There are several methods and ingredients that can be used for making bread softer and lighter. Eggs, fats, dairy products, the scalding method, different flours, etc. Each can be used on their own but a combination of two or more can make bread even softer.
Potato is another great and surprising ingredient that can be added to bread dough to make it extra fluffy and to make it stay softer for longer. I have made a whole video on this topic which you can find in the Principles of Baking playlist.
It is not the first time I’m making this type of potato bread on the channel. Way back in the day when we still used to manually knead our dough and even before I made the potato principles video, there was a potato bread recipe which was relatively popular. Someone recently left a comment under it, and I thought it may be a good idea to remake it and update it.
This version is far easier to make, and the result is as soft as ever. The bread slices beautifully and has a nice crispy crust. One of the ultimate types of white sandwich breads in my book.
Once again, my USA Pan Pullman tin came in handy for creating a perfectly square loaf. You can use a regular 2lb (900g) tin, but I would suggest decreasing the amounts of all the ingredients by 20% or else the dough may climb out of the tin.
Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.
Ingredients
For the dough –
500g (1.1lb) white bread flour
130g (4.6oz) boiled mashed potato
50g (1.75oz) butter
25g (0.9oz) sugar
10g (0.35oz) salt
1 egg (50g; 1.75oz)
5g (0.17oz) instant dry yeast or 6g (0.21oz) active dry yeast or 15g (0.53oz) fresh yeast
180g (6.35oz) potato water
To learn more about no-knead bread dough temperature control click here.
The flour I use has a protein content of 13%. If your flour is weaker, then you may need to lower the hydration.
If you are using active dry yeast, then you may need to let it sit in the water for 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients or else it could take a lot longer to raise the dough.
If you are curious about why the dough contains butter, egg, and sugar, click the links to learn more about the effects those ingredients have on bread dough.
Method
- Cook the potatoes. Peel and cut the potatoes in large chunks. Boil for around 25 minutes or until completely soft. Drain and mash the potato and leave to cool down. Reserve the cooking water and leave it to cool down too.
- Make the final dough once the water and potatoes have cooled down. In a large bowl combine the potato water, yeast, salt, sugar, egg, butter, and mashed potato. Mix well to dissolve the salt and yeast.
- Add the flour and mix to a dough. *Desired dough temperature 25C (77F).
- Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
- Fold.
- Cold ferment for 18 – 24 hours.
- Shape and place in a greased bread tin. Cover and final proof for 3 hours.
- Bake at 170C (340F) fan on for 40 minutes with the lid on.
- Remove the loaf from the tin and place it back into the oven for 10 more minutes of baking.
Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.
Your oven may be different too, so your baking time may vary.
