Potato Bread made with mashed potatoes, butter, milk, flour, eggs, and yeast. Potato Bread recipe is a family favorite that’s easy to make & has a fantastic homestyle flavor!
This homemade potato bread is a delicious bread recipe that’s a tad unique! The soft and moist texture of this potato bread and the incredible flavors are simply amazing. Try it and you’ll be hooked!
Mashed Potato Bread Recipe
I love that this recipe calls for mashed potatoes! You can use instant potatoes, freshly made mashed potatoes or even leftover mashed potatoes. If you’re using homemade, be sure to add salt, pepper and butter (and even sour cream!) Prepare the potatoes just how you like them to use in this recipe.
What is Potato Bread?
Potato bread is homemade bread made with mashed potatoes! I like to use leftover potatoes, but you can make them fresh or use instant.
What makes potato bread different?
The added mashed potatoes gives potato bread a soft & chewy texture and great flavor. It tastes a lot like regular bread, but with an added element that you can’t quite put your finger on, but you love it!
Which Bread Pan Should I use?
I bake a lot of bread and the pans I prefer are either ceramic, glass or cast iron. These pans will bake bread more evenly and release the bread more easily after baking. I don’t like using dark or nonstick pans because the bread cooks unevenly. It darkens on the outside before the bread is cooked on the inside, so the coloring is uneven. Read more about which bread pan is the best here!
Avoid Sunken Potato Bread
The easiest and best way to avoid sunken bread is to use a cooking thermometer to check the inside of the loaf. Fully cooked bread will register 200°F on a thermometer. My all-time favorite thermometer is the Thermapen. It’s super fast and incredibly durable. Another great cooking thermometer is the ThermoPop which is a more basic version that works just as well!
Potato Bread Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Mashed potatoes: You can use instant potatoes, freshly made mashed potatoes or even leftover mashed potatoes. If you’re using homemade, be sure to add salt, pepper and butter (and even sour cream!) Prepare the potatoes just how you like them to use in this recipe.
- Large eggs
- Butter: I use salted butter and it’s best to soften it slightly. I put the entire cube of butter -still wrapped- in the microwave on the lowest defrost setting for 20 seconds and it’s perfect.
- Salt and sugar: don’t adjust the amount of salt, but know that you CAN adjust the amount of sugar!
- Warm milk: you can use regular cow’s milk or almond milk. I find I can’t bake with soy milk, just FYI!
- Active dry yeast: you can also use rapid yeast; I’m a big fan of using what you have on hand
- Bread flour: you can also use all purpose flour, but I love the texture of homemade bread with bread flour
How to Make Potato Bread
Here’s how to make homemade potato bread:
Mix the Dough
In a medium sized bowl (or a stand mixer bowl), mix the mashed potatoes, eggs, salt, and butter.
In a separate bowl, combine the warmed milk and 2 TBSP of the sugar. Stir it together until the sugar is dissolved. Add in the yeast and let it sit to proof until the mixture begins to bubble up.
Add in the potato mixture to your proofed yeast.
Using the dough hook on your mixer, add in the remaining sugar, as well as the flour in 1 cup at a time, allowing the flour to be incorporated before adding more. You may need up to another 1/4 cup of flour if it’s really humid.
Knead the dough for 3 minutes.
If the dough is still really sticking to the bottom, then add a tablespoon more flour. If it’s sticking a little bit, that’s fine, no need to add more flour. (Slightly sticky dough often yields soft & tender bread!)
Continue to let the machine knead the dough for about 5 more minutes; The dough should knead for about 8 to 10 minutes total.
Dump out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Round the dough with your hands and place it into a lightly greased mixing bowl. Turn the dough over so the side with grease on it now faces up. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let it rise in the warm oven until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. If the weather or house are warm you can let your bread rise on a counter. If not, set your oven to 170 degrees F and move an oven rack to the center position. Keep the oven on for 1-2 minutes, then TURN IT OFF! Then rise your bread in the oven.
