Japanese Milk Bread Rolls

5 from 2 votes

Japanese Milk Bread Rolls

Extremely soft and fluffy Japanese milk bread rolls. They are delicious to eat simply like that or with your favourite spread. This bread uses water roux or tangzhong that really gives the bread its moist, soft and fluffy texture.

Prep Time25

Cook Time25

Passive Time2

Servings:

Author: Bea & Marco

Ingredients

Water Roux or Tangzhong

2 tablespoon bread flour (16 gr)
⅓ cup water (80 ml)

Bread

2 cup bread flour (260 gr)
2 tablespoon honey (40 gr)
¼ cup warm water (60 ml)
2 ¼ teaspoon dry yeast (7 gr)
1 egg , room temperature
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon powdered milk (16 gr)
¼ cup butter (60 gr), cubed small and in room temperature

Others

egg wash (1 egg with a splash of milk)
some sesame seeds

Instructions

Water Roux or Tangzhong

Add flour and water into a pan on medium heat. Whisk to mix well until the mixture thickens. It's ready when you make a line in the middle of the mixture and it stays. Set aside to cool a bit before using.

Bread

Add honey and warm water into a bowl and mix well. Sprinkle in dry yeast and mix. Leave for the yeast to activate for a few minutes.
In a standing mixing bowl, add in the rest of the ingredients including water roux, except cubed butter. Mix to incorporate and then knead for 5 minutes.
Add butter 1 by 1, making sure to mix well between each addition. Once all butter is added and mixed well, knead for another 10 minutes.
The dough will be a bit sticky. Form into a ball and place it in a lightly greased bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with a cling film. Leave the dough to rise double its size.

Assembling

Place dough on a working surface and lightly knead into a log. Cut it into 3 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball.
Place 1 ball on a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle 10.5 inch (27 cm) wide (or 3 x your pan average width). Fold each side to the center, overlapping each other. You will have a rectangle 3.5 inch width (9 cm).
Roll it into a log and place it in a 4.4x10 inch (11x25 cm) loaf pan that has been lined with baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the balls. Leave some space in between rolled logs in the pan.
Cover loosely with a cling film and leave until the dough almost double the size. Brush with some egg wash and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
Bake in a preheated oven at 350ºF (175ºC) for 30 minutes or until golden brown and fully cooked. Cover loosely with aluminium foil to avoid it getting brown too fast. Cool on a rack.

Notes

How To Store: Keep it in an airtight container on the kitchen top. Stays soft and fluffy for up to 4 days or slightly more.

How To Freeze: Put in a ziplock bag and freeze for up to 6 months. Defrost at room temperature. Bring it back to life in the oven at 350ºF (175ºC) for 5 minutes.

Nutrition