Hokkaido Japanese Milk Bread
The Hokkaido Japanese Milk Bread is a rich, light, and fluffy yeast bread made with ingredients traditionally found in most kitchens. This recipe was adapted from https://tastykitchen.com/recipes/breads/japanese-milk-bread/.
Servings: 8 per loaf
Ingredients
Tangzhong Mixture: makes 2 loaf pans
- ⅓ cup bread flour
- 1 cup milk
Dough Ingredients: makes 2 loaf pans
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp warm milk ~110˚F (44˚C)
- 4 tsp dry yeast
- 6 tbsp sugar
- 5½ cups bread flour start with 4½ cups and add more as needed up to 5½ cups
- 2 tsp salt
- 3 large eggs divided
- 4 tbsp butter softened
Instructions
Tangzhong Mixture Preparation
- Whisk and cook: Whisk the bread flour and milk in a small saucepan on low to medium heat until it thickens. (The mixture is ready when the whisk drags through the mixture leaving behind thin lines with the consistency resembling whipping cream just prior to forming soft peaks.) If you have a thermometer, the mixture should read 150˚F / 65˚C. Avoid reaching a full boil as the milk can easily scorch and take much longer to cool.
- Let cool: Set the Tangzhong mixture aside to cool between 100 ˚F -110 ˚F (38˚C -44˚C).
Dough Preparation
- Yeast mixture: In a medium bowl, whisk warm milk, yeast, and sugar. Set aside about 10 minutes to allow time for the yeast to activate. The mixture is ready when it has increased in size and is frothy on top.
- Dry ingredients: In a large bowl or standing mixer (like a KitchenAid), combine 4 ½ cups of flour and salt.
- Wet ingredients: Once the Tangzhong mixture has cooled, stir it in with the yeast mixture, add 2 lightly beaten eggs, and mix well.
- Add wet to dry: Pour the Tangzhong mixture over the dry ingredients.
- Knead all but butter: Using the dough hook of the standing mixer (or a spoon, if working by hand), turn the machine on low and allow the mixer to combine the wet and dry ingredients.
- Add butter: Add the softened butter and mix well.
- Add flour as needed: Add more flour about ¼ cup at a time if the dough appears too shaggy (and really sticky). Continue to add in the flour until the dough no longer clings to the edges of the bowl but is still slightly sticky. Allow the mixer to knead the dough 5-8 minutes. (If you don’t have a standing mixer, at this point you’ll want to begin kneading by hand on a lightly floured surface for about 10 minutes).
- Knead by hand: Remove the dough from the mixer and begin kneading on a lightly floured surface for an additional 10 minutes (if kneading by hand, continue to knead another 5-10 minutes) The dough is ready when an indention bounces back and is less sticky. You may divide the dough in half and knead each separately (~ 10 minutes each).
- Let rise: Form the dough into a smooth ball and place it in an oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap (sprayed with cooking spray) or a towel and let the dough rise for an hour or until it has doubled in size. Ideally, you’ll place the bowl in a warm area. I usually set my oven to 200 ˚F / 93˚C and place the covered bowl on top of the stove near the back.
- Divide dough: Once the dough has risen, divide it in half using a knife (serrated works well) and each half into fourths. This will give you 8 total dough pieces.
- Flatten dough rounds: Form each dough piece into a ball shape and then flatten each in a round disc about 6 inches in diameter.
- Roll up dough: Roll up each flatten piece like a cinnamon roll and lay it in a greased 9”x 5” or 8.5”x 4.5” loaf pan. You will need 2 loaf pans and place 4 dough rolls in each pan.
- Let rise: Cover each loaf pan with either plastic wrap or a towel and allow them to rise in a warm space for 45 minutes to an hour.
- Preheat oven: During the last 15 minutes of rising, set the oven to preheat at 350 ˚F/ 180 ˚C.
- Brush on egg: Once the dough in each pan has risen, crack an egg into a small bowl and beat it well. Carefully brush the egg over the top of each dough loaf.
- Bake and cover: Place both pans in the 350 ˚F preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. Cover the loaves with foil at 15-20 minutes (only if they are getting too brown) to prevent the loaves from overbrowning.
- Bake and eat: Let cool in the pans for about an hour. Once cooled, remove the loaves, slice, and serve, or slice and freeze in freezer bags until ready to use. After frozen, take out desired slices when ready and thaw on the counter for an hour, or heat (20-30 seconds) in the microwave until thawed and warm.
- Eat and Enjoy!!