Japanese milk bread is probably the lightest, fluffiest, most tender bread you'll come across. It's the perfect everyday loaf, from sandwiches to toast, and is one you need to try!
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I'll admit, when I have seen lines of similar-looking white bread any time I have been in Asia, I haven't felt inspired. I've always been more of a fan of artisan-style loaves, whether that's something like a sourdough rye bread or with 'bits' in it like my fig walnut bread.
However, when I heard about Japanese milk bread I knew I needed to give it a try. It might be about all you can find if you are in Japan, but when it's such a wonderfully soft and light loaf, it really doesn't matter.
This loaf is perfect for everyday use as well. It's a great base for sandwiches and toasts beautifully too. The method might seem a little unusual, but it's the combination of that less typical method and ingredients that makes this bread so wonderfully light and soft.
What is the tangzhong method?
One of the things that makes this loaf so soft is the fact you start by making a roux with flour and water. This warming starts to activate the gluten in the flour before you even mix it with the rest of the ingredients which helps create the soft texture. And while this loaf didn't get a chance, apparently it helps preserve the bread better too.
The method was apparently developed in Japan, but named in China and used in many breads around the region. If you are used to Western bread, it might seem strange, but it's not difficult and believe me, you want to give it a try.
The other aspect of the light, soft texture and flavor is using milk as an ingredient. Dairy in it's many forms can really add to the flavor and texture of a dish, as well as the nutrition, and using milk definitely helps this loaf become something special.
How to make Japanese milk bread
If you have made other breads, most of this will look familiar. Only the tangzhong and how the dough is folded is a bit unusual. The steps are:
- Put water and small amount of flour in a small pan. Mix until smooth and no lumps remain.
- Warm the flour paste gently until it thickens, stirring, then set aside to cool (this is the tangzhong).
- Measure out remaining ingredients (flour, yeast, milk, melted butter, sugar, salt and egg) and add cooled tangzhong. Mix all the ingredients together then knead, either in mixer or by hand.
- Once the dough is no longer sticky, transfer to an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled.
- Knock back the dough, divide into three pieces and roll each piece into an oval.
- Fold one side of dough over to halfway across the remaining dough then fold the other side on top so you have three layers (see photos). Gently roll slightly, if needed, then roll up the piece of dough as you would a cinnamon roll.
- Repeat with the other pieces of dough then put all three rolls of dough in an oiled loaf pan.
- Cover and leave to rise again then brush with egg wash.
- Bake for approx 30 minutes until golden brown. Turn onto a cooling rack to cool.
It can be a little difficult to describe exactly how to fold the bread, but hopefully the pictures below make it clearer:
Additional tips
You don't have to fold the pieces of dough in this traditional way - some recipes form small rolls, for example - but it's kind of fun to do and gives a lovely appearance to the finished loaf. If you form rolls, try using a round pan instead.
As you are making it, you may find it much softer than other bread doughs. You may need to add slightly more flour as you are kneading so it is not too sticky, but it should stay soft. It is closer to a brioche in texture but without that slight sweetness. To me, this is a more versatile bread.
Make sure you oil your bread tin to help the bread come out without sticking. Use a knife to help ease it away from the side before turning onto a cooling rack.
Once you have baked the bread, try to avoid the temptation to slice it immediately. It's hard, I know, as it smells so good! However this is a pretty soft loaf and it will slice better when cooler.
You can either cut the loaf as a whole or break off one of the chunks and slice that, as I did here. Either way, once you slice you'll see the wonderfully light crumb.
We got through this loaf in one meal, we all enjoyed it that much (true, we had a couple extra helpers). We particularly liked it spread with pate or soft cheese. If you do have some leftover, it's a great bread for toasting.
Japanese milk bread might look a little unassuming, but this is one special loaf. While perfect for every day use, it's so light and fluffy, you'll have everyone back for more.
Try these other bread recipes:
- Pain de campagne (French country bread)
- Anadama bread (a New England bread with molasses and cornmeal)
- Caramelized onion sourdough bread
- Fig and walnut bread
- Plus get more bread recipes in the archives.
