This buttery Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread Loaf is such a fun and delicious homemade bread recipe. With its light and fluffy crumb packed with chocolate chips, this French Brioche Loaf makes the most epic breakfast or sweet snack both kids and adults will love!
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Why we love this recipe
This Chocolate Chip Brioche Loaf seriously makes the BEST breakfast, ever! It is so light, fluffy and buttery... and those melted dark chocolate chips make it even more irresistible.
Brioche is always a fun recipe to make even if you don't have much experience working with yeast or making bread. And it will make your kitchen (and whole house) smell incredible! Seriously, that smell... you'll want to eat those chocolate Chip Brioche Rolls as soon as they come out of the oven!
Just like these Chocolate and Raspberry Brioche Rolls, Chocolate Brioche Loaf and this Chocolate Brioche Bread Wreath, this French brioche recipe is great for special occasion like birthdays or Holidays (hello, Christmas breakfast!).
For a truly decadent dish, use this chocolate chip brioche to make Brioche Bread French Toast or a Brioche French Toast Casserole!
Ingredients
This chocolate chip brioche recipe uses 8 basic ingredients (see all quantities in recipe card below):
- Dry Ingredients: Plain / AP Flour (note that I mistakenly wrote bread flour on the photo above 😉 ), Caster Sugar (fine white granulated sugar) and a little bit of Fine Table Salt.
- Yeast: I used Instant (dried) Yeast, which is a type of yeast that does not need to be rehydrated ("bloomed") before you add it to the rest of the ingredients, so it's one less step to take! See below for substitution.
- Eggs: medium size and at room temperature. I like to whisk them it a separate bowl before adding them to the dry ingredients so they get mixed in more easily, but that's optional.
- Milk: use Full Cream Milk (Whole Milk) for the best flavour and texture. Non-Dairy/Plant-based milk will work as well, but I don't recommend using a skim-milk.
- Butter: Unsalted and very soft. I like to cut it into small cubes and leave it out of the fridge a little while before making this recipe so it's nice and soft, and ready to be slowly added to the rest of the dough.
- Chocolate Chips: I used Dark Chocolate Chips (they were on the smaller side, almost like mini choc chips - both mini and regular chocolate chips will do) - but you can use any of your preferred chocolate chips.
Substitution
- Yeast: You can use Active Dry Yeast instead of Instant Yeast (same quantitites), but you will need to bloom it first (rehydrate it in lukewarm water with a little bit of sugar) to activate it. You can read more about the different types of yeast here.
How to make Brioche Bread with Chocolate Chips
- Photo 1: Place the Flour, Sugar and Yeast in the bowl of your mixer. Mix to combine with the dough hook.
Note that if using Active Dry Yeast instead of Instant Yeast, you will need to bloom the yeast first. To do so, slightly heat up the milk (shouldn't be more that lukewarm) then mix in one tablespoon of sugar and the yeast. Leave for 10 to 15 minutes or until foamy/bubbly. You can also bloom Instant Yeast just want to make sure the yeast is alive.
- Photo 2: Add the Milk (preferably at room temperature/lukewarm) and Eggs (I like to whisk them separately first).
- Photo 3: Knead for about 3 minutes on medium to medium high speed until combined, then add the Salt. Continue to knead for another couple of minutes. The dough will be slightly sticky but should pull out from the side of the bowl.
- Photo 4: add the cubed soft butter, a little bit of the time. Knead until all incorporated before adding more, and continue until all the butter has been incorporated. Stop to scrap the edges of the bowl if needed.
- Photo 5: Continue to knead on high speed for about 15 minutes, or until the dough is very soft, stretchy and can pass the windowpane test. The dough will be slightly sticky, that's normal.
- Photo 6: Cover with a tea towel and leave the dough to proof in a warm place for about 1,5 hours ("bulk fermentation" stage), or until doubled in size. You can leave it to proof in the same bowl or transfer it into a lightly greased clean bowl.
Note that the exact proofing time will depend on the temperature of the room. If you room is cold, it could take much longer for the dough to proof. When warm, it could be shorter. If working in a cold kitchen, try to find a warmer place for the dough to proof.
