Chocolate Chip Brioche Recipe
I once spent about a year trying to master croissants to make pan au chocolate or chocolate-filled pastries. But those are hard to make, and mine were never that great. Luckily, I discovered how much easier it is to make brioche, which tastes totally different but still feels fancy and French. Adding chocolate chips just made good sense.
You might find this absurd and too chocolatey, but I always serve chocolate chip brioche with hot chocolate and a bowl of strawberries. It’s a Valentine’s Day tradition and often requested for birthday breakfasts. Hope you enjoy it.
Chocolate Chip Brioche
Equipment
- simple bread machine or stand mixer
Ingredients
For the dough
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 eggs
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 3 ¾ cups all purpose flour (up to 4 cups if needed)
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 ½ cups chocolate chips
To top the buns
- 1 egg beaten
- Sparking or pearl sugar
Instructions
- Prepare the Wet Ingredients. In a microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup, combine the water, milk, and butter. Microwave on low power for 45-60 seconds, just until the butter begins to melt and the mixture is warm. Stir to fully dissolve the butter.
- Mix the Dough. Put the warm milk mixture, eggs, sugar, flour (starting with 3 ¾ cups), salt, and instant yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer. Then attach the dough hook to the mixer and start it on a low setting to mix all the ingredients together. After that, increase the speed to medium and knead the dough for about 8-10 minutes. The dough should be slightly sticky but still form a ball that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If the dough is too sticky (more like a batter), add flour one tablespoon at a time, allowing it to fully mix in before adding more.
- Add Chocolate Chips. Once the dough is smooth and elastic, reduce the mixer speed to low and add the chocolate chips. Knead just until the chips are evenly distributed throughout the dough, about 1-2 minutes. Avoid over-kneading as it can break the chips and affect the dough structure.
- First Rise. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning it once to coat all sides with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel.Let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free area for about 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
- Shape the Rolls. Once risen, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 18 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth ball by pulling the dough from the sides and tucking the ends underneath. If the dough is sticky, lightly oil your hands or use a bit of flour to prevent sticking.
- Second Rise. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the dough balls on it, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Gently brush each roll with beaten egg and sprinkle with sparkling or pearl sugar. Cover the rolls loosely with greased plastic wrap. Let them rise again in a warm, draft-free area for about 45 minutes or until puffy and nearly doubled.
- Preheat the Oven. During the last 10 minutes of the second rise, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C) with the rack positioned in the center.
- Bake the Brioche. Once the rolls have risen, place the baking sheet in the preheated oven. Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped. If they brown too quickly, tent loosely with aluminum foil.
- Cooling. Remove the rolls from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool slightly. They are best served warm but can be cooled completely and stored in an airtight container.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Incorporating chocolate chips into brioche has to be at the right time Add them too early, and they’ll break down during kneading, turning your dough streaky. The sweet spot is right after the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
And yes, regular chocolate chips are all you need. Nothing fancy!
Tips for Success
To help the dough rise properly, you must provide a warm and draft-free environment. You can use an oven with the light on or a microwave with a cup of steaming water to encourage a good rise.
An egg wash will make bread appear dark as it bakes, which may make you think it’s done when it isn’t! Use a thermometer to check or pull apart one of the buns to make sure it’s baked through
Dough sticking to your hands while you shape the rolls? Try spraying with nonstick spray firstIf you live above sea level, read here to learn about candy-making at high altitudes.
Ingredients and Equipment
Bread Flour: While all-purpose works, bread flour gives better structure
Pearl Sugar: Creates a lovely crunch but coarse sugar works too
Make It Your Own
- Swap chocolate chips for chopped nuts or dried fruit
- Add orange zest to the dough for a citrusy twist
- Make larger rolls for brioche burger buns
- Try mini chocolate chips for more even distribution
This is definitely a delicious and cozy treat that’s perfect for winter mornings. And hey, it’s really no worse for you than cereal. Enjoy!
By Katie Shaw
Katie lives in Virginia with her husband, three daughters, a chocolate lab, and over thirty chickens. She loves creating simple tutorials for sourdough, bread, and soap. Her recipes, articles, and YouTube videos reach millions of people per year.
im not understanding why the pictures are of a bread machine but there is no mention of doing this in a bread machine
because I kneaded it in a bread machine. you can also knead by mixer or hand.
These brioche buns are amazing I made them according to instructions the first time around and they were perfection. The second time I made them I decided to mix it up a little. I used brown sugar in place of regular and used cinnamon chips instead of chocolate chips. I also topped them with a sprinkle of cinnamon and sugar.
hi trista! so happy they were a success. lovely idea with the cinnamon sugar that’s one of my favorite flavors 🙂
This is it. This is the recipe. I’ve tried several other chocolate chip brioche recipes, all more complicated than this one, and the results weren’t half as good. Not only was this easy, but I was enjoying a hot roll with my coffee 3 hours after starting the recipe. Will be making this again and again!
The best !!
Does the type of milk matter for this recipe?
whole milk is technically “Best” but i always use 2%. I’ve never tried skim.
I’ve never made any kind of Brioche bread before, nervous to say the least.
I followed instructions exactly and used my bread machine.
The only change was mini chocolate chips (1c) and baked at 350 deg for 20 minutes. Absolutely perfect I’ll keep this recipe in my wheel house.
Thank you for a wonderful recipe with easy to follow instructions.
I can’t wait to try more of your recipes.
Made these yesterday and they came out perfect – super delicious, and they reheat well! I used a stand mixer and this was my first time with a sticky dough like this, but your instructions and video made it easy to navigate through the steps of the recipe. Thank you for sharing this, I will certainly be making it again!
i’m so happy the brioche turned out well for you! thank you for letting me know 🙂
Going to try these next, I make buttery breakfast bread rolls for my grandchildren and they love them, it’s a sticky dough just like yours and like you I use my bread machine to make to make the dough.
yes aren’t they so much easier in the machine!?
Could you bake this as a loaf instead of rolls? How should I adjust the baking time accordingly?
I’ve never tried it that way but it should work! try being at 375 for 35 minutes
Thanks for sharing your recipe! I made this at the last minute tonight and my family loves them! Definitely will make over and over again! How do you think it would taste if I added cocoa powder to the dough? Would all the amounts of other ingredients remain the same?
hi Lisa! so glad you liked it! I’ve never tried cocoa powder but I think it would be fine. yes keep everything else the same and I’d try to mix it with the liquids first!
A wonderful bread. My kitchen was hot so the chocolate melted making the bread look like it had brown swirls but it tasted fantastic.
mine does that sometimes too! but we don’t mind either! 🙂
Best bread I’ve made – fluffy and soft, just how we love it.