Have you ever eaten Shokupan in Japan? You must try it! It’s that delicious, soft and fluffy white bread loaf that you can get in Japan. They are amazingly fluffy and keep moist for longer than ordinary bread because of the Yudane method.
Why is Japanese Bread So Fluffy?
I did a little bit of research about why Japanese bread is so soft and fluffy and has the mochi-like texture. And I found the “Yudane” method. Yudane method makes the bread incredibly soft, and helps the bread stay fresh longer (it does not last long in my house though…).
The Yudane method works so remarkably well to make soft and fluffy bread and makes the bread last longer because the heated gelatinised starch in the flour keeps the moisture inside the bread and it will make the bread soft and last longer.
What is the Yudane Method?
- The Yudane method originated in Japan and it became widespread and popular way to bake bread when Yvonne Chen introduced “Tangzhong” roux as a secret ingredient to bake the super soft and light Japanese bread in her book called “Bread Doctor”.
- Tangzhong roux is made by 1:5 ratio of bakers or bread flour to water. The mixture is heated up to 65-degrees celsius then cooled down to room temperature and added to the bread dough.
- Multiple Japanese companies have patents on this method, but I found a lot of recipes on the internet. I referenced and adopted this recipe to make my Shokupan in Australia.
I have seen this type of bread also called “Hokkaido Milk Bread” on social media platforms such as Pinterest often. Hokkaido milk bread is made by this Yudane method.
This is not a popular effortless “No Knead” type of bread recipe, however, it is worth the effort to bake this bread especially if you love any Japanese baking stuff, this is the bread you must try!
FAQ-
Q: Can the bread flour be replaced by all purpose flour?
A: Yes, you can. But as you can see the all purpose flour did not rise well. The texture of the bread was not fluffy, but rather it was like eating savoury muffin.
Q: I don’t use cow milk, can I use almond milk or something else instead?
A: Using different milk does not affect the fluffiness and lightness of the bread. The coconut milk I used was the “Ayam Premium Coconut Milk 100 % Natural” which contains 24.3 g fat in 100ml and it is quite rich and thick. The almond milk that I used was “Sanitarium So Good Almond Milk” and contained only 1.4g per 100ml. It was very thin milk. The almond milk bread turned out fluffier and coconut milk bread was denser.
Hope these experiments using different ingredients helps you make a decision as to which ingredients to use.
If you liked my recipe for Shokupan Japanese bread, please rate it and leave a comment below. Also, don’t forget to follow me on Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook , Twitter and Instagramto keep up to date with all the latest happenings on Chopstick Chronicles. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #ChopstickChronicles so I can see your wonderful creations!
And here is the mini movie “How to make Shokupan Japanese milk bread” from me
Ingredients
Yudane
- 50 g Bread flour/Baker's flour
- 40 ml boiling water above 90 degree celsius
Bread
- 200 g Bread/Baker's flour
- 3 g dry instant yeast
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 10 g unsalted butter
- 150 ml milk
Instructions
- Make Yudane the night before. Place bread flour in a bowl and add boiling water and mix well. Put cling wrap and refrigerate overnight. *1
- Place all the ingredients except the unsalted butter into a bread making machine or kneader with the wet ingredients first then dry ingredients.
- Add the Yudane (torn into small pieces) and knead it for about 10 minutes.
- Add the unsalted room-temperature butter and knead for another 10 minutes.
- Place the dough into a greased bowl. Wrap with cling wrap to raise for about 1 hour at about 30 degrees celsius(86F) or until double the size.
- Punch the dough down and cut the dough into two equal parts with a scraper and roll them.
- Cover the rolled doughs with a wet cloth and take 20 minutes bench time.
- Roll out each dough to about 15 x 20 cm (5.9x7.8inch)rectangle with a rolling pin.
- Fold the dough tightly not letting any air in towards the centre from left and right.
- Rotate the dough 90 degrees and roll it from one end.
- Spray one loaf bread tin lightly and place the rolled dough in the end of the tin facing the centre.
- Start to preheat the oven to 185 degree celsius (365 f).
- Cover it with a wet cloth and let the dough rise for a second time until the dough rises to the size of the bread tin.
- Bake the dough for about 25 -30 minutes.
- Remove the bread from the tin and cool it down on a rack.
Hi Shihoko may i know is there any way i can prolong the shelf life. I tried the recipe here is very humid, it can last 2-3days room temperature. Is there any natural preservatives that i could add to pronlong the shelf life to 5days perhaps. Thanks Shihoko.
