Hokkaido Milk Bread (Japanese style)

Hokkaido Milk Bread (Japanese style)

Ingredients

540 grams All purpose Flour

80 grams Caster sugar

6 grams Sugar 

8 grams Salt

90 grams Milk power

11 grams Dried yeast

59 grams Cream

125 grams Milk

20 grams Lukewarm Milk 

184 grams Tangzhong

60 grams Butter melted

1 tbsp Butter + 2 tbsp Milk OR Beaten Egg for brushing 

Method

Add all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix it. Now take another bowl add Lukewarm milk, sugar and yeast. Let it rise.  Add cream, milk and Tangzhong. Mix it. Add the liquid mixture and the yeast to the dry ingredients. Mix it to get a soft dough.  When all ingredients come together, pour in the melted butter, continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic.Then let the dough rest until double in size. Punch the dough and sprinkle some flour on the dough. Divide into 3 equal portions. Cover , let rest for 15 minutes. Roll out each portion of the dough with a rolling pin into an oval shape. Fold 1/3 from top edge to the middle and press.  Then fold 1/3 from bottom to the middle and press. Turn the folding side down. Roll flat and stretch in one direction. With the folding side upwards,  roll into a cylinder. With the folding side facing downwards, place the dough in the loaf tins, let it rise until double in size. Brush beaten egg or milk and butter mix on the top of the bread. Bake in a pre-heated 180 degrees oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until turns brown. Remove from the oven and transfer onto a wire rack. Let cool completely.

Tangzhong 

Ingredients 

1/3 cup Flour

1cup Water OR Milk OR 50/50 Water and Milk

Method

Mix flour in water well without any lumps. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring consistently with a wooden spoon, whisk or spatula to prevent burning and sticking while you cook along the way. The mixture becomes thicker and thicker. Once you notice some lines appear in the mixture for every stir you make with the spoon. It’s done. You get the tangzhong. Remove from heat. Transfer into a clean bowl. Cover with a cling wrap sticking onto the surface of tangzhong to prevent from drying up. Let cool. The tangzhong can be used straight away once it cools down to room temperature.