Whole wheat bread is a healthy alternative to the basic white bread and it has a lot more fiber and protein as the whole wheat flour contains the bran and the germ.
It is very easy to make 100% whole grain whole wheat bread in the bread machine with only six ingredients. You will enjoy this recipe as it is vegan and also does not use vital wheat gluten. It has a delicious taste and is soft in texture.
It is a perfect sandwich bread and can be eaten for morning toast or with soups for a wholesome and satisfying meal. This is an easy bread machine whole wheat bread recipe which takes only few minutes of your time while the bread machine does all the task of mixing, kneading, and baking the bread.
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Ingredients
This whole wheat bread machine is made with whole grain wheat flour. I have used the King Arthur whole grain whole wheat flour. Other ingredients are lukewarm water, salt, instant yeast, oil, and a sweetener like agave nectar.
Instead of instant yeast, you can use an equal amount of bread machine yeast and it will work fine.
A sweetener like maple syrup or honey can be used instead of agave nectar.
There is no need to use vital wheat gluten and you will still have a delicious and soft bread made with 100% whole wheat flour.
Instructions
It is very easy to make whole wheat bread in the bread machine. All you need to do is place the wet and dry ingredients in the bread machine pan as recommended by the manufacturer's instructions.
For consistent results, it is best to weigh the flour using a digital food scale. Measuring flour with cups can add more flour than needed in the recipe.
Select the "whole wheat bread" setting, 1.5 lb size, and medium crust. You can choose the crust as per your preference. Start the cycle. Depending on your bread machine, the bread machine may just rest for some time and then start mixing all the ingredients.
Step 1: Put all the ingredients for whole wheat bread in the bread machine pan.
Step 2: Watch for 5-10 minutes while the bread machine is mixing all the ingredients and add water or flour if needed.
The bread machine will do all the mixing, kneading, rising, and finally baking the bread. This will take anywhere from 4-4.5 hours depending on your machine.
If you prefer baking the bread in the oven then you can either knead the dough using the dough cycle and then shape it into a log of 8 inches in size. Place it in the 9-inch by 5-inch baking pan and cover it with a cling wrap or kitchen towel and let it rise for 45 minutes to an hour. Bake it in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 20 minutes.
Once the bread is baked, invert the pan and place it on a cooling wire rack. You can slice it with a bread knife or an electric knife. The bread is soft in texture. The bread turns out light and soft in texture.
Step 3: Dough rising in the bread machine.
Step 4: Bread is ready and let it cool down on a cooling rack before slicing it.
Substitutions
- Yeast - instant yeast or bread machine yeast can be used to make whole wheat bread in the bread maker.
- Sweetener - instead of agave nectar, maple syrup or honey can be used.
Variations
- Bread flour - you can also make basic white bread using bread flour or all-purpose flour.
- Multigrain bread - check out this multigrain bread recipe using whole wheat flour and bread flour.
- Dinner rolls - you can make dough and shape them into small balls and make dinner rolls.
- Herb bread - add a teaspoon of Italian seasoning to make herb bread.
- Seed bread - add your favorite seeds like pumpkin, chia, sesame, flax to make seed bread.
Serving suggestions
Whole wheat bread can be enjoyed as a morning toast with butter, jam, or apple butter. You can make a grilled cheese sandwich, Mumbai style vegetable sandwich, or serve with soups.
Equipment
I have made this 100% whole wheat bread in the 2 lb. Hamilton Beach artisan bread machine using the whole grain cycle. You can make it in any bread machine which has a whole wheat setting.
To slice the bread, a serrated bread knife or an electric knife works perfectly fine.
Storage
Whole wheat bread can be stored at room temperature for 3-4 days. You can also freeze it after slicing the bread with an electric knife or a serrated bread knife. Place parchment paper between the slices so that it is easier to take as many slices as you need.
When you plan to eat, take as many slices and toast the bread slices in the air fryer or a toaster.
Top tip
It is best to weigh the flour for consistent results. Scooping flour from the bag into a measuring cup can add too much flour than is needed by the recipe.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with whole-wheat bread:
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
Whole Wheat Bread Machine Recipe
Equipment
- Loaf pan (9 inch by 5 inch, if baking in oven)
Ingredients
Wet ingredients
- 1 cup + 1 tbsp Water (microwave 30 seconds)
- 4 tablespoon Oil
Dry ingredients
- 3 ½ cups Whole wheat flour (396 grams)
- 2 tablespoon Agave nectar (or maple syrup)
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt
- 2 ¼ teaspoon Instant Yeast or Bread Machine yeast (7 gram)
Instructions
Bake in bread machine
- Place the wet and dry ingredients (water, oil, agave nectar, salt, whole wheat flour, yeast) in the order as required by your bread machine.1 cup + 1 tbsp Water, 4 tablespoon Oil, 3 ½ cups Whole wheat flour , 2 tablespoon Agave nectar, 1 ½ teaspoon Salt, 2 ¼ teaspoon Instant Yeast or Bread Machine yeast
- Close the lid and select the "Whole wheat" cycle, 1.5 lb size, and the crust setting, preferably to medium.
- The bread will be ready once the cycle completes.
- Remove the loaf by inverting the pan and shaking it.
- Place the bread on a cooling rack and allow it to cool down.
- Once the bread is cooled down completely, slice it with a serrated bread knife or an electric knife.
Bake in the oven
- Place the wet and dry ingredients (water, oil, sugar, salt, flour, yeast) in the order as required by your bread machine.1 cup + 1 tbsp Water, 4 tablespoon Oil, 3 ½ cups Whole wheat flour , 2 tablespoon Agave nectar, 1 ½ teaspoon Salt, 2 ¼ teaspoon Instant Yeast or Bread Machine yeast
- Close the lid and select the "Dough" cycle.
- Once the cycle completes, remove the dough from the pan and shape it into a log of 8 inches in length.
- Place it in the bread baking pan (9 by 5 inches) and allow it to rise for about 45-50 minutes until it doubles in volume.
- Cover with a food wrap or a kitchen towel so that it does not dry up.
- Once it has doubled in volume, preheat the oven to 350 °F.
- Remove the food wrap gently and then place the pan in the oven.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until the crust is golden brown in color.
- Transfer it to a cooling rack and allow it to cool down completely before slicing.
Notes
- Sifting and weighing the flour helps make the bread soft. Sifting is optional, however, weighing the flour gives consistent results.
- Once the bread is baked, remove it from the container and place it on a rack to cool down. Leaving the bread in the container to cool down can make it moist.
- Recipe makes 1.5 lb. bread. To make 1 lb. bread change servings to 8 and for 2 lb. bread, change servings to 16.
PCarter says
nice recipe
Alpa Jain says
Thankyou PCarter!
Lee Newsum says
Hi, Clicking the Print button just takes me to your homepage.
Alpa Jain says
Hi Lee,
I think there was some glitch. Please try now. It is working fine.
Thanks,
Alpa
Teresa says
I just bought a bread machine and am not having luck yet with sourdough rising. so I decided to try a whole wheat recipe with yeast and came across this. if I follow this recipe do I need to use the kneading function first or just hit whole wheat?
Sam Ku says
Hello Teresa,
Congrats on your new bread machine. You will love it.
Just use the 'Whole wheat' option. The cycle will take care of kneading, rising and baking.
Cheers,
Alpa