Focaccia, Italy
Image Source: Reddit
If you've ever visited an Italian restaurant then you've probably tried this great dipping bread, Focaccia on the side of one of your pasta dishes. This is one of the most famous breads in the country and one that looks vibrant as it usually comes with a visual array of herbs, tomatoes and sometimes chillies on top of the bread as its baked. They love to dip it in olive oil!
Baguette, France
Image Source: Reddit
We've all eaten a baguette, or part of one, at least once in our lifetimes right? They're a great option for all meals of the day and can be used flexibly with various different foods and ingredients! They're by far the most popular of all French breads and although we love to fill them with meats and cheeses, in France its popularly prepared with butter or olive oil only!
Tortilla, Mexico
Image Source: Reddit
We are obviously well versed in our tortillas as are the rest of the countries around the world who enjoy indulging in some Mexican cuisine. As you know, they are extremely thin breads that are important across a lot of popular foods like enchiladas and Fajitas. They're not so difficult to make yourself either, so why don't you give some homemade enchiladas a go?
Obwarzanek, Poland
Image Source: Finding Food Fluency
I know what you're thinking, that looks like a bagel right? Well, although we might claim to be the kings and queens of the bagel here in the US, they actually originate from the Jewish communities in Poland. You might know that they're boiled before they're baked and that's what gives them such a great taste and texture. How do you have your bagels?
Hot Cross Buns, UK
Image Source: Reddit
I guess these hot cross buns look more like a dessert than they do a bread, but that's because they're typically served in cafes or coffee shops in the UK alongside a hot drink. They're actually a spiced bun and are most popular around Good Friday which they were originally created for. They contain a number of currents and are covered in an crossed icing, hence the name!
Chocolate Babka, Poland And Ukraine
Image Source: Reddit
If you're ever travelling through Eastern Europe, you might come across these sweet treats on stalls across streets as well as in bakeries throughout the cities. They're actually made from the dough which Challah (we'll get on to that later) is made, but with the addition of chocolate or cinnamon. This gets mixed in with the braided bread to make a delicious sweet treat.
Naan Bread, India
Image Source: Reddit
Naan bread is perhaps the most popular bread found in the country of India and it can often be used as parts of any meal! You'll most likely recognise these as those fluffy flatbreads, although they are popular as they can often have more flavour incorporated into the mixtures with yogurts, ghees and eggs a popular choice. They're great for dipping in sauces and collecting rice too!
Potica, Slovenia
Image Source: Reddit
Okay so this person hasn't had the best time whilst making their potica, but you should be able to get the gist. Although it's actually made using a pastry, it's formed in to a loaf and so people usually associate it as being a bread instead of a cake or dessert. Traditionally the filling within the middle is a sweet walnut paste, although you might find some different flavours out and about.
Pulla, Finland
Image Source: Reddit
Pulla might look more like a pastry than a bread, but its actually one of the most popular, staple Finnish foods. The bread is braided during the process of creating it and its popular as a result of it's very sweet flavour, thanks to the cardamom within and the sugar on the top. It's usually served with just a spread of butter on each slice, you can even toast it too if you want!
Ube Bread, Philippines
Image Source: Reddit
Ube bread might look like some of the snazziest bread out there and to be honest, it probably is in terms of the way it appears visually. You might not be familiar with the term ube, but its a variety of yam (which is obviously purple in colour). This loaf is then mixed in with a milk loaf and baked to further create the image of those purple swirls within the loaf. Would you give this a go?
Stollen, Germany
Image Source: Reddit
Although you can get and eat stollen throughout Germany for the entire year, they become increasingly more popular as the year comes around to the festive season. It might look more like a cake, stollen is actually a fruit bread with candied orange and citrus peels, nuts and spices within the mixture. It's then traditionally served with a powdering of icing sugar or a layer of liquid icing instead.
Pretzels, Germany
Image Source: Reddit
Someone sound the alarm! You're reading that right, the pretzel is actually not one of our own inventions, but actually one that originates from Germany. We all know what a pretzel is though, right? They're boiled and then baked just like the bagel and as we all know they're usually then covered in a salt or sugar depending on what sort of vibe you're going for.
Chapati, India
Image Source: Reddit
The chapati is pretty much a thin, flatbread version of a naan bread, kind of the Indian version of a pita bread! They are traditionally cooked on a griddle and believed across the country to be great for the body and the bowel system. As with naan's the chapati is popularly used as an accompaniment to any form of curry or main dish with a sauce, rice or meat!
Injera, Ethiopia
Image Source: Reddit
When I first looked at this Injera bread, I did have to take a second glance as it doesn't look anything like a traditional bread or even some of the other obscure ones on this list. That's because its a fermented flatbread used across Ethiopia and Africa as a whole in place of cutlery. Yep, they use the bread to gather the flavours from all of their other dishes like stews.
Limpa, Sweden
Image Source: Reddit
Limpa might look a little bit like a sourdough, but once they've been sliced in to you'll probably recognise that they're more of a rye bread than anything else. Limpa aren't just plain rye breads but they're in fact flavoured with a load of strong citrus fruits like orange as well as anise. Like many breads they're most popularly served toasted alongside a smothering of butter.
