This Subway Bread Recipe is so easy to make and tastes even better than the popular restaurant! Soft and chewy, the perfect start to your favorite sandwich!
Subway Bread
A perfect sandwich begins and ends with the bread! This Subway Bread recipe uses real, actual, bread-making ingredients and tastes even better than what you can get at the restaurant. It’s soft, slightly chewy, with fresh, homemade flavor. You’re probably thinking, why go through all the trouble of making Subway bread at home when you can’t beat a $5 foot long? I’m with you there! But hear me out. This recipe is so fun to make at home. It’s ideal for parties, baby showers, picnics, whenever you want to serve delicious homemade sandwiches. My kids love to help shape the dough, watch it bake, then play “Subway” as they assemble all the sandwiches. Try this recipe and see how much fun it can be to create your favorite sub in your own kitchen!
Suggestions for Subway Bread
- I’m not going to lie, it took a few tries (four to be exact) until I got this Subway Bread just right. There is a little secret ingredient you need for it to be just right and that is Vital Wheat Gluten. I know that sounds intimidating, but it isn’t. It’s what you need to make the bread chewy and soft like real Subway bread and you can find it at your regular grocery store! I got mine at Winco in their bulk bins for about two dollars a pound. If you don’t have a Winco nearby, you can get it in a “Bob’s Red Mill” brand package at most grocery stores but it is a bit pricey. But this is the ticket to soft and chewy Subway bread.
- If you REALLY want to make it like Subway, you can use special “sub” bread mold pans. They will help the bread rise in the right direction and you will get that nice “Subway-ish” shape. If you don’t have special pans, you can just shape them as best you can with your hands. The more cylinder-shaped you can get them, the better.
- Use whole wheat flour to create a whole wheat bread, or add sesame seeds or shredded Parmesan cheese to the top of your loaves before baking.
More Bread Recipes
As long as you have a few bread recipes in your back pocket, you will always have something nourishing and comforting to feed your family. Try a few of our favorites:
- How to Make French Bread Pizza
- Honey Whole Wheat Bread
- Mom’s Zucchini Bread
- Irish Soda Bread
- Hot Cheese Bread
- Rosemary Parmesan Focaccia Bread
How to Make Subway Bread at Home
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons Vital Wheat Gluten see above notes
- 1 1/4 cups warm water
- 3 tablespoons butter cold
- 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions
- In a stand mixer mixing bowl, combine yeast, 1/2 c. warm water, and sugar. Stir until well combined and let stand for about 10 minutes until nice and foamy.
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine flour and vital wheat gluten. Add 1 c. warm water to the yeast mixture (in the stand mixer bowl) and add flour/wheat gluten mixture until combined.
- Attach the bowl to the stand mixer and with the bread hook attachment, mix dough for about 3-4 minutes, adding a little flour if necessary- keeping it a little sticky.
- You want the dough to be sticky enough that it sticks to the bottom of the bowl a little bit, but not the sides.
- After 3-4 minutes, cut up 3 Tbsp. of cold butter into little cubes and add to the mixing bowl and add 1 Tbsp. salt. Mix an additional 5-6 minutes until butter is mixed in to the dough, pull the bread down off the hook if needed throughout the mixing process. Again, you want the dough to be slightly sticky and stretchy.
- Place dough in a large greased bowl and roll around a little to get it greased all around. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for about an hour.
- Punch dough down and divide into 3 equal pieces (flour your hands if the dough is too sticky for easier handling). Roll out each piece into a 12" long loaf.. The dough should be the same thickness all the way across. Place on a non-stick baking sheet (I used a silicon baking mat) or a bread form pan. Cover and allow to rise 40-60 minutes, until dough doubles in size.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake in oven for 12-25 minutes (check at 12 minutes) until bread is golden brown. Remove from oven and lightly run a little cold butter over the top(this will soften it up nicely).
- Allow loaves to cool completely, then serve with all your favorite sub sandwich toppings!
Riya Shah says
How can I store the baked breads?
Echo Blickenstaff says
Store it in an airtight container or plastic wrap at room temperature. Thank you for asking!