it on loaves. Either freeze bread or let rise another hour.
- If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. If freezing, remove from the freezer 5 hours before baking. Then dip your index finger in the egg wash, then into poppy or sesame seeds and then onto a mound of bread. Continue until bread is decorated with seeds.
- Bake in middle of the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden. Cool loaves on a rack.
Notes:
Recipe from the New York Times.