You don't need any baking skills to enjoy a fresh loaf of homemade bread hot from the oven! This no-knead, no-yeast 3-Ingredient Beer Bread recipe is the quickest, easiest, and tastiest loaf that you will ever prepare. Serve it with dip for a party-friendly appetizer, or offer it with a bowl of soup or chili for a cozy side with dinner!
Easy Beer Bread Recipe
The term "beer bread" refers to any bread that has beer included in the dough mixture. This particular 3-ingredient recipe is made with no yeast, so it's a quick bread that rises with the help of the leavening agent in the self-rising flour and the beer. Best of all, it comes together in about 5 minutes, so it's a great last-minute option when we need a simple side dish or a delicious appetizer with minimal effort.
What does beer bread taste like?
The slightly sweet beer bread has a rich, full-grain flavor, making it perfect with savory dishes like soup and chili, and equally tasty when toasted with butter and jam for breakfast. The beer gives it a "yeasty" flavor, without overpowering the loaf. The alcohol cooks off in the oven, so kids can freely enjoy the bread, and no -- it won't make you drunk!
Ingredients
This easy homemade bread comes together with 3 basic ingredients, which you can keep in your pantry for any last-minute cravings!
- Self-rising flour: flour with the leavening agent and a little bit of salt already added. If you don't have any self-rising flour in your pantry, you can make your own with these helpful instructions.
- Beer (at room temperature): light beer, non-alcoholic beer, and stronger, darker beer will all work. The beer flavors the bread and helps it rise.
- Sugar: enhances the flavor of the bread. You can double the sugar for a sweeter loaf, or reduce it to 2 tablespoons for a more savory option.
The Best Beer for Bread
You can alter the style and taste of your bread by changing the type of beer that you use in the dough. For instance, I've shown a very mild, light beer here, which creates a light, subtle loaf of bread that's appealing to young kids. If you prefer a more pronounced flavor, use a stout or a dark beer for your bread. Essentially, the bread will taste like a more mild, toned-down version of whichever beer you choose to use.
How to Make Beer Bread without Yeast
This easy recipe comes together with about 5 minutes of prep. There's no yeast, no kneading, and no rising time required!
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- Stir together all of the ingredients in a large bowl, just until combined. Do not over-mix.
- Transfer dough to the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake for 45 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean).
Serving Suggestions
Most often, we enjoy this bread as a side dish with dinner. It's perfect spread with butter and served alongside a warm bowl of chili, soup, or stew, and side salads. You can also pair the bread with roast chicken, grilled steaks, salmon, or a cozy pot roast.
Beer Bread Dip
This bread is also a popular appetizer or snack when served with a variety of dips. Here are some delicious cold dips that go well with a fresh loaf:
Storage
Wrapped tightly, the bread will stay fresh at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also freeze the loaf for up to 2 months.
Recipe Variations
- Cheese Beer Bread: Add 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese (or another flavorful cheese of your choice). A teaspoon of garlic powder or 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh chives would also be delicious savory additions!
- Mix in diced bacon or ham.
- Irish: Use Guinness stout or another similar Irish beer for a robust, full-flavored loaf of bread.
- Sweet: Double the sugar in this recipe to ½ cup. You can also mix in raisins, currants or dried cranberries for a loaf that's similar to Irish soda bread.
Tips for the Best Beer Bread Recipe
- Use a beer that you enjoy. Light beer is fine, non-alcoholic beer is fine, and a darker, more robust beer works well if you like a more prominently-flavored bread.
- Do not over-mix the dough. Stir until just combined -- a few lumps are fine. Over-mixing will result in a dry, dense, tough loaf of bread.
- Make sure that your self-rising flour is fresh. If the leavening agents in the self-rising flour are no longer effective, your bread will not rise.
- Add about ¼ teaspoon salt to balance the sweetness in the bread and give the loaf a more complex flavor.
- For a more indulgent flavor, brush the warm loaf of bread with plenty of melted butter as soon as it comes out of the oven. This is what we do with biscuits and it gives them a moist, buttery flavor that's delicious!
More Homemade Bread Recipes to Try
- No-Knead Bread
- Garlic Bread
- Focaccia Bread
- Easy Homemade Bread
- Honey Wheat Bread
- Soft Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Crescent Rolls
3-Ingredient Beer Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups self-rising flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 (12 ounce) can of beer, at room temperature
- Optional: ¼ teaspoon salt (to balance the sweetness of the loaf); melted butter for brushing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until just combined. Do not over-mix.
- Transfer dough to the prepared loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean). Brush the warm loaf of bread with melted butter, if desired.
Notes
- Use a beer that you enjoy. Light beer is fine, non-alcoholic beer is fine, and a darker, more robust beer works well if you like a more prominently-flavored bread.
