Easy Potato Bread

By Elizabeth Yetter

Updated 10/08/18

Potato breads and raw ingredients
Allan Rosenberg/Cole Group/Photodisc/Getty Images
Ratings (54)
  • Total: 3 hrs 25 mins
  • Prep: 2 hrs 45 mins
  • Cook: 40 mins
  • Yield: 2 loaves (24 servings)
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
79 Calories
5g Fat
8g Carbs
1g Protein
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Thick and moist, freshly baked potato bread tastes nothing like the grocery store potato rolls. Fortunately, potato bread is easy to make. For this recipe, you can use leftover mashed potatoes or mix up a cup’s worth of instant mashed potatoes. This easy potato bread recipe makes two loaves so you have one to eat now and one to freeze for later (if it lasts). You can also use this recipe to make a braided bread dough.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup mashed potatoes
  • 2 eggs (beaten)
  • 1/2 cup butter (softened)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast (or 2 1/4 teaspoons)
  • 1/2 cup water (warm)
  • 5 cups bread flour (divided)

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. In a large bowl, mix together the mashed potatoes, eggs, and butter.

  3. Stir in the sugar, salt, yeast, and warm water.

  4. Mix in enough flour to make a dough that can be kneaded by hand.

  5. Turn the dough out onto a floured board or surface and knead it until it is smooth and elastic.

  6. Put dough in a greased bowl. Flip dough over inside the bowl so that the dough top is also lightly greased. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 to 2 hours, until double in bulk.

  7. Punch down the dough by making a fist and pressing firmly in the center of the dough.

  8. Fold the edges of the dough into the center of the bowl to form a ball. Turn out onto a lightly-floured board and briefly knead out bubbles.

  9. Divide dough in half and shape it into 2 loaves.

  10. Place loaves in 2 greased 8 x 4 x 2-inch bread pans. Cover and let the dough rise a second time for 40 minutes or until doubled.

  11. Bake at 375 F for 40 minutes or until bread sounds hollow when the top is tapped on.

  12. Remove ​the loaves from the loaf pans and let them cool.

  13. To freeze, let loaves cool completely before bagging and freezing.

Bread Baking Tips

Bread flour has a higher amount of gluten than all-purpose flour. This means that bread made with bread flour will rise higher than bread made with all-purpose flour. You can make your own bread flour by adding 1 1/2 teaspoons of gluten to each cup of all-purpose flour you use in your bread recipe.

  • Egg substitute can be used in place of the egg.

  • Spraying loaves with water while they bake will produce a crispy crust.

  • Brush loaves with egg white before baking to produce a shiny crust.

  • Brush loaves with milk before baking to produce a dark, shiny crust.

  • Brush loaves with butter immediately after baking to produce a soft crust.

  • Use bottled water instead of tap water to make your bread. Water softeners and chlorinated public water can sometimes kill the yeast needed to make your bread dough rise.