Have you ever eaten Shokupan, the Japanese milk bread? You must try it! It’s the delicious, soft and fluffy white bread loaf that you can get in Japan. The golden brown crust and soft white inside make it irresistible. It is amazingly fluffy and stays moist for longer than ordinary bread because of the Yudane method.
Why is Japanese Bread So Fluffy?
Why is Japanese bread so soft and fluffy and has the mochi-like texture? The answer is because of the “Yudane” method. The Yudane method makes the bread pillowy soft and fluffy and also keeps the bread from drying out quickly. This is because the heated gelatinised starch in the flour keeps the moisture inside the bread.
What is the Yudane Method?
Yudane is made by mixing bread flour and hot boiling water. Adding hot boiling water gelatinises the starch. The gelatinised starch not only allows the starch to take in more water, but also increases the sweetness of it. Therefore by adding Yudane to a bread dough (the yudane method), you can make soft, moist and sweeter bread which lasts longer.
Yudane vs Tangzhong roux
- The Yudane method originated in Japan and it became widespread and the popular way to bake bread in Asian countries when Yvonne Chen introduced “Tangzhong” roux as a secret ingredient to bake the super soft and light Japanese milk bread in her book called “Bread Doctor”.
- Yudane ratio of flour and water is usually 1:1 whereas “Tangzhong roux” is made by 1:5 ratio of bread flour to water. The Tangzhong mixture is made by heating up to 149°F(65°C) then cooled down to room temperature and added to the bread dough. I will explain how to make Yudane in a paragraph below.
- I have often seen this type of bread also called “Hokkaido Milk Bread” or “Japanese Milk Bread” on social media platforms such as Pinterest. Those breads are made by the same principle either adding Yudane or Tangzhong roux to bread dough.
How to Make Yudane?
We need to deduct 20% of total flour ingredients to make Yudane. So to make 1 standard loaf size dough, we need 250 x 0.2 = 50g bread flour. Yudane flour to water ratio is generally 1:1, but I found it is easier to make yudane with 1:08 ratio. Then simply add hot boiling water (should be above 194°F/90°C) and combine them with a wooden spatula. The ideal combined dough temperature will be around 122°F/50°C. When it is cooled down, wrap with a sheet of plastic wrap and leave it on the kitchen bench or in the fridge.
Ingredients
You need to gather bread flour, milk, sugar, unsalted butter, Salt and Yudane that you made the night before. Some ingredients will be further explained as I have received many questions about this.
Flour
For making fluffy Japanese milk bread, we need to use bread flour that contains around 12% of protein. I use Japanese brand Nisshin flour. You can use all-purpose flour but all-purpose flour has around 10% protein content therefore the bread will not rise as high as the shokupan made with bread flour.
Yeast
I usually use LeSaffre Saf-Instant Yeast Gold for making shokupan Japanese milk bread. If you cannot find instant active dry yeast but can find fresh yeast, you can substitute. This recipe requires 1 teaspoon(5g) of dry yeast, so you would need 5g x 3 = 15g of fresh yeast.
Butter
We need to use unsalted butter. Because the salt content of butter will affect the gluten formation. If you don’t have unsalted butter, and would like to use oil instead, you can. However it is a little bit tricky because butter is solid and oil is liquid. Generally speaking, you can replace 3/4 of the amount of butter with oil.
Milk
Some readers have asked if they can replace the whole milk with other types of milk. Using different milk does not affect the fluffiness and lightness of the bread. I tested using coconut milk and almond milk. Read the result in the FAQ.
Bakers Percentages
Some readers have asked to change the amount of the ingredients to make bigger or smaller sized bread loaves. Baker’s percentage is great because it is universal even when each country uses different units of weight. In the table below, is the bread ingredients mixing ratio. Each ingredient is shown as a % of the flour.
Ingredients | weight | percentage |
Bread flour for Yudane | 50g | 20% |
Hot water | 40g/ml | 16% |
Bread flour | 200g | 80% |
Milk | 150g/ml | 60% |
Sugar | 15g | 6% |
Instant dry yeast | 3g | 1.2% |
unsalted butter | 10g | 4% |
Salt | 5g | 2% |
Using Cup Measurement
If you don’t have a kitchen scale, don’t worry. I have figured out measurements for using cups. However, you need to be as precise as you can. For example, when you measure 1 cup of flour, you need to spoon flour to the measuring cup, then level the surface with the back of a knife. The cup measurements are included in the recipe cards’ note section.
How to Make Shokupan Japanese Milk Bread?
This is the basic process of making the shokupan Japanese bread in 8 steps using Yudane method.
- Make Yudane the night before. (8-12 hours)
- Knead all ingredients using a stand mixer, bread machine or by hand (20min)
- The first rise (45-60 min depends on the temperature)
- Divide & roll
- Bench time (20 min)
- Shape
- The second rise (30 min)
- Bake (30 min)
Tips for Making Shokupan Japanese Milk Bread Successfully
- Start making Yudane the night before with boiling hot water. When the mixture combines the temperature of the dough should be around 122°F/50°C.
- Leaving Yudane longer will result in better Japanese bread.
