Japanese Milk Bread (Shokupan)

Oven Rack: Set the oven rack to a lower position where the top edge of your loaf pan is 6 to 7 inches (15–18 cm) away from the top heating element. This will allow enough space for the bread to rise during baking, especially if you plan to make a round-topped milk bread. Don’t get closer than 6 inches or the top may brown too fast.

To Create a Warm Environment for Bulk Fermentation: If your oven has a Proof setting, turn it to 100ºF (38ºC). Otherwise, place small baking dishes of boiling water on the lower-middle rack at the four corners. Then, place your dough in a bowl in the center of the rack and close the door. The steam and heat from the boiling water will create a warm environment for bulk fermentation. You can also proof bread dough with an Instant Pot using the Yogurt function on Low or the temperature setting. During the summer when humidity is high, you may not need to create a special environment.

To Make the Dough

Gather all the ingredients. Precise measurement is extremely important for this recipe; therefore, please weigh your ingredients with a digital kitchen scale. I strongly discourage measuring by volume. Now, cut the butter into small cubes; I used a pair of kitchen shears. For 1 rectangular loaf, use 25 g unsalted butter. (For 1 square loaf, use 17 g unsalted butter.)

In a large bowl, combine the warm water, sugar, salt, and honey: For 1 rectangular loaf, combine 250 g warm water, 20 g sugar, 7 g Diamond Crystal kosher salt, and 10 g honey. (For 1 square loaf, combine 167 g warm water, 14 g sugar, 4.5 g Diamond Crystal kosher salt, and 7 g honey.) Mix well together. Then, add the yeast: For 1 rectangular loaf, add7 g instant yeast. (For 1 square loaf, add 4.7 g instant yeast.) Whisk it all together and set aside in a warm place for 10 minutes. You want to see bubbly foam on the surface. Tip: If you don’t see any, maybe your yeast is old or the environment is not warm enough; wait another 5 minutes to see if any bubbles develop.

Meanwhile, combine the bread flour and skim or nonfat dry milk powder in a stand mixer bowl: For 1 rectangular loaf, combine 350 g bread flour and 20 g skim milk powder or nonfat dry milk powder. (For 1 square loaf, combine 235 g bread flour and 14 g skim milk powder or nonfat dry milk powder.) Mix it together and make a well in the middle of the flour mixture.

Once you confirm the foamy surface on the yeast mixture, pour it into the well of the flour mixture, scraping every bit of the liquid with a silicone spatula or dough scraper. Then, mix it until combined. Keep this yeast mixture bowl, as you’ll be putting the dough ball in it later.

To Knead the Dough in the Stand Mixer

Warning: KitchenAid does not recommend kneading dough at settings higher than Speed 2. However, we can’t achieve a perfect texture without kneading aggressively. Hold your stand mixer down with your hand(s) when you’re kneading at Speed 6, and keep an eye on it at all times. Do not walk away. Don’t take this warning lightly, as my instructor’s mixer fell off the countertop onto the kitchen floor twice when she stepped away for just a few seconds. Please use it at your own discretion.

Set up the stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Knead the dough on Speed 2 for 2 minutes (or 3 minutes if making double the rectangular loaf recipe using the Artisan or Professional series mixer). This is just to get started. The ingredients should be well combined after this step.

Next, increase the speed and knead the dough on Speed 4 for 4 minutes (6 minutes for double). After 4 (or 6–8) minutes, stop the mixer. The dough will be smoother than before, yet it should still look a bit rough and bumpy.

Add the butter cubes to the dough. Knead the dough again on Speed 2 for 2 minutes (3 minutes for double), or until you can no longer see any streaks of butter.

Then, knead the dough on Speed 4 for 4 minutes (6 minutes for double). While spinning, the dough will stretch and elongate (see the photo below).

Stop the mixer and check the texture of the dough. It should be smoother, shinier, softer, and thinner when it’s stretched. At this stage, the dough is still attached to the bottom of the mixer bowl.

Now, knead the dough on Speed 6 for 3 minutes (4½ minutes for double). From here, you MUST hold down your stand mixer with your hand(s) since the machine will shake and move, and it could possibly fall off the countertop.

