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Vegan Milk Bread - Pumpkin Tangzhong

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  • Author: Gönül
  • Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes
  • Yield: 1 Sandwich Loaf 1x
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

This pumpkin Japanese vegan milk bread recipe makes a fluffy loaf that's perfect for toast and sandwiches! 

Ingredients

Scale

Tangzhong

  • 2/3 cup (150 ml) water
  • 1/4 cup (30 g) bread flour

Yeast

  • 1 teaspoon (6.5 g) sugar
  • 1 packet (7 g) instant yeast
  • 1 tablespoon (15 ml) water, lukewarm

Dough

  • 4 cups (500 g) bread flour, plus scant ½ cup (50g) for kneading
  • ¼ cup (50 g) sugar
  • 1 teaspoon (6 g) table salt
  • 1 tablespoon (7.5 g) cornstarch
  • ½ cup (125 g) pumpkin puree
  • ½ cup (125 ml) soy milk
  • 3 tablespoons (45 ml) aquafaba
  • 50 g vegan butter

Glaze

  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon water

Instructions

Bring all ingredients to room temperature.

MAKE THE TANGZHONG

  1. In a wide saucepan over low-medium heat, whisk the water and bread flour until no lumps remain. Cook until a pasty "roux" is formed—it’s ready when a spatula leaves a clean line on the pan.
  2. Let the tangzhong come to room temperature before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.

BLOOM THE YEAST

  1. Mix the yeast with a teaspoon of sugar and water. Set aside until bubbly.

KNEAD THE DOUGH

  1. In a large bowl, combine the tangzhong, bread flour, activated yeast, salt, cornstarch, aquafaba, soy milk, and pureed pumpkin.
  2. Roughly mix with a wooden spoon and let rest for half an hour to autolyze. This step is optional but makes kneading much easier!
  3. Knead for 8-10 minutes by hand, then add the softened butter and continue kneading for another 10 minutes.
  4. Knead until a piece of the dough can be stretched to the point where you can see light through it without tearing (windowpane test).
  5. Place the kneaded ball of dough back into the bowl, cover it with cling wrap, and let rest for at least two hours, until the dough doubles in size.

SECOND RISE

  1. After the first rise, deflate the dough fully by pressing out the large air bubbles and divide into 3 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball.
  2. Roll out each ball of dough into an oval, tuck the long sides in, and press down on the seams. Starting from the short side, roll to make a plump sausage.
  3. Place all shaped pieces into a greased 8 1/2-in by 4 1/2-in loaf pan, seam sides down.
  4. Cover loosely and let rise until at least doubled in size and passes the poke test: press dough gently, if indentation slowly springs back but remains visible, it’s properly proofed.

GLAZE & BAKE

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and mix together the maple syrup with water to make the glaze. When the dough is properly proofed, brush the top with the glaze.
  2. Bake for 35-45 minutes until the top is golden brown & a probe thermometer reads 200°F in the middle.
  3. Once baked, glaze once more and let cool inside the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and place onto a wire rack.
  4. Slice when completely cool and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or freeze slices for up to 3 months.

Notes

If you want to make the tangzhong ahead, Transfer it into an airtight container. Place cling wrap in contact with the dough to prevent skin from forming and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

To make 3 pumpkin-shaped loaves: Before proofing the rolled-up "sausages", lay 3 pieces of 20-in kitchen twine in parallel. Place a piece of dough in the middle. Tie each string at the top to make a pumpkin shape. When proofed, bake on a lined baking tray for 35-45 minutes. Glaze as instructed and place a cinnamon stick on the top to complete the pumpkin.

Aquafaba: We're using chickpea brine in this recipe for its emulsifying and leavening properties. But if you must omit it, replace it with water or plant milk of the same weight. The result may not be as airy due to the lack of saponins in aquafaba.

Flour: You may substitute bread flour with all-purpose if necessary, but note that AP flour's lower protein content means it likely will yield a wetter dough.

Hydration: Milk bread dough is supposed to be soft and somewhat sticky, so even if it looks wet—the hydration is possibly just fine as is. However, different brands of flour soak up different amounts of liquid—this is called "absorbtion rate". This recipe was tested using King Arthur bread flour (~62% absorption rate). In case the flour you're using absorbs less liquid, add small amounts of flour at a time if the dough is truly too wet.

The recipe is written for a standard 8 ½" x 4 ½" x 2 ¾" loaf tin. The smaller loaf in the photos is made using ⅔ of the ingredients in a 5" x 5" Pullman pan.

Overnight rise: You can make the dough one day ahead. After kneading the dough with the incorporated butter, let it rise in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, bring it to room temperature (1-2 hours on the counter) and continue with the recipe as written.

If you have a stand mixer or bread maker, I'd strongly suggest you use it instead of kneading by hand. The enriched dough takes a while to develop gluten. Use the dough hook at a medium speed for 7-8 minutes, add the vegan butter, and knead for another 7-8 minutes—until the dough feels smooth and is no longer greasy.

  • Prep Time: 45 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Category: Staples, Breakfast
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: Universal

Keywords: milk bread, vegan bread, hokkaido, tangzhong, shokupan, pumpkin

Find it online: https://aegeandelight.com/vegan-milk-bread-with-pumpkin-recipe/