This steakhouse-style pumpernickel bread recipe is not traditional but it is soft, tender and flavorful! It has a slightly sweet flavor reminiscent of the bread at a classic American steakhouse but with a richer texture and flavor! This is an easy bread recipe that anyone can make!
Updated August 2026: a reader who bakes by weight caught an error in this card’s rye flour conversion, and she was right. The measurements below now match my original restaurant formula exactly.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
This is a brief summary of the recipe. Jump to the recipe to get the full details.
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Proof Time
2 hours
Total Time
3 hours 5 minutes
Servings
24 Slices
Difficulty
Moderate
Calories *
150 kcal per serving
Technique
Make dough, proof, divide, pre-shape, rest, shape, proof and bake!
Flavor Profile
Rich pumpernickel bread with a hint of cocoa powder and molasses
* Based on nutrition panel
This is a great bread recipe! I had some extra and I took your advice and turned them into crackers! They were so good! Perfect for a cheese plate or a snack. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Mara
While we made several versions of traditional pumpernickel bread in culinary school, this recipe is not one of them! This is straight from my pastry chef’s little black book. It is a steakhouse-style pumpernickel bread recipe that uses a combination of rye flour and wheat flour, and is sweetened with a little dark brown sugar and molasses. Like your favorite pumpernickel bagels but soft and in loaf form!
This is a fantastic and easy bread recipe like this classic Italian bread or potato bread. It is soft with a tight, tender crumb and it is just a little bit sweet! The cocoa powder adds a rich flavor, a little cornmeal adds texture and caraway seeds (optional) add both a little additional texture and flavor! I made this bread every week for years in Manhattan restaurant kitchens, always with white rye flour, and the formula below is exactly the one I used. This is a steal-the-show bread that will be a welcome addition to any dinner table or at Thanksgiving, and is even special enough for Christmas.
Table of contents
Why This is the Best Pumpernickel Bread Recipe
- Soft, tender and rises beautifully. The addition of wheat flour to this traditionally rye bread, adds elasticity, which allows the gluten network to trap the air created by the yeast and yields a taller, lighter, more tender loaf.
- A lightly sweetened and flavorful bread for dinner or sandwiches. The combination of cocoa powder, dark brown sugar and molasses create a slightly sweet and rich flavored bread. None of the ingredients is overpowering but they all add to the unique texture and flavor.
- Easy to make with foolproof professional instructions. During my time as an Executive Pastry Chef of Manhattan restaurants, I made and taught cooks how to make this recipe countless times. I will give you all my tips below along with step-by-step photos, but this bread recipe really is incredibly easy to make and very difficult to mess up!
- Written in grams, the way I actually bake it. This is a professional formula and it behaves best when you weigh it. Every gram measurement below is the one from the original recipe, and the cup measurements have been recalculated to match them.
What is Steakhouse Style Pumpernickel Bread?
Traditional pumpernickel bread is dark brown from baking a loaf made of 100% rye flour at a low temperature for a long time, but steakhouse-style pumpernickel bread is an Americanized version of the traditional German loaf. This American style is sweeter from added sugar, is made with a mix of rye flour and wheat flour giving it more rise and lighter texture than the traditional, and is brown from the addition of cocoa powder and sometime molasses. This version was made especially popular by American steakhouse chains.
Ingredients & Substitutions
A note on this update. When I wrote this post I converted my restaurant formula into cups and the rye line came out wrong. The card said 1 1/4 cups where 180 grams is really closer to 1 3/4. If you have been scooping, you have been making a slightly different loaf than I do. If you have been weighing, you were getting the correct rye with a cup measurement that disagreed with it. Both are fixed.
The bigger discovery was the rye itself. I developed this bread with white rye and have never made it with anything else. Because every rye flour weighs about the same per cup, a scale will not warn you that a stone-ground or dark rye absorbs far more liquid. That is what has been behind the dry, unworkable dough some of you have written to me about, and I am testing the liquid adjustment now so I can publish real numbers instead of a guess.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to tell me something was off. That is how a recipe gets better.
- Whole Milk: I use whole milk for this recipe because it adds flavor as well as fat to the dough, which contributes to the soft, tender texture. You can use any milk or milk alternative that you choose. You can also use warm water in a pinch.
- Dry Active Yeast: I prefer using dry active yeast or fresh yeast to instant yeast because they are more consistent and slower to rise. It sounds counterintuitive, but the longer bread takes to rise, the more flavor it has and the better structure up to a point. If you are out of active yeast or your yeast is no longer active, try my Irish brown bread recipe, which is an easy, no-yeast bread! You could also make rieska, which is a no-yeast rye bread!