Hi Izzati, you can freeze it. Slice them and place them in a ziplock bag. It will last long time.
Hi, I will try your recipe soon. I was wondering about the egg. All the other recipes I found on the web include 1 egg in the dough, while I don’t see it in your recipe. What will be the difference plus and minus an egg?
Hi Marco It is just a different recipe.
Hi, could I make this bread in my bread machine ie from start to finished baking?
Hi Carolin, yes. I usually make it with my bread machine.
Hi,
Does the dough need to be kneaded until window pane? Otherwise, how do we know it’s ready?
Hi Mel, you are more expert than I am. I rely on my bread machine usually and let it knead and rise. But yes, if you are doing with your hand, you need to knead until window pane. Thank you for asking. It probably another time to update the recipe.
Love love the bread, just have two comment, what size bread tin is used, plus the milk should be warm (if you stick your finger in it warm nearly to the point you think hot) not boiling. I dont mind as I have done this before but your recipy is the best!! l LOVE THE BREAD!! And shared it many many time with friends.
Thank you so much Vyonne for sharing. I am glad that you love this Shokupan 😀
We can’t get enough of this recipe. Love it. In your video, do you put an egg wash on top before baking?
Hi Laura, Yes I did 😀
Hi there, i really miss eating Japanese bread which has different texture from European bread 😭 I have tried making bread with bread flour here using the usual soft bread recipe that I used to make in Japan but I got different texture 😞 I usually replace the milk with yoghurt to make it softer, will it work with this recipe?
Could you tell me why you want to replace milk with yoghurt? This bread is really soft and moist. Just try it.
Hi , i dont know i guess it is just a habit of me to replace milk with yoghurt in any bread recipe ? i’ve read somewhere that it will give extra soft and moist texture to the bread. But i think I will try the original recipe first and let you know afterwards 🙂
Hi Melonpan, That’s what “yudane” method does, making bread moist and soft and last long 😀
shihoko san, Thank you very much for sharing this recipe ! I have tried it and it is absolutely amazing 😭😭 Just one more question, I find it a bit hard to shape the dough properly after 1st proofing & bench time, the dough got very much like a rubber so when i tried to flatten it, it keeps getting back 😅 Do you think I left it too long on bench time stage ?
Hi Melonpan you are welcome 😀 No you are not doing anything wrong. It is quite bouncy and getting back 😀
Hi dear,
Can I use mixer to mix all the ingredients instead of bread maker (dun have it)? Thanks in advance.
Hi Joe, yes of course you can.
I see a short video for this recipe mentioned, but can’t seem to find it within?
Hi Miriam, thank you for bringing my attention to the video. Somehow it is lost, I will replace it shortly. Meanwhile, you can see it on my Youtube Channel here
Hello! May I use active dry yeast? I don’t have instant dry yeast…
Hi Hester, Yes you can but you need to adjust the steps a little bit as active dry yeast need to be resolved in water before use 😀
Superb!! I made this bread receipe last friday and roll them into crescent roll instead of loaf. I brush the roll with melted butter before bake, and brush melted butter after bake. The kids love it.
Thanks for sharing the receipe.
Yay Jacqueline melted butter is great idea!
Hi I made the shokupan. It was very tasty..thank you. The problem I faced was the dough was very sticky, hence I couldn’t roll very well nor shape it well. Is the dough suppose to be very sticky? I would like to give it another try. From your photos, the dough didn’t seem too sticky !
Hi Huey, thank you for making this bread. Yes it is sticky. I usually use my bread maker to knead and rise. That’s why it does not look sticky 😀
Thank you for your reply. I made it again as the bread was so good ( my family loves it) .. The dough was sticky but manageable this time. I posted on instagram!! Thanks for your effort for sharing!
Hi,
The 150ml milk you use for the dough, is it in room temp or you have to warm it up first? and how long will this bread lasts in room temp. Malaysia is very humid.. will it last long and lastly can I freeze the baked bread? appreciate your reply. tq!
Hi Siti I don’t warm up so room temp is fine. If the weather is humid, I recommend to slice them up when the bread is completely cooled down and freeze.
I have a question: I live in an area that is cold and my house is at 65 degrees f. I do not know how to set the dough in a heat high enough to rise. Will it rise okay in the less warm air?
Hi Moriah, Do you have a polystyrene foam box? You need to create warm environment for your dough. If you have a large enough polystyrene foam box and place a cup filled with boiling hot water. Leave your dough in the box.