These pandan milk bread buns were unbelievably soft and fluffy – and they lasted for days! While I’ve made many different milk bun recipes before, I could never get them as pillow soft or fluffy as the Asian bakeries. My favorite bakeries in Houston include 85 degrees and Six Ping, and I was determined to replicate their results.
After lots of trial and error, I’ve learned how to get milk buns even better than the bakeries. I will be sharing 5 tips and my favorite recipe – from Aimee’s Cooking on Youtube.
Tip #1: Dough Enhancer in Milk Buns
Traditionally, Japanese (Hokkaido) milk bread uses tangzhong – a starter that helps give them a soft texture. However, I learned from Drive Me Hungry (whose Mom is a retired pastry chef) that dough enhancer is actually preferred by professional bakers. Dough enhancer (aka dough conditioner, dough improver, etc.) helps the milk bread stay super soft and fluffy for longer than tangzhong as well.
The addition of dough enhancer made an enormous difference in my milk buns. I used the King Arthur bread and cake enhancer, adding about 1 tbsp for every cup of flour during the mixing stage (prior to kneading).
Note – make sure to add early! I forgot to add the dough enhancer until about halfway though kneading and it did not have the same effect when compared to adding during the mixing stage pre-kneading.
Tip #2: Be Patient
Whenever a recipe gives a general time frame for how long to knead or rise, I am always impatient, sometimes cutting the time short. In the case of milk bread, however, the extra time when you’re patient can make a huge difference.
Give yourself enough time to allow your dough to fully double in size before shaping, and then again while proofing before baking. This will allow the flavor to fully develop and ensure a fluffy finished product.
Tip #3: Pay Attention to Temperature
The ideal temperature for bread dough to rise is around 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Room temperature is often quite a bit cooler, especially during the winter.
If you have a proofer, put it to work! Otherwise, I like to turn the oven light on and place the dough in a covered container to rise there sometimes. This is a slightly warmer environment and makes a huge difference in resting/proofing time. Make sure the oven stays off!
Tip #4: Use Instructions as a Guide, not Rule
When following a recipe, it is important to knead and rest/proof your dough based on look and feel, not based on time. While timings provided can be a useful guide, they should not dictate. It may take a little bit to learn, but you got this!
For instance, I almost always have to knead my bread dough longer than the recipe states – sometimes for twice the amount of time! For milk buns, your final dough after kneading should pass the “window-pane test.” It should stretch without breaking until you can start to see light coming through.
If it breaks when you are trying to stretch, not enough gluten has developed and you need to keep kneading. Again, be patient and knead until your dough passes the test, even if that time is longer than what the recipe you are using states.
Tip #5: Understand your Kneading Technique
If you knead by hand, understand that kneading may take longer that with a mixer. It will be more labor intensive, but is definitely rewarding!
If you need with a stand mixer + standard hook, understand that you may need to knead for the same, less, or even more time than the recipe states. As noted in Tip #4, make sure to go by look and feel, not time. Also, with the standard hook, the dough may stick or ride up on the hook and just spin around the bowl. To mitigate, scrape the dough down off the hook, or you can finish the kneading process by hand.
Alternatively, I recommend a stand mixer + spiral hook if you have it available for your mixer. This is more common in industrial kitchens, and does a better job kneading than a standard hook for breads.
If your mixer gets hot, you can finish the kneading by hand, and/or put a cool damp towel on top.
If your mixer has a hinge-head, it may also shake up and down. I recommend a mixer with the bowl that raises up and down if you have it. If not, then you can manually hold the head down. You can also adjust the settings/tighten the head, but I find that I still like to hold the head down while kneading.
I’ve seen some people who do not lock their stand mixer head when making bread dough. I have never done this – I usually supervise the dough and even hold down the head when needed. However, it could be a trick to try – comment below and let me know your results if you try!
Pandan Milk Bread Rolls Recipe
You can apply these milk bread tips to any recipe you have, but today’s post showcases pandan milk buns. Pandan is a plant that is used in lots of Southeast Asian desserts, and these rolls are always a huge hit – with both my Vietnamese family and non-Viet friends.
I discovered the recipe from Aimee’s Cooking a few years ago, but it wasn’t until recently that I truly perfected the milk bread with the dough enhancer and tips listed above. I’ve transcribed Aimee’s recipe with my tips/adjustments below, or you can check out her video tutorial on YouTube.
This is the brand of pandan extract I use. You can find at Vietnamese or other Asian grocery stores, or buy online!
Pandan Milk Buns
Ingredients
- 350 grams bread flour measure by weight, this is about 2 1/4 cups
- 75 grams sugar about 1/3 cup
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 1/2 tsp instant yeast or 1 packet, I prefer instant instead of active dry yeast
- 4 tbsp dough enhancer or however much according to enhancer directions (Tabby Tip)
- 3/4 cup coconut milk
- 1 tbsp milk Aimee uses 1 tbsp + 1 tsp, I use 1 tbsp since I live in a super humid environment to make the dough a little less wet (Tabby Tip)
- 1 large egg Aimee doesn't specify, but I recommend room temperature if possible (Tabby Tip)
- 2 tbsp butter I like to slice into 1/2 tbsp pieces, I've found both room temperature and cold works (Tabby Tip)
- 2 tsp pandan extract Aimee uses 1 tsp, but I usually eyeball to use around double what her recipe calls for (Tabby Tip)
Instructions
- Combine bread flour, sugar, salt, yeast, and dough enhancer (if using) in your mixer bowl.
- Combine coconut milk, milk, egg, and pandan extract in a separate bowl. Whisk until well incorporated
- With speed on "stir," add the wet ingredients and mix for about 1 minute until mostly incorporated. It may be a shaggy dough. (Tabby Tip: You can do this with the hook, a spatula by hand, or the paddle attachment on the mixer)
- After the 1 minute, increase speed to #2 and knead for approximately 10 minutes.
- Rest the dough for 10 minutes (Tabby Tip: This helps start forming a gluten network and reduces overall kneading time)
- Knead again at speed #2. Slowly add in the butter slices. Knead until your dough passes the window pane test, approximately 10 minutes by Aimee's instructions. (Tabby Tip: It always takes me longer than 10 minutes. If your dough is not passing the window pane test after 15 min, consider taking out of the mixer and kneading by hand or resting for 5 minutes before continuing to knead.)
- Remove dough from bowl (if needed) and shape into a tight ball. Place back into the mixing bowl and rest until 2.5 times the original size. (Tabby Tip: Cover with a damp towel or saran wrap. I like to rest it in my oven with the light on for a warm environment to rise in)
- Deflate, divide in small portions to your liking (Tabby Tip: I like to divide into 12 rolls for a 9×13" dish. I use a kitchen scale to be exact, or sometimes just eyeball it.)
- Shape each small portion into a ball.
- Rest the balls for 15-20 minutes. (Tabby Tip: Cover with plastic saran wrap or a towel to prevent drying. This is the pre-shaping step to continue building strong gluten)
- Reshape each into a tighter ball. Place the re-shaped balls into a pre-greased dish.
- Rest until 2.5 times the original size.
- Powder with corn starch. (Tabby Tip: I don't like to add too much, since it doesn't add any flavor. I will sometimes add a little more for aesthetics after baking)
- Bake in pre-heated oven at 320F for 20-22 minutes. (Tabby Tip: I like to remove once I start to see a tiny bit of browning. I don't like to get too golden.)
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