Recipe: Perfect Hokkaido (Japanese Milk Bread)

Hokkaido (Japanese Milk Bread). This recipe is our take on Japan's Hokkaido milk bread, a loaf so light it's often described as feathery. The technique to make it involves pre-cooking some of the flour and milk into a soft paste called tangzhong. This simple step yields a loaf that's tender, moist, and stays fresh longer than loaves prepared the standard way.

Author Notes When I first set out to make Hokkaido milk bread from scratch, I was nervous. These sky-high, snow-white loaves are the cornerstone of any respectable Asian bakery-feathery soft yet rich and decadent, with wisps of bread that pull away in sheets when you separate its parts. For me, it was practically legendary. You can have Hokkaido (Japanese Milk Bread) using 14 ingredients and 17 steps. Here is how you achieve that.

Ingredients of Hokkaido (Japanese Milk Bread)

1. Prepare of For the starter:.
2. You need 1/3 cup of bread flour.
3. Prepare 1/2 cup of whole milk.
4. You need 1/2 cup of water.
5. Prepare of For the dough:.
6. Prepare 3 cups of bread flour.
7. You need 1 teaspoon of salt.
8. You need 1/4 cup of sugar.
9. Prepare 2 1/4 teaspoons of rapid rise yeast.
10. It's 4 tablespoons of softened butter.
11. You need 1 of egg room temp.
12. It's 1/2 cup of warmed milk.
13. Prepare of Milk for brushing on top before baking.
14. You need of Melted butter to brush on top after cooking.

Hokkaido Milk Bread - Light and fluffy pull-apart Japanese bread that is easy to make! This milk bread recipe uses the tangzhong roux method which helps create a tender loaf of bread that's perfect with a bit of butter on it for breakfast! Hokkaido Milk Bread (Shokupan) HOKKAIDO MILK BREAD The softest bread EVER: Japanese Hokkaido milk bread using a touch of condensed milk! Japanese milk bread, also called tangzhong milk bread and hokkaido milk bread, is a light and tender yeasted bread made with bread flour, milk and dry milk powder.

Hokkaido (Japanese Milk Bread) instructions

1. In small sauce pan, combine all ingredients for the starter. Whisk until smooth..
2. On medium heat, cook until thickened. Spoon should leave trail on bottom of pan..
3. Remove from heat and place in bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and push down so wrap sits on top of starter. This prevents skin from forming..
4. Mix flour, sugar, yeast half the starter mixtureand salt. Stir until combined..
5. In stand mixer bowl with doughhook attatched, add flour mixture, butter, egg and milk..
6. Mix on low speed until dough is sticky but pulls away from sides and doesnt stick to hands..
7. You may have to add some flour if it appears to loose..
8. In bowl, grease tops and sides of dough..
9. Cover with towel and let rise until doubled in size..
10. Punch down. Divide dough into rolls or loaves. Can even use for cinnamon buns..
11. Place in greased pan and let rise again..
12. Brush tops with milk..
13. Bake at 350 until golden brown..
14. If browning to fast, cover withfoil until bread is cooked completely..
15. Serve hot. This bread stays soft for days in wrap..
16. I made 5 mini loaves and one pan of rolls from this recipe :).
17. The starter you have left you can make another batch with or recipe can be doubled to use all of the starter..

Japanese milk bread has a golden exterior with a creamy bright white interior. Hokkaido Milk bread or Japanese milk bread is one of the softest and freshest tasting milk bread ever. This has a very nice oven spring and the bread is very spongy and tastes incredible even when toasted plain. The roux is mixed into the final dough, producing wonderfully tender bread each and every time. Japanese or Hokkaido milk bread has become the typical stable in Japan, It is as light as a feather and can tear apart like cotton when it is fresh from the oven.