This traditional Native American Bread recipe, made from simple ingredients, and comes together with minimal effort and doesn't have much kneading to result in a perfect slice that is best served with a drizzle of honey.
Table of Contents
Ingredients and substitutions for Native American Bread
- Flour: Plain or all purpose is best, unless you live in the UK where the protein level in bread flour is equivalent to plain in the US, so check your protein levels in your bread where you live.
- Masa Harina: Masa Harina is the dried corn flour for corn tortillas. This is most easily obtained in Mexican or Spanish stores, if not readily found in your supermarket.
- Yeast: Yeast doesn’t just help give our bread rise but also gives it that perfect bread crumb.
- Sugar and salt: The flavor boosters here add depth of flavor with sea or kosher salt and superfine or caster sugar working best to dissolve into the dough.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make Native American Bread:
Flour and yeast: The flour and yeast are stirred together in a bowl.
1
Wet ingredients: The water, sugar and salt are stirred together in a separate bowl and poured into the flour and yeast.
Form the dough: Form the dough and knead until smooth for 3 minutes.
Rising time: Set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
2
Shape: Shape into your loaf and place on tray to rest for 50 minutes.
3
Bake: Bake until lightly browned.
Serve: Slice once cooled, serving ideally with a little honey!
FAQ’s for the best Native American Bread
The original recipe states that you can make two loaves from this dough, though I prefer a large loaf so baked it according to the instructions below. If you prefer two smaller loaves than you only need to rest the loaves for 30 minutes and bake for 30 minutes each until golden.
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Native American Bread
Ingredients
- 385 grams / 2 ¾ cups cups bread flour
- 7 grams / 2 ¼ teaspoons yeast 1 small packet instant yeast
- 500 milliliters / 2 cups warm water
- 14 grams / 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 228 grams / 2 cups masa flour
Instructions
- Combine the flour, masa haina and yeast in a bowl, stir together and make a well in the center.
- In a separate bowl combine the water, sugar and salt and add to the flour.
- Stir until the mixture is smooth and form the dough.
- Knead on a floured surface for 3 minutes than place in a lightly greased bowl in a warm space until doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
- Turn the dough onto a working surface and shape into your loaf.
- Place onto a round baking tray and allow to rest for 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 190ºC/375F.
- Bake in the oven for 50 minutes or lightly browned.
- Remove and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
- Slice and serve.
Video
Notes
- Flour: Plain or all purpose is best, unless you live in the UK where the protein level in bread flour is equivalent to plain in the US, so check your protein levels in your bread where you live.
- Masa Harina: Masa Harina is the dried corn flour for corn tortillas. This is most easily obtained in Mexican or Spanish stores, if not readily found in your supermarket.
Nutrition
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Made it and loved it?
If you have made this recipe, it would mean so much to leave a review below to help more people find this.
Karen payne
Thank you. Was wondering which native American tribe ate this?
Sylvie
Hi Karen,
Thanks for stopping by and reading.
It's a very good question and I've found it hard in my searches to pinpoint exact Tribe's to any recipes I've found. In saying that, it seems the Southwest closest to Mexico is where this bread would have been eaten. Tribe's from the Southwest are most likely to consume this bread because the main ingredient, corn came from South/Central America and Mexico into what is now the United States.