Remove the dough from the oven and punch it down to make it deflate. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface that’s large enough to roll it out.
Roll the dough into a long rectangle. It should be about as wide as the loaf pan you plan to bake it in. Carefully roll the dough from short end to short end, and pinch and fold the ends underneath along the seam. Place the dough, seam side down, in a lightly greased bread/loaf pan.
Place loaf into the warm oven to rise again for 45 minutes to 1 hour. You’re ready to bake it when the dough has risen about 1 inch above the top rim of the pan.
When the dough has risen up sufficiently, turn the oven on to 375 degrees. Bake the loaves on the middle rack for 25 to 35 minutes, or until internal temp reaches 190 degrees and crust is a deep golden brown. Remove it and let it cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer it to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Brush the tops with butter.
Slice the bread and serve, or wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then tin foil to store in the freezer.
Mashed Potato Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed potatoes
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup salted butter softened
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup milk warm, heated to 110 degrees
- 1 TBSP active dry yeast
- 3 1/2 cups bread flour
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl or a stand mixer, mix the mashed potatoes, eggs, salt and butter.
- In a separate bowl, combine the warm milk and 2 TBSP of the sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add in the yeast and let it sit, to proof until the mixture begins to bubble up.
- Using the dough hook on your mixer, add in the remaining sugar, as well as the flour in 1 cup at a time, allowing the flour to be incorporated before adding more. If you live in a relatively humid area, you might need an additional 1/4 cup of flour. Knead for 3 minutes. If the dough is still really sticking to the bottom, then add a tablespoon more flour. If it’s sticking a little bit, that’s fine, no need to add more flour. (Slightly sticky dough often yields soft & tender bread!)
- Continue to let the machine kneed the dough for about 5 more minutes; The dough should knead for about 8 to 10 minutes total.
- Transfer the dough ball onto a lightly floured surface. Round the dough with your hands and place it in a lightly greased mixing bowl. Turn the dough over so the side with grease on it now faces up. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and let it rise in the warm oven until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. (See notes about rising dough in the oven!)
- Punch the dough down to deflate. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface large enough to roll it out. Roll the dough balls into a long rectangle. It should be about as wide as the loaf pan you plan to bake it in. Carefully roll the dough from short end to short end, and pinch and fold the ends underneath along the seam. Place the dough, seam side down, in lightly greased bread/loaf pan.
- Let dough rise again for 45 minutes to 1 hour. You're ready to bake it when the dough has risen about 1 inch above the rim.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the loaf on the middle rack for 25 to 35 minutes, or until internal temp reaches 200 degrees F and crust is a deep golden brown. Remove and let cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Brush with butter.
- Slice and serve, or wrap tightly with plastic wrap and then tin foil to store in the freezer.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Can Potato Bread Be Frozen?
Yes! Potato bread does great when frozen. Let your bread cool completely and then wrap well in plastic wrap and transfer to an airtight container or gallon sized Ziploc bag. This will help to keep it fresh and safe from freezer burn for up to 3 months.
How Long Does Potato Bread Last?
When kept in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature, you can expect your loaf of potato bread to last up to a week, or more.
Potato Bread Recipe FAQ
Yes, potato bread makes incredibly delicious french toast! The natural sweetness of the bread just makes it taste so much better than regular french toast. It’s also a great way to use up leftover or stale potato bread!
This soft and buttery potato bread recipe does have gluten in it. The bread flour contains gluten, which helps the overall textures of the bread to turn out lighter and fluffier as a bread loaf should be.
We need both flour and mashed potatoes for this potato bread recipe, so it’s not a good idea to substitute one for the other.
Yes, potato bread often contains both butter and milk since it uses mashed potatoes.
Potato bread is a type of white bread that’s made with the addition of mashed potatoes. It has a great chewy texture and buttery flavor.
I use regular all purpose or bread flour to make potato bread with.
