mentaiko buns 明太子小面包 (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

i really have to thank Peggy when she posted the 明太子酱面包 ～ she reminded me of this wonderful bread roll i bought in a bakery when i was recently in Fukuoka… it was hot and fresh from the oven… warm, crispy on the outside, and so soft on the inside. It is probably still one of my favourite savoury bread that i had in decades…

mentaiko (according to wikipedia) is the marinated roe of pollock, and cod (common ingredient found in Japanese cuisine). and we usually stock this up in the fridge when we visit japan…. now, i’m overstocked (･_-｡ )… i was so excited when i saw peggy’s post, and decided to incorporate the mentaiko directly into the dough….

Ingredients (makes six 42g buns)

125g + 5 tbsp bread flour
2g sea salt
25g trehalose
2g instant dry yeast
50g full cream milk
19g egg
16g egg yolk
33g unsalted butter, softened
1 piece of mentaiko (mine weighed 66g)

Directions

– mix all ingredients (except butter and mentaiko) and knead till dough is soft and no longer sticky)
– incorporate butter and mentaiko. continue to knead till dough is soft and silky. add in additional flour (a little at a time) if dough is still very sticky
– allow dough to proof in room temperature of 26 degrees C for 30-40mins
– punch dough down and divide dough into equal portions. rest dough once again in room temperature of 26 degrees C for 30mins
– shape dough into buns and allow it to proof for second time for 30-40mins in room temperature of 26 degrees C
– brush with egg wash and bake in 180 degrees C preheated oven for 15 mins

Personal notes:