Recipe: Hokkaido Milk Bread

There are few things more comforting than carbs.  A well-roasted potato, a bowl of rice or a loaf of bread.  And as a great lover of these basics, the bf suggested we whip something new up in the Airfryer he got me a while ago.

Through lots of googling, we've discovered that the Airfryer is capable of lots more than just awesome, almost oil-free fries.  So this time around, it was a mission to bake some fluffy Hokkaido Milk Buns.  Using a new method and a recipe from My Diverse Kitchen, I discovered that the Airfryer makes excellent bread and I dare say, is an even better baking machine than my conventional oven! 

Hokkaido Milk Bread With Tangzhong 

Original from 65 Degrees Tangzhong “65C Bread Doctor” by Yvonne Chen
Adapted from Kirbie’s Cravings 

Ingredients:

For The Tangzhong (Flour-Water Roux) 

30g  top flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk 

For The Dough:

312g  top flour
 3 tbsp sugar
1tsp salt
2 tbsp powdered milk
2 tsp instant dried yeast
1/2 cup whipping cream or milk (and a little more if needed)
2 tbsp milk
5 tbsp tangzhong (use HALF of the tangzhong from above)
25gm unsalted butter (cut into small pieces, softened at room temperature) 

Method: 

The Tangzhong: 

Whisk together lightly the flour, water and milk in a saucepan until smooth and there are no lumps. Place the saucepan on the stove, and over medium heat, let the tangzhong cook till it starts thickening. Keep stirring/whisking constantly so no lumps form and the tangzhong is smooth.

If you have a thermometer, cook the tangzhong till it reaches 65C (150F) and take it off the heat. If you don’t have a thermometer, then watch until you start seeing “lines” forming in the tangzhong as you whisk/stir it. Take the pan off the heat at this point.

Let the tangzhong cool completely and rest for about 2 to 3 hours at least. It will have the consistency of a soft and creamy crème patisserie. If not using immediately, transfer it to a bowl and cover using plastic wrap. It can be stored in the fridge for about a day. Discard the tangzhong after that.   

The Bread Dough: 

Put the flour, salt, sugar, powdered milk and instant yeast in the food processor or mixer and pulse a couple of times to mix. In another small bowl mix the milk, cream and Tangzhong till smooth and add to the processor bowl. Run on slow speed until the dough comes together. Now add the butter and process till you have a smooth and elastic dough which is just short of sticky.

The dough will start out sticky but kneading will make it smooth. If the dough feels firm and not soft to touch, add a couple of tsps of milk till it becomes soft and elastic. When the dough is done, you should be able to stretch the dough without it breaking right away.  When it does break, the break should form a circle.

Form the dough into a ball and place it in a well-oiled bowl turning it so it is well coated. Cover with a towel, and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes or till almost double in volume.  

Place the dough on your working surface. You don’t need flour to work or shape this dough. This recipe makes enough dough to make one loaf (9” by 5” tin), 2 small loaves (6” by 4” tins) or 1 small loaf (6” by 4”) and 6 small rolls (muffin tins). Depending on what you are making, divide your dough. If you are making 1 loaf, divide your dough in 3 equal pieces. If you are making two smaller loaves, divide your dough into 6 equal pieces.

The shaping of the portions, whether for the loaf or the rolls, is the same.  Roll out each portion of the dough with a rolling pin into an oval shape, about 1/8” thick. Take one end of the dough from the shorter side of the oval and fold it to the middle of the oval. Take the other end and fold so it slightly overlaps the other fold.  

Roll this folded dough with the rolling pin so the unfolded edges are stretched out to form a rectangle. Roll the rectangle from one short edge to the other, pinching the edges to seal well. Do this with each of the three larger pieces and place them, sealed edges down, in a well-oiled loaf tin. Cover with a towel and leave the dough to rise for about 45 minutes.

Carefully brush the tops of the rolls and the loaf with milk (or cream) and bake them at 170C (325F) for about 20 to 30 minutes or 8-10 minutes in the Airfryer till they are done (if you tap them they’ll sound hollow) and beautifully browned on top. Let them cool in the tins for about 5 minutes and then unmould and transfer to a rack till slightly warm or cool.

Serve or else store in a bread bin. This bread stays soft and delicious even the next day. This recipe produced enough dough for me to make a 6" x 4" loaf and 3 sizeable animal buns. 

*Cute animals and all rolling and shaping courtesy of the bf!