How to Make Bread Bowls
Choose your bread recipe., Make your "starter.", Feed your starter., Make your "sponge.", Mix in a pinch of salt and just enough flour to make a sticky dough that holds together., Knead the dough for about 10 minutes by hand (or with a dough hook on...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Choose your bread recipe.
Sourdough is the classic bread type and a round loaf (called a boule) the classic shape for a bread bowl, but there are no hard-and-fast rules.
If you can make it, bake it, cut the top off, hollow it out, fill it, and eat it, it can be a bread bowl.
Bread recipes can be found easily online.
Here are few bread bowl-ready recipes for inspiration:
Italian;; Whole Wheat;Beer Pretzel.The following steps briefly describe how to make a sourdough boule.
For more detailed instructions, see How to Make Sourdough Bread. -
Step 2: Make your "starter."
Classic sourdough relies on a starter, a mix of flour and water which feeds the natural yeast needed to make the bread rise.
Mix equal parts flour and water (any amount) in a bowl, then pour the mix into a thoroughly clean class or plastic jar with a tight-fitting lid.
Seal the lid and leave in a dark place at room temperature for 24 hours. , Every day, pour out half of the mix and replace it with a new flour/water slurry.
Repeat this process until the starter has frothy bubbles on top and a distinctive sour smell.
This usually happens within a week. , Add all your starter to a mixing bowl, then add equal parts flour and water (one cup of water is usually good for one loaf) and mix.
Cover with a clean towel and let your "sponge" (the resulting mixture) "proof" (rise) for several hours, until bubbly on top.
Save a little of this sponge to become your next starter, if desired. , Cover and let rise for several hours at room temperature or in the refrigerator overnight. , Flour your hands, workspace, and dough to prevent sticking. , This isn’t essential, since bread bowls can be in any fillable shape, but the following is a good general method for creating a boule (round bread)., Use your thumbs and fingers to stretch the dough from the top of the ball downwards.
Tuck the stretched dough underneath the ball.
This process makes a taut “skin” on the top of the dough ball.
This helps it to rise while baking, so your bread will have more of a rounded dome than a flattened disc shape. , With practice, you will be able to do this quickly and efficiently, thus preventing excess gluten development (and thus tougher bread). , Pinch the excess together and give it a slight twist to hold it in place.
You can also pinch, put the dough ball on the board (topside up), and twist. , For the sourdough recipe noted here, bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes or until golden brown.
Consider spritzing your bread with a spray bottle of water several times during baking.
Keeping the top from drying out will help with rising., A trip to a bakery or bakery section of your supermarket will reveal several different types of bread loaves.
Pumpernickel and sourdough breads are often round, while Italian and French breads are usually elongated loaves.
Larger sandwich rolls can become small bread bowls, or try an unsliced loaf of regular white or wheat bread for a larger option.
Even a loaf of raisin or banana bread could work with the right filling.
Remember, bread bowls do not need to be round, just fillable.
Firmer breads are easier to slice open and empty out, however, so an extra-soft loaf of white bread may not be the ideal choice. , With a serrated knife, carefully cut the top of the bread using horizontal cutting strokes.
Leave as much of the bread loaf behind; only remove enough of the top of the bread to allow access into the loaf itself. , With your fingers, scoop and tear away chunks of bread from the interior of the loaf.
Be sure never to break through the outside crust.
The thinner the filling you intend to use, the thicker you want to leave the walls of your bread bowl. , Cut the removed bread into cubes for dipping either into the soup, chili or dips.
Serve the bread alongside the filled bowl.
You can also use this bread to make croutons or bread crumbs, or to feed the birds in your local park. , Use the removed bread top as a lid, if desired, or cut it up along with the removed inner bread. , Cream based soups (mushroom, broccoli, chicken, etc.) and chilis are classic bread bowl fillings because they soak into the bread (making a deliciously edible “bowl”) without quickly soaking through it.
You can use thinner soups like tomato or chicken noodle, but be prepared to serve and eat quickly because they will soak through the bread.
Consider placing your bread bowl in a larger, non-edible bowl. , Dips are another classic bread bowl filling.
Use the removed inner bread as dippers.
Here are a few suggestions:
Taco DipStuffed Mushroom DipCrab Dip, Who says it has to be soup? Consider some of the following:
Chicken or Turkey Pot PieChicken Cordon BleuSloppy Joes, Pretty much everything pairs well with bread, so the possibilities are practically limitless when it comes to filling bread bowls.
For instance:
Spaghetti and Meat SauceMake-Your-Own Omelet BarMelted Chocolate Fondue,with bread cubes and sliced fruit to accompany it.
Even if the chocolate hardens before you can finish it, you’ll have a delicious chocolate bread to eat instead of a crusty fondue pot to clean. -
Step 3: Feed your starter.
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Step 4: Make your "sponge."
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Step 5: Mix in a pinch of salt and just enough flour to make a sticky dough that holds together.
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Step 6: Knead the dough for about 10 minutes by hand (or with a dough hook on a stand mixer) until it is glossy and smooth.
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Step 7: Make the dough into a boule shape
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Step 8: if desired.
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Step 9: Form the dough into a rough ball shape
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Step 10: and pick it up from beneath with both hands.