- Granulated Sugar: Plain white sugar is just to give the yeast some readily available sugar to kickstart their fermentation. It isn’t necessary, so it can be omitted.
- Bread Flour: Bread flour has more gluten than all-purpose flour. This recipe is written for bread flour and that is what I use. It can be made with all-purpose, but the gluten will take longer to develop and the resulting height and texture might be more dense. The glutenin in bread flour is essentially compensating for the fact that rye flour contains gliadin but not glutenin, which creates the elasticity.
- White Rye Flour: This is the flour I developed the recipe with and the only one I have ever made it with, in restaurant kitchens and at home. White rye flour is sifted, so the bran and germ are removed, and it absorbs far less liquid than a whole grain rye. Medium rye is the closest substitute. I do not recommend swapping in a stone-ground rye flour, or a dark or pumpernickel rye, without adding liquid: the bran in those flours drinks up the milk and leaves you with a stiff dough that fights the mixer. I am testing that conversion now and will update this post with the exact numbers as soon as I have them.
- Cornmeal: The addition of cornmeal is untraditional and very American. It adds a wonderful texture, but be aware that the cornmeal itself will tear the dough, which may make it seem underdeveloped or misshapen. You can make this same recipe without it, but I have found it to be inferior.
- Cocoa Powder: You can use any unsweetened cocoa powder that you have on hand. I typically use Dutch processed cocoa powder because I use it in baking like these chocolate thumbprint cookies, chocolate cupcakes and the best chocolate pound cake.
- Caraway Seeds: Ground or whole caraway seeds are also optional depending on whether or not you enjoy their licorice flavor. I don’t but they do provide a lovely texture and savory flavor when serving this bread for St. Patrick’s Day, wish a roasted vegetable soup, or hearty lamb stew.
- Canola Oil: Vegetable oil makes the bread soft and extra moist. It also extends its shelf-life and lends a tender texture. You can use a different oil, but I wouldn’t recommend omitting it or using butter instead.
- Molasses: Molasses adds sweetness and a warm, deep flavor. It, along with the cocoa powder, makes this steakhouse-style pumpernickel bread brown! Do not use blackstrap molasses in this bread. It is too strong and bitter.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Possible Variations on Steakhouse Bread
- A healthier variation: No one would accuse this recipe of being healthy, but you can’t omit the brown sugar and molasses because they play an active role in hydration. This Russian black bread recipe is a bit healthier while retaining some of the sweetness, or you can try my multigrain bread or oatmeal bread for a healthier sandwich bread recipe.
- Make the leftovers into pumpernickel crackers: This bread is excellent when sliced thin, brushed with butter, and baked in a low oven until crisp. Serve with cheese, fruit and your favorite jam like this pear shallot jam or this easy strawberry jam recipe. It is also excellent served with this hot reuben dip!
- Shape & bake this recipe into rolls, buns or mini loaves. Use the recipe for parker house rolls as a guide for shaping and baking this recipe into pumpernickel rolls, or make it into hamburger or sandwich buns using this brioche buns recipe! When this recipe is baked in mini loaf pans it is an excellent size for cheese boards or the aforementioned crackers!
- Add some mix-ins for texture and flavor. Omit the caraway seeds and add some raisins, dried cherries or cranberries like I did in my walnut raisin pumpernickel bread or these fruit and nut crackers. Add some of your favorite nuts for texture and crunch.
Professional Tips for Pumpernickel Bread
- Weigh this dough if you possibly can. Flour is the least reliable thing you can measure in a cup. A cup of bread flour can swing 15 grams depending on how you scoop it, and manufacturers do not even agree with each other on what a cup weighs. This dough is on the firm side by design, so a heavy hand with the flour is felt immediately.
- Use white or medium rye, not stone-ground. All rye flours weigh about the same per cup, so this is not something a scale will catch for you. What changes is how much liquid they drink. White and medium rye are sifted. Stone-ground, dark and pumpernickel rye still have the bran and germ, and rye bran absorbs several times its own weight in water. Same 180 grams, completely different dough.
- Read the dough, not the clock. At the end of mixing this dough should clear the sides of the bowl but still feel tacky when you press it. If it is smooth, tight and slightly rough, and the mixer is walking across your counter, it is too dry. Add milk one tablespoon at a time until it relaxes. Write down what you added so you can repeat it.
- Do not let the cornmeal fool you. The cornmeal will tear the surface of the dough as it mixes and it can read as underdeveloped when the gluten is actually fine. Judge readiness by the window pane, and pull your test piece from a spot without a visible grit of corn in it.
