The crusty exterior and soft interior of this gluten free potato bread will have everyone reaching for seconds! It’s easy to mix together, rises beautifully and bakes up nice and golden. Sliced thick or thin, these moist slices will quickly become a favorite!
No kneading, no complicated ingredients, just reliable, delicious potato bread. I describe this recipe as a cross between a dense, hearty bread and an airy bread – from one extreme to the other right? Well, it’s all about the moisture content. Potato bread is typically moister than other breads (due to the potatoes), so the end result is an airy textured bread that’s still hearty enough to hold together. One of my favorite ways to serve it is with this dipping sauce. It’s like a little taste of heaven in every dip!
Why use potato flakes and not actual potatoes?
The reason this recipe uses potato flakes is simply to save time. Potato flakes are quick to measure out and quick to mix in. They’re reliable and store easily. And in the spirit of a quick and easy potato bread recipe, potato flakes work very well.
Do I have to Make it Dairy Free and Sugar Free?
Not at all! If you don't need to be dairy free and/or sugar free, feel 'free' to use cow's milk and granulated sugar in the recipe. Neither of those substitutions will change the taste or alter the recipe.
How Do I know when it’s risen enough?
Once you pour the batter into the pan, it will be about ¾ of the way full. Place the pan into a draft-free spot to rise for an hour. After an hour it will have risen to just over the top of the pan. Keep in mind, the moisture content is higher in this bread, so it may not rise as much as other breads like this cinnamon raisin bread machine bread.
What’s the best way to Cool Yeast Breads?
Yeast breads can be very fickle. A tall, nicely baked loaf can all of a sudden start to sink or worse, collapse all together once it’s taken out of the pan. Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen to yours!
Pro tip: Remove the bread from the oven like usual. Place it on a wire rack to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Now, here’s the cooling tip… when you remove it from the pan, don’t just sit it down and walk away to finish cooling. Lay the bread on its side to cool for 15 minutes. Then flip it over and cool for another 15 minutes.
This way the bread is balanced on all side for forming that nice tall crown. Remember, gluten free breads need that cool down period. It’s like a second bake time. And it’s crucial for the formation of the loaf.
How to Store Potato Bread
Storing this gluten free potato bread just requires two things: some wax paper and a freezer safe plastic bag. If you’re storing it for longer than 1 day, freezing it is the best way to preserve the quality and the taste.
I’d recommend slicing it first before freezing since frozen bread is nearly impossible to slice!
Use a high quality, serrated knife and slice the entire loaf, placing wax paper in between each slice. Place the whole loaf in the plastic bag, seal it well and place it in the freezer. It’s best enjoyed within a month.
How to Make Gluten Free Potato Bread
Room temperature Ingredients
From the eggs to the flours, all ingredients need to be at least at room temperature (the water for the yeast should be a bit warmer – 110 F). If you store your flours in the refrigerator, just bring them out and let them sit while getting everything else ready.
Tip: Eggs can be quickly brought to room temperature by floating them in a cup of warm water for a few minutes.
Mixing the batter
This potato bread dough mixes nicely and easily. Just mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately. Then add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until combined. Once all the ingredients are added to the mixer, mix for another minute to create a light and fluffy batter.
Preparing to Rise
Before pouring that wonderful batter into the baking pan, make sure it’s buttered really well. Use a pastry brush to make sure you get every little nook and cranny of the pan. These pans are my favorites for baking bread. The tall dimpled edges make for great baking and, in the case of this bread, it helps the batter climb up to the top of the rim while rising and baking.
Rising time
-
- Before rising
-
- After rising
Once you’ve sliced the bread diagonally, it will need about an hour to rise. Place the pan in a draft free spot to rise nice and tall. The batter should come to just above the rim.
Pro Tip: A microwave or toaster oven works beautifully for rising – just make sure not to turn it on!
Baking and Cooling
After rising, it’s time to bake that lovely loaf. It will need about 50 minutes to turn a nice golden color on top and be fully baked on the inside.
The cooling time is almost just as important as the baking time with most gluten free breads. For the best cooling technique, use this method: Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out to cool on it’s side. Then flip to the other side.
This prevents the loaf from sinking in the middle as it cools.
Recipe
Gluten Free Potato Bread {Dairy Free, Sugar Free}
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp. quick-rise instant yeast
- ½ cup water
Dry Ingredients
- 180 g white rice flour about 1 cup
- 85 g sweet rice flour about ½ cup
- 2 tsp. gelatin
- 55 g potato starch about ⅓ cup
- 17 g dry potato flakes about ⅓ cup
- 4 tsp. granulated Swerve sweetener or granulated sugar
- ½ tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. xanthan gum
Wet Ingredients
- 4 tsp. vegetable oil
- 2 eggs slightly beaten
- 1 cup dairy free milk or regular milk
Instructions
- Warm ½ cup water to 110 F. Add in yeast and allow mixture to proof for 5 minutes. The mixture should get foamy as the yeast proofs.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix all the rest of the dry ingredients together on medium for 30 seconds.
- In a 2 cup measuring cup or small bowl, mix the wet ingredients together.
- With the mixer on low, gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in the stand mixer. Mix for 1 minute on medium, scraping the bowl down as needed. The mixture will resemble thick cake batter.
- Using a plant based butter, or dairy butter, grease an 8” x 4.5” loaf pan. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top.