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Step 11: Rotate the dough ball in your hands and continue stretching so that you have a taut top surface all around.
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Step 12: Turn the dough ball over
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Step 13: and find the “belly button.” The excess stretched dough beneath the ball should form something akin to this shape.
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Step 14: Allow for the final rise (or “proofing”) and bake as directed by your recipe.
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Step 15: Choose your bread and loaf shape
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Step 16: if not making your own bread.
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Step 17: Remove the top of the bread.
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Step 18: Remove the inner bread.
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Step 19: Don't waste the inner bread.
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Step 20: Fill the bread bowl with your selected soup
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Step 21: and enjoy.
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Step 22: Choose thick soups and stews.
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Step 23: Dip it.
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Step 24: Make it a heartier meal.
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Step 25: Get creative.
Detailed Guide
Sourdough is the classic bread type and a round loaf (called a boule) the classic shape for a bread bowl, but there are no hard-and-fast rules.
If you can make it, bake it, cut the top off, hollow it out, fill it, and eat it, it can be a bread bowl.
Bread recipes can be found easily online.
Here are few bread bowl-ready recipes for inspiration:
Italian;; Whole Wheat;Beer Pretzel.The following steps briefly describe how to make a sourdough boule.
For more detailed instructions, see How to Make Sourdough Bread.
Classic sourdough relies on a starter, a mix of flour and water which feeds the natural yeast needed to make the bread rise.
Mix equal parts flour and water (any amount) in a bowl, then pour the mix into a thoroughly clean class or plastic jar with a tight-fitting lid.
Seal the lid and leave in a dark place at room temperature for 24 hours. , Every day, pour out half of the mix and replace it with a new flour/water slurry.
Repeat this process until the starter has frothy bubbles on top and a distinctive sour smell.
This usually happens within a week. , Add all your starter to a mixing bowl, then add equal parts flour and water (one cup of water is usually good for one loaf) and mix.
Cover with a clean towel and let your "sponge" (the resulting mixture) "proof" (rise) for several hours, until bubbly on top.
Save a little of this sponge to become your next starter, if desired. , Cover and let rise for several hours at room temperature or in the refrigerator overnight. , Flour your hands, workspace, and dough to prevent sticking. , This isn’t essential, since bread bowls can be in any fillable shape, but the following is a good general method for creating a boule (round bread)., Use your thumbs and fingers to stretch the dough from the top of the ball downwards.
Tuck the stretched dough underneath the ball.
This process makes a taut “skin” on the top of the dough ball.
This helps it to rise while baking, so your bread will have more of a rounded dome than a flattened disc shape. , With practice, you will be able to do this quickly and efficiently, thus preventing excess gluten development (and thus tougher bread). , Pinch the excess together and give it a slight twist to hold it in place.
You can also pinch, put the dough ball on the board (topside up), and twist. , For the sourdough recipe noted here, bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes or until golden brown.
Consider spritzing your bread with a spray bottle of water several times during baking.
Keeping the top from drying out will help with rising., A trip to a bakery or bakery section of your supermarket will reveal several different types of bread loaves.
Pumpernickel and sourdough breads are often round, while Italian and French breads are usually elongated loaves.
Larger sandwich rolls can become small bread bowls, or try an unsliced loaf of regular white or wheat bread for a larger option.
Even a loaf of raisin or banana bread could work with the right filling.
Remember, bread bowls do not need to be round, just fillable.
Firmer breads are easier to slice open and empty out, however, so an extra-soft loaf of white bread may not be the ideal choice. , With a serrated knife, carefully cut the top of the bread using horizontal cutting strokes.
Leave as much of the bread loaf behind; only remove enough of the top of the bread to allow access into the loaf itself. , With your fingers, scoop and tear away chunks of bread from the interior of the loaf.
Be sure never to break through the outside crust.
The thinner the filling you intend to use, the thicker you want to leave the walls of your bread bowl. , Cut the removed bread into cubes for dipping either into the soup, chili or dips.
Serve the bread alongside the filled bowl.
You can also use this bread to make croutons or bread crumbs, or to feed the birds in your local park. , Use the removed bread top as a lid, if desired, or cut it up along with the removed inner bread. , Cream based soups (mushroom, broccoli, chicken, etc.) and chilis are classic bread bowl fillings because they soak into the bread (making a deliciously edible “bowl”) without quickly soaking through it.
You can use thinner soups like tomato or chicken noodle, but be prepared to serve and eat quickly because they will soak through the bread.
Consider placing your bread bowl in a larger, non-edible bowl. , Dips are another classic bread bowl filling.
Use the removed inner bread as dippers.
Here are a few suggestions:
Taco DipStuffed Mushroom DipCrab Dip, Who says it has to be soup? Consider some of the following:
Chicken or Turkey Pot PieChicken Cordon BleuSloppy Joes, Pretty much everything pairs well with bread, so the possibilities are practically limitless when it comes to filling bread bowls.
For instance:
Spaghetti and Meat SauceMake-Your-Own Omelet BarMelted Chocolate Fondue,with bread cubes and sliced fruit to accompany it.
Even if the chocolate hardens before you can finish it, you’ll have a delicious chocolate bread to eat instead of a crusty fondue pot to clean.
About the Author
Ann White
Enthusiastic about teaching pet care techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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