How to Make Steakhouse Style Pumpernickel Bread
Use these instructions to make soft, tender and flavorful pumpernickel bread! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.
Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer whisk together the dry active yeast, teaspoon of granulated sugar and warm milk. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until bubbly.
Step 2: Add bread flour, rye flour, cornmeal, salt, cocoa powder, and caraway seeds to the yeast mixture in the stand mixer bowl. Fit with the paddle attachment and mix on low until the dough begins to come together.
I find the paddle is more efficient at incorporating than the hook in most home stand mixers.
Step 3: Add the dark brown sugar, oil and molasses and mix on low until all the ingredients are mixed and the flour has been hydrated.
Step 4: Switch to the dough hook attachment and mix on low speed until a smooth dough forms. This is a stiff dough so if you mixer needs a break give it a minute and finish by hand or wait a minute and mix on low agian. Use the window pane test to tell if the dough is done. The caraway seeds and cornmeal can make this a little tricky but don’t be discouraged! You can knead the bread by hand on a lightly floured surface until the surface is smooth and bounces back when you poke it.
If you are worried about being able to test for readiness, you can always add the caraway seeds after the gluten development is complete. Simply add and incorporate them into the dough on low speed as you would raisins in sourdough raisin bread or this raisin walnut pumpernickel bread.
WINDOW PANE TEST: take a golf ball sized portion of the dough from the mixer and gently start to pull the dough apart. I like to think of it as a square and gently pull on two sides, then rotate and repeat. If the dough tears instantly, it is definitely not ready. If it allows you to pull it thin enough to see light through it, then it is ready.
Step 5: Remove the dough from the stand mixer using a stiff silicone spatula or a bowl scraper, and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and then place in a warm spot. Allow to proof 30-60 minutes or until doubled in volume. The time will depend greatly on the warmth of your room.
Step 6: Divide, Pre-shape & Bench rest. Turn the dough out onto a lightly or un-floured surface. Divide the dough in half (each weighing approximately 680g) Fold each of the four sides towards you into the center, turning the dough after each fold. This will create a little packet. Flip the dough so the seam is on the counter. Shape it into a round by using both hands to pull the dough towards you. Once you have a round ball with a smooth top, repeat with the second loaf. Cover both to keep the top from drying out and allow it to sit and bench rest for 15 minutes.
Step 7: Final Shape. We are going to shape these into a log. Take the dough round and flip it over. Grab the top and bottom edges and gently pull it into a small rectangle. Place it on the counter and fold the top edge down 2/3rd of the way and press it into the dough. Rotate so that the unfolded edge is now away from you and fold that edge down towards you to meet the bottom edge. Press to seal. Now we are going to do 2 thumb folds. Take the top edge with your right hand and fold it over you thumb about half way down, pressing to seal as you go. Repeat until you have folded the entire length. You will notice the dough getting tighter and also longer.
Keep in mind the length of your pan. You don’t want your dough to be longer than your pan. You can put it on the counter for reference if that makes it easier to judge the length.
Step 8: Repeat the thumb fold once more, sealing really well on the bottom. You should now have a log shape that is even in width along the whole length, that is the length of your pan, and tight enough to not slouch onto the counter. If the dough is too loose, repeat the thumb fold once more.
Step 9: Spray with non-stick spray or butter 2, 9×5 inch loaf pans. Place each log into the sprayed pan seam-side down. Cover with plastic wrap and place once more in your warm spot.
Step 10: Allow to proof until the dough just starts to reach the top of the pan. When that happens preheat your oven to 350°F.
Step 11: Baking! As soon as the oven has preheated, bake for 35-40 minutes or until the internal temperature reads 185°F.
Step 12: Allow to cool 5 minutes in the pan then remove to a rack to cool completely.
If the pumpernickel loaf sits in the pan too long, it will steam and the sides and bottom will get soggy!
Serving Suggestion! I recommend a generous spread of salted Irish butter or cream cheese. Bonus points for maple butter or honey butter!
Frequently Asked Questions
Nine times out of ten it is the rye flour. All rye flours weigh roughly the same per cup, so a scale will not warn you, but a stone-ground, dark or pumpernickel rye still contains the bran and germ and absorbs dramatically more liquid than the white rye this recipe was developed with. If that is what you have, expect to add milk a tablespoon at a time until the dough clears the bowl but still feels tacky. The other common cause is measuring flour by the cup and packing it in. Scoop and level, or better, weigh.