Japanese milk bread
Ingredients
For the tangzhong
- 2 tablespoon bread flour (2tbsp is approx 20g)
- 90 ml water
For rest of loaf
- 300 g bread flour (300g is approx 2 cups plus 2 tbsp)
- 7 g fast acting yeast (technically a little under but can use 1 sachet, ¼oz/ 7g)
- 120 ml milk (lukewarm or room temp, but not hot)
- 28 g unsalted butter melted but not hot
- 5 ml salt
- 42 g sugar (caster sugar/fine)
- 1 egg
To glaze
- 1 egg (lightly beaten - won't need all)
Instructions
For tangzhong - made slightly ahead
- Put water and flour for tangzhong in a small pan. Mix until smooth and no lumps remain - do this before turning on the heat.
- Warm the flour paste gently over a medium-low heat until it thickens, stirring constantly. You should see trails left by the spoon/whisk as you stir it. Set the pan aside to cool.
To make bread
- Measure out the remaining ingredients into a large bowl (flour, yeast, milk, melted butter, sugar, salt and egg). Add the cooled tangzhong - I gently beat the egg into the tangzhong first to both save the tangzhong being too thick and help egg to mix better but you don't need to, just make sure you mix it well. Mix all the ingredients together then knead, either in mixer or by hand on a floured surface. Add a little more flour if needed.
- Once the dough is no longer sticky, transfer to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and leave to rise in a relatively warm place until doubled - around 1 hour.
- Once it has risen, knock back the dough, divide into three pieces. Set the other pieces to one side and roll one piece into an oval.
- Fold one side of dough over to halfway across the remaining dough then fold the other side on top so you have three layers (see photos above). Gently roll slightly, if needed, then roll up the piece of dough as you would a cinnamon roll.
- Repeat with the other pieces of dough then put all three rolls of dough in an oiled loaf pan - 9x5in (22x12cm) or slightly smaller.
- Cover and leave to rise again until the loaf is just reaching the top of the pan. Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Lightly beat the egg and brush the top of the loaf with egg wash.
- Bake the loaf for approx 30 minutes until golden brown. If it browns too fast, tent with foil for the last part of cooking. Turn onto a cooling rack to cool before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store.
Recipe draws on a few sources, with my own tweaks, particularly King Arthur Flour's milk bread rolls and Beautiful Life and Home's Japanese milk bread.
This post was created in partnership with the dairy farmers of New England. For further information, including school nutrition, and health and wellness topics, please visit New England Dairy.
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Joanne says
Bread looks great but dough was very wet and needed to add at least 1/4 c more than recipe called for.
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm glad it came out well - if you are measuring with cups, this may be partly that you can always get a bit of variation in measurement by volume. For many things, this is not a huge issue, but for baking I always recommend weighing if at all possible.
Abi says
Hiya I was just wondering if this can be made with oat milk. Thanks!
Caroline's Cooking says
I haven't made it with oat milk myself, but I think there are other comments that suggest others have tried and it worked fine.
Anna says
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe. It was a hit! I’m attempting one with a cinnamon, sugar, cocoa filling … We’ll see what happens
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear it worked well, hope the filled version works out, too!
Anna says
Hello Caroline, the cinnamon swirl version was absolutely delicious.
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear, thanks for coming back to say (might have to try myself 🙂 )
Chris Townsend says
Easy to follow recipe, I haven't tried it yet but will do at my next attempt. I'm curious to try it with an egg added as this time I made it without for more traditional milk bread. Thanks for sharing this.
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you find it easy to follow!
Andoni says
Great recipe. I always use the one from the DIT bakery school of Ireland where I did bakery but The tangzhong make the difference Thanks for sharing. Greatins from Bilbao.
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm glad to hear it worked well for you! (And lovely Bilbao - one day I will make it back!)
Alex says
Hi and thank you so much for the recipe, it turned out delicious and fluffy! We love it! 🙂
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Phi says
My first trial is a success, the bread texture turns out soft and fluffy. I used Japanese flour, and only diff I mixed the yeast in warm water to develop it first before mixing the ingredients. It's delicious and easy to follow. Thanks!!
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear it worked out well for you and was easy to follow!
MJ says
Love this bread! Making it today, and used Active yeast instead of fast acting. Wondering if this will have a negative outcome?
