JAPANESE HOKKAIDO MILK BREAD - TANGZHONG METHOD
Ingredients
Tangzhong:
- 35 g (1/4 cup) bread flour Manitoba
- 175g (3/4 cup) water
Milk Bread:
- 340g (2+2/3 cups) bread flour
- 3g (1/2 tsp) salt
- 30g (2 tbsp) sugar
- 5g (1+1/4 tsp) active dry yeast activate it if your yeast required it
- 40g (less than 1 egg) egg, room temperature keep aside the leftover egg for brushing the top of bread
- 140g (1/2 cup + 1 tbsp) whole milk lukewarm
- 155g about Tangzhong
- 40g 3 tbsp unsalted butter cubed and softened at room temperature
- extra bread flour for the working surface
- egg and milk mix for brushing the top
Instructions
Make the Tangzhong:
- In a non-stick pan combine flour and water.
- Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until the mixture thickens into a pudding-like consistency, or reach 65°C-150°F.
- Tranfer into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and cool down at room temperature.
- You can use it when cool down or, better, refrigerate it overnight: use it at room temperature!
Make the Milk Bread:
- In a large bowl mix flour and salt.
- Add sugar, dry yeast and combine.
- Add the egg (beaten), lukewarm milk and start to combine with a spatula.
- Add the Tangzhong and combine with a spatula until reach a very sticky dough.
- Add the butter (room temperature) and combine with a spatula.
- Sprinkle the work surface with at least 3 tbsp of flour and start to knead the dough with your hands; if you have a stand mixer you can use it, since the dough is pretty sticky.
- Incorporate a little flour until knead the dough, but don’t add too much flour: the dough have to remain very soft and slightly sticky.
- Knead for about 15 minutes or until the dough will be smooth and elastic.
- Form into a ball, place it in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
- Let it rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until triple in size: the dough will be ready when you poke it and it will maintein its shape.
- Transfer the dough over a silicon pastry mat or a floured surface and split it into 3 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece into a ball and cover every ball with plastic wrap.
- Use a rollin pin and roll one piece into a long oval shape.
- Fold the right third of the oval over the middle, then fold the left third of the oval over the middle.
- Turn the packet and roll into a rectangular shape.
- Roll the rectangular from the bottom to get a fat roll.
- Cover the roll with plastic wrap and repeat with the other 2 pieces of dough.
- Arrange the 3 rolls of dough into a greased 11,5x22,5 cm – 4,5x9 inch loaf pan.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until the dough reaches the rim of the loaf pan.
- Brush the top with beaten egg + milk.
- Bake in preheated static oven at 175°C-350°F for about 25 minutes.
- Cool down for 15 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool down on a wire rack
Video
Notes
Hello, I am Valentina! Welcome to How Tasty!
I am an Italian girl in love with baking and cooking. I’ve been raised in a cooking family, baking since I was a little girl and learning from my mom and my professional chef grandma.
I created the Youtube channel How Tasty in 2017 to share with you my passion.
You don’t need to be a professional cook to follow all my recipes thanks to the video tutorials and the tips & hints you can find here.
Let’s cook!
Tips:
The consistency of your dough may vary depending of your flour. If your dough seems too wet, you can add up to 1-4 tbsp more flour until the dough comes together. Consider that this dough is pretty sticky, but don’t add too much flour or it will come out less soft.
To get a tall bread, is important to fold the rolls in three part and then roll them up, as you can see in the recipe video.
I let the dough rise in a warm place, the preheated oven is my favourite place: turn on the oven at the lower temperature (about 50°C) and turn it off after about 5-10 minutes. Then place the covered bowl in the preheated oven and let it rise.