- The dough rising temperature should be around 86°F(30°C). My oven has a defrost function and I set the temperature to 86°F(30°C), so I use that setting for rising. Or use a styrofoam box with 4 little cups with hot water in the corners of the box.
Other Recipes That Call for Shokupan Japanese Milk Bread
The fluffy, soft and moist Japanese milk bread is the basis of other delicious Japanese creations.
- Tamago Sando (Japanese egg sandwich). This egg salad sandwich is super popular and for good reason.
- Fruit Sando (Japanese fruit sandwich). Another popular sandwich in Japan, often made with strawberries and cream.
- Panko (Japanese bread crumbs). You can use this Japanese bread to make Japanese bread crumbs which are so crispy and perfect for using to make pork katsu or chicken katsu.
- Simply toasting the bread with some butter or jam is also great. The bread is so delicious that even eating it simply like this tastes amazing.
- You can also use this recipe to make super soft Japanese bread rolls.
How to Store the Bread?
Another tip that I can give you is that this bread is super soft, so it is better to slice it the following day. I bake the bread on a Saturday and slice it on Sunday. It will stay moist for a few days just sitting on the kitchen bench. In my household, the bread is eaten in a day or two. But if you wish, slice them and individually wrap and place them in a ziplock bag to freeze. It will last about a month.
FAQ
A: Yes, you can. But as you can see the all purpose flour did not rise well in my experiment. The texture of the bread was not fluffy, but rather it was like eating a savoury muffin.
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.
A: You can hand knead, however, because this has yudane in the dough which is very moist, the dough is quite sticky. Therefore, this recipe is more suitable for machine kneading. I usually use either a machine or bread mixer to knead and rise.
A: Yes you can. Some of my readers and myself have only rested the dough for about a couple hours in the fridge and the bread made with that shorter resting time of the yudane was quite successful. However, the longer you rest the yudane the better the quality of the bread.
A: My bread form size is 3.9 x 7.9 x 3.5 inch (10 x 20 x 9 cm). I bought it in Japan. This is similar to what I have from Amazon.com.
Stay Connected
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!
If you liked my recipe for Shokupan Japanese milk bread, please rate it and leave a comment below. Also, don’t forget to follow me on Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook , Twitter and Instagram to 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!
Shokupan
Ingredients
Yudane
- 50 g Bread flour *1
- 40 ml boiling water above 194°F(90°C)
Bread
- 150 ml milk (room temperature) *3
- 15 g sugar
- 3 g dry instant yeast *2
- 10 g unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 200 g Bread flour *1
- 5 g salt
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. *4
- Pour the room temperature milk into a stand mixer bowl.
- Add sugar,butter and yeast to the bowl then add the yudane as you tear it into small pieces.
- Add the bread, flour and salt.
- Attach the kneading hook onto the stand mixer and combine all ingredient on low speed 1.
- When all ingredients are combined, turn the speed up to 5 or 6 and knead the dough for 20 min.
- Roll the dough round and place the dough into a greased bowl. Wrap with cling wrap to rise for about 45 min to 1 hour at about 86°F(30°C) or until double the size.
- Use your finger, to test if the dough has risen by dusting your finger with flour and poking the dough. If the dough doesn't bounce back and the hole you poked stays there, it is ready.
- 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 stand it for 20 minutes bench time.
- Roll out each dough to about 5.9×7.8inch (15 x 20 cm) 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.
- 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 about 30 min.
- Start to preheat the oven to 365 °F(185°C).
- When the dough has risen to be level with the tin, it's ready to bake.
- Bake the dough for about 25 -30 minutes in preheated oven.
- Remove the bread from the tin and cool it down on a rack. * 5
- Whisk an egg, rightly brush over the bread dough.(Optional)
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Chopstick Chronicles is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
This recipe was originally posted in 2017, since then had received so many questions and suggestions. So I have decided update the post and the recipe in order to answer all the questions asked. Thank you for those who left comments below and rate the recipe highly.
S says
I made this today with the shortened yudane resting time and I used it today too (needed it for BLTs for dinner). It was delicious. My version was slightly underbaked, but I know to keep in the oven a couple of minutes longer next time.
The only bad part is that I think my stand mixer might not be able to handle many more of these, it got super warm and was dancing around a lot. Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Thank you for making this Shokupan
Shelby says
Just made this recipe and it turned out beautifully soft and fluffy! Will make it again. The only thing is i would double the recipe as this one was not enough to fill a standard loaf tin
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Thank you Shelby 😀
Tanny says
Hi!
Can I use the loaf pan with the lid on? Will I need to adjust anything in the recipe?
My family and I love shokupan but have always bought it. Excited to try baking at home!
Thank u!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Tanny, yes you can 😀
Christine says
Love this recipe 😊. If I want to make 2 loafs, do I double the time in kneading and raising the dough?
Marcos costa Junior says
Gostei muito de encontrar este artigo.
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Thank you Marcos
Esther says
Love your recipe. I get new knowledge in making bread. If I’d like to put milk powder, what is the percentage. Can change unsalted butter with shortening ?
