Simple 5-ingredient whole wheat bread. You just don’t get easier than this no-fail and no-knead recipe! Hearty, wholesome, nourishing and delicious!
You know, I always wanted to be the kind of person who makes their own hummus and bakes their own whole wheat bread. So I’m pretty chuffed that I have become this person!
So now I can feel all wholesome and earth-motherish. Well, at least I would if I had some kiddos other than my two cat babies.
Recently someone was saying to me that they’re ‘eating clean’ now.
And ‘eating clean’ is quite the popular phrase in diet culture. But depending on which diet camp you’ve found yourself, ‘clean’ can have vastly different meanings. Like for some it means eating plenty of meat but cutting out grains and processed foods. And of course that is not at all what it means in the vegan community.
But anyway, I am not a fan of labelling foods like this because it’s a value judgement, like ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Which some can take to extremes and it can lead to eating disorders (not good).
But that being said, lately it can be hard to find a loaf of bread in the store that doesn’t have a heap of junk in it. There is one particular loaf of wholewheat bread that I bought, and we just didn’t get around to eating it (or throwing it out).
However, it was just as perfectly fresh 3 weeks after purchase as it was on the day I brought it home from the store. Hmmm.
So I do like to make some whole wheat bread myself, and when it’s as easy as THIS, then there’s no reason not to! Also check out our other super easy bread recipes, our vegan white bread, vegan soda bread and vegan focaccia.
How To Make Whole Wheat Bread
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
I have literally never come across a recipe as easy as this. It’s just 5-ingredients, and you don’t even have to knead it.
In fact, kneading is out with this recipe. You just throw some whole wheat flour, instant yeast and a little salt to a mixing bowl.
Then mix maple syrup with warm water and then add the wet ingredients to the dry.
Mix in to just combine (no kneading! I’m not going to tell you again you super-keen kneading fan), move it into a greased loaf pan (a little parchment paper on the bottom is also a good idea), cover it and leave it to rise for 20 minutes.
It does all its rising before it even hits the oven. So the height it is when it goes in is pretty much the height it is when it comes out.
Put it into the oven and bake for 40 minutes. And bingo you have freshly baked bread!
Who Needs A Bread Machine?
I mean really I don’t think it could be easier even if you used a bread machine. Well, I’ve never used a bread machine so I can’t really compare, but with a recipe as easy as this, who needs a bread machine?
Well, don’t quote me on that, maybe I’ll get one, one of these days. I do like nifty little appliances.
And the BEST thing about baking your own whole wheat bread is your whole house smells delicious and you get to eat it warm from the oven.
Serving Suggestions
I mean really if you don’t feel like cooking, just make a loaf of this (it barely counts as ‘cooking’ it’s too easy), and serve it with a huge salad, maybe some roasted garlic hummus and avocado and various other toppings and dinner is done and dusted!
Of course it goes immensely well with any homemade soups too! So if you’re having a delicious vegan potato leek soup or vegan tomato soup or vegan lentil soup for dinner, then this is going to be awesome for dipping.
Recipe Variations
This recipe is very versatile and has worked great when we’ve switched up the flours. We have tried this recipe as follows and all have worked out great:
- 4 cups whole wheat flour
- 3 cups whole wheat flour, 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 cups whole wheat flour, 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour, 3 cups all purpose flour
- 4 cups all purpose flour
Make It Gluten-Free
It even works with a gluten-free all purpose flour blend. I find that adding a tablespoon or two of olive oil (at the same time as the other wet ingredients) makes the gluten-free version come out softer.
Storing Tips
It’s best when very fresh (the day of making it) but it will keep for a couple of days in a closed container and it also makes very delicious toast!
You can freeze it, and that’s best done on the day of baking to lock in the freshness. If you freeze it on the second or third day then you can use it for toast straight from the freezer.
Want Some Toppings For Your Whole Wheat Bread?
- Homemade Vegan Butter
- Homemade Peanut Butter
- Homemade Cashew Butter
- Homemade Almond Butter
- Simple Vegan Guacamole
- Creamy Avocado Hummus
And for more breads, check out our vegan cornbread, vegan banana bread and our easy vegan dinner rolls!
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Easy No-Fail Whole Wheat Bread
Ingredients
- 4 cups Whole Wheat Flour (520g)
- 1 Packet Instant Yeast 2 ¼ teaspoons
- ½ tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Maple Syrup
- 2 cups Warm Water (480ml)
Instructions
- Add the flour to a mixing bowl with the yeast and salt and mix together.
- Dissolve the maple syrup in the warm water and then add to the dry ingredients.
- Mix – don’t knead – until you have a sticky well combined dough.
- Transfer to a greased 9×5 loaf pan. You can also line the bottom with parchment paper if you think there will be any chance of it sticking.
