Hokkaido Milk Toast- Japanese Style (Using Tangzhong method)

I love baking bread. But I don't bake very often since yeast has not been my best friend. This month for Baking Partners Challenge Swathi selected bread that is being baked using Tangzhong method, also known as water roux method. With this method, we cant go wrong with yeast. First a roux starter(tangzhong) is prepared and then added to the ingredients and baked resulting in soft fluffy bread like the one we get in bakeries. This dough can be used to make Dilkush, bread stuffed with sweetened coconut. But since I have already posted it, I have made this Hokkaido Milk toast.

The bread came out well and it was so nice, soft and perfect. Thanks to Swathi for the challenge, I fell in love with bread baking all over again. 

Recipe Source :Christine's Recipes

What are the ingredients needed?

For Tangzhang

All purpose flour, 2.5 Tablespoon

Water, 1/2 cup (you can use 50:50 of water and milk too) 

For bread

All purpose flour, 2 1/2 cup

Caster Sugar, 1/4 cup

Instant yeast, 2 teaspoon

Salt, 1 teaspoon

Egg, 1 no

Milk, 1/2 cup

Tangzhong from the above

Butter,  3 tablespoon

How it is made?

Preparing the tangzhong

1. Mix water and flour without any lumps. 
2. Cook in medium low heat stirring with wooden spoon or spatula, to prevent the mixture from burning or sticking to the bottom of the pan.
3. The mixture will start to thicken, when stirred by spatula it will form lines. 
4. Now remove from the heat and let it cool. You can cover it with cling wrap on the surface to prevent it from drying. 
5. As soon as it is cooled you can use it. If you want to store it for later, keep it in the fridge upto a few days.If it turns grey, discard it.

Making the bread

1. Combine all the dry ingredients(flour, Salt, Sugar,instant yeast) together. Make a well in the centre and whisk in the wet ingredients(tangzhong, milk and egg) start kneading this mixture, then add butter and knead. It will be sticky and the beginning continue to knead till the gluten develops and the dough becomes smooth and it is not sticky.
2. Knead the dough into ball shape and keep it on a greased bowl and cover it with cling wrap or wet towel. Let it proof till it is doubled in  size. It should take about 40 minutes (timings vary depending on the weather)
3. At this point if you  want to make dilkush, you  can proceed. For instructions to make dilkush refer here
4. Then deflate the dough and divide it to 4 equal parts. Knead it into balls and cover it with cling wrap and let it rise for 15 minutes.
5. Prepare the loaf pan by greasing and flouring it.
6. Now take each balls and roll them to oval shape. Then fold both the sides inward and press in the centre. Turn the  seal downwards and roll again. Now roll them like you do a mat. Place this in the prepared bread tin such that the seal is facing downwards. Similarly do for the other balls and arrange them in the loaf pan.
7. Cover it with cling wrap and let it rise till it doubles in size. 
8. Whisk a egg and do a egg wash.
9. Preheat the oven to 350 F and bake for 30- 35 minutes.If you tap the bread it should sound hollow, that means the bread is done.
10. Transfer it to wire rack and let it cool completely. 
11. Slice and serve.

Notes:

• The original recipe called for bread flour, since I didn't have it, I replaced it with all purpose flour. 
• Since the kneading of the dough is messy, my friend Reshmi suggested to use food processor. So I used it, and making the dough was easy breezy.Thanks to her for the suggestion.