Dvora’s Simple Sweet Challah
Servings
Ingredients
- I kilo flour sifted (about 7 cups)
- 50 grams fresh granulated yeast Shimrit
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- ½ cup canola oil
- 2 eggs room temperature
- Up to 2 cups warm water
- Egg wash – 1 egg lightly beaten with a tablespoon of water
Instructions
- Empty all the flour into the mixer bowl. Add in yeast and stir well to combine. Mix in the sugar and salt. Add the oil and eggs. Add about 1 1/4 cups of the water. Use the dough hook to mix. After a minute or two, check to see if the mixture seems dry. If so, add a little more water, up to a total of two cups. Scrape down and continue to mix, kneading the dough for about 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. You can also do some kneading by hand on a floured surface. Put the dough in a greased bowl, turning to cover all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm spot to rise for 2-3 hours, until doubled. Punch down and divide the dough into 3 parts, then divide each part into as many strands as you would like to braid with.
- For a round challah, do not re-divide. Lightly flour your work surface, then pat out each piece into a rectangle. Roll each rectangle up jelly roll style into a long snake. Braid or twist as desired. Place each loaf onto a parchment lined pan and cover loosely with a piece of plastic wrap. Let rise 30-60 minutes, then brush with an egg wash of 1 beaten egg and a tablespoon of water. Bake at 350 (180 C)in the lower half of your oven for about 30 minutes until golden brown and baked through. When you tap on the bottom crust, it should sound hollow. Cool on a rack, and enjoy!
- NOTE: Challah cannot be taken from this amount of flour. Double or triple, according to your rav, to take challah with a bracha.
- Notes for those in the U.S. – 7 cups of flour to a kilo should work, although weighing out 2.2 pounds would be even better. The challah should work with 5 teaspoons of dry yeast, though I think you have to proof it with some of the water and a little of the sugar. But if you use bread machine yeast, you can probably use the same technique of mixing in with the flour without proofing.
- For tips on cooking in Israel (substitutions and conversions) check out my article and let me know how else I can help.
This is my go to recipe! My kids all love this challah every week. I make small braids and they eat them as snacks on Shabbat.
So great to hear, everyone finds their favorite challah.
I use plain old all purpose flour
Dear Dvora,
I’d love to try this but I’m not sure whether to use self-raising or plain flour. Can you advise please.
Just to clarify, Shimrit is indeed fresh yeast, in a granulated form to make it easier to use. Each packet of Shimrit is intended for one kilo of flour, as per the company’s directions. It can not be used interchangeably with instant dry yeast, measure for measure. Whey I use dry yeast, I use 5 teaspoons. Thank you for the feedback!
I am so glad you enjoyed it!! I am glad to know that it works well with half whole wheat. Gmar Chatima Tova to you and your family!
Dear Dvora,
I made this challah before Rosh Hashana. I used half white flour and half whole wheat and still got rave reviews. Thanks so much for this great receipe. I will use this for Erev Yom Kippur and Succot now.
Thanks, Gemar Chatima tova. Yehudit Spero
Hello
50 gr of yeast (5 tablespoons) for 1 kilo flour is too much. I went with 2 1/4 tablespoons and it’s fine. You may have meant fresh yeast (1 cube) but your picture shows the granulated “instant” shimrit.
Thanks
Absolutely. Just cool and wrap well. Enjoy!
I was wondering if the challah can be frozen
Yes, freezes beautifully .
I use 5 teaspoons of dry yeast, which is two envelopes plus an additional 1/2 teaspoon (each packet is 2 1/4 teaspoons). If you weigh ingredients, it’s between 15 and 16 grams. Good luck!
Hello!! Can I use instant dry yeast?? If so how many packages of 7g
I am so glad you enjoy it!! Thanks so much for the great feedback!
If you omit the eggs, increase the water to about 2 1/4 cups, and you should have a good result (based on a water challah recipe I have enjoyed).
I make this challah every Shabbos and my family absolutely LOVES it! Thank you ever so much for sharing it!
Can the eggs be replaced in the recipe? I have an egg allergy and I’m looking for a new challah recipe.
Wow! What a fun place for a reunion! Hope all is well with you – Have a Shana Tova, and I hope you enjoy the challah!
Hi. Saw the name and I said it must be you. You look great and I can’t believe it’s been so long since you made aliyah. Wishing you and your family a Shana Tova and I can’t wait to try your recipe. Chaya Mushka says hi.
That would make a great addition, especially for Rosh Hashana. You can add them either when you mix the dough together initially, or after the first rising.
Hi, Vicki. This recipe uses about 7 cups of flour. You may want to check your machine’s maximum capacity to see if this recipe will work. Most of my friends who use bread machines use recipes of 4-5 cups of flour. I mix my dough in my stand mixer, but it is not too bad by hand either. Good luck, and Shana Tova!
Shalom Dvora,
I live in South Africa and want to make to make this challah for Rosh Hashana next week. Can I make the dough in my bread machine or will it be too much for the machine to handle? Thanks Vicki
What about adding golden raisins?
Looks awesome I am going to try this.
I don’t really know, but I think you might find one in a housewares store near Machane Yehuda. I would think they would be most available in the few weeks before Pesach, when many housewares go on sale and people need that type of thing.
Do you know where I could purchase a wonder pot?
Thank you so much for the information. Will try it and let you know how it came out.
The 5 teaspoons is the equivalent of the 50 grams fresh, so that should work for you. Double everything if you are doubling the recipe, as the yeast needs the sugar to grow and the salt to regulate that growth. Good luck!
This refers to the mitzvah of taking challah with a bracha. Because one kilo of flour is not enough for the mitzvah, the recipe needs to be increased to qualify. A rabbinic authority should be consulted to determine how much flour is necessary for taking challah, and how much to make a bracha.
I would like to make this tomorrow, is the 5 tsp of dry yeast the same amount as 50g fresh yeast? if i double the recipe, do i double all the ingredients. thanks.
Hi, what do you mean by: “Challah cannot be taken from this amount of flour. Double or triple, according to your rav, to take challah with a bracha.”