Vegan pulla bread - this vegan version of Finnish braided cardamom bread is soft, sweet and aromatic. It is wonderful served with butter or jam, and coffee of course!
The beautiful four strand braid is easier to make than you might think but makes the loaf look very impressive. Give it a try, you'll be surprised at how straightforward it is to make delicious home-made bread!
This vegan pulla bread is soft, sweet and has a wonderful flavour thanks to the addition of warming ground cardamom.
It is shaped into a beautiful four strand braid (or three strand if you prefer!), which is easier to make than you might think!
It is delicious served with (vegan) butter and/or jam and a cup of tea or coffee for breakfast or for a mid morning or afternoon snack, and it makes amazing toast too.
What Is Pulla Bread?:
Pulla bread, also named Nisu, is a soft, slightly sweet cardamom scented bread that is popular in Finland and is commonly served with coffee.
Did you know that Finland has the highest per capita coffee consumption in the world?!
Pulla is somewhere between a challah and a brioche, but has it's own unique flavour thanks to the aromatic cardamom.
Pulla actually encompasses a variety of different sweet breads and rolls, but the thing that ties them all together under the name of 'Pulla' is the addition of the cardamom to the dough.
It is often formed into a braided loaf and may be topped with a sprinkling of pearl sugar or flaked almonds.
What Do I Need To Make Vegan Pulla Bread?:
Bread flour: White bread flour helps to give this vegan pulla bread it's soft, fluffy, chewy texture. Plain (all-purpose) flour will also work though the texture isn’t quite the same. I don’t recommend using wholemeal flour as that will make the bread too dense.
Instant yeast: I always prefer to use instant yeast when making bread as it can just be added straight to the flour and doesn’t need to be activated first. See below for instructions if you only have active dry yeast.
Salt: You simply cannot make good bread without salt. Don’t omit it.
Sugar: I use caster sugar in the dough as it dissolves easily; it can be swapped for granulated if that is all you have.
Vegan block butter: I always prefer to use a block butter/margarine when baking, rather than the spreadable kind in a tub which has a higher water content so may not give the best results. Naturli Vegan Block is my favourite. (Spreadable will work if that is all you have).
Non-dairy milk: Soy milk is always my favourite for baking as it has the highest protein content so most closely resembles dairy milk. Any variety of non-dairy milk will work however, but go for an unsweetened one if you can, and definitely soy milk if you have it.
Cardamom: The cardamom is what gives this vegan pulla bread it's classic flavour. I always go for freshly ground as it has a stronger flavour than pre-ground cardamom. If you only have pre-ground then you may want to add a bit more to compensate (¼ tsp more maybe? Can't be certain, I've never used pre-ground before).
It is a bit of a pain shelling all the cardamom pods to get the seeds out then grinding them up, but the flavour is absolutely worth it! You can use either a pestle and mortar or a spice grinder to grind up the seeds.
How To Make Vegan Pulla Bread:
(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)
To make the dough, place the non-dairy milk and butter in a pan over a low heat and stir until the butter has melted. Set it aside to cool until it is lukewarm. Do not add it to the other ingredients while it is hot or it may kill the yeast. You should be able to comfortably hold your finger in the milk.
While the milk is cooling, I take this time to shell and grind up my cardamom seeds as it can take a while to shell all those pods! I used a total of 15 cardamom pods for this loaf.
Once the milk has cooled, place the bread flour in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the yeast to one side and the sugar, salt and ground cardamom to the other. Mix to combine.
Add the butter and milk mixture and stir to form a rough dough then knead on a medium speed for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and stretchy. It should still be a bit sticky but should pull away from the sides of the bowl cleanly.
If it seems too wet you can add a little more flour, a tablespoon at a time but be careful not to add too much or the bread will be dry.
If you don't have a stand mixer then you can knead the dough by hand on an unfloured surface.
Place the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave to rise until doubled in size - about 1-2 hours in a warm spot or overnight in the fridge.
How To Do A Four Strand Braid:
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and give it a very brief knead to knock out the air then divide it into four equal pieces (or three if you want to do a three strand braid). It is best to use a scale to do this so that each piece is the exact same weight. Shape each piece into a ball.
Roll one of the pieces of dough out into a thin oval shape. If the dough is sticking you can lightly oil the worksurface and rolling pin.
Starting at one of the long edges, roll the dough up tightly into a sausage. Roll over the sausage with your hands, starting from the middle and working outwards, to form a long, thin strand.
Increase the pressure from your hands at the ends to taper them. You want the ends to be pointy and the strand to be thicker in the middle.
Repeat with the rest of the portions of dough, making sure that all of the strands are the same length.
On a lightly floured surface, arrange the four strands parallel to each other. At one end, gather the tips of the strands together and pinch them tightly so they stick together.
To make a four strand plait you just have to repeat the following: take the strand that is furthest to the right and weave it over, under, over the other strands.
Repeat this same process, always with the far right strand, until the whole loaf is plaited. Be careful not to plait it too tightly or the loaf may split in the oven.
