Make the classic garlic bread sticks at home with this easy as well as fail-proof recipe. Once you make this flavorful garlic bread at home, you can satisfy your craving any time with this freshest choice!
I have already realized that baking bread is the most therapeutic activity for me which is why I keep on looking for new bread recipes to try at home. During such a recipe-search-mission, I got to know that we can actually make the Domino’s style garlic bread sticks at home! What could have been a better news than this for my recipe searching soul! I immediately browsed through many alternatives and after testing multiple batches, I have finally come up with my fail-proof version of garlic bread to make at home which will undoubtedly make you forget about the restaurant version. This garlic bread is so soft with its melt-in-mouth texture that you will simply get hooked to it and make it over and over again! I really love it when I am able to make a restaurant style dish at home as that enables me to ensure I am feeding myself & my family fresh ingredients and not loads of preservatives. Even though this garlic bread demands little work out, it is totally worth it! And if you are lucky enough to own a fancy stand mixer then there is no reason to not make this deliciousness at home!
The domino’s style garlic breadsticks are very unique in nature and have their own characteristic. They are loaded with oregano seasoning, have a crispy outer texture and a very soft & velvety inner feel. There are few things to keep in mind to achieve similar structure in your homemade garlic bread which I will talk about in a minute. My fail-proof recipe of garlic bread requires good amount of flour which I think of as an advantage as it makes 4 significant sized garlic bread; so you can knead the dough once, which is the only hard work involved, and keep the kneaded dough in refrigerator for upto 2 days; I have tested this duration and the result was as beautiful as the 24-hours rested dough. Yes, to build maximum flavor in the garlic bread dough, you need to rest the dough in refrigerator for a minimum of 18 hours, but 24 hours proofing time is more recommended. This cold & slow proofing method leaves enough time for the dough to soak up all the flavors from the added seasoning and olive oil to make an immensely flavorful garlic bread at the end which is exactly what we want to achieve. So do not negotiate on the resting time if you want the restaurant quality garlic bread at home.
Yeah, I know I have told above that making soft garlic bread would require some work out for your triceps but please don’t let that bother you and stop you from trying your hand at it. It is totally worth it. Once you take that freshly baked garlic bread out from the oven, it will not only fill your house with beautiful aroma but also fill your soul with a serene sense of accomplishment! Wouldn’t you love to experience that joy? I bet you would! So, let me arm you with some useful tips and tricks so that you can be successful in garlic bread baking from the very first time. The very first thing to ensure in bread baking is that your yeast is alive as sometimes we keep them lying in refrigerator for way too long ending up with inactive yeast; so even if you are using active dry yeast, I would recommend you to proof your yeast beforehand instead of directly adding it to the flour. Only if the yeast mixture foams up with some bubbles on top, you should proceed with the rest of the recipe, otherwise your dough won’t rise and all the hard work will simply go wasted.
Secondly, you may feel that the water to flour ratio in this garlic bread recipe seems to be imbalanced as I have used just 1 & ½ cups of water for 500 grams i.e. approximately 4 cups of flour, but there are two reasons for using less water in this recipe. Firstly, other than water there are 2 more liquids added to the flour i.e. olive oil and melted butter which are must for great flavor and soft texture respectively. Secondly, since I used the cold proofing method which takes almost 24 hours in refrigerator, the dough needs to be somewhat on the dryer side and not too sticky or wet as that would make the dough uncontrollably wet after proofing and it would feel almost impossible to shape the breads appropriately. Trust me, I have been there and have done that; so I am telling you from my first hand experience. Don’t be tempted to add extra water even if it feels too dry when you are adding the flour in installments. Keep kneading and all the flour will get incorporated with that much liquid only. Finally, try not to skip the cornmeal coating; it’s cornmeal only that gives the signature crispiness to your garlic bread which makes it so close to Domino’s garlic bread sticks. Hope you try this recipe of garlic bread at home and enjoy it as much as we did!