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you have been enjoying! So the main thing that is different is that active dry yeast needs to be bloomed in liquid before you add it, unlike fast acting where you can mix it in directly. So with active dry yeast, I'd suggest you gently warm the milk (only very slightly, to lukewarm), add the yeast and leave it around 5-10 minutes until it bubbles up. Then, add this mixture to the flour and other ingredients as in the recipe. The amount of yeast is the same, sometimes active dry takes a little longer in the rising time.
Sue says
So easy to make, delicious, light & fluffy, my lot dipped in condensed milk!
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you enjoyed!
Jenn Cost says
So I was making this with my 3 yr old while watching and feeding my 1.5 yr old, just for background. I used a scale to weight everything the only changes I made were; I used butter flavored crisco in place of butter and split the milk half with whole whipping cream to give a slight sweetness. Would any of that change the way the bread rises? I'm worried it's not reaching the top of my pan.
I cant wait to taste it the pictures look so good.
Caroline's Cooking says
Those changes may impact rise for a couple reasons - butter has some water in it, while crisco is pure fat, so you are changing the liquid level slightly, which feeds the yeast. Also, cream has a higher fat content than milk so this, too, is probably impacting the liquid level a little, as well as making the dough a little denser. So it may take a bit longer to rise, or not rise quite as much. Although temperature and other factors also impact rise time so it's not necessarily that these are having an impact. Hopefully it rises a little more, even if a bit slower and if not quite the full way and comes out well!
Suz says
Oh no I forgot to put in the egg …. I will see how it turns out! It was a very easy recipe though! Can’t wait until it’s done!
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you found it easy, and hopefully still worked out well for you - the egg is only to help give it that shiny brown top (it's nice but not essential, as it were).
Francesca Tiongson says
Can I use All Purpose Flour rather than Bread flour? Does it make a difference?
Caroline's Cooking says
You could, and while it probably won't make too much difference it may make a little. Bread flour has a higher gluten forming content which helps to give the bread more structure, so the texture may be a little different. You might also find the dough slightly more damp with all purpose, so you may need to add slightly more flour, but it's hard to say for sure.
Maria says
What temperature in a gas oven and we’re about in oven what shelf.
Caroline's Cooking says
I haven't tried this in a gas oven myself as I don't know anyone who has one but it should be about the same temperature, or as you would normally adjust if you were to adjust other baking recipes. Shelf-wise, I would suggest towards the middle, probably.
Suzie says
This looks do-able but only because you explained it so well with such a well thought out recipe and photos. Thank you. I have 2 questions.
First, is it okay to refrigerate the dough overnight and allow to rise and bake the following day?
Second, will adding a ground seed mix alter the fluffy texture of the gp bread?
Thank you kindly. Best regards.
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear the explanation and photos help! So I haven't done it that way myself but I see no reason why it wouldn't work letting it do the first rise in the fridge overnight. Then, if it hasn't risen enough allow it to sit out a little more to rise further and then continue with the rest of the steps as normal. On the seed mix, it will certain give a bit more texture to the bread but I think the fluffiness should probably be more or less the same - interested to hear if you try how it turns out!
Annalise says
Great recipe! I was wondering though how long this will last before it expires.
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you enjoyed! It should keep a couple days, but it will depend a bit on how stored and weather etc. It keeps best in a bread box or wrapped and at cool room temperature.
Maria says
I am going to try baking this loaf. I tried in Japan in March. This year. It was to die for been looking to see if I can find a ready made one as I am gluten intolerant
Caroline's Cooking says
This recipe isn't written as being for gluten free flour, but I believe some readers have adapted and had success making it GF.
LK says
FINALLY a recipe that works! Thank you so much for this. I used my Breville stand mixer and kneaded for approx 5 minutes. The dough was sticky, but I took it off one it passed the window pane test. The house smelled so good while it was baking. The top browned quick and I used the foil method. Just wondering if I am to use the same temp for fan bake function?
I will double the recipe next time I make it. Thanks again
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear it worked well for you! On the browning - so reducing the heat for a fan oven apparently depends a bit where you are, as ovens work slightly differently but if you are having it brown quickly then maybe yes, it might be worth reducing the heat slightly.