Waiting for your reply. Thank you
Esther says
Waiting for your next recipe
Sunrise says
hi Shihoko. hello from Indonesia!
super Loved with your recipe 🙂
is it different if I store that yudane in room temperature / fridge?
thankyouu!
Have a nice day 🙂
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Sunrise yes, if it is too hot I would store in fridge, but in winter you can leave in room temperature
Rodsathorn Jiarakorn says
Hi,thank you for sharing good recipe.
I need to bake vegan shokupan.May you advise me for adjust some ingredients?
I don”t use plant’s base milk or cow’s milk.Can I use water in same volume?
I don”t use butter.Can I use oil in same volume?
thank you
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Rodsathorn, the reason milk and butter used in many bread recipes are enrich the flavour of the bread, and preventing the bread become firm and dry. You replace the milk with same amount of water, but end result of texture will be different as I stated in the post. I also mentioned about butter and oil in the post as well.
Maria says
A bit confused with the yudane ratio. “Yudane ratio of flour and water is usually 1:1 ” . Shouldn’t that mean 50 ml boiling water (instead of 40 ml in the recipe) with 50 g bread flour?
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Maria. Yes it is usually 1:1, but I found less water is easier to handle so I tweaked the ratio.
Francisca says
Hi Shihoko, my bread flour has 12.7% protein. When making yudane, I found 40mg/ml was too little (yudane was lumpy). Can you advise how much water I need to add? Thank you.
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Francisca, You can add 10ml make it 1:1 ratio, Yudane is lumpy when it is made but after it is rested overnight gluten will be made and it will become gooey.
Layean says
Hi, i do not have unsalted butter, can you recommend how much litre of Vegetable oil for this recipe? Thanks a lot.
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Layean, It is mentioned in the post.
Alison Sim says
Do I bruch egg over bread before I put in oven? or after taking the bread out from oven?
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Alison I brushed before the oven.
Angelina says
So worth your time making this shokupan recipe, straightforward and clear step by step pictures. Bread came out soft, fluffy and chewy like texture which I love so much, the ingredients are all found in my pantry which is very convenient. Thanks so much for this recipe, definitely a keeper!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Thank you Angelina 😀
Jesse A Turner says
Amazingly good. Well worth the effort
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Thank you Jesse 😀
Marcela says
Hello! Im really excited to try this recipe! I have a question: should I activate the yeast or do I just add it like that? Thanks!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Marcela, if it is instant dry yeast you don’t need to activate.
Carolyn says
Hi Shihoko! Love this recipe and so does my family 🙂 is there any difference in cooking time and temp if a dark baking loaf pan is used versus and aluminium pan? Thank you in advance!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Carolyn Thank you for making Shokupan with my recipe. I think it is not the colour of the loaf pan but what it is made of. Aluminium one distribute heat evenly.
Diana.S says
Hi Shihoko, I like your recipe. Very detailed and easy to understand! I have made a matcha loaf using the bread tin with lid, using the recipe. I would like to seek ur kind advises on the following:
1) I am using a 450g bread tin with lid. How much should I increase the ingredient? I follow the recipe, the bread did not manage to reach the top. Hahaha.
2) Why is my 3 sides of my bread (not the top) kinda dense?
3) My yudane is not as sticky like yours. Is it because of the bread flour which I used? It’s around 13% of protein. Should I add more water to it?
I will continue to experiment with the recipe and hopefully I will get a very nice, fluffy and soft loaf next time!
Thank you!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Diana, thank you for making Shokupan with my recipe.
1) If you are using a smaller tin, it should reach to the top even you use a lid.
2) Possibly because you put lid, it changed the moisture content in the tin.
3) When the yudane is just made it is not sticky you can handle with your hand. But after over night, the texture of yudane change becauses of the gluten formed.
Please don’t hesitate to ask if you have further questions. I am here to help 😀
Nikash Gounder says
This recipe was so good!!! The bread came out so good and soft. I will do this recipe again for sure.
Bob Sheko says
I made some yudane with not enough hot water and I have extra mixture. Is there anything I can do with it because I don’t want to throw it away.
Thank you
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Bob you can add more hot water to make right consistency?
Amy says
What is the size of the loaf tin used?
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Amy it is in the recipe card note section.
Margaret says
Love this recipe. If I would like to add cocoa powder, garlic powder or cheddar cheese do I need to adjust any of the ingredients
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Margaret, I am not sure about garlic powder and cheddar cheese, but for cocoa powder, just replace the amount for the flour, should work it would be only like 1 tbsp?
Miriam says
Have you tried doubling the recipe? What would be the right proportions?
This is far the best bread recipe I tried in Pinterest.
Tatiana Pássaro says
I just made this recipe and I’m OBSESSED!! The fluffiest bread ever! I had to use AP flour as that’s the only one you can buy in my country, but it turned out really, really well! So soft it was hard to cut into it. It will definitely be going to my recipe notebook! Thank you for the recipe!
Shihoko | Chopstick Chronicles says
Hi Tatiana 😀 I am glad that the recipe is helpful to cook authentic Japanese food and you liked it 😀