- All-purpose flour – 500 gms
- Active dry yeast – 7 grams (2 tsp)
- Sugar – 1 tbsp
- Warm water – 1 & ½ cups
- Garlic – 5 to 6 cloves, grated
- Olive oil – 4 tbsp
- Melted butter – ¼ cup
- Salt – 1 tsp or to taste
- Cornmeal / maize flour – ½ to 1 cup [Refer Tip 1 below]
- Oregano seasoning – 2 tsp
- Take the water in a large bowl, which is big enough to hold 500 grams of all-purpose flour and heat it up until it feels hot to touch but not boiling. If you have a thermometer (which is definitely the best way to ensure correct temperature of water to activate yeast), ensure that temperature of water is in between 105 to 110 F.
- Add the sugar and yeast to the warm water and leave it on the countertop for 10 minutes until the yeast is activated. The water will turn frothy and full of bubbles which proves that your yeast is successfully proofed.
- Now add the olive oil, half of the melted butter, grated garlic, 1 teaspoon of oregano seasoning and salt to taste. Give everything a good whisk to mix well.
- Now add one-third of the all-purpose flour or maida and mix well into the liquid using a spatula. Once all the flour is incorporated, add half of the remaining flour and again mix well.
- Finally add the remaining flour and start kneading the flour with your hands. You will have to knead the dough for 15 minutes if kneading by hands. After about 10 minutes of kneading, drizzle about a teaspoon of olive oil over the dough and continue kneading. Trust me, this will significantly ease the kneading process as well as ensure a soft bread.
- Generously oil a large and preferably deep bowl and place the dough into it. Drizzle little more olive oil on top and ensure that the dough is smeared with oil on all sides. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it chill in refrigerator for 18-24 hours.
- After about 24 hours, the dough should be doubled or tripled in size and will feel much denser than before. Punch the dough lightly to de-gas and take it out on a clean flat surface.
- Flatten the dough uniformly and cut it into 4 equal portions. Take each portion and form a ball by tucking the dough from the edges towards the bottom in a circular motion. Then place them on a well-floured surface, sprinkle some more flour on top, cover with a cling wrap and let them rest for 10 minutes.
- While the dough balls are resting, brush a baking tray with remaining melted butter; you may not need all of the remaining butter for coating, just make sure that the tray is generously coated with butter. Then drizzle half a teaspoon of oregano seasoning all over the baking tray. Set it aside while you shape the dough.
- Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F.
- On a clean, flat surface or on a rolling board sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of cornmeal or maize flour. Then place one portion of the dough ball on top of it and flatten it using your hands.
- Sprinkle little flour on top of the flattened dough and using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a circle of about 7 to 8 inch in diameter and about quarter of an inch thick. Do not flip the dough while rolling because the cornmeal needs to be only on one side of the bread.
- Once a uniform circle is formed, fold the dough to make a semi-circle and pinch the edges to seal. Shake off excess corn meal from both the sides and then transfer the shaped dough to the buttered baking tray.
- Now using a knife, make cut marks on the bread to make bread sticks without cutting all the way through. Generously brush the top of the garlic bread with melted butter. Then sprinkle more oregano seasoning (also some chili flakes for extra kick).
- Finally bake the garlic bread in the preheated oven for 6 minutes at 180 C / 350 F. Then increase the temperature to 220 C / 425 F and bake for another 8 to 10 minutes or until the top of the garlic bread turns golden brown.
- Take the garlic bread out from the oven and brush more melted butter on top; let the bread rest for 10 minutes before cutting them into breadsticks.
- After resting for 10 minutes, cut the garlic bread into breadsticks and serve the with cheese dip. Enjoy!
Tip 2: You can bake all the 4 garlic breads at one go if you have a really big oven. In my 52-liter oven, I could bake 2 at a time. The Baking time would not vary with number of breads but do check them in between.
Very good job…keep sharing such tasty recipes.
Hi! I’m thinking of trying this out and was wondering whether you use salted or unsalted butter?
I used unsalted butter. Sorry for so late reply!