20 Garlic Bread Recipes You'll Want to Save Tonight

Garlic pull apart bread turns a simple yeasted dough into a shareable, tear-and-share centrepiece that's just as good dunked into soup as it is served alongside a roast. Each little pocket gets its own hit of garlic butter, so you never end up with a dry corner piece the way you can with a sliced baguette. Below are 20 ways to make it, from a classic from-scratch loaf to five-minute shortcuts using shop-bought dough, so there's a version for a lazy weeknight and one for a proper dinner party. Whichever you pick, the method stays forgiving: knead, prove, dunk in butter, prove again, then bake until it sounds hollow.

The benchmark version: a soft, enriched dough made with butter, milk and egg, cut into small pieces, rolled in melted garlic butter and parsley, then stood upright in a loaf tin with shredded mozzarella scattered between the layers so every piece browns on top and the cheese melts through the middle. The key swap is using warm whole milk rather than water, which gives a softer, slightly sweet crumb that toasts well the next day. Brush the top layer with extra garlic butter halfway through baking so the crust doesn't dry out before the centre finishes cooking.

Save time by using a 500 g (1.1 lb) tube of shop-bought pizza or bread dough, since it's already risen once and only needs a brief knock-back before cutting, dunking and baking. Swap fresh garlic for 1 tsp garlic powder stirred into the melted butter if you're short on time, as it clings to the dough more evenly than raw mince does. Give the cut, buttered pieces one shorter second rise of about 20 minutes before baking, and the whole loaf is ready in about an hour, well under half the time of the from-scratch version, making it the one to reach for on a busy Tuesday.

Instead of cubes, roll the dough into small balls and twist each one before dipping, giving more crust-to-crumb ratio and crisper edges throughout. Use only fresh garlic here, finely grated rather than minced, since the smaller pieces mean the butter needs to coat generously without pooling at the base of the tin. A final scattering of parsley straight from the oven gives these knots their bright, herby finish.

Browning the butter before mixing in the garlic adds a nutty, caramel depth that plain melted butter can't match, just watch it closely over medium heat until it smells toasty and turns amber. Swap the parsley for finely chopped rosemary, which holds its flavour better through the bake than more delicate herbs. This is the loaf to make on a cold Sunday alongside a stew, torn straight from the tin while still warm.

Stir 40 g (1/2 cup) of finely grated Parmesan into the garlic butter and press extra over the top layer before baking, so it melts into a golden, savoury crust. The cheese also seasons the bread as it bakes, so you can dial back the added salt slightly elsewhere in the recipe. Serve it warm, while the cheese on top is still a little crisp at the edges.

Stripped right back to dough, butter, garlic and salt with no herbs or cheese, then baked in a 25 cm (10 in) cast iron skillet instead of a loaf tin for a wider, flatter pull-apart with more surface area for the butter to soak into. The skillet also lets you serve it straight from the pan at the table, still faintly sizzling at the edges. Good for anyone who wants garlic bread without extra flavours competing with the main course.

Add the finely grated zest of one lemon and a good pinch of dried chilli flakes to the garlic butter for a version with real bite, since the acidity cuts through the richness nicely. Swap the parsley for fresh coriander if you're serving this alongside something spiced. It pairs especially well with grilled fish or a big bowl of pasta where you want the bread to do more than just mop up sauce.

Replace half the white bread flour with wholemeal, using 210 g (1 3/4 cups) of each rather than all white, and expect the dough to need a touch more liquid since wholemeal flour absorbs more. Scatter sesame or nigella seeds over the buttered pieces before the final prove so they toast into the crust. This version keeps a day longer than an all-white loaf, since wholemeal flour has a slightly better shelf life.

Let a bread machine handle the mixing, kneading and first rise on its dough setting, then tip the dough out and take over from the cutting stage, using basic pantry flour, yeast and milk powder rather than a fancier enriched mix. It's an easy way to batch dough ahead if you're feeding a crowd more than once in a week. Just grease the tin well, since bread-machine dough can be slightly stickier to handle than dough kneaded by hand.

A wetter, no-knead dough mixed the night before and left to rise slowly in the fridge means zero kneading and no stand mixer, just stir, rest overnight, then shape in the morning. Swap the usual second prove for a quicker 20-minute rest at room temperature, since the dough is already well developed from its long, cold ferment. This is the one to prep before bed when you want fresh pull-apart bread on the table with barely any hands-on time the next day.

