Zopf (Swiss Braided Bread)

Medium·30 min

A glossy, golden braided loaf enriched with butter, milk and egg, with a soft tender crumb beneath its shiny crust. Rich and buttery rather than sweet, it is traditionally baked for Sunday breakfast across German-speaking Switzerland.

Egg

Zopf is the braided Sunday bread of German-speaking Switzerland, an enriched butter-, milk- and egg-rich loaf plaited and glazed golden; its name simply means 'braid'. Bernese bakers were making it by the late Middle Ages, and it was long given as a gift at Christmas and New Year. Now a national bread, it has close cousins in neighbouring Bavaria. Unlike Jewish challah it is made with butter rather than oil and carries very little sugar, so it is not a sweet bread.

The lacquered crust gives a gentle chew before yielding to a soft, buttery crumb that pulls apart in tender strands. Barely sweet, it is as good warm with butter and jam as it is with cheese and cold cuts.

The butter and egg enrich the dough for a tender crumb, while an egg-yolk wash caramelizes in the oven to give the braid its signature deep golden shine. Only a little sugar is added, so what sweetness there is comes mostly from the butter and milk.

Variations

All-milk versions, additions of raisins, wholemeal flour blends, regional New Year Neujahrszopf, shapes braided from three to six strands

On the Palate

Where Zopf (Swiss Braided Bread) sits in the Swiss flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 8

How it's made

8 steps · 30 min

1
5 min
Warm the milk and dissolve the yeast in it with a little sugar.
2
8 min
Mix flour and salt, then work in the yeast milk, soft butter and an egg.
3
10 min
Knead into a smooth, elastic dough that pulls cleanly from the bowl.
Watch out
Knead until the dough pulls away clean from the bowl and springs back when pressed — that stretch is what gives the soft, tender crumb.
4
60 min
Cover and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
Watch out
Let it rise until doubled and a poke leaves a dent that fills back slowly — under-proofed dough braids stiff and bakes dense.
5
10 min
Divide the dough into strands and roll each into a long even rope.
6
8 min
Plait the ropes into a tight braid, tucking the ends underneath.
7
4 min
Brush all over with beaten egg yolk for a deep glossy crust.
Watch out
Paint on egg yolk in an even film with no puddles — that thin coat is what bakes to the deep glossy shine.
8
35 min
Bake at 190°C for about 35 minutes until richly golden and hollow-sounding.
Watch out
It's done when it's richly golden and sounds hollow when you tap the bottom — a dull thud means it needs a few minutes more.