The added mashed potatoes gives potato bread a more yellow color after it’s baked. If you use Yukon gold mashed potatoes, the yellow color will be even more pronounced!
Enjoy this bread recipe? Here are even more recipes for homemade bread to try:
- Homemade White Bread recipe
- Homemade Hawaiian Bread
- Honey Oat Bread recipe
- Cinnamon Raisin Bread
- Parmesan Garlic Dinner Rolls
- Fabulous French Bread
- Sweet Orange Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Hawaiian Bread
- Easy Homemade Cheesy Breadsticks
- Tomato Parmesan Flatbread
- Soft Cornmeal Dinner Rolls
- Honey Wheat Bread
- White Bread Recipe
Potato Bread made with mashed potatoes, butter, milk, flour, eggs, and yeast. Potato Bread recipe is a family favorite that’s easy to make & has a fantastic homestyle flavor!
Jett Whitfield says
Thank you for making it look so delicious & easy! I have never made home-made bread. I might try this soon!
Chelsea says
When do you add the Yeast mixture?
STEPHANIE RANGALLA says
WOW was really skeptical at first but i followed all the instructions and i am proud to say it came out almost like the picture( my crust burnt a little ) but it tastes so good. Thanks l
Jessica says
😉 Glad to hear your bread turned out great! Potato bread has great flavor!
Else van Wyk says
Can this bread be made gluten free?
Connie says
Has anyone tried this recipe in a bread machine? Sounds delicious, sure want to give it a try.
Kim says
I have, and often… I had a Hemorrhagic Stroke a few years ago, so am sometimes not coordinated enough to knead like I used to, and the machine works nicely in exchange. From the first time making it, I generally left the recipe as it was, and made a loaf. Recently, I have put it on dough only and when done, made cloverleaf rolls out of it. 🙂 Go for it!
malou says
good for bread machine
smita says
I would like to make this bread…it looks like you make your mashed potato from instant mashed potatoes. Can you give me an idea of how much flakes and milk/water you use to make the one cup of mashed potatoes? The way the the mashed potatoes are prepared would make such a big difference to the final bread! Would really appreciate the help! Thanks.
Jessica says
I’ve used a variety of instant mashed potatoes over the years as well as homemade mashed potatoes… the bread is very forgiving apparently because they’ve all tasted delicious! Just add the cup of whatever mashed potatoes you want to use, then as you go through the recipe, when you’re beginning to knead, follow the directions I’ve given in regards to sticky dough. The amount of flour you ultimately add will reduce/ increase the moisture of the bread and help to even out the wetness of your mashed potatoes. Does that make sense? Try it and you’ll see what I mean!
Kim says
Hi Connie! I am in the process of using a bread machine for this recipe, right this second… Going well thus far. 🙂 I DID use microwave baked potatoes, then peeled while warm and somewhat mashed to make my measure. I also used half and half rather than milk as that’s what was on hand. It formed nicely, and is rising as it should be. Will let you all know! 🙂
Jessica says
Thanks Kim!
Kim says
Made two different loaves all said, and the ONLY caution I can offer is that while the machine bakes as it should, it left BOTH ended up slightly undone on the middle/bottom, Next batch I make will likely be mixed and raised in the bread machine, then removed and taken out for baking in a loaf pan in the oven. We’ll see how it goes. The bread it self though? VERY good! (for those curious, I had a Hemorrhagic Stroke in 2011, and my hands are not as strong nor coordinated as they were, so the bread machine works well for me)
Cathy Lemen says
I first ate homemade potato bread at the age of 20 at a German restaurant. I then spent YEARS trying to find bread like that again. Well, today, 31 years later, I have found the potato bread recipe I had given up on ever finding. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Jessica says
You’re welcome Cathy! I’m so glad you liked it!
Else van Wyk says
Can you use gluten free flours for this recipe?
Nellie says
I’ve never tried gluten-free flours in this recipe, but let us know how it turns out if you experiment!