Sg says
Amazing bread!!! Will be making again. I doubled the recipe and it worked well. Ended up doing 4 rolls per pan and everyone who tried it so far wants more! Thanks for sharing 🤗
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you all enjoyed!
Michael says
The bread is in the oven but the smell already is godly. Also appreciate the cups even though weight is better. Was massively helpful since my scale is dead. Will be coming back for this recipe and many more!
Caroline's Cooking says
I agree the smell is so good - hope you enjoyed the bread just as much! And yes I prefer using weights since they are more accurate, particularly for things like this, but I try to have recipes both ways to allow for different ways of cooking (and when someone doesn't have scales etc).
Britney T says
Caroline, this is one AMAZING recipe! This is my new signature bread. The whole family loves it. Thanks for sharing this with us 🙂
Caroline's Cooking says
I am so glad to hear you all enjoyed it! I can't take credit for the style since it's a traditional one, but glad this recipe for it has worked well for you!
Sally says
Hi. Trying this recipe tomorrow:) Can you please tell me how long to knead for?
Thanks for the recipe!
Caroline's Cooking says
So kneading is a little hard to be precise on as some of it is by feel - if you use a stand mixer with a dough hook, I'd say 3-4 minutes, if by hand, then more around 5 minutes. You are looking for the dough to appear fairly smooth and well mixed, ideally not sticky nor in shaggy lumps but more combined, if that makes sense. Hope it works out well for you!
Sally says
I made this loaf this afternoon and served it with soup! My husband cannot stop raving about it and asked for more slices, so not much left for tomorrow! Probably the best bread I've made:) Thank you so much!
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear that!
Lucia says
Hi from Sparta, New Jersey 😊. I just made this bread exactly as written and it’s absolutely delicious!!!! Thank you for this recipe. I will be making it again and again.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you enjoyed (and will keep enjoying!)
Draxon Bailo says
This is pretty great. The only trouble im having is with step "2.Once the dough is no longer sticky"
It stays so sticky, i add a little more flour but wory i add to much and ir comes out hard.
I tryed by hand and with the mixer, mixed and kneeded with a dough hook for ages.. so so sticky still. Cant roll n fold it it after first rise and I just plonk the lot it into a bread tin.. still turns out ok, but wish i could roll n fold like ya said.. hmm..
Caroline's Cooking says
It can be tricky, and you are right to not add too much flour. So a couple ideas - one is that sometimes you need to knead a little longer to get it to stop being sticky. If that still doesn't work, when you come to where you would roll and fold, that's when to have flour on the surface and on your hands - you ideally don't want to work it into the dough, but instead just have it on the surface to help it not stick to you and itself too much. Hope that helps!
Mary says
Everyone loves this and it is fast and easy.
I actually add the cold milk immediately to cool the Tangzhou (sp? ) so it can get started faster as no one wants to wait. I also divide the recipe into 4 small loaf pans-but roll each small loaf as you suggest. That way someone gets to take a loaf home !
It does not mold very soon as you have said which is also great.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe and the clear instructions.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you all enjoyed and that the instructions worked well for you!
VIRGINIA GRIFFITH says
I haven't made this yet but was curious if I could use regular flour instead of bread flour? And also started in my bread machine
Caroline's Cooking says
I personally haven't tried either, but I believe from other comments that other people have tried one or the other and have had it work well. Bread flour has a higher level of gluten-forming proteins so can help it rise a little better than regular flour, but it's a pretty light bread so I think regular should still work fine. Enjoy!
Virginia Rowden says
Amazing. Making it today for the second time. For next time, could I double the recipe? How would it turn out?
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you enjoyed! Yes you can double the recipe - you will either need to divide it into two loaves of use a larger baking pan that holds about double the volume. Alternatively, you could divide the mixture into smaller rolls and place in a large skillet. In terms of making the mixture, you simple double everything, but you may find it needs slightly longer to rise with a larger amount, and bake time may need adjusted. If baking all as one in a larger pan, it will need longer. If they are as rolls in a skillet since they will have a larger surface area/smaller pieces, the bake time will be less.
