Grease a large bowl with butter and set aside.

Stir the rest of the ingredients, except for one beaten egg and the butter for brushing, in a large bowl until thoroughly mixed.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it for about 15 minutes until smooth, adding a little extra flour if needed.

Put the dough into the greased bowl and brush the top of it with melted butter.

Leave it to rise in a warm place - loosely covered with plastic wrap - for around 1 1/2 hours, until almost doubled in size.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 5 minutes, then put it back into the bowl. Brush the rest of the melted butter over the top, then loosely cover it with plastic wrap.

Leave the dough rise to again for around another hour, until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Divide dough into three equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Cover each ball loosely with greased plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Roll each ball into a 12-inch-long log, a bit thicker in the middle than at the ends.

Lay the logs beside each other lengthwise and pinch together the ends furthest away from you.

Tightly braid the strands, pulling them as you go, then tuck the ends of the braid underneath.

Transfer the dough to a greased baking sheet, then loosely cover with greased plastic wrap.

Leave the dough to rise for about 45 minutes until almost doubled in size.

Brush the dough lightly with egg wash, then bake the bread for around 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown and firm. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the bottom of the bread should register 180 degrees and come out clean.

If the bread browns too quickly, loosely tent it with foil.

Transfer the loaf to a wire rack and leave to cool for at least 45 minutes.