Pinch the ends of the strands together tightly so that it doesn't unravel. Transfer it to a baking sheet lined with baking parchment and loosely cover it with cling film or a clean tea towel.
Set it aside to rise in a warm spot until it is puffy. About 45 minutes to 2 hours depending on whether you refrigerated the dough and how warm out it is.
The bread is ready to bake when when it has visibly almost doubled in size and if you gently poke it with a finger it springs back slowly most of the way but leaves a small indentation. If it springs back quickly and fills in completely then it isn’t ready yet.
When the pulla is ready, brush it gently all over with non-dairy milk then bake for about 30 minutes.
What Kind Of Yeast?:
I always use instant yeast when I am baking bread as it doesn't need to be activated in liquid first, you can just add it straight to the flour. I highly recommend buying instant yeast if possible.
If you are only able to get active dry yeast then you can still use it but the method will be a little different.
Once you have heated up the milk and butter, let it cool until it is lukewarm, NOT hot. You should be able to comfortably hold your finger in it. If it is too hot then it will kill the yeast.
Stir in 10g (3 tsp) of active dry yeast and a pinch of the sugar. Let it sit for 10-20 minutes until it has become bubbly then proceed with the rest of the recipe as written.
How To Speed Up The Rising Time:
If your room temperature is cold and you want to speed up the rising time a bit then you can heat the oven up on it’s lowest temperature for a couple of minutes then switch it off and open the door for 30 seconds to let some of the heat out.
Hold your hand in there for a few seconds to make sure it isn’t too hot. It should feel warm but not hot, like a warm summer day kind of temperature. If it is too hot it will kill the yeast so be careful!
>Place the covered dough in the oven and shut the door. If it is a really cold day then you may need to warm the oven up again after a while but I usually find that once is enough.
Alternatively, place a bowl or loaf tin in the bottom of your (cold, switched off) oven and place the covered dough on the middle shelf. Fill the bowl with boiling water and close the oven door. The steam will create a warm environment for the dough to rise.
How To Tell When Vegan Pulla Bread Is Baked:
The best way to tell if bread is baked properly is to check the internal temperature with a probe thermometer. It should reach at least 90°C/194°F.
Overbaked bread will be dry and if it is underbaked then you will be eating raw dough, yuck! It is impossible to give a one-size-fits-all baking time as all ovens vary.
I really do recommend investing in a probe thermometer, it is an incredibly handy kitchen tool!
If you don’t have a thermometer then a toothpick inserted into the centre of the loaf should go in and out smoothly with little resistance and come out clean. It should also sound hollow if you tap it on the bottom.
Can I Freeze This Vegan Pulla Bread?:
Yes, this vegan pulla bread freezes well, either as a whole loaf or in slices. Allow it to cool completely before freezing and freeze on the day it is baked to preserve freshness.
It should be frozen in an airtight container or well wrapped to protect from freezer burn. Allow it to defrost at room temperature.
If you have frozen the whole loaf you can refresh it in a low oven for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Can I Make It Gluten-Free?:
No, I’m afraid that you cannot use gluten free flour. Making gluten free bread is tricky and the entire recipe would need reworking. Gluten free baking is not my area of expertise so I cannot advise you.
It is best to use a recipe that is designed to be gluten free rather than trying to adapt a non gluten free recipe.
Top Tips:
For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them. A gram is always a gram, but a cup won’t always measure out the same amount.
Make sure that your yeast isn't out of date! Old yeast can lead to bread that doesn’t rise.
Don’t be tempted to add more flour to the dough, it is supposed to be a bit soft and sticky. If you add too much flour the pulla will end up being dry and dense, not light and fluffy.
The rising time of the dough will vary depending on how warm it is; on hot days it will rise much faster than on cold ones.
Bread flour will give you the best texture; but you can use plain (all-purpose) flour instead if you don’t have any. I don’t recommend using wholemeal/whole wheat flour as that will result in dense, heavy pulla bread.
You can top the pulla bread with a sprinkling of pearl sugar or flaked almonds (or both!) after you have brushed it with milk if you want.
I like to make it into a four strand braid but you can go for a simple three strand if you want. You can also use this recipe to make rolls (the bake time will be shorter in this case, about 20 minutes).
Vary the amount of ground cardamom that you add depending on how strong you want it. 1 tsp makes for a more subtle (but still prominant) flavour, 2 tsp will give you a very strong kick! I use 1 tsp, which for me was the seeds from about 15 cardamom pods.
You can make this vegan pulla bread all in one day, or you can make the dough in the evening and place it (covered) in the fridge to rise overnight then continue with the rest of the recipe in the morning. In this case the second rise may take longer as the dough will be cold, but it will also be easier to shape the braid.
This vegan pulla bread is best eaten on the day it is baked but it will keep in an airtight container for a couple of days. If it starts to get a bit dry it makes great toast!
