Eastern Europe: Chocolate Babka
Middle East: Pita Bread
A common yeasted flatbread across the Middle East, pita bread is known for its pockets, which form when the bread rises quickly in a hot oven. Serve it warm dipped in homemade hummus or stuffed with falafel. Here’s how to make pita bread step by step.Italy: Focaccia
Focaccia is rustic, all-purpose bread from Italy. You can use it as sandwich bread or serve it as a side dish. It’s often heavily herbed and its texture can absorb copious amounts of olive oil. For another variation, try this Olive Focaccia.India: Naan
One of the most popular types of Indian bread, naan is a flatbread traditionally made with all-purpose flour, as well as milk or yogurt, and brushed with butter or ghee. This coconut garlic naan recipe uses whole-wheat flour and is brushed with coconut oil for a slightly healthier take on the recipe. For a more authentic version, here’s how to make naan the traditional way.France: Baguette
Of all of the many types of French bread, baguettes are one of the most well known. Not to be confused with French loaves, which are wider, baguettes are long and thin. Eat them on their own dipped in olive oil or slathered with butter, or use them in these recipes that start with a baguette.
Mexico: Conchas
Conchas are a type of Mexican sweet bread that come in a variety of colors and shapes. They have fluffy, brioche-like dough and a crispy streusel topping that’s scored to resemble a shell. Eat conchas for breakfast or a snack, and then try these other sweet bread recipes.Germany: Stollen
This Christmas bread from Germany is packed with nuts, candied fruit and spices. Add on a glaze or a sprinkling of powdered sugar and it’s practically dessert! For another variation, try this marzipan stollen recipe.Brazil: Pão de Queijo
Pão de queijo, or Brazilian cheese bread, are rolls made with tapioca flour. As Brazilian food blogger Aline Shaw of Brazilian Kitchen Abroad writes in her pão de queijo recipe, the rolls are designed to be “lightly crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside.” They make a great snack, appetizer, breakfast or side dish.
Norway: Lefse
Lefse is a Norwegian potato flatbread that’s traditionally eaten around Christmastime. Serve it topped with butter and jelly, cinnamon and sugar, or deli meat and cheese.
Philippines: Ube Bread
Ube bread is a type of filled bread (similar to a cinnamon roll or pinwheel bread) that’s stuffed with ube, a purple yam originally from the Philippines. This ube bread recipe is both a milk bread and a yeast bread.
Venezuela: Arepas
Arepas are cornmeal-based breads that are often stuffed with meat and vegetables to make a sandwich. They’re also popular in other South American countries, and you can either grill or bake them. Check out these other sandwiches from around the world.
Ethiopia: Injera
Injera is a spongy, fermented flatbread that’s used in place of silverware to scoop up dishes from stews to meat. It’s usually made with teff, a gluten-free whole grain that’s loaded with nutrients. To make it at home, try this recipe from food blogger Imma Adamu of Immaculate Bites. Check out these other gluten-free bread recipes, too.
Hungary: Beigli
A beigli is a Hungarian sweet roll filled with either nuts or seeds. The stuffed brioche-like dough is a traditional Christmas treat for many folks with Central European heritage. Try these other classic Hungarian recipes.Finland: Pulla
Pulla is Finnish sweet bread that’s often braided and always scented with the enticing aroma of cardamom, making it perfect for a teatime treat. If you like this recipe, check out these other beautiful braided bread recipes.United States: Fry Bread
Originating from the Native Americans of the southwest, fry bread is a flat disc of dough fried in oil or lard. You can eat it plain with butter and honey, or pile it with taco toppings.Armenia: Lavash
Lavash is a type of flatbread that’s popular in Armenia as well as other nearby countries. (It’s also the name of one of our favorite cookbooks from around the world.) This lavash recipe from food blogger and cookbook author
United Kingdom: Hot Cross Buns
These buns are filled with dried fruit and topped with a bit of icing. Traditionally they are served on Good Friday, but they are delicious enough to enjoy all year.Ireland: Soda Bread
Irish soda bread is unique in that it is leavened only with baking soda. Traditionally, no yeast was used and it was as basic as could be. These days, you can find Irish soda bread recipes with additions like cheese, dried fruits, herbs and seeds.Japan: Milk Bread
Japanese milk bread, also known as Hokkaido milk bread or shokupan, is a fluffy white bread often made with a starter technique called tangzhong. This recipe comes from recipe developer Rezel Kealoha. Rezel recommends eating Japanese milk bread with homemade jam and butter when it’s warm and fresh, but it’s also popular with egg salad!
Slovenia: Poteca
Poteca, sometimes spelled potica or povitica, is an Eastern European yeast-based pastry filled and layered with a sweet nut mixture. It can be round, shaped or in a loaf. Any way you slice it, it’s delicious.Poland: Bagels
Bagels are distinctive breads in that they’re boiled before they’re baked (much like pretzels). They hail from the Jewish communities in Poland, and while they’re perfectly delicious plain, it’s hard to pass up a schmear of cream cheese. Here’s how to make homemade bagels.Sweden: Limpa
Limpa bread is a Swedish rye bread flavored with orange, and fennel or anise (or both). It’s wonderful simply toasted with butter but you can also use it as sandwich bread.Korea: Cream Cheese Garlic Bread
A popular Korean street food, cream cheese garlic bread is a round yeast loaf stuffed with a garlic cream cheese filling and topped with herbs. This recipe comes from blogger and YouTube star Chua Zong Han of the baking blog TheZongHan.
Denmark: Julekage
Julekake or julekage is a rich, sweet bread packed with dried fruit and cardamom. It’s a staple in Scandinavian households during the winter holidays.Russia: Krendl
A Russian holiday bread, krendl is usually reserved for Christmas. This pretzel-shaped sweet bread is stuffed with dried fruits and makes an enticing centerpiece for any celebration.United States: Sourdough
Sourdough bread is unique because it makes use of naturally occurring yeast to achieve its rise. Varieties exist in many countries, but San Francisco has proven itself as the source of some of the best tangy-flavored bread in the world. You’ll need a starter in order to make it, but you can make your own with our sourdough starter recipe.Italy: Ciabatta
Ciabatta bread is a type of Italian loaf that’s great for making sandwiches or dipping in hearty soups. This recipe starts with biga, which is similar to a sourdough starter. For a slightly faster recipe, try our No-Knead Ciabatta.