Faye says
Beautiful bread! I'm just starting out at baking and this is one of the first loaves I made, recipe was relatively easy to follow and the bread turned out great and tastes amazing!
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear that it worked out well - here's to many more successful bakes!
su says
I made this yesterday- it came out perfectly- followed the recipe to the tee! 5/5 - will make again! Thank you ☺️
Caroline's Cooking says
That's great to hear! Glad you enjoyed.
Diane says
This is it! I tried 3 other recipe for milk bread and this is the winner. I accidentally used expired yeast but still came out delicious. Thank you for this perfect bread recipe
Caroline's Cooking says
I'm so glad to hear it worked out well for you!
Michelle says
My very first time making milk bread! Thanks so much for this encouraging and forgiving recipe! I used only all purpose flour because that's what I have. Almond milk and vegan because I was vegan until April of last year and still very much prefer my vegan ways. Dough didn't rise but I couldn't bake yesterday anyway so I didn't until this morning. I made it into milk pan rolls and used my bundt pan to bake them. I forgot to brush the tops with egg wash before baking and butter after but still turned out good and buttery! Even my picky husband and 11 year old had good things to say about it! Oh I think it didn't rise well because my granulated sweetener was BetterSweet, a combination of erythritol and monk fruit. I think that is the culprit. I'll use real cane sugar next time! Thanks again!
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad it worked out for you (even with a few tweaks etc!)
Janis says
I have read so many recipes for this bread that I have to wonder if it is possible to use any white bread recipe but set aside a portion of the bread flour and add water to make the Roux?
Caroline's Cooking says
To a point, yes you probably could, but the challenge is then getting the right balance of liquid etc in the end recipe as it's not quite as simple as reduce down the liquid by x to put in the tangzhong paste, and then use x less liquid later on. It would need a bit of trial and error to get the right quantities.
Teena Joseph says
Thank you for this amazing recipe... It's the best recipe ever
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you enjoyed!
Anon says
My first bread recipe ever and it turned out so so so so sooooooo yummm. I didn't use any egg and subbed in ghee for butter and the bread was so yummy my brother said it tasted like a croissant 😛 Thank you Caroline for this delicious recipe!
bonus: the house smelled like butter for the whole night :]
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear it worked well for you, and hooray for first loaf and yummy smells!
Laura MacLean says
I have over 40 years of dismal bread-making experience, until now. Easy, easy, easy with consistently excellent results. I weigh everything, use almond milk and Earth Balance vegan butter (for my dairy-allergic son), and knead for 4 minutes in my KitchenAid. I use traditional yeast that I proof in the milk with a hint of sugar. The only change I made was to reduce the yeast to 6 grams as I found my first batch to be a bit "yeasty." Raises perfectly, and bakes up fluffy and soft. It does not turn crumbly after a day or two. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Caroline's Cooking says
That's so lovely to hear that this works so well for you. And yes, I do love that it keeps well.
Abdullah Rafiq says
Love this easy recipe thanks from Thailand
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad you enjoyed!
Azmat says
Caroline, this is a wonderful bread. I’ve so enjoyed making it and it’s a delight each time. Its texture reminds me of bakery milk breads in northern India which I grew up eating. Recently I used it to make bread rolls and added olives, cheddar cheese and onions- also yummy! Thank you for sharing.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad to hear you enjoyed, and the additions sound yummy, too.
Barbara H says
Delish! The only change I would make is to double the recipe to get two loaf pans of this wonderful bread. Thank you very much for the recipe! 🙂
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad you enjoyed. I tend to find it's always easier to double a recipe than halve, which is why it's written this way, but definitely glad to hear you would want to make even more!
Martin says
Made this twice now. Such a good bread recipe.
Used a high protein low fat milk and normal white sugar, which works well.
Also used a 1 litre bread tin, which seems to be the perfect size for the recipe.
Caroline's Cooking says
Glad to hear you have been enjoying!
Jackie says
Agree that the only issue with the recipe is that it only makes one loaf. I always double it. Trying some new variations using part coconut milk/cream and cinnamon version for variety but the original is perfect and everyone loves it. Thanks for such a great recipe with easy to follow instructions and photos.
Caroline's Cooking says
So glad it has been working out well for you and that the instructions and photos help!