Sourdough Hokkaido Milk Bread

This is the bread I am going to bring our friends who we are seeing for the first time in over a year.  They do seem to prefer a softer bread so what better than a sourdough Hokkaido milk bread with Tangzhong.  This is the second time I am making this bread and I hope they enjoy it.

The recipe that follows is for a 9”x4”x4” Pullman pan open.

Ingredients

Sweet Stiff Starter 

• 53g bread flour 

• 24g water 

• 18g light brown sugar 

• 18g sourdough starter ~100% hydration 

Tangzhong classic 1:5 ratio

• 89g milk (adjusted down to 1:5 ratio from original)

• 18g bread flour   

Dough Dry Ingredients 

• 360g bread flour or 330 g and use 30 g to mix with butter

• 59g sugar

• 7g salt 

Dough Wet Ingredients 

• 139g milk 

• 59g egg beaten (about 1 ⅕ of a large egg)

• 67g room temperature butter

Total flour = 431 g

Total weight 899 g

Pre-bake Wash 

• 1 egg beaten

• 1 Tbsp milk

Post-bake Wash 

• 1 Tbsp butter

Instructions

Starter 

Mix the starter ingredients in a jar or pyrex container with space for at least 100% growth.  At room temperature, it typically takes 7-9 hours for this sweet stiff levain to be at peak.

Tangzhong 

In a sauce pan set on med-low heat, whisk the milk and flour until blended. Then cook for several minutes until thickened, stirring regularly with a spoon or heat-resistant spatula. Let cool in the pan or, for faster results, in a new bowl.

In the meantime, mix butter with 30 g of flour, this will make the butter much easier to incorporate into the dough for mixing by hand or by machine.

Dough 

Mix the following in a bowl, milk, egg(s), sugar, salt, tangzhong and stiff levain to combine and dissolve/breakup the stiff levain.  Add bread flour and knead until good gluten development.  Then gradually add the butter flour mixture until fully combined and full gluten development.  The dough should pass the windowpane test.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, form it into a ball, flip it smooth side up, cover and let rise for 6-12 hours depending on room temperature. If you refrigerate the dough, plan for longer rise times.  I did cold retard for 26 hours.

Prepare your pullman pan by greasing it or lining it with parchment paper.  Transfer the dough to the countertop and divide into four equal parts rounding each into a small boule.  One by one roll each dough ball into a long rectangle and do a letterfold.  Turn 90* then roll out again into a long rectangle.  Finally, roll into a tight roll.  Once you have rolled each dough ball into a roll place them into the pullman pan so that their swirls alternate.

Cover and let proof for 2-4 hours (more if you put the dough in the refrigerator).  I proof until the top of the dough comes to within 1 cm of the top edge of the pan.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and brush the dough with the egg-milk wash.  Just before you place the dough into the oven brush again with the egg-milk wash.

Bake at 350ºF for 50 mins rotating halfway through.  Keep an eye on the crust and be prepared to shield it if it is getting too dark.  After 50 mins of baking take the bread out of the pan and place it back into the oven for another 5 mins to crisp up the crust.  Remove from oven and let cool on a rack.  Enjoy!

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