- Cover and leave to rise for 20 minutes.
- While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C).
- After 20 minutes* when the dough has risen, bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
- Absolutely BEST when fresh, but will keep for a day or two in a closed container. After which you can make the most delicious toast.
Video
Notes
- Weigh your flour for the most accurate results.
- Maple syrup can be replaced by another sweetener such as agave nectar or other syrup.
- If your dough hasn’t quite risen as high as mine in the picture at the 20 minute mark then leave it a couple more minutes, sometimes it takes a couple of minutes longer to get to the perfect height, but don’t leave it too long or it will rise too high and then you’ll get a muffin top loaf!
- Prep time includes the 20 minutes spent rising.
Neetta says
In my second bake , I added some cheese in the dough and sprinkled it with almonds on top…
Thanks once again for a great easy bread recipe.
Neetta says
I made Thai bread .. the family finished it in one go
Making my second one now , experimenting with some cheese and nuts.
Thank you for an easy recipe. ❤️
Alison Andrews says
Glad you enjoyed it Neetta! Thanks for posting!
Crazy Lucchese says
Absolutely delicious bread and could not possibly be easier to make. I followed the recipe exactly but also spread more honey to the top of the bread and added some oats to the top. I also cut a slit down the middle of the loaf lengthwise before putting in the oven so it would not be lopsided. I think it would be super easy to add other things to this bread as well like nuts, seeds, flax, etc.
NC says
Love this recipe! So simple and quick to execute. My kids loved the bread! I just have a few questions- I just used a ladle to mix the ingredients together until combined, is that the right way to do it? My dough didn’t rise too much (turned out to be under 1.5 times the original volume)- is it expected to rise more than that? Finally, the texture was more like cake than like bread ie a bit crumbly and not very elastic (although I loved that)- is that how it is expected to be? I read somewhere that to activate the gluten in whole wheat, a good amount of mixing is required.. but wanted to double check?
Alison Andrews says
Hi there, if the dough doesn’t rise that well it’s usually an issue with the yeast. Also if the room is too cold it can take longer, so moving it to a warm spot in the house can help. This recipe doesn’t require a lot of mixing at all. Just mix it until it’s mixed and that’s it. 🙂
Cynthia says
Delicious and easy to make, time efficient, my husband and I love it and bonus it’s healthy!
Alison Andrews says
Thanks Cynthia!
Susan Carroll says
Love this recipe! No more store-bought bread for me. It’s quick, easy, and very tasty. I do use slightly more salt, and I use half/half maple syrup/molasses, but that’s just my taste; the recipe is great as is. Thank you!
Susan Carroll says
Ack! I meant to rate this recipe 5 star, not 4. It’s terrific.
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Susan! 🙂
Trudy Troxler says
I only have regular white flour? Will it work just as well?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Trudy, I’m not sure but maybe not. I have tried swapping out some of the whole wheat flour with regular flour but never all of it.
Monica says
Hi- any thoughts on if I can just use bread flour? Thank you
Karen L Woodhouse says
Is 1 tablespoon the correct amount for the yeast, thank you
Alison Andrews says
Yes that’s correct.
Zeynep says
I’ve made this twice and it came out great. I added a bit more salt second time. Better than other bread recipes which require kneading. Thank you!
Laura says
Very quick and easy! I love that I can come home from work and have fresh homemade bread in under 2 hours! I also like the fact that it doesn’t have any oil in it. It’s a very simple, plain bread that tastes good and doesn’t take all day to make. Thank you for this recipe! I plan on making it a lot and have all sorts of ideas for added crunchy things!
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Laura!
Joan L Sharp says
Wondering if you can add other seeds/nuts to the mixture before baking.
Alison Andrews says
Definitely!
Sue says
Hi Alison, I just made this super easy bread and served it for dinner with your lentil soup. What a delicious meal! Thanks so much for helping all of us vegans be better cooks!
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear! Thanks so much Sue!
Clement says
It was the first bread I’ve ever made. It was so good. My whole family enjoyed it. Looking forward to try your other recipes. Thank you very much.
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Clement!
Nikki Daniel says
I’m completely stunned at how easy and delicious this recipe is! Worked like a charm even though I used a combo of wholewheat and white self raising flour (!) as it’s the only flour I had left! Do you know if it works with Indian atta? Thanks so much for the recipe.
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear you enjoyed it Nikki! No idea about Indian atta though. Thanks so much for the wonderful review!
Manny says
Allison, i don’t know how other oven works. When I turn on my oven, the back panel of the stove has a vent where hot air comes out from the oven. I place my pan close to it, sometimes turning it around, so that heat helps the dough to rise better/higher. I just make sure the pan is not right against it because if it is too hot, it may kill the yeast. It did the trick.
Manny