L'shana tova! Today I'm sharing a round challah recipe to help you celebrate the new year. It has step by step photo instructions for how to braid it and has a glaze sure to get you a golden brown that is nothing short of perfection. I'm not one to make challah every Friday night, but Rosh Hashanah calls for this special treat.
You can use this recipe for any braided challah.
How do you know if yeast is activated?
Dissolve the yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar in ⅓ cup of lukewarm water (photos 1 & 2). Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside. Once you finish the next step of the recipe directions, check to make sure the yeast has bubbled. If not, the yeast is likely dead and you need to repeat the process with new yeast. If it has bubbled, it will look like photo 3.
Step by step challah dough with photos
In a large bowl add the salt, flour, sugar, and 1 egg yolk (photo 1). Add the activated yeast mixture to the large bowl with the flour mixture. Mix well. Add the rest of the lukewarm water (photo 2). Mix together and then add half the canola oil (photo 3).
Knead for ~10 minutes, adding the other half of the oil as you need it to make a workable dough (photo 1 below). It should eventually become one mass. Loosely cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let rest in the sun for 15 minutes (photo 2 below).
Lightly oil your hand and knead for 5 more minutes adding oil to the dough if necessary. The dough will become smooth and form a strong ball (photo 1 below). Rub a little oil over the top and around the dough. This time, you will seal the bowl. If your bowl has a lid, you can seal it (photo 2 below). If not, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel, and seal the bowl (and kitchen towel) in a garbage bag to trap in the air.
Place in the sun until doubled in size (~1 hour, photo 3).
Lightly oil your hand. Punch dough down and knead making sure to release any air bubbles (photo 4 below). Cover again, with the lid or towel and bag. Let rise for 1 more hour.
2nd round (photo 1 below): Lightly oil your hand. Punch dough down (photo 2 below) and knead making sure to release any air bubbles (photo 3 below). Then, divide the dough into 4 equal parts (photo 4 below).
Heat oven to 375F and lightly oil a baking sheet or 9-inch round springform pan.
How to braid round challah
Roll each quarter of the dough into 2-foot ropes. Cross the two pairs of parallel ropes (photo 1 below). Then, cross every other rope (out of the 8 ropes) over the rope next to it (photo 2). Next, repeat with the opposite ropes in the opposite direction (photo 3). Repeat until the ropes aren't long enough to continue, and tuck the ends underneath the challah (photo 4).
Mix the remaining egg yolk with the (optional) honey in a bowl (photo 1). Brush over the challah. Sprinkle with the sesame/poppy seeds. I used white sesame seeds (photo 2) and then black sesame seeds (photo 3).
Bake 10 minutes. Lower heat to 350F. Then, bake 20 more minutes and check the internal temperature. Keep baking until internal temperature reads 190F.
Challah FAQ & Tips
- LET IT REST after baking! 30 minutes minimum. This is the hardest part but it is well worth it.
- If you happen to have leftovers...make some French toast!
- Bake until internal temperature reads 190F. This is a better indicator of the bread being done than time. Click here to shop my favorite thermometer!
- Cook the challah in a springform pan if you're planning on making french toast the next day... it yields a better shape for slicing!
Rosh Hashanah Main Dishes
- Red Wine & Honey Braised Brisket
- Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Lamb
- Simple Slow Cooker Brisket
- Sumac Roasted Lamb
Why round challah?
I was taught that challah is round on Rosh Hashanah to symbolize the year going round. For the new year, we eat challah with honey instead of salt to bring in a sweet, new year.
Looking for more of my favorite bread?
Check out other bread recipes here!
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Challah
Ingredients
- 14 g active dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 ½ cups water warm
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 680 g all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar less 1 tbsp
- 2 egg yolks
- ⅓ cup canola oil
- 1 teaspoon honey optional
- 2 tablespoon sesame seeds / poppy seeds
Instructions
- Dissolve the yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar in ⅓ cup of lukewarm water. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside.
- In a large bowl add 680 g flour, ½ cup less 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 egg yolk, and 1 tablespoon of salt.
- Check to make sure the yeast has bubbled. If not, the yeast is likely dead and you need to repeat the process with new yeast. If it has bubbled, add it to the large bowl with the flour mixture. Mix well. Add the rest of the lukewarm water (~¾+ cup).
- Mix together and then add a ⅙ cup of the canola oil.
- Knead for ~10 minutes, adding up to ⅙ cup of the oil as you need it to make a workable dough. It should eventually become one mass.
- Loosely cover dough with the kitchen towel and let rest in the sun for 15 minutes.
- Lightly oil your hand and knead for 5 more minutes adding oil to the dough if necessary. The dough will become smooth and form a strong ball.
- Rub a little oil over the top and around the dough. This time, you will seal the bowl. If your bowl has a lid, you can seal it. If not, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel, and seal the bowl (and kitchen towel) in a garbage bag to trap in the air.
- Place in the sun until doubled in size (~1 hour).
- Lightly oil your hand. Punch dough down and knead making sure to release any air bubbles. Cover again, with the towel and bag. Let rise 1 more hour.
- 2nd round: Lightly oil your hand. Punch dough down and knead making sure to release any air bubbles.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal parts.
- Heat oven to 375F.
- Lightly oil a baking sheet or 9-inch round springform pan.
- Braid the dough. (See photos below.)
- Transfer dough to sheet or springform pan.
- Mix the remaining egg yolk with the (optional) honey* in a bowl. Brush over the challah. Sprinkle with the sesame/poppy seeds.
- Bake 10 minutes. Lower heat to 350F.
- Bake ~20 more minutes and check the internal temperature. You want to keep baking until internal temperature reads 190F.
- LET IT REST! 30 minutes minimum. This is the hardest part but it is well worth it.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published in September of 2017, but was republished with new photos, step by step instructions, and tips September of 2019.
This turned out amazing! I had not made challah bread before and the steps were easy to follow, until it came to the braiding. My own mind got confused with this but your pictures really helped! I had to undo the attempted braid twice before I got it but got there in the end. The end result is a lovely deep golden challah that tastes great! This makes me want to try more breads that incorporate twists and turns!
I'm so glad to hear you liked it and the pictures helped, Debbie! And I'm glad it's encouraging you to try new breads with twists and turns. Enjoy!
I was a first time challah baker from scratch when I attempted this recipe, had also never made any kind of bread with dry active yeast before. It was easy to follow along and my challah came out perfectly! The crust and texture are amazing. 10/10 will make again
I'm so glad to hear it, Emma! We just made one for Rosh Hashanah and the two of us ate the whole thing on day 1... looking forward to making it again this week... Enjoy!
Hi. The recipe states a prep of 45, a cook time of 30 and a rest time of 60. But it calls for 2-60 min rises. So the summary is inaccurate.
Thanks for catching that, Larry! I'll update it now.