Claudia Mortensen says
Can you tell me how much dough you put into a bread pan that big? I have one like it but I have never used it yet. Do you cook it longer since it is so big? Thank you for your answers. It looks like a great recipe.
Jessica says
I don’t put more dough into this pan, rather I use the same recipes and they yield a load that’s perfect size for a toaster or a sandwich baggie. 😉 Same cooking time! You just have a longer loaf instead of a taller loaf.
Connie foltz says
Bake until bread is 195-205 degrees.
Debbie says
I made it and turned it into cinnamon rolls, this is easy recipe to follow, will be my new go to recipe for special occasions. The very best cinnamon rolls… so delish! Just do it!
Alison says
Debbie that is such a great idea! I am so glad it turned out so well and that you enjoyed it!
Anni says
When do you add the yeast mixture. It doesn’t say and the question was never answered above
Jessica says
See STEP 3: In a separate bowl, combine the warm milk and 2 TBSP of the sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add in the yeast and let it sit, to proof until the mixture begins to bubble up. 🙂 I hope you enjoy it!
Adzekai says
Hi
Step 3 says to add the yeast into sugar and milk mixture. When is that mixture added to the potato mixture after the yeast mixture has proofed, please?
Jessica says
Yes, you add it after the yeast has proofed.
Erma Bonilka says
On the second rise, do you leave the bread in the oven when you turn to 375 degrees?
Jessica says
You can Erma, but just make sure you rise for 20 minutes or so (during the 2nd rise) then preheat the oven.
Manna says
Did you spary the disposable foil pan?
Jessica says
I would most definetly spray a disposable pan.
Mike Senior says
Made this recipe using two 9×5 loaf pans. Easy to make and it came out exactly as you described. Light, fluffy, moist and buttery. Sliced one loaf to devour now and froze the other. This bread has to make a killer french toast. Great recipe, thanks for pinning it for everyone to enjoy.
Stacey says
I have never made bread of any kind (except Pioneer biscuits, but I don’t count that). This recipe was so easy and tasted amazing. My grandsons loved it! I will be making homemade potato bread from now on.
Linda Weiser says
I’m looking for a recipe for home made bread using potato flour. If I use your recipe for potato bread do I leave out the mashed potatoes ?
Thank you
Jessica says
I’ve never baked with potato flour before! If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Melanie says
Do I have to use bread flour or can I use regular bleached white flour? Since bread flour is finer then regular will it mess up if I do the substitution?
Letty says
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I just made this bread this morning, followed thoroughly the instructions and turned out almost exactly like the picture you posted and it’s very tasty! My family loves it!! BTW, I used fresh home made mashed potato.
Alison says
This is great Letty! I’m so glad it turned out so good for you!
Peg Lamping says
I made this recipe today and it is fantastic! My mother used to make all our bread, we never had store bought bread and this recipe has the same wonderful flavor my mom’s bread had. Thank you so much. It is soft and fluffy and delicious.
Nellie says
Homemade bread is the best, isn’t it?!
Claudia Mortensen says
I have one of those long 12 inch loaf pans, but do I cook the bread longer when using that pan? If so, how long do you cook it?
Thank you!
Jason says
I used 2 8.5×4.5 pans. The recipe does not seem to have enough dough for splitting into 2 pans like this. I ended up with 2 “half heigt” loaves, even after waiting for a rise above the rim (took an extra 1.5 hours in an 85 degree proofing chamber) and making sure to temp the loaf and pulling as soon as possible after reaching 200 degrees interior.
Was there some other secret here?
Jessica says
I apologize Jason! This recipe does just yield 1 loaf of bread. I updated the text to reflect that.
Eldon says
Has anyone baked this using applesauce as an egg substitute. I have just learned of some allergies including eggs nuts wheat dairy and much more, so I am at the age of 52 learning how to change my eating and cooking fairly quickly and don’t like it