Stir 100 g (3.5 oz) of unfed sourdough discard into the dough along with the usual yeast for a subtle tang and a chewier bite, since the discard doesn't need to be active as the commercial yeast still does the main lifting. Reduce the added flour by about 50 g (1.75 oz) to account for the extra liquid the discard brings. This is a great use for the discard from feeding a starter if you already bake sourdough regularly.

Fold 100 g (3.5 oz) of crisped, chopped streaky bacon and 150 g (1 1/2 cups) of grated mature cheddar through the buttered dough pieces before layering them in the tin, so every other bite hits a pocket of smoky, cheesy filling. Swap in smoked bacon lardons for extra depth if that's what you've got in the fridge. This is the version to make when the garlic bread needs to be the main event rather than a side.

Double the dough quantities and use a 25 cm (10 in) Bundt or tube tin instead of a loaf tin, since the central hole lets the middle of a much bigger batch get direct heat and still bake through evenly. Arrange the pieces in a single snug ring rather than stacking them too high, or the centre will stay doughy while the edges brown. Turn it out onto a board once cooled for 10 minutes so people can pull pieces from all sides at once.

Layer three forms of garlic, roasted whole cloves mashed into the butter, fresh minced garlic added at the last minute, and a light dusting of garlic powder over the top, for the deepest, most rounded garlic flavour of any version here. Stuff torn mozzarella between the pieces as you layer them so it stretches when you pull the bread apart. This is the one worth the extra 20 minutes of roasting garlic if you're making it for guests.

Shape the dough into small rolls and prove them directly in a greased air-fryer-safe tin, then cook at 170°C (340°F) for 12-14 minutes, since the air fryer's smaller chamber cuts the bake time nearly in half compared with a conventional oven. Check at the 10-minute mark, as air fryer models vary more from one another than ovens do. Ideal for a single portion or two without heating up a full oven.

Roast a whole head of garlic wrapped in foil at 200°C (400°F) for 40 minutes, then squeeze the soft, sweet cloves straight into the butter instead of using raw garlic, which mellows the sharpness and adds a jammy depth. This version is worth planning ahead for, since the roasting takes almost as long as the bread itself. Any leftover roasted garlic keeps in the fridge for a week and is worth doubling up while the oven is already on.

Divide the dough into 12 individual rolls and arrange them close together in a round tin so they rise into each other and pull apart at the table the same way a loaf would. Swap the parsley for a generous handful of snipped chives, which have a milder, oniony note that suits a roast dinner well. These freeze especially well as individual rolls, so you can pull out just what you need for one meal.

Melt a tablespoon of nduja into the garlic butter until it turns a deep coral colour, then brush it between the layers for a bread with real heat and a savoury, almost smoky edge. Balance the richness with an extra scattering of fresh parsley once it's out of the oven. It's a good one to serve alongside something cooling, like a garlicky yoghurt dip.

Swap the butter for a good extra virgin olive oil, and the milk and egg for a plant milk and a tablespoon of aquafaba, which binds the dough almost as well as egg does. The crumb is slightly less rich but still pulls apart cleanly once baked and cooled. Use a vegan block butter rather than more oil for the garlic coating if you want a texture closer to the classic version.

Use a 1:1 gluten-free bread flour blend with xanthan gum already included, and expect a stickier dough that's easier to spoon into the tin than to knead by hand. Adding an extra egg helps hold the crumb together, since gluten-free doughs lose structure without a gluten network to fall back on. It won't rise quite as tall as the wheat-based versions, but it will still pull apart into soft, garlicky pieces.

Warm your milk to around 37°C (98°F), roughly body temperature, before adding the yeast, since anything hotter can kill it and anything cooler will slow the rise right down. Don't skip the second prove after cutting and layering the dough, as it's what gives the finished loaf its light, pillowy texture rather than a dense one. If your kitchen is cold, prove the tin in the oven with just the light on, or near a bowl of just-boiled water, to speed things up.

Serve warm, straight from the tin, alongside a big bowl of pasta, a tomato-based soup, or a roast dinner where people can tear off pieces as they go. It also works well as a starter with a small dish of olive oil and balsamic, or extra garlic butter for dipping. For parties, slice it into a grazing board alongside olives, cured meats and cheese.

Once fully cooled, wrap the loaf tightly in foil or an airtight container and keep at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 4. To reheat, wrap in foil and warm in an oven at 180°C (350°F) for 10-15 minutes until heated through and the crust has crisped back up, since a microwave heats it faster but leaves the crust soft. For longer storage, freeze whole or in portions for up to 2 months, then thaw at room temperature before reheating in the oven.