- Do not over-mix the dough. Stir until just combined -- a few lumps are fine. Over-mixing will result in a dry, dense, tough loaf of bread.
- Make sure that your self-rising flour is fresh. If the leavening agents in the self-rising flour are no longer effective, your bread will not rise.
- Add about ¼ teaspoon salt to balance the sweetness in the bread and give the loaf a more complex flavor.
- For a more indulgent flavor, brush the warm loaf of bread with plenty of melted butter as soon as it comes out of the oven. This is what we do with biscuits and it gives them a moist, buttery flavor that's delicious!
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in December, 2017. It was updated in December, 2020.
Hi,
I am not a baker. So I like this really simple recipe. We are running short of self raising flour. Can I use whole meal flour? Thank you very much.
Jo
Hi, Jo! This is a perfect bread to start with if you're not an experienced baker. You don't want to substitute with regular flour because you need the leavening in the self-rising flour to help the bread rise. If you'd like to make your own self-rising flour at home, it's really easy. Here's an article that explains how to use regular all-purpose flour to make self-rising flour: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/homemade-self-rising-flour-recipe
Hope that helps, and enjoy!
Sheltering at home and using what I have on hand to reduce the times I must shop for food. Made soup and wanted some bread - but had no milk or yeast. Found this recipe and gave it a try. I did not have self rising flour but found out from King Arthur Flour website how to make some with what I had. It was so easy. The bread came out beautifully and tasted just as good as it looked. We will definitely have this again. Thanks.
That's so good to hear, Marion! I'm glad that you enjoyed it and were able to make it work with what you had on hand. Thanks for letting me know!
Hi, Deb! I'm not sure -- it's hard to say what might have gone wrong. Sometimes overmixing or overworking baked goods (like muffins or quick breads) will cause the finished product to be too dense or tough. Maybe that was the case here? Or, it could just be that you were expecting a lighter yeast-like bread, which is different from this bread. This is more like a dense quick bread (like banana bread, for example) because it's not made with yeast. Sorry that it wasn't what you wanted. 🙁
Sounds good, as we are not able to go around much I will try your recipe.
I may try a round loaf though.
Thanks for the recipe.
Cheers Lin.
I don’t have a loaf pan - think I can use something else? Not going out to the store anytime soon during these crazy times
Hi, Denise! Maybe a muffin tin? They would be more like rolls or biscuits in the muffin tin, but that would be my next best bet. You'll need to reduce the baking time, though, since the muffins would be smaller (probably about 25 minutes or so).
I was only able to find gluten free flour at the store... can this be made with gf flour?
Hi, Leslie! You need the leavening in the self-rising flour in order to help the bread rise, so a regular all-purpose or gluten-free flour (unless it's gluten-free self-rising flour) will not work here. I'm not familiar with baking with GF flour, but you can make your own self-rising flour at home with all-purpose flour. You might be able to do the same with the GF flour -- I'm just not sure. Here are the instructions if you want to give it a try: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/homemade-self-rising-flour-recipe
Thank you! I was able to find all purpose flour and modified it to use in this recipe. The bread turned out great and we all loved it!!!
Awesome! So glad that it worked, Leslie. Thanks for letting me know!
Just made this bread, and it’s delicious! So quick and easy! Love the slightly sweet taste. This will be breakfast tomorrow. Thank you so much for sharing.
Stay well
Thanks, Louise! So glad that you love it too!
Can a carbonated soda be substituted for the beer. I do not have ant beer in my house.
Hi, Beverly! I think the soda would probably "work," in that the bread would probably rise okay. That said, I would worry about the taste of the bread with the soda. The beer isn't very sweet, and adds a rich "yeasty" flavor to the bread. If you omit that and use a sweet soda, I'm concerned that the bread will be very sweet and will taste like whatever soda you use. I haven't actually tried it, though -- so just a thought!
Has anyone used non alcoholic beer in this recipe? Just me not wanting to “waste” beer 🙂
Hi, Lisa! The non-alcoholic beer should work fine!
Thanks Blair! I’ll be making this in the next day or so will let you know how it turns out, and which type of beer I used! Take care!
I made this yesterday using a non alcoholic Heineken lager and it turned out really well
Awesome! Thanks for following up to let us know, Lisa!
I'm gonna make this tonight for me and the boys, along with your dump corned beef and cabbage. Gonna add some lightly roasted caraway seeds and dill to give it a bit of a rye bread flavor.
Hi, Biev! If the bread didn't rise, it sounds like there was something wrong with your leavener. Maybe your self-rising flour wasn't fresh, so the baking soda didn't activate?
Omgoodnessss this bread right here , it is my family's new favorite thank you
That's awesome, Laura! Thank you!