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★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
Easy Homemade Bread Bowls
This easy homemade bread bowl recipe is perfect for soup season! Learn how to make crusty, edible bowls with simple ingredients right in your own kitchen.
Turn a regular meal into a cozy, restaurant-style experience! Easy enough for kid to make and they love being able to eat the bowl — less dishes too.
Simple Ingredients for Bread Bowls
You’ll only need seven pantry staples to make these bread bowls: yeast, flour, water, sugar, salt, and a little oil. With just a few basics, you can create freshly baked bread bowls that taste better than store-bought and cost less too.
How to Make a Bread Bowl
Making a bread bowl at home is easy. Mix the dough, let it rise twice, shape into rounds, and bake until golden brown. Once cooled slightly, simply hollow out the center to create space for soup. The process is simple and beginner-friendly, even if you don’t bake often.
Best Soups for Bread Bowls
Homemade bread bowls offer a fun and filling way to enjoy many different types of soup. They’re perfect for chili, clam chowder, potato and ham soup, broccoli cheddar soup, creamy tomato soup, or loaded baked potato soup.
Sturdy and Delicious
These bread bowls have a hearty, crusty outside and a soft, chewy inside. They hold up beautifully to thick and creamy soups without getting soggy.
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
You'll need just 7 ingredients to make homemade bread bowl.
Here's a look at what you'll need:
- Flour. All purpose flour works great and makes for a sturdy bowl. If you want a chewier inside, use bread flour. You can also use half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose for a nuttier taste and slightly denser texture.
- Instant Yeast: Helps the dough rise. You can swap instant yeast with active dry yeast. Just be sure to bloom it first in warm water.
- Oil. Olive oil taste great but you can use any cooking oil.
- Sugar. Regular table sugar is all you need. This feeds the yeast. Substitute: honey or maple syrup.
- Salt. Enhances flavor of the bread and controls yeast activity. Substitute: sea salt or Himalayan salt.
- Water. The water needs to be warm (100-115°F/38-46°C), not hot. Hot water will kill the yeast. You can use milk instead for a richer dough.
- Egg (for wash): Creates a shiny, golden crust. Substitute: milk or melted butter.
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
Making your own bread is simple, it just requires a little patience to allow enough time to rise.
Here's a look at the steps:
- Mix dry ingredients then add wet ingredients.
- Mix to form dough.
- Let rise.
- Divide and shape dough.
- Mark with X and let rise a second time.
- Brush with egg wash then bake.
After cooling, cut off the top and hollow the center for your soup.
★ Tips & FAQs ★
Yes. Bake the bread bowls up to a day in advance. Store them in an airtight bag once cooled. Before serving, warm them in the oven at 350°F for about 5–7 minutes to refresh the crust.
Bread bowls hold up best with thick, creamy soups. You can also lightly brush the inside with olive oil or melted butter after hollowing it out, then bake for 5 minutes to create a moisture barrier.
Yes, bread is freezer friendly! Let the bread bowls cool completely, then wrap them tightly and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature and reheat in the oven to bring back the crusty texture.
This recipe makes 6 medium-sized round loaves. Depending on how you shape them, they turn out to be about 5–6 inches wide once baked. This gives you enough space to hold a hearty portion of soup without the bread collapsing.
Creamy and chunky soups are the best match. Try clam chowder, broccoli cheddar soup, creamy ham and potato soup, chili, or a loaded baked potato soup. Thicker soups won’t soak through as quickly as thin broths.
★ More Bread Recipes ★
Want more ideas for fall? Browse all my easy fall recipes and Pin your favorites for later!
Easy Homemade Bread Bowl
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cup warm water (100–115°F) + 6 tablespoons
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ oz instant yeast (1 packet or 2¼ teaspoons)
- 2 teaspoon salt 12g
- ¼ cup olive oil or vegetable oil
Mighty Mrs. is a #WalmartPartner.
Instructions
- Mix dry ingredients. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, salt, and yeast.
- Add wet ingredients. Pour in warm water and olive oil. Mix all ingredients until a smooth dough forms.
- Let rise. Oil a round bowl, then loosely cover the bowl with greased plastic wrap (to prevent sticking to dough or a damp cloth. Let dough rise in a warm place until it doubles in size, about 1–1½ hours.
- Shape dough. Gently punch down dough to degas it, then divide into 6 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a round shape and place on a lined baking sheet.
- Second rise. Make a small "X" on top of each dough ball with a serrated knife. Cover dough balls loosely with greased plastic wrap or foil and let them rise in a warm spot until they become puffy (about 30–45 minutes).
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Brush with egg. Whisk 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of water together. Brush the dough balls with egg wash.
- Bake for 25–30 minutes, until the bread bowls are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.
- Cool and hollow. Let cool for 15-20 minutes, then cut the tops with a serrated knife and scoop out the insides to create edible bowls. Fill with your soup of choice.
Notes
- Adjust dough, as needed: If the dough is too sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time. If it's too dry, add 1 teaspoon of water at a time.
- I let my dough rise in the microwave but any warm spot will do.
- Rise time will vary depending on warmth of the area. The ideal room temperature for rising is between 75 - 80°F.
Barbara Alfeo says
I absolutely love your recipe! I am writing vegetarian recipe round ups on my blog in 2018 (to encourage people to try meatless monday- everyone has to start somewhere) and would love to feature you. You can check out my blog (for beginner environmentalists) at sunshineguerrilla.com. Is it alright if I share this link to your recipe?
Angela G. says
Hi, Barbara! Thanks for the kind words. I'd be happy for you to share the link! Keep up the good work with your blog!