If making homemade baked bread isn’t in the schedule but the bread box is empty, we’ve got you covered!

This homemade beer bread recipe makes a perfect crusty loaf in about an hour, using just 5 ingredients! No yeast is required!

This easy recipe yields a loaf perfect for dipping, sandwiches, or toast and jam!

sliced Easy Beer Bread

Why We Love Beer Bread

  • Beer bread requires no yeast, beer acts as the leavening agent in this recipe.
  • This bread really requires no kneading, and no rising time.
  • With just a few ingredients, it’s super simple. 
  • Get creative and add in seasonings, spices, or even cheese or bacon to customize!
Beer bread in a loaf pan

Ingredients & Variations

Flour: This easy beer bread recipe uses self-rising flour to make it quick. If you don’t have self-rising flour, I’ve included directions for all-purpose flour in the notes!

Beer:  Beer helps this bread rise, and it also adds flavor. Dark beer, like stouts, have a deep flavor, while light beer makes for lighter-tasting bread. Both are great; just use what you have on hand!

Flavorings: This beer bread is a terrific recipe to experiment with since it’s practically foolproof.

  • Try adding in some shredded cheese, or add extra honey to make a sweetbread!
  • Chopped jalapenos or chilies will spice things up!
  • Dried herbs like thyme or rosemary with some chopped sun-dried tomato, a clove of minced garlic, and parmesan make an Italian-style bread!
Beer Bread ingredients

How to Make Beer Bread

This is a super simple homemade bread recipe, and the prep is really fast.

  1. Combine wet and dry ingredients in a large bowl (per the recipe below).
  2. Spread into a greased loaf pan.
  3. Bake and enjoy.

That’s all there is to it! It’s great with butter and jam or served with stew or soups for dunking and dipping. Serve with soup or a yummy bruschetta for the perfect side dish or appetizer!

Tips for Perfect Beer Bread

  • Most, if not all of the alcohol cooks out, leaving behind the yeasty and savory flavors.
  • Mix the dough until well combined but don’t overmix or the bread will be dense.
  • This bread has very few ingredients so don’t skip the salt or sugar, and don’t skimp on the butter. They are needed for flavor.
  • Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not overbake
Sliced beer bread topped with jam

Storing Beer Bread

  • Store beer bread in an airtight container or a resealable plastic bag for up to 3 days at room temperature. It is best eaten within 24 hours.
  • To freeze beer bread, wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and then place it in a freezer bag or container for up to 3 months.
  • Thaw at room temperature for a few hours before serving or warm the bread in the microwave or toaster.
  • Leftover beer bread can be used to make croutons, breadcrumbs, or even breakfast casserole.

More Savory Quick Bread Recipes

We often think of quick breads as banana bread or zucchini bread but quick breads can be savory as well.

Did you love this Beer Bread? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!

image of Everyday Comfort cookbook by Holly Nilsson of Spend With Pennies plus text
sliced Easy Beer Bread
4.96 from 97 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
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Easy Beer Bread

Made with no yeast, no kneading, and no rise time, this easy beer bread is ready for the oven in no time!
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 12 slices
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Ingredients  

  • 3 cups self-rising flour or all purpose flour with baking powder, see notes
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 12 ounces beer room temperature
  • cup butter melted
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease an 8″x4″ loaf pan.
  • In a medium bowl whisk self-rising flour and sugar until well combined.
  • Add beer, melted butter, and salt. Stir to combine.
  • Pour the batter in the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Cool before slicing.

Notes

Self-rising flour can be replaced with 3 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 4 teaspoons baking powder.
Beer can be replaced with seltzer water but the beer adds flavor so you will want to add additional seasonings or additions. Don’t skip the salt & sugar, and don’t skimp on the butter or the bread will not have any flavor.
You can add seasonings like garlic powder, herbs such as dried basil or parsley, and/or parmesan or cheddar cheese to change up the flavor.
Mix the dough until moistened. Don’t overmix or the bread will be dense.
 
4.96 from 97 votes

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 182 | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 144mg | Potassium: 39mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 158IU | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course Appetizer, Bread, Side Dish
Cuisine American
Easy Beer Bread with butter and a title
Easy Beer Bread with a jar of jam beside it and a title
Easy Beer Bread cut into slices with a title
Easy Beer Bread in the pan and plated with writing

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About the author

Holly Nilsson is the creator of Spend With Pennies, where she creates easy, comforting recipes made for real life. With a passion for nostalgic flavors and simplified techniques, Holly helps busy home cooks create delicious meals that always work. She is also the author of “Everyday Comfort,” which promises to inspire even more hearty, home-cooked meals.
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Comments

  1. Easy & excellent recipe. I followed the recipe as written adding shredded parmesan cheese, chopped sun dried tomatoes and garlic. My husband and I really loved the taste and texture Next time I’ll add rosemary, oregano or basil for even more flavor.. Thank you!5 stars

  2. just want you to know..I look up alot of recipes online and Spend with Pennies…are by far always the best!!…I haven’t had any bad recipes with yours! Thank you!!5 stars

    1. We have not tried baking it this way so I can’t say for sure, Wendy. If you do decide to try it, I would love to hear how it goes!

