Making homemade bread is one of the simplest pleasures in life. When making bread, many homebakers experiment with various techniques to achieve the perfect crust, flavour, and appearance. One common method is applying an egg wash to the dough before baking, often as an alternative to brushing the bread with butter. But can swapping butter for egg wash make a difference? And are they interchangeable?
It’s important to note that butter plays a multifaceted role in bread making. It's often added to the dough itself or brushed on top before or after baking. When incorporated into the dough, butter adds richness, moisture, and tenderness to the bread. It helps create a soft crumb and contributes to the overall flavour. When used as a topping, butter can give the bread a golden-brown colour and a rich, slightly crispy crust. It also imparts a subtle buttery flavour and a shiny finish, making the bread visually appealing.
Egg wash, a mixture of beaten eggs and a liquid like water or milk, is applied to the surface of the bread before baking. Its primary purpose is to give the bread a glossy, golden-brown finish. The proteins in the egg wash coagulate when exposed to heat, forming a thin, shiny layer on the bread's surface. This not only enhances the appearance of the bread but also creates a slightly crispier crust. Depending on the desired outcome, egg wash can be adjusted—adding more milk can soften the crust while using only egg yolk can intensify the golden colour.
Swapping butter for egg wash can have a significant impact on the texture and appearance of your bread. While butter tends to create a softer, more tender crust, egg wash results in a shinier, crisper exterior. The choice between the two depends largely on the type of bread you’re making and the final texture you want to achieve. For example, if you’re baking soft rolls or brioche, butter might be more appropriate to maintain the bread’s tender, rich quality. On the other hand, if you’re aiming for a loaf with a decorative, shiny crust, such as challah or braided bread, egg wash is the preferred choice.
Butter adds a rich, savoury flavour to bread, which can be particularly desirable in loaves where a buttery taste complements the other ingredients, such as in dinner rolls or croissants. In contrast, egg wash doesn’t contribute much in terms of flavour but enhances the bread's visual appeal. If you’re making bread that already has a strong flavour profile or you don’t want the added richness of butter, using egg wash can be a good alternative. It’s especially useful in sweet breads or pastries where the butter flavour might compete with other ingredients like fruit or spices.
Egg wash is particularly versatile and can be adjusted to suit different types of bread. For instance, adding sugar to the egg wash can create a sweeter glaze, perfect for pastries and sweet breads. A sprinkle of seeds or coarse salt on top of an egg wash before baking can add extra texture and flavour to the crust. Butter, while versatile in its own right, is generally used more consistently across bread types for its flavour and tenderizing properties, rather than for achieving specific aesthetic effects.
The decision to use butter or egg wash ultimately comes down to the specific characteristics you want in your bread. If your goal is to create a rich, flavorful bread with a soft crust, butter is the better choice. However, if you’re looking for bread with a shiny, crisp exterior, egg wash is the way to go. Some bakers even use a combination of both—applying butter to the dough and then finishing with an egg wash for the best of both worlds.