The dough will start pulling away from the bottom of the bowl and eventually become a solid ball shape. The mixer will shake and wobble as the dough bangs around the sides of the bowl. Again, hold your stand mixer to keep it from falling and monitor it at all times.

Japanese milk bread requires aggressive kneading to get that soft, tender texture. The goal here is to develop the gluten (elasticity) by lengthening and stretching the gluten strands in the dough.

After kneading on Speed 6, stop the mixer. The dough should look really shiny, silky, soft, and smooth (not sticky). When you lift the dough hook, it should pick up all the dough in one piece, separating easily from the bottom of the bowl. Tip: If the dough becomes slack and gooey, you‘ve kneaded for too long.

The Windowpane Test

Now, it’s time for the windowpane test. Either pull on a part of the dough or tear off a small piece. Hold the dough in both hands and gently pull it into a square with your fingers. It should be very elastic, smooth, and shiny. If it‘s strong enough to stretch to a super-thin membrane without tearing and light can pass through the center, your dough passes the test. If it doesn’t stretch or it tears too easily, knead it again on Speed 6 for 2–3 minutes and test again.

To check the dough temperature, insert an instant-read thermometer into the center of the dough. It should be 79–82ºF (26–28ºC) and not lower or higher than this temperature. Yeast is most active at 82–95ºF (28–35ºC) during bulk fermentation. Tip: If your dough temperature is higher than 82ºF (28ºC), let the dough slowly rise for the First Rise (Bulk Fermentation), instead of putting it in a Proof setting (100ºF/38ºC) or placing it in a warm place. This will help prevent overproofing.

To Slam and Fold

Once your dough passed the windowpane test, lightly dust the work surface and your hands with flour to prevent sticking. Scrape the dough from the bowl with the silicone spatula or dough scraper and place it on the work surface. From this point, make sure to keep one smooth surface on your dough ball at all times. My nice smooth surface is currently on the bottom of the dough.

Now, pick up the dough ball, keeping the smooth side up. Then, slam the smooth side onto the work surface. Bang!

Then, hold one edge of the dough with your fingers in the 12 o’clock position and fold it over to the other side at the 6 o’clock position, revealing the smooth surface. Now, pick up the dough with the smooth side up.

Once again, slam the smooth surface of the dough onto the work surface. Bang! Now, pick up the edge of the dough at the 9 o’clock position and fold it over to the opposite side at the 3 o’clock position, revealing the smooth surface. Again, pick up the dough with the smooth side up.

Repeat this “slam and fold“ process 5 times in total. After you slam the dough for the final time, leave the dough on the work surface temporarily, and don‘t fold it over yet.

Take the bowl that you mixed the yeast in and thinly coat it with ½ tsp neutral oil. Wipe off any excess oil from the bowl and your fingers with a paper towel. We do not want a pool of oil in the bowl.

Finally, go back to the dough and fold it over one last time. Pick it up and pull the edges of the dough from all sides to create a smooth, taut skin. Tuck and pinch the edges underneath to hide them at the bottom. Put the dough ball in the bowl and cover it with plastic.

The First Rise (Bulk Fermentation)

Let the dough rise for 40 minutes. The dough will become 3 times bigger in size. If you live in a cooler climate, it may take longer (1–1½ hours). I use the Proof setting on my oven at 100ºF (38ºC). Please see the “Before You Start“ section of the recipe for my proofing tips.

To Use the Finger Test

Once the dough has tripled in size, dust some flour on top and use your index finger to poke the middle of the dough. If the hole does not close up, it’s ready. If the dough closes up immediately, proof the dough a little longer and test again.

To Deflate the Dough

Uncover and invert the bowl to release the dough onto your work surface. Using your fingers, gently press down and deflate the dough. Remember to keep one smooth surface on your dough at all times. My smooth surface is currently on the bottom of the dough.

Collect and press all the edges into the middle, flip the dough, and form a round shape, tucking any loose edges underneath.

To Divide the Dough

Using a kitchen scale, weigh the dough. Then, divide it into 3 equal pieces with the dough scraper. For a square shokupan loaf, divide it into 2 equal pieces.

