Bread Machine Bread Bowls

These homemade bread bowls are great to enjoy with your favorite soup. It makes the meal more filling and satiating.

It is easy to make these bread machine bread bowls at home. They turn out hard and crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. The inside can be scooped easily to serve hot soup.

Ingredients

These homemade bread bowls are made with only four basic pantry ingredients, bread flour, salt, water, and yeast. Bread flour has more protein compared to all-purpose flour. However, you can substitute it to make this recipe.

The water must be lukewarm. You can use the microwave to warm the water for about 20-30 seconds. Instant yeast or bread machine yeast can be used for the dough to rise.

Instructions

The process to make crusty and chewy bread bowls at home may seem daunting. But don't worry! It is easy, and you will only need just a few minutes of your time. All the jobs of mixing, kneading, and getting the dough through its first rise will be done by the bread machine.

Depending on the bread machine, you may have to add the wet ingredients first, followed by the dry ones, or vice versa. Select the dough cycle and allow the bread machine to do all the work. Once the cycle is complete, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface.

Divide the dough into 6 equal parts (about 115 grams each) and make smooth round balls. To make a smooth ball, pull and tuck all the edges of the dough ball to one side. Place the dough ball on the baking sheet with the smooth side facing up and spacing them about 4 inches apart.

Cover the dough balls with a food wrap and allow them to rise for about 60-90 minutes in a warm place. Preheat the oven to 425°F with the baking rack on the middle level.

Remove the food wrap and score the top of the bread bowls with a scoring tool or a sharp knife. This will allow it to bake and rise evenly and not break from the sides. Bake the bread bowls in the oven at 425°F for 25 minutes or until they are golden brown.

You can place a baking tray filled with water below the rack or put some ice cubes after placing the baking tray in the oven. This will give a nice shiny texture to the bread bowls.

Once the bread bowls are baked, apply some butter for a nice glaze, but this is optional. Allow them to cool down on a cooling rack.

To serve soup in the bread bowl, slice the bread bowl from the top and then scoop the inside with the help of a fork or a spoon.

Substitutions

The best thing about this bread bowl recipe is that it is made with only 4 ingredients. But you can still substitute a few ingredients based on what is available.

• All-purpose flour - instead of bread flour, you can use all-purpose flour and the bowls will turn out crusty from the top and soft inside.
• Yeast - you can use bread machine yeast or instant yeast.
• Vegan butter - you can apply vegan butter once the bowls are done baking.

Variations

These homemade bread bowls are vegan. They are perfect for serving soups in cold weather and make a satisfying meal. There are a few variations that can be done to the recipe.

• Size - This recipe makes 6 bread bowls of about four inches in diameter. If you want, you can make fewer bowls of a bigger size.
• Sourdough - These are french bread bowls but you can easily make them using the sourdough starter. Check out the recipe to make sourdough bread. You can adapt it to make bread bowls.

Equipment

To make these crusty bread bowls at home, I have used the Hamilton Beach 2 lb. bread machine. Any other bread machine will work well as all of them have the dough cycle.

If you do not have a bread machine, you can also make the dough in the stand mixer and allow it to rise in the instant pot, oven, or at room temperature. Check out this post on how to make bread dough in a stand mixer and proof it in the instant pot.

Once the dough is made, it is rolled into balls and allowed to rise for the final time before baking it in the convection oven on a baking sheet. After baking, you will need a sharp serrated knife to slice the top and then scoop out the bread with the help of a spoon or fork.

Storage

Bread bowls are best served fresh on the day they are baked after cooling down. They can be stored at room temperature in an air-tight container or a bread box for 2-3 days. Just reheat them in the oven for about 3-4 minutes to make them crusty again from the outside.

They can also be frozen for about a month in the freezer. When you are ready to eat, defrost them and reheat them in the oven at 350°F for 5-7 minutes before serving.

If you want to plan ahead, you can make the dough in advance and make the dough balls. Cover them and store them in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. When you are ready to bake, take them out of the fridge and allow them to go through the final rise before baking.

FAQ

Don't forget to rate the recipe by clicking the stars. Also, pin the recipe by clicking the "Pin" button, for your future reference.

📖 Recipe