  3. it came out crumby, dont get it, am at 4000 ft above sea level… cant make bread here, any help?

    1. Unfortunately I’m unable to offer any advice for baking at a high altitude Heidi, but maybe another reader has some advice!

    2. I had the same problem when I tried to slice it before it completely cooled, once it was cooled (to room temp) it was fine.

  4. Hi
    I love your recipes and have cooked a number. I have enjoyed them immensely.
    When I found your Easy Beer Bread recipe I was going to go there! When Covid-19 hit years ago, all of a sudden no yeast was to be had in New Zealand! I found lots of beer bread recipes on line. One thing I have learnt is that US sources add huge quantities of sugar to bread. Yesterday I made your recipe. I always follow the recipe first time. Lovely shape and texture. BUT SO SWEET! I will make it again using 1Tsp rather than 3 Tbls of sugar! And I will explore the the flavouring suggestions you provided. All of your readers re-interpret, LOL! But we love what you do!4 stars

  5. Great recipe! I followed the note for using regular all purpose flour and added 1 Tablespoon of dried rosemary and it turned out great. Excited to try additional variations on this in the future.5 stars

  6. Delicious! Thanks for mentioning this bread can be made with carbonated water instead of beer! I’ve tried making beer bread for years as an easy way to make bread with no yeast but have never loved the somewhat bitter flavor of the bread. I thought I was using the wrong kind of beer until I tried making the bread with carbonated water instead of beer. Loved, loved, loved the flavor of the bread minus the beer! I followed the instructions to make the bread with all purpose flour instead of self rising flour and added some honey. The resulting bread is super delicious and no bitter flavor.5 stars

      1. Thanks! It’s cooking as we speak; looking forward to trying additions mentioned in comments!

  7. used craft beer Grimross NB and the bread looks smells amazing.I used October fest it raised beautifuly and lookin forward to having it for Easter dinner.5 stars

  8. This was a very good bread. I just wish it was a little less sweet. And, since I live alone, there is NO WAY I can eat an entire loaf of bread in THREE days. I made it last week and I’m still eating it. I just wish it would have come out a little darker.

  9. Hi! I’m planning on making this bread this weekend. I will be using AP flour since I rarely have self rising flour. I would just like clarification on adding the salt… the recipe calls for 1 tsp of salt when using self rising flour. The note for AP flour says add a 1/2 tsp salt. Is this in addition to the 1 tsp for a total of 1.5 teaspoons or will I be reducing the salt to a 1/2 teaspoon total? Thank you!
    And btw, I love your recipes!!!

      1. We did enjoy it! I made it yesterday to bring to a friend’s for a St. Patrick’s day dinner & hangout. I ended up just getting the SR flour. I didn’t add anything extra like cheeses or seasonings, but I did make your beer cheese dip which came out perfectly too! We dipped the bread in the cheese and it was great! I used Yuengling beer for the bread and Kona Longboard for the dip. I’m actually making the bread again tonight! I’m going to use Guinness Stout and add some cheddar cheese. Next time I’m going to make with jalapeno! Thanks for sharing your amazing recipes! I always look forward to your emails with recipes to try!5 stars

      2. Thank you for sharing the results Dana! I am so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe!

  10. This sounds wonderfully easy. Can I substitute fresh rosemary for dried? Also, I am wondering how it would be with pesto. I guess I’ll just have to try that. Thank you for sharing the recipe!

    1. I haven’t tried either but I think the fresh rosemary should work just fine! If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out Karren!

  11. This is my go to base for a quick loaf of bread now. I make dessert breads by using apple flavored beer brown sugar instead of white and adding apple pie spice. I make a garlic bread loaf by using garlic butter instead of original butter, and garlic salt I sprinkle the top with a shredded parm.
    I plan to make a chocolate loaf later using Guinness adding some Dutch dark cocoa and a few chocolate chips.
    The recusing a perfect base and lend very well to some basic additions! Thanks so much!5 stars

  12. This recipe works well without beer. I had one of those “sorry, honey, I drank the last beer” moments last weekend. Since I had already whisked the flour & sugar together I looked through the pantry & found a can of Coke. It fizzed up beautifully & saved my day. The bread was ever so slightly sweet, but not so much that I couldn’t make sandwiches with it. Has anyone ever tried using brown sugar rather than white? Today I am making a garlic loaf. We like really garlicky bread, so I put a tablespoon of minced garlic in with the butter as I melted it, and also substituted garlic salt for the salt. It is in the oven now, and it smells heavenly!

    1. I haven’t tried it with brown sugar, but maybe another reader can help you! Thank you for sharing Charisma!