If you have a piece that‘s bigger than the others, tear off some dough from the edge, keeping its smooth surface intact. Attach the torn dough to the edge of a piece that‘s smaller than the others.

Form each piece into a ball with a smooth, taut skin: Hold the dough with the smooth surface on top. Gently pull and tighten the dough down from all sides to create tension on the outside. We want all three dough balls to rise equally, so limit the pulling action to roughly the same for each ball, about 3–4 times total. Tuck and pinch the loose dough at the bottom. Place the dough on the work surface and repeat this process for the rest of pieces.

Alternatively, you can place the dough on a non-floured surface. Place both of your hands behind the dough and drag the dough ball along the surface toward your body. The bottom of the dough sticks to the dry surface, creating tension and tightening the ball. Keep the dough ball upright and don't allow the top of the dough to roll over as you pull (see this video). Rotate the ball a quarter turn and perform another gentle drag toward your body. Continue rotating and dragging a few more times until the dough is sufficiently taut and uniformly round.

The Bench Rest

Cover the dough balls with a damp towel and rest them for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, use a pastry brush to grease the pan(s) (and the lid, if you‘re making flat-topped shokupan) with a thin coating of 10 g unsalted butter. Tip: I like the taste of butter around the crust, but you can use cooking oil spray instead of butter, if you prefer.

To Shape the Dough

After 15 minutes, take out one dough ball, keeping the rest under the damp towel. Gently handle the dough without stressing it. Dust just enough flour so your dough does not stick to the work surface and rolling pin, but not so much that your dough slides around. As you practice, you will know how much flour is just enough. Next, place the rolling pin in the middle of the dough and press it down.

First, roll out the dough away from you, rolling all the way through the top edge. Rolling releases gas in the dough. Next, roll out the dough toward you, rolling through the edge closest to you. Tip: If the dough slides around, you dusted too much flour. Next time, reduce the flour. I love this non-stick rolling pin (I bought it at the same time as Japanese loaf pans). You can buy a similar one from Amazon.

Pick up the dough and flip it over, and then rotate it 90 degrees. It‘s now laid out in front of you in a horizontal oval shape.

Press the four corners of the dough to shape the oval into a rectangle. Place the rolling pin in the middle.

Roll out the dough away from you and then toward you, rolling through all the edges.

Next, roll out the upper two corners, so they are squared rather than rounded.

Then, roll out the lower two corners. The dough now should look like a vertical rectangle.

Make sure the dough is an even thickness from the center to the edges. If the edges are slightly thick or have air bubbles, use the heel of your hand to press down the thick parts or pop any bubbles on the edges. The rectangle should be roughly 21 x 26 cm (8 x 10 in.). Tip: I noticed from my own experience that if I don’t roll out the dough evenly at this stage, it affects the shape when I roll up the dough later.

Fold the dough in thirds, starting with the right third. Bring the dough to the left one-third line, lightly and gently pressing the edge down so it stays in place. Next, fold the left third of the dough, overlapping the edge of the right third by two-thirds. The edge of the left third should be slightly past the center line. Tip: If the dough sticks to the work surface, detach it gently; do not pull, or else the surface of the dough will not be smooth. Always gently handle your dough with care and do not stress the dough.

Press down and seal this edge with your fingers, from top to bottom. At this stage, the folded dough should have an even thickness. Both the right and left horizontal edges are thicker (puffed up), but the overlapped edges along the center line even out the thickness of the dough.

Fold down the two upper corners toward the center line, so the top now looks like a triangle tip. Then, tuck the tip down toward you, making sure it is right in the middle.

Start rolling the dough slowly toward you, gently pulling the dough downward as you roll to create a smooth, taut skin, but don‘t roll too tightly. Tip: Use the same amount of tension when making all of your dough rolls. This helps them rise at the same rate during the final proof and results in an ideal round-topped shokupan shape.

Keep rolling all the way to the end, making sure the shape of the roll is even. Now, pinch the dough at the edge to seal. Keep the rolled-up dough under the damp towel and repeat this process with the rest of the dough balls. Remember which piece of dough you rolled last.