More Vegan Bread Recipes:
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Vegan Pulla Bread
Ingredients
- 260 ml (1 cup + 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp) unsweetened non-dairy milk (soy is best)
- 60 g (¼ cup) vegan block butter (I use Naturli Vegan Block)
- 400 g (3 cups + 2 Tbsp) white bread flour
- 8 g (2 ½ tsp) instant yeast
- 60 g (¼ cup + 1 Tbsp) caster or granulated sugar
- 1-2 tsp freshly ground cardamom seeds (I use 1tsp, about 15 pods)
- ½ tsp salt
- non-dairy milk for brushing
Instructions
- To make the dough, place the milk and butter in a pan over a low heat and stir until the butter has melted. Set it aside to cool until it is lukewarm. Do not add it to the other ingredients while it is hot or it may kill the yeast. You should be able to comfortably hold your finger in the milk. While the milk is cooling, I take this time to shell and grind up my cardamom seeds.
- Once the milk has cooled, place the bread flour in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the yeast to one side and the sugar, salt and ground cardamom to the other. Mix to combine.
- Add the butter and milk mixture and stir to form a rough dough then knead on a medium speed for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and stretchy. It should still be a bit sticky but should pull away from the sides of the bowl cleanly. If it seems too wet you can add a little more flour, a tablespoon at a time but be careful not to add too much or the bread will be dry.If you don’t have a stand mixer then you can knead the dough by hand on an unfloured surface.
- Place the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave to rise until doubled in size – about 1-2 hours in a warm spot or overnight in the fridge.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and give it a very brief knead to knock out the air then divide it into four equal pieces (or three if you want to do a three strand braid). It is best to use a scale to do this so that each piece is the exact same weight. Shape each piece into a ball.
- Roll one of the pieces of dough out into a thin oval shape. If the dough is sticking you can lightly oil the worksurface and rolling pin.
- Starting at one of the long edges, roll the dough up tightly into a sausage. Roll over the sausage with your hands, starting from the middle and working outwards, to form a long, thin strand. Increase the pressure from your hands at the ends to taper them. You want the ends to be pointy and the strand to be thicker in the middle.
- Repeat with the rest of the portions of dough, making sure that all of the strands are the same length.
- On a lightly floured surface, arrange the four strands parallel to each other. At one end, gather the tips of the strands together and pinch them tightly so they stick together.
- To make a four strand plait you just have to repeat the following: take the strand that is furthest to the right and weave it over, under, over the other three strands. Repeat this same process, always with the far right strand, until the whole loaf is plaited. Be careful not to plait it too tightly or the loaf may split in the oven.
- Pinch the ends of the strands together tightly so that it doesn’t unravel. Transfer it to a baking sheet lined with baking parchment and loosely cover it with cling film or a clean tea towel.Set it aside to rise in a warm spot until it is puffy. About 45 minutes to 2 hours depending on whether you refrigerated the dough and how warm out it is.
- The bread is ready to bake when when it has visibly almost doubled in size and if you gently poke it with a finger it springs back slowly most of the way but leaves a small indentation. If it springs back quickly and fills in completely then it isn’t ready yet.
- When the bread is nearly ready to bake, preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4.
- When the pulla is ready, brush it gently all over with non-dairy milk then bake for about 30 minutes. It is ready when a probe thermometer inserted into the centre reaches at least 90°C/194°F. If you don't have a thermometer then a toothpick inserted into the centre of the loaf should go in and out smoothly with little resistance and come out clean. It should also sound hollow if you tap it on the bottom. Cover the pulla loosely with tin foil partway through baking if it starts to get too dark.
- Slide the baked loaf onto a wire rack and allow to cool completley before slicing. Once cool store in an airtight container.
Notes
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them. A gram is always a gram, but a cup won’t always measure out the same amount.
- Read the post above for all of my tips to make the best vegan pulla bread. If you have questions about the recipe I may have already answered them!
- You can top the pulla bread with a sprinkling of pearl sugar or flaked almonds (or both!) after you have brushed it with milk before baking it if you want.
Clara Hodiamont
Absolutely delicious! White bread flour is not common where I live so I used a mix of fine wheat flour and whole wheat flour. And I only had fresh yeast at home so I used 22g of that instead of instant yeast. It turned out perfectly. Soft and fluffy but still dense. Had 3 slices with vegan butter and strawberry jam before it had cooled down 😀 Thank you very much for this amazing recipe. I will definitely make it again for brunch. Or breakfast. Or pre-lunch snack. Or tea. Or coffee. Any time really 😀
michelle L
fresh out the oven and it's amazing! I will probably add more cardamom next time (just a personal preference) but other than that, thanks for an awesome recipe!
JDA
Perfect! Thank you for sharing this recipe. It came out exactly as I remember it growing up with Swedish bakery goods, but better because it’s vegan. It made my Easter brunch!
Katrina Nelson
I've made this recipe countless times over the last year so it's about time that I finally make my review known! I've come across a few other vegan recipes for Korvapuusti and this one is my favorite. My grandmother is very traditional finnish and loves when I make this.
Note for anyone familiar with non-vegan dough; I find this is much less stretchy; rather, it is a tough dough when you're rolling it out. The end product tastes fantastic so for me, it was worth putting the muscle in! Mentioning this just in case anyone else casts doubt on their process (:
I've used both bread flour and all-purpose and both work great.