Shokupan (Milk Bread)

Incredibly soft, stays moist for a long time! Makes a single 1.5kin loaf Tangzhong: 30g Flour 220g Milk Dough Ingredients: 370g Strong Bread Flour 20g milk powder 40g sugar 8g Instant Yeast 60g butter 60g milk 1 egg and 1 yolk Method: To make the Tangzhong, add cold milk and flour to a saucepan, whisk together to dissolve any lumps, then heat gently whilst stirring until a paste forms (65°c). Set aside in a bowl to cool slightly. Add all the ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer* in the order written above, finish with the cooled Tangzhong. Mix together on a low speed using the dough hook attachment, scraping down the bowl as required. Continue to knead the dough on a medium low speed until the dough is able to pass the window pane test - this may take 30+ minutes. The windowpane test is passed once you can stretch the dough to see through it, without the dough breaking. Transfer your dough to a clean bowl, cover with a damp towel or cling wrap, and allow it to proof at room temp until doubled in size. Brush a layer of melted butter all around the inside of your loaf tin, including the lid. Punch air out of dough, and divide into 3 even pieces by weighing your dough. Form the pieces of dough into tight spheres [see my ‘Simple Chewy Bun’ video for instructions on how to do so]. Lightly flour the bench, and place the dough ball upside down on the surface. Pull out each side gently stretching it, and fold back into the middle in order to create a rectangle envelope shape. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough until around 30-40cm long. Fold in each long edge into the middle, then gently, but tightly roll up the dough into a log. Repeat for each dough ball. Tuck the three logs away into the loaf tin, cover with cling film, and allow proofing to continue until the dough almost reaches the top edge. Preheat oven, fan forced to 200 degrees c. Close the lid of the loaf tin, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven very carefully, allow to rest for 1 minute, remove the lid. Bang it hard against the counter to release, and turn out onto a cooling rack. Allow to completely cool before slicing. Store in a sealed plastic bag to help the bread stay soft for longer. *I’m using the Ooni Halo Pro Spiral Mixer, and have doubled the recipe to ensure its at the right capacity.