- Photo 7: Punch the dough to deflate it (remove the gas produced by the yeast) then transfer it over a lightly floured surface. Cut into 8 equal pieces (weight the dough with a scale and divide it by 8 to be precise and get same size buns).
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Check the video in the recipe card below to see exactly how I shaped the chocolate chip brioche.
- Photo 8: Lightly flatten each piece of dough with your finger (use a tiny bit of flour if too sticky). Try not to flatten it too thinly in the centre of the disk or the chocolate chips might break out when rolled.
- Photo 9: Add the Chocolate Chips (to taste).
- Photo 10: Fold the edges of the dough towards its centre, gently pressing them so they stick together.
- Photo 10: flip over and roll to form a ball. I do this in two steps. First by pulling the ball towards me (placing my fingers at the bottom of the ball) to create tension in the dough, rotating the ball 90 degrees and repeating the process a few times. Then secondly by rolling the ball between the kitchen bench and my palms to create a round shape. See video in recipe card below for more info.
- Lightly grease and flour a loaf pan (the chocolate chip brioche will tend to stick to the pan so its really important to do both). I used a 11,5x30 cm or 4,5x12 inch Loaf Pan.
- Photo 12: Place the brioche rolls in the loaf pan (see photo for the pattern) in a zigzag pattern.
- Photo 13: optional: brush the brioche rolls with a whisked egg (to give them a golden colour when baked).
- Photo 14: Top with more chocolate chips.
- Photo 15: cover with a tea towel and leave to proof in a warm place a second time for 30 to 45 minutes. The rolls should have risen again.
- In the meantime, preheat your oven on 180'C/350'F. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until risen and golden. The exact time will depend on your oven.
- Leave to cool down completely before removing for the loaf tin. If the chocolate chip brioche seems to stick to the pan, run a small knife along the edges of the pan to release it.
Recipe FAQs
Brioches are parts of the "enriched dough" bread family like Babka for example. These types of bread doughs contain more sugar and fat than other breads, usually with the use of (more) sugar, eggs, butter (sometimes oil) and/or milk (instead of water).
Absolutely, although it will take much longer than by using a stand mixer. This brioche dough also tends to be slightly sticky so it will be harder to make by hands without adding a fair amount of flour to avoid sticking.
Yes! I shaped my bread with individual rolls connected into a loaf but you could also do it as one large loaf (mixing the chocolate chip with the dough and giving it a loaf shape) or even braid it (filling each strand with chocolate chips before braiding it).
Alternatively, you could also bake them on a flat baking tray as individual chocolate chip brioche rolls!
The best way to enjoy this bread is slightly warm - whether it is just out of the oven, slightly reheated in the microwave or even toasted. You can eat it on its own, with a little bit of butter or even with a chocolate spread.
Leftovers (if there are any...) can also be used to make some epic Brioche French Toasts!
Recipe Tips & Troubleshooting
- Proof in a warm place: the warmer the place, the quicker the dough will rise (it shouldn't be too hot though). If working in a cold kitchen like mine in the middle of Winter, you can heat up your oven on a very low temperature for about 5 minutes, turn it off then proof the bread in there. Be careful not to heat it up too high though, it should basically replicate a warm day.
- Don't use too much additional flour (if any) when shaping the rolls. You want the rolls to slightly stick to the surface when you are pulling them towards you to create tension in the dough.
- The dough didn't rise: usually indicates that the yeast is dead (you can bloom/rehydrate the yeast first to make sure it is still active) or that the dough was under or over proofed.
- The brioche is hard or dense: can happen if the dough is under or over proofed, or if the dough wasn't kneaded for long enough (so the gluten did not develop enough). To know that the dough has been kneaded for long enough, do a windowpane test.
Storing & Freezing
The chocolate chip brioche will be best eaten fresh straight away or within 24 hours, but can be kept for up to 3 days. To keep it as fresh as possible, store it in a plastic or storage bag which will keep the moisture in.
This brioche bread can be frozen as well, either as a whole or in individual rolls. Leave to thaw at room temperature when ready to heat, or slightly reheat in the oven (or microwave). Brioches are best eaten warm.