- With a sharp knife, make 3 diagonal slices across the top.
- Place the pan in a warm place, free from drafts to rise for 1 hour. A toaster oven or unwarmed oven works great.
- The dough should rise to just to the top of the pan. Preheat oven to 375 F.
- When oven is fully preheated, bake the risen loaf 50 minutes until bread is browned on top and toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Remove bread from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack, in the pan.
- Remove from the pan and cool the bread on one side for 15 minutes. Then flip and let it cool for another 15 minutes on the other side.
- Once the bread has fully cooled, slice and serve.
Video
Notes
- Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature.
- Mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients separately. Then mix together until the batter is light and fluffy.
- Scrape the batter into the pan and let it rise for 1 hour.
- After baking, cool the bread by laying it on its side until completely cool.
Nutrition
Originally published 3/18/2015. Updated 2/26/2020 with new pictures and better directions.
Check out these delicious gluten free bread recipes next:
- Gluten Free Potato Rolls
- Gluten Free Artisan Bread
- Gluten Free Apple Bread
- Gluten Free Blueberry Pancakes
- Low Carb Bread
Joan
Hi. I love your recipes. Always looking for alternatives to commercial bread. I was going to print this and then noticed it's measured in grams, instead of cups. Do you have the same recipe using cup measurements?
Thank you
Christine
Hi Joan,
Thanks, glad you enjoy them! So the cups measurement equivalent is right next to the ingredient. (I offer grams first because it calculates the nutrition facts more accurately!)
Let me know if you think of anything else.
~Christine
Angelica
Two comments, the yeast should probably be packets if you're gluten free. I've been talking to manufacturers of yeasst, both Red Star and Fleischman's emphasized that their packets of rapid rise and active dry yeast are gluten free (and even packets had certain ones which aren't GF like Red Star Premium yeast). They made no promises to me about the jars of dry yeast or cake yeast. I bake bread about every 3-4 days.
I'm not sure if Swerve is a food for yeast, did you make it that way and the bread rose OK? You can make bread with no sugar if you let the flour autolyse, but I don't think you can do that with pure starches. The white and sweet rice flour should, in theory, autolyse if you mix them with the water and let them alone for at least an hour before continuing with your recipe.
Frank
love the fact it is in weight( grams) and not volume (cups)but then in the middle of the recipe we have 1/3 cup dry potato flakes what weight is this please ?
Christine
Hi Frank,
Thanks and sorry about that - the potato flakes come in at 17g. I'll update the recipe too.
Thanks,
Christine
Bonnie hunter
Can u please tell me if I can’t find the potato flakes can I use potato starch In place of this. I can’t find them anywhere here in Canada .
Christine
Hi Bonnie,
So they are not the same thing, so not a good substitute. I haven't tested the recipe with a sub for the potato flakes, but actual potatoes would be my first choice. Try 1/3 cup of prepared potatoes without butter or milk or anything added and then decrease the water to 1/4 cup. If you try it, let me know!
~Christine
Bonnie hunter
My buns are turning out wonderful make them all the time and I am sharing them with friends and family. I use russet pot, thank you
Christine
Wonderful! Great to hear Bonnie!
~Christine
Tilly
I am interested in trying this recipe, but I am a vegetarian so I can't use gelatin. What is the function of the gelatin in this recipe, and can you recommend a plant-based substitution? Thanks.
Christine
Hi Tilly,
So it functions as a binder, along with the xanthan gum. The best substitute is agar agar powder. A secondary option is ground flax seed.
~Christine
Ana
And the eggs? how to replace them?
Christine
Hi Ana,
Sure so the best thing to use in this recipe would be something like Ener-G egg replacer.
Thanks for asking,
Christine
Joanne
Hi there! I have an intolerance to tapioca, so I substituted potato starch in this recipe. Also substituted cornstarch for the xanthan gum (same reason). The bread is brown/crispy on the outside but dense/moist on the inside. Is that maybe due to the substitutions or is this bread heavy by nature? I was hoping for a lighter, less dense crumb Thank you!
Christine
Hi Joanne,
Thanks for asking - so let's see, it could be the substitutions but it also sounds like it needed to bake a bit longer - did you use an instant read thermometer to confirm that it was fully baked? Should read between 205-210F. It is more on the heavy side than light though.
Let me know, would love for you to enjoy this one!
Christine
Joanne
Christine - Hi! I didn't use a thermometer, although I use one for cooking meats, etc. all the time! Will try that. Also I purchased a Nordic pan, hoping that will help with consistent baking, height, etc. Might try tenting the top with foil if it starts to get too brown, too. Fun in the kitchen!
Do you have any homemade flour mixes without tapioca starch/flour that I can make ahead?
Thanks!
Christine
Hi Joanne,
A thermometer should help a lot - depending on the weather, I've sometimes had to bake a few minutes longer or shorter.
And I use this mix https://zestforbaking.com/how-to-make-gluten-free-bread-flour-mix and subbing the tapioca starch is pretty easy - just use arrowroot starch.
Let me know how that all works out.
~Christine
Melodi
Can you make this in a bread machine?
Christine
Hi Melodi,
So I haven't tested it in a bread machine, so I can't say for certain, but it would be a good one to try out.
Add the wet ingredients to the pan first, then the dry, with the yeast last. Then try the gluten free setting.
Let me know!
Christine