Soda Bread, Ireland
Image Source: Reddit
Soda bread is perhaps one of the most 'normal' breads within this list as it looks just like a normal loaf, and that's because the main difference is that it's prepared without the use of yeast and the addition of buttermilk. It's also a popular home baking option as it cooks quickly, this is where people might experiment by adding some cheese, herbs or seeds in to the mixture.
Rye Bread, Eastern Europe
Image Source: Reddit
Rye bread has always been a popular choice across Eastern Europe, mainly due to the fact that the creation of a loaf doesn't tend to cost much money and that rye is easy to grow. Rye bread is also popular for those who like to have a load more fiber within their diet and it's usually eaten in the same way that you would expect normal slices of bread to be eaten around the world.
Pita Bread, Middle East
Image Source: Reddit
Many people often get confused with Pita breads and Naan breads, but there are some obvious differences! A pita is quite a lean FLATBREAD which opens up like a pocket! Across the Middle East they are a very popular choice of dish and they are often stuffed with a variety of ingredients! The most popular of all however would be either falafel or maybe some kebab meat!
Conchas, Mexico
Image Source: Reddit
Conchas are made from a Mexican bread roll known as Pan Dulce and are very recognisable as a result of their perfect round shape and patterns atop the roll. Typically they are covered in a hardened vanilla or chocolate covering and served alongside a hot drink like tea or coffee. Some people even choose to fill their conchas with a whole range of sweet ingredients!
Arepas, Colombia And Venezuela
Image Source: Reddit
Arepas are small, cornmeal breads that, in a similar fashion to pita's, are stuffed with a variety of foods in order to create a sandwich of sorts. Some people choose to bake their arepas although the traditional method would be to fry them until they appear puffy. The most common ingredients used to fill the arepas are a spicy meat and veg mix, or just a boatload of cheese!
English Muffins, UK
Image Source: Reddit
Okay, so we call them English muffins, but if you were to head to the UK yourself you'd probably be more likely to just see them be called muffins instead (ESPECIALLY if you went to Scotland!). These are commonly used as part of breakfast meals and these are even the choice of bread in the UK if you choose to get yourself a McDonald's breakfast!
Sourdough, USA
Image Source: Reddit
Although you'll find sourdough bread all across the world, the US, particularly San Francisco has become one of the most popular places to get the good stuff. This is because the San Fran version is usually more aerated than the traditional. I don't need to patronise you, sourdough is great for use in sandwiches, grilled sandwiches or to partner some good soups!
Challah, Eastern Europe
Image Source: Reddit
You might think that Challah looks a little bit like the Finnish Pulla and that's because they're made from around the same area of Europe. Challah is a popular Jewish bread that is eaten weekly on the Shabbat and also to coincide with the Jewish new year too! It's traditionally hand ripped apart and eaten just as it is; although some people use the leftovers to create a dessert.
Lavash, Armenia
Image Source: Reddit
Okay, so the image obviously doesn't show a fresh Lavash, but the real stuff looks crazy during its creation process. That's because they're traditionally made using a tanoor, which is a brick oven and are then used in a similar fashion to a tortilla to create wraps or sandwiches. If you want to be really traditional you might choose to dip it in khash, a soup made from boiled cow's hooves!
Pane di Pasqua, Italy
Image Source: Reddit
You might be a little confused by seeing coloured eggs within the middle of these breads, but that might give you a clue as to how the bread is used to celebrate within the country. Pane di Pasqua is also known as Italian Easter bread and they are often decorated in order to help children celebrate the festivities. It's also softly flavoured with some citrus and anise!
Krendl, Russia
Image Source: Reddit
Krendl is a popular Russian sweet bread that is used to help celebrate the festive season around the country. It does look somewhat like a pretzel but massive doesn't it? They are actually a bread though and are usually filled with a load of fruits and served in slices. Would you prefer a sweet bread shaped like a pretzel? Or would you just prefer the real thing?
Pão de Queijo, Brazil
Image Source: Reddit
These might look a little like the munchkins you get from Dunkin, but they're actually a delicious bowl of cheese balls, popular within Brazil. They're usually served as just a snack, but often feature alongside the main meat dishes for the last meal of the day. The goal for a perfect ball is to have the outside crunchy whilst maintaining a soft and melt-in-your-mouth middle.
Hokkaido Milk Bread, Japan
Image Source: Reddit
Hokkaido Milk Bread or Shokupan is one of the fluffiest and naturally sweet breads you'll be able to get your hands on; it's obviously best fresh but there are a load of Asian Supermarkets around you where you'll be able to get some! You might have worked out that the main difference in the process of making this bread is by using milk instead of bread and Hokkaido milk has a rich vanilla taste to it.
Ciabatta, Italy
Image Source: Reddit
Ciabatta is another of the many popular Italian breads and is pretty similar to a baguette in the way it's cooked as well as the way it might be used. They use more water however meaning the holes are larger, which is great because the ciabatta is popular when it comes creating a toasted sandwich in Italy. It also holds butter and olive oil in excess which tastes excellent.
Julekage, Denmark
Image Source: Reddit
As you can see, Jukelage can be like this as a cake, although they are also popularly sold as a loaf that can be sliced and buttered. These become even more popular across Denmark and Scandinavia during the winter holidays, likely as a result of their warming ability from the spices. Or they can be used as the festive dessert option and covered in icing.