More Bread Recipes
- Apple Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread
- Sweet Potato Bread Rolls
- Red Bean Sweet Rolls
- Cinnamon Scrolls
- Lemon Sweet Rolls
- Spinach Ricotta Rolls
- Cinnamon Roll Bread
- Sesame Bagels
- Challah Rolls
Made this recipe?
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Recipe
Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread
Ingredients
- 350 gr (2 1/3 cups) Plain / AP Flour,
- 50 gr (4 tablesp.) Caster Sugar, or fine white granulated sugar
- 9 gr (2 1/2 teasp.) Instant Dried Yeast
- 75 ml (5 tablesp.) Full Cream Milk (whole milk), lukewarm
- 3 Eggs, at room temperature
- 3 gr (1/2 teasp.) Fine Table Salt
- 120 gr (1/2 cup) Unsalted Butter, soft
- 100 gr (1/2 cup) Chocolate Chips
- 1 Egg for Egg Wash, optional
Instructions
- Place the Flour, Sugar and Yeast in the bowl of your mixer. Mix to combine with the dough hook (see note 1). Add the Lukewarm Milk and Eggs (preferably pre-whisked in a separate bowl) and knead for about 3 minutes on medium to medium high speed or until combined.
- Add the Salt, then continue to knead for another two minutes. The dough will be slightly sticky but should pull away from the side of the bowl.
- Add the cubed soft butter a little bit of the time, kneading between each addition until fully incorporated. Stop to scrap the edges of the bowl if necessary. Continue to knead for about 15 minutes on high speed or until the dough is smooth, very stretchy and can pass the windowpane test (see note 2).
- Cover with a tea towel (see note 3) and leave to proof in a warm place for about 1,5 hours, or until it has doubled in size (see note 4).
- Punch the dough to deflate it, transfer over a lightly floured surface and cut into 8 equal pieces (see note 5).
- Lightly flatten each piece of dough with your finger (see note 6). Place the Chocolate Chips over the dough, then fold the edges towards the centre to create a ball. Flip the ball upside-down (seams down), then pull the ball towards you (placing your fingers at the bottom of the ball) to create tension in the dough. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees and repeating the process a few times, then roll the ball between the kitchen bench and your palms to create a round shape. Repeat the process with the 8 pieces of dough.
- Lightly grease and flour a Loaf Pan (I used a 11,5x30cm / 4,5x12 inch loaf pan). Place each brioche roll in the loaf pan in a zigzag pattern (see video), brush them with the Egg for the egg wash, top with more Chocolate Chips (optional) then cover with a tea towel and leave to proof for another 30 to 45 minutes.
- Preheat your oven on 180'C/350'F then when ready, bake the Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread for 20 to 30 minutes or until risen and golden. Leave to cool down completely before removing from the loaf pan (see note 7).
Video
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Notes
- Yeast: I used Instant Dried Yeast (sometimes called just Instant Yeast) that does not require to be bloomed (rehydrated in a lukewarm liquid) prior to being added to the rest of the ingredients. You can also use Active Dry Yeast, but this type of yeast will require to be bloomed first. Although not necessary here, you can bloom Instant Yeast first just to make sure it is alive and active.
- If using Active Dry Yeast, you will need to bloom (rehydrate) the yeast with the lukewarm milk and one tablespoon of sugar first. You can also do it with the instant yeast to make sure the yeast is alive, but it is not necessary.
- The windowpane test is a technique used to check the gluten development in a yeasted dough. Pull a little bit of the dough and slowly stretch it. If the dough breaks straight away, it needs to be kneaded for longer. If the dough can stretch without breaking and the very thin layer of dough becomes see-through, it is ready.
The kneading time is rather long here - but that is because of the fat content of the dough. It will require more time to develop gluten than traditional "non-fat" bread doughs. - You can leave the dough in the same bowl or transfer it into a different bowl that has been lightly greased.
- The exact time for this stage will depend on the temperature of the room. If working in a cold room, it could take much longer that 1,5 hours.