Now, place the dough rolls in the shokupan mold, starting with the first two pieces you rolled. Place the first dough roll, seam side down, on one side of the mold. Make sure that 1) the seam is on the bottom, 2) the direction of the swirl goes toward (and not away from) the middle of the pan, and 3) the rolled edge touches the pan‘s side.

Now, place the second dough roll on the opposite end of the mold, seam side down. Again, the direction of the swirl should go toward the loaf‘s center.

Finally, place the last piece of dough you rolled between the first two, seam side down. The direction of the swirl can go either way. Gently press down on the tops of the rolled dough to make them the same height.

If you are using the square shokupan loaf pan, the two rolls should go in just like the first two rolls for the rectangular loaf pan.

The Final Rise (Proofing) and Oven Preheat

Cover the mold with plastic and place in a warm environment for 1 hour or until the dough has risen to 80–90% of the height of the mold (see the next step). Tip: For the first 30 minutes, I use the Proof mode of my oven. I then take out the mold and place it in a warm area in the house to finish proofing.

When you have 30 minutes of proofing time left, start preheating the oven to 425ºF (220ºC). For a convection oven, reduce the baking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). Tip: My oven usually preheats in 15 minutes; however, it is very important that the oven is thoroughly preheated, so I plan 30 minutes of preheating time.

To make a flat-topped shokupan (角型食パン), let the dough rise to 75–80% of the height of the mold. Then, remove the plastic and close the lid. If your proof was a bit too long and you exceed 80%, change to a round-topped shokupan. Tip: Don‘t force the lid closed over the dough. Even if the lid closes, the dough will continue to rise in the oven and the lid will get stuck.

To make a round-topped shokupan (山型食パン), let the dough rise to 85–90% of the height of the mold. When the highest point of the dough touches the plastic wrap, it’s ready to bake. Now, remove the plastic and spritz the surface of the dough with water. Note: The volume for each shokupan mold is very different. My 90% may not be the same as yours if we use a different mold.

To Bake the Bread

For the flat-topped shokupan, lower the oven temperature to 415ºF (210ºC) and bake for 25–30 minutes (in my oven, it’s 28 minutes). For the round-topped shokupan, lower the oven temperature to 385ºF (195ºC) and bake for 30 minutes. For a convection oven, reduce the baking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). For a square loaf, the baking temperature and time should be the same or slightly less.

If you are baking two loaves at the same time, bake 1–2 minutes longer and make sure to have plenty of space between the pans so heat can circulate. Tip: If the loaf has come out lighter in color, you may also want to increase the oven temperature by 5ºF (2–3ºC) next time. To bake both the flat-topped and the round-topped shokupan together, bake at 400ºF (200ºC).

When it’s done baking, drop the mold firmly 1–2 times on the work surface (I use a grate on the stovetop) to allow the water vapors to escape from the bread. This keeps the shokupan from shrinking. Tip: If water vapor remains in the bread, it will weaken the bread‘s structure and make it easier to deflate. The sides of the loaf will wilt and bend as well.

For the flat-topped shokupan, open the lid carefully. If you struggle to remove the lid, close it and drop the shokupan mold on the work surface one more time. If you still can’t open it, note that you need to stop the second proof earlier next time. Maybe instead of 80%, try 75%.

Give a few thrusts and let the shokupan slide out of the mold onto a wire rack. After baking, do not wash your Japanese shokupan loaf pan. Simply wipe it off with a paper towel and store it completely dry to prevent rust.

To Serve:

Let the shokupan cool completely on the wire rack; it may take 2–3 hours. Do not cut or open the loaf while it’s hot; the steam will escape and the bread will lose moisture. Slice the bread and toast it to enjoy with butter and jam/honey or use untoasted slices for Japanese-style sandwiches.

To Store:

If you plan to eat the shokupan within 1 to 2 days, put the whole loaf, completely cooled, in a bag (I use clear plastic bags) and slice as needed. If you don‘t consume the shokupan within 2 days, slice and freeze the rest for a month to preserve its quality. If you don‘t plan to eat the shokupan within the next 2 days, slice and freeze it.