Soy Milk Shokupan (Japanese Milk Bread)

Complete free recipe

Soy Milk Shokupan (Japanese Milk Bread)

An impossibly soft, pillowy Japanese-style milk bread, relying entirely on soy milk's protein content for structure.

Baking, Breads & Pastries · Weekend Baking Project · Ultra-Soft Sandwich Bread

What you need

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
  • 1/2 cup Water
  • 3/4 cup Warm Unsweetened Soy Milk (110°F)
  • 2 1/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast
  • 3 1/4 cups Bread Flour
  • 1/3 cup Sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 4 tbsp Butter, softened

Method

Instructions

  1. Whisk the 1/3 cup flour and water together in a small saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens into a paste, about 2 minutes. Cool completely; this is your tangzhong.
  2. Combine the warm soy milk and yeast; let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add the bread flour, sugar, salt, cooled tangzhong, and the foamy yeast mixture. Knead until a shaggy dough forms, then knead in the softened butter, about 12 minutes total, until smooth and elastic.
  4. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1.5 hours, then shape into a loaf and proof 45 minutes more.
  5. Bake at 350°F for 30 to 35 minutes, until deep golden and hollow-sounding when tapped.

From The Arrogant Hippie Culinary Journal: Soy Milk Edition by Aunesty Janssen