- The best way to get 8 equal pieces is by weighting the dough with a kitchen scale, then dividing that total weight by 8.
- Try not to flatten it too thinly in the centre of the dough or the chocolate chips might break out when rolled.
- If the brioche sticks to the loaf pan, run a small knife between the pan and the bread to release it.
Zoe says
This recipe worked like a charm. Very straightforward and very tasty.
Sylvie says
Great to hear!
Ellie says
Also, what about brioche rolls? What if I make the little balls like you do in the video, and then I bake them as separate rolls? Would that work? Or would they go flat in the oven?
Sylvie says
You could definitely turn them into buns without changing the recipe - just adjust the baking time as they will bake much faster 🙂
Ellie says
So yummy! But mine came out denser than I anticipated...I think either my oven was too hot (even though I only preheated it at 180 for 10 mins) or I added too much flour. I did add a little extra than what the recipe called for because my dough was too sticky and not pliable. Thoughts? I would love to make this again, but I am aiming for the soft, fluffy cake-like texture of traditional brioche. And I went overboard with the chocolate chips (can a person ever have too many choc chips?), which made a weird swirly pattern in the bread slices...not the usual dotted chocolate chip pattern...maybe the chocolate chips I used were not really meant for this kind of thing? I don't know. But overall, this was delicious and all my family loved it (because they've never had real brioche, they couldn't see that there was anything wrong with it!!!).
Sylvie says
Hi Ellie, I would definitely say that it's the extra flour you added that made the bread denser. Brioche needs to be kneaded for quite a long time - it will be sticky and not flexible if under-kneaded. The dough does contain a high amount of liquid and fat though so it will always be on the slightly stickier side - but should be easier to handle after it has proved. I would guess that in your case, it was a combination of adding too much flour and underkneading the dough than made the brioche too dense. Hope that helps!
Ellie says
Thanks so much for the quick reply, looking forward to perfecting the recipe next time!
Sylvie says
You're welcome!
Kaylie says
Hi i made this bread and followed the steps to the best of my ability. However, when i baked it, i saw it had become golden really quickly so i pulled it out early. To my horror i when i took the loaf out of the pan the inside was undercooked. The parts that were cooked were delicious, but i couldnt salvage much from the loaf. Is this a problem that could be fixed, because i know if i left it in longer i would burn the top. I used the egg wash and had to use a longer loaf pan if that helps for an answer. I would love to make this again!
Sylvie says
Hi Kaylie, I would say that your oven was probably too hot so I would try at a slightly lower temperature. If this happen again, you can simply cover the the loaf pan with aluminium foil once the brad starts to get too brown. It will allow for the bread to continue baking without burning the top. Hope that helps!
Roxana says
Can you substitute wheat flour instead ? The first time I made your recipe it was absolutely delicious and a bit ! Thank you ! You make break baking simple and enjoyable !
Sylvie says
Hi Roxana, so glad you enjoyed the recipe! If you substitute all the flour with whole wheat flour, the brioche will be much more dense and dry than with all-purpose. I don't recommend substituting more than 50% of the flour with whole wheat for that reason. Cheers!
Iman Akef says
Thanks for the great recipe! really loved how it turned out, incredibly soft with a rich buttery taste. Best way to start your morning 🙂
A Baking Journey says
It’s my favourite way to start my morning too!
Martha says
I was sceptical - because I've made a few breads recently and they were a bit dense so I wasn't holding my breath for a fluffy brioche. It was amazing! Rose really well - fluffy and light and delicious. Definitely a go-to recipe now!
A Baking Journey says
That's great to hear Martha!
cs says
First time baking bread and it is really good! The kids finished it before the bread had a chance to cool down :). Thank you for this recipe. It is a keeper!
A Baking Journey says
Thats great to hear!
Reni Widhiantie says
Love this recipe..so yummy and easy...far a way for sweet... Just perfect..
A Baking Journey says
Happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Sarah says
How do you make brioche better? Just add chocolate chips! This looks delicious and would be perfect for brunch or afternoon tea 🙂
A Baking Journey says
Chocolate chips make everything better 😉