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I know nobody can resist soft and fluffy milk buns, right? The ones that spring back after you pressed them?
Well today I'm sharing these Asian style milk buns that are exactly that. Yep yep yep!
And hey, they can also serve as dinner rolls.
Let's get started!
Super Soft Fluffy Pillows
They do look like super soft and fluffy pillows, right?
And if you've been following my bread recipes (or any of my recipes) then you'll know that they are all simple recipes with great results. Sorry, I don't mean to be bias but they really are.
And this recipe is no different. Yet another simple one that if you're a baker enthusiast like me then you'll absolutely LOVE it!
The ingredients are super basic ones in the bread world. So no surprises there.
I'm NOT even using tangzhong or water roux in this recipe. That's how easy it is.
They Are Awesome With Everything
We've eaten these super soft and fluffy buns with almost everything.
We've spread them with homemade baba ganoush, with salami or cured sausage, dipped in curry, spread with butter, spread with jam, as small sandwich buns and even plain as they are.
I will list down below my curry recipes that are simple divine to dip with these beauties.
So be free, enjoy them as your heart desire.
How To Get Them In Equally Beautiful Size
Usually when cutting bread dough into smaller portions, I always eyeball it. I roughly cut the dough with a dough cutter and that's it. No weighing nothing.
It's totally different in this case though.
If you want that beautiful equal size look then you will need to weight the dough.
What I do is I weigh it after it's risen. For this recipe it weighs around 1.7 lb (777 g). But you weigh your own dough, alright? Yours might weight slightly different than mine.
For my square tin size of 9 inch (23 cm), I like to make 25 cute buns. Which means each raw bun weighs around 1.1 oz (31 g). The size is perfect for me.
But that's just me. If you want to eyeball it, go ahead, no problem at all. Do as you want, no rules.
Recipe Video
📖 Recipe
Soft & Fluffy Milk Buns
Video
Ingredients
- 3 ½ cup bread flour (455 g)
- 1 tablespoon honey (20 g)
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast (10 g)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg , room temperature
- 1 cup warm milk (250 ml)
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter (30 g), room temperature & cubed
Instructions
The Dough
- Add all of the ingredients except for butter in a stand mixer bowl. Mix to incorporate & then knead for 10 minutes. Add in butter bit by bit, mixing well after each addition. Then continue to knead for another 10 minutes.
- Form dough into a ball and very lightly coat it with some oil. Place in a greased bowl and cover tightly with cling film. Leave until it rises double its size.
Assembling
- Remove risen dough onto a working surface. Using a dough cutter, cut the dough into 25 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball and arrange them in a 9-inch (23 cm) square pan that has been greased and lined with overhung baking sheet.
- Loosely cover with cling film and leave until they rise double their size. Once they've risen, lightly dust some flour on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 300ºF (150ºC) for 22 minutes or until fully cooked.
- Remove from the pan by grabbing the over hanged baking sheet and lifting everything up. Cool completely on rack.
Notes
- Pro Tip: I strongly recommend using a kitchen scale to weigh the dough and divide it into equal pieces to get that beautiful final look.
- How To Serve: These super soft and fluffy buns are great to be enjoyed as sweet or savory buns. Spread some butter, jam, peanut butter, Nutella, and hummus. Dip in curries, and baba ganoush, and use them as small sandwich buns. They are very versatile.
Jesse says
Wow! I just made this today and my husband was so happy!!!
I bought him a pack of buns from an Asian store & it cost me $5 for 4 buns! He loved it so much so I told him I’ll try to find a recipe for it. I’m so glad I found yours!
The bread turned out as soft & milky white as the ones from the store. I’m so happy! I’m not buying those buns ever again haha
Question…how much more honey can I add to make it a little sweeter without ruining the recipe?
Thank you so much!
Bea & Marco says
Hi Jesse, thank you so much! We're so happy they turned out just like the store-bought ones and that your husband loved them 😊
For a sweeter version, we’d keep the honey as written and add a little granulated sugar instead. We’d start with 1 tablespoon, or up to 2 tablespoons if you want them a bit sweeter. Hope it helps!
Jesse says
Thank you! I added 1 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar & it’s perfect! I just did 2 batches over the weekend & my family devoured 1 batch in a day!!!
Bea & Marco says
Yay! That's awesome! We're so thrilled to hear that it was a super successful one, thank you so much for reporting back here, Jesse!
Lilian says
Can you shape the buns and let it rise in the fridge overnight
to bake next morning
Bea & Marco says
We haven’t tested an overnight fridge proof for this recipe without tweaking the amount of yeast, so to make sure it turns out exactly as intended, we recommend sticking to the room-temperature rise in the recipe 😊. Hope it helps!
Cephy says
Honestly, I have searched my whole life for this recipe. Thank you lovely! You have no idea the monster you've created! 😂
Bea & Marco says
Haha! Monsters are very loved and welcomed here! We're glad that you loved it, thank you, Cephy!
Amanda says
So fluffy and delicious! I expected 24 to be way too many but I finished all within 2 days just by myself. Tastes amazing with nutella but also splendid on its own.
Bea & Marco says
Yay! I'm happy to hear that you liked them, Amanda! Thank you!
Jane says
How delightful are these !!!?
Sooo very. As a lover of more nutty flours these seem sinful. They were even fun to make! They rise beautifully,white, and regal. I prefer a good slather of buttah n a "smackerel of honey" . Thank you!!
Bea & Marco says
Haha! Yes, a good slather or buttah with honey do sound great! Thanks, Jane!
Romina says
I like to learn about baking... Thanks for the recipe for this🙏☺️
Jill says
Hello, I want to make these today but am wondering if I can use regular unbleached flour rather than bread flour as it’s what I have on hand?!
Thank you😊
Bea & Marco says
Hi! Regular flour doesn’t work the same as bread flour (it has low protein content), and they both have different liquid absorption. So we don’t recommend it if you want the same result. Hope it helps!
Sean says
Best bread rolls I've made. So soft.
I ended up hand kneading due to appliance failure and they turned out great. Also made 75% of the recipe for a smaller tin
Aulie says
Amazingly easy and super fluffy! Thanks!
Joweria says
It's was really so amazing, very fluffy and versatile, I love making it over and over again, thanks for the recipe, am a beginner but it came out in the first time, every body liked it. Big up dear
Bea & Marco says
Yay! It's exciting to hear that you loved them and they came out great the first time. Thank you for your feedback, Jowerie!
Barbara says
Where it says Jump to recipe and Print it does not allow me to print it 🤔😕🙁🥲
Bea & Marco says
Hi Barbara! We checked and it works without problem from our end. Can you tell us the error message that you got?