Bread is one of my guilty pleasures. I’d eat them with fillings AND I’d eat them plain. Don’t be alarmed if you ever see me walking around Paris one day with a loaf of baguette in arm or in Chinatown digging my face into a char siu bao. There’s nothing better than fresh bread, still hot and toasty straight out of the oven, best eaten immediately while the scents of flour and butter are still lingering in the air. I’m a fan of practically all types of bread, but one of my favorite versions of sliced bread is Japanese shokupan or MILK BREAD.
What is Milk Bread?
Milk bread, or shokupan, is the Japanese version of sliced bread. These loaves possess a soft, golden brown crust and a fluffy, white interior. Butter, sugar and milk are common ingredients (hence the name), which results in a slightly sweet flavor and rich textures. You’ll often find sandwiches in Japan with delicious filling squeezed between 2 slices of milk bread. You can also find loaves of them in Asian bakeries, which I pick up occasionally to make quick lunches for my family!
Baking Options:
There are two types of shokupan:
Rounded top: This is baked without the lid on. The additional room allows the dough to rise freely and results in a darker brown hue since the surface is exposed to direct heat.
Flat top: This is baked with a lid on. As a result, you’ll get slices that look almost like a perfect square!
TIPS:
Here are some things I’ve learned from baking milk bread!
- Measure all the ingredients with a digital scale rather than going by volume. Your milk bread will appreciate the precision used during the process!
- Make sure your instant dry yeast is not expired! The yeast needs to be activated in order for your bread to rise successfully, so please ensure your yeast/water mixture is bubbly after setting aside for 10-15 minutes. If not, it is an indicator that you may have expired yeast.
- Use the windowpane dough test to determine if dough has been kneaded enough to develop the proper gluten structure for proofing or shaping. To do this:
- After kneading, remove a small piece of dough.
- Gently stretch the dough with your fingers until it becomes thin and translucent without tearing. If a thin “windowpane” forms, it means gluten has developed properly and the dough is well-kneaded. If it tears, the dough requires more kneading.
- To test the fermentation progress of the dough, poke a hole in the center of the dough after the initial proofing. If the hole retains its shape, it is ready for baking. If not, it needs more time to rise.
Use your freshly baked milk bread for Japanese tamago sando (egg sandwich) or a classic tuna sandwich!
Store the loaf in a tightly sealed ziploc bag, which can last several days long!
Please let me know if you tried my recipe and tag me at @rackoflam and #rackoflam on social media! Happy baking!
Easiest Milk Bread Recipe (No Tang Zhong) Shokupan
Equipment
- 1 Stand Mixer
- 1 9 x 4 Loaf Pan
- 1 Kitchen Scale
Ingredients
YEAST MIXTURE
- 7 g instant dry yeast
- 90 g warm water (app. 104℉)
- 40 g white sugar
REMAINING INGREDIENTS
- 335 g bread flour
- 140 g room temperature whole milk
- 10 g room temperature water
- 30 g salted butter (cut into cubes)
- cooking oil spray
- 10 g butter (for greasing the loaf pan)
Instructions
- Combine instant dry yeast and sugar with warm water. Gently mix until sugar is dissolved, then cover with saran wrap and set aside for 10 minutes. (Note: The surface of the mixture should be bubbly after 10 minutes. If not, it may not have activated, which can be a result of expired yeast or the environment not being warm enough.)
- Lock the mixing bowl onto the base of your stand mixer, then add the bread flour, room temp whole milk and yeast/sugar mixture and mix at SPEED 2 with a hook attachment for 2 minutes.
- Add 10g of room temperature water, then mix at SPEED 4 for 4 minutes.
- Add the salted butter cubes, then mix at SPEED 2 for 2 minutes then SPEED 4 for 4 minutes, followed by SPEED 6 for 2 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the hook attachment, place it back into the mixing bowl, then mix at SPEED 6 again for 2 minutes. The mixing is now complete!
- Grease a large heatproof bowl with a thin coating of cooking oil (I use oil spray). Remove the dough from the hook attachment, then form it into a ball. Place it into the greased bowl, rolling it around until the outer surface of the dough is coated with oil. Leave the dough in the bowl, then cover with saran wrap and place it into a warm environment (app. 90℉) for 1 hour, until it doubles in size.
- After 1 hour, remove the saran wrap. Poke a hole in the center of the dough. If the hole retains its shape, it is ready for use.
- Grease the interior of the loaf pan with the remaining 10g of butter
- Dust some flour onto a baking mat and your palms. Place the dough onto the mat, then deflate it and remove air bubbles by pounding the dough for about 1 minute.
- Using a digital scale, divide the dough into 3 equal pieces, then roll each piece into a ball. Roll each ball into a long rectangular shape (about the size of an 8×11 paper), ensuring even thickness throughout. Subsequently, fold the dough into thirds, then press down on the edges to seal them. Fold the corners of the upper ends until they resemble triangular tips, then slowly and gently roll this end towards you, until the dough is completely rolled up. Ensure that the bottom of the dough is smooth and taut, as this will become the top surface of the bread. You will repeat this rolling process with the remaining dough balls.
- Gently place the first rolled dough into the greased loaf pan. Please ensure you place the first 2 rolls on the left and right sides, ending with the third roll in the center. This will result in a more presentable shokupan.
- Cover the loaf pan with saran wrap and place it back into a warm environment for about an hour, or when the risen dough fills 80-90% of the loaf pan.
- Remove the saran wrap, then bake at 350℉ for 25-30 minutes (varies depending on your oven)
- Remove the loaf pan from the oven, then drop it onto your counter 2-3 times to remove water vapors. Cut into slices and serve warm! Enjoy!
Video
Notes
PRODUCTS USED/RECOMMENDED:
- Kitchenaid Mixer – https://amzn.to/3BdFYgB
- Digital Scale – https://amzn.to/3Twe45T
- Loaf Pan – https://amzn.to/3XoveDD
- OXO Container – https://amzn.to/4d1uUAE
- Baking Mat – https://amzn.to/47qmhhM
- Pizza Roller – https://amzn.to/47tqQbc
- Bread Flour – https://amzn.to/47tZAcp
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