Cool pumpernickel loaves completely before wrapping in plastic-wrap or in an airtight container or plastic baggie. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerated for a week or frozen for up to 2 months. Storing the uncut loaves well wrapped in the freezer will keep them the most fresh.
Rye bread is a general category of bread containing various percentages of rye flour. Pumpernickel is a type of dark rye bread. Traditional European pumpernickel bread is made only with dark rye flour and sometimes rye berries and does not contain wheat flour. While wheat flour contains both glutenin and gliadin, rye flour only contains gliadin. That makes traditional pumpernickel more gummy and it lacks the elastic structure needed to trap the air produced by the yeast during fermentation. Traditional pumpernickel is, therefore, more dense.
Traditional pumpernickel bread made with 100% rye flour is dark brown due to the maillard reaction produced by baking the loaves at a low oven temperature for a long time. The maillard browning is a chemical reaction of proteins and sugars.
Steakhouse pumpernickel bread is very versatile. You can use it to accompany a hearty soup or stew, tame a spicy dish or curry, or as part of a Holiday feast. The loaves make excellent sandwiches (try this spicy Thai veggie sandwich or turkey bacon bravo!); toast with butter or cream cheese and jam; or turn the leftovers into a bread pudding, stuffing or French toast! Top the toast with a thick shmear of cream cheese and smoked salmon or as the best avocado toast you’ve ever had!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below! I love hearing from you and your comments make my day!
Pumpernickel Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ⅔ cups whole milk, warmed to 110°F
- 1 tablespoon dry active yeast
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 3 ½ cups bread flour
- 1 ¾ cups white rye flour
- ⅔ cup cornmeal
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon caraway seeds
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, or canola
- ⅓ cup molasses
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the warm milk, yeast and granulated sugar. Let stand 5 minutes, until bubbly.
- Add the bread flour, white rye flour, cornmeal, salt, cocoa powder and caraway seeds. Fit the mixer with the paddle and mix on low until the dough begins to come together.
- Add the dark brown sugar, oil and molasses. Mix on low until everything is combined and the flour is fully hydrated.
- Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium until a smooth dough forms and passes the window pane test. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but still feel tacky. If it is tight and rough, add milk one tablespoon at a time.
- Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and proof in a warm spot 30 to 60 minutes, until doubled.
- Turn out and divide in half, about 680g each. Pre-shape each into a round, cover and bench rest 15 minutes.
- Shape each round into a tight log no longer than your pan. Place seam-side down in two greased 9×5-inch loaf pans. Cover and proof until the dough just reaches the top of the pans.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until the internal temperature reads 185°F.
- Cool 5 minutes in the pans, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely. Do not leave the loaves in the pans or they will steam and go soggy.
Notes
Presentation – Slice thick and warm for the bread basket with salted Irish butter, or slice thin and square for a cheese board. The dark crumb looks best against a light board or a white napkin-lined basket.
Flavor Tips – The cocoa and molasses do the heavy lifting on color and depth. Do not reach for blackstrap molasses, it turns the loaf bitter. Caraway is entirely optional; leave it out and the bread reads sweeter and more mellow.
Technique – Weigh this dough if you can. It is a firm dough by design and a heavy cup of flour is felt immediately. Mix until it clears the bowl but is still tacky to the touch.
Variations – Omit the caraway seeds, or add raisins, nuts or other chopped dried fruit. Bake in mini loaf pans for cheese boards, or shape into rolls or sandwich buns.
Storage – Cool completely before wrapping in plastic wrap, an airtight container or a plastic bag. Room temperature up to 3 days, refrigerated for a week, frozen up to 2 months. Uncut loaves, well wrapped, freeze best.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!Before you go!
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef created recipe. Check out all our yeast bread recipes or try your hand at one of our easy sourdough recipes. If you are in the mood for more slightly sweet, yeasted breads, try this fantastic Hawaiian bread recipe or this buttery brioche loaf.
I want to try this recipe and would like to use my dutch oven and make it a round loaf. I don’t know the baking degrees or times for using the dutch oven, can you help me out with these instructions? Will this make only one loaf or two? Thanks for the help.
Great idea! The recipe makes 2 loaves, but works beautifully as one round dutch oven loaf. Preheat your dutch oven at 450°F for 30 minutes. Shape the dough into a tight round boule, place on parchment, lower into the hot dutch oven, score the top, and bake covered for 20 minutes, then uncovered for 15-20 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 185°F. Happy Baking ~GVD team
Very dry and could not knead in a professional kitchenaid. I’m baking it now so we’ll see…..
Hang in there! This dough is intentionally stiff — that’s normal for pumpernickel and actually key to its dense, hearty texture. One important note: make sure to mix on low speed, not medium — we found an error in the recipe wording and are updating it now. High speed on a stiff dough can strain even a professional mixer! Hope it baked up beautifully — please let us know! ~GVD team
I’ve read through the Pumpernickel Bread recipe and can’t wait to try it! Just have to gather the ingredients! Sounds easy and fantastic!!!
Hi Marcia! I’m so glad you’re excited to make it! You’re going to love how soft and flavorful it turns out. Can’t wait to hear what you think once you’ve baked it! ~gvd team
This is a great bread recipe! I had some extra and I took your advice and turned them into crackers! They were so good! Perfect for a cheese plate or a snack.
Soft, easy dough. Using flour for shaping actually made it kind of difficult. Next time I’ll try not using any or maybe just my hands.
Hi Kristen! So happy to hear you had such an easy, enjoyable time! This is one of my favorite breads to bake on the blog. Thanks for coming back to rate and comment! ~gvd team
Yum!! Soft and lightly sweet 🙂
Thank you for taking the time to come back to comment and rate, Jessica!
this dough is SO dry and i measured by grams. i cant even mix it and it caused my KitchenAid to die. dont recommend this recipe. RIP KitchenAid
Hi Rebecca! That is so upsetting to hear. I actually made this recipe for years in a professional kitchen and it is a soft, easy dough. The photos are from a professional photographer who was also given the same recipe. The only thing I can think of is you said you made it in grams. I realized that the recipe plugin has its own conversions (which it does not let me control). Did you use the gram measurements in the notes (to the right of each ingredient) or did you toggle the recipe card to “metric”. I did that just now and I was horrified by the difference and it is no wonder that it didn’t work. I have disabled the function and I am currently in the process of switching to a better recipe plugin, which allows me to control the specific conversions for each ingredient. I cannot apologize enough. ~Lindsey
Hi Lindsey,
I am not one for sandwich bread that is sweet. This bread looks great. I would like to reduce the amount of brown sugar and molasses. How much can I reduce each without having drastic consequences on the texture of the bread?
Tks a Bunch,
Deb
I hear you, Deb! You could omit the brown sugar and reduce the molasses to 1/4 cup. If you reduce it further, you will kind of destroy the essence of the bread! Not saying it won’t still be good and it will definitely work even if you omit both, but it won’t be the same! The sugar and molasses also add moisture and make for a softer texture. ~Chef Lindsey
Hi Lindsey,
Thanks for the quick response. I have another question.
Once formed into the boule shape, can they be proofed and bake as is?
Deb
Sure! No problem, Deb
Is there a good replacement for the molasses? Molasses contains carcinogenic/ reproductively harmful compounds so I don’t ingest it anymore. Would maple syrup or more brown sugar work? Does it need a substitute or can it be omitted?
Hi Jessica! You can absolutely substitute it with maple syrup, which will give the bread a slightly different flavor. Yes, more brown sugar would also work. If you’d rather not use a substitute at all, you can omit but it will be more dry. I have not tried that myself. Let me know how it turns out, and happy baking! ~gvd team
My dough was extremely dense and almost impossible to mix. I couldn’t get it to the window pane state. I weighed the dry ingredients and I’m confident I measured everything correctly. What could have gone wrong? I did mix by hand as I usually do with other breads.
Hi Hazel! It sounds like the dough might not have been hydrated enough! As you likely know from experience, sometimes it take a bit longer when mixing by hand for all the flour to absorb the liquid. You could mix it longer or use a stand mixer to help you develop the gluten! if the dough feels too dense, you can always add a little more liquid (a teaspoon of warm water at a time) until the dough is more manageable. Rye doughs tend to be denser, so they require more attention to hydration. Let me know how it goes if you try it again, you can do it! ~gvd team
Hi Hazel, I saw your comment when I was replying to another person and they had a similar experience. I am confident that you did nothing wrong. I actually made this recipe for years in a professional kitchen and it is a soft, easy dough, so it was quite a shock to me to see. I realized that the recipe plugin has its own conversions (which it does not let me control). I toggled the recipe card to “metric” and I was horrified by the difference and it is no wonder that it didn’t work. I have disabled the function and I am currently in the process of switching to a better recipe plugin, which allows me to control the specific conversions for each ingredient. I cannot apologize enough. You can find my metric conversions to the right of each ingredient. This is the only way I have ever made this recipe, so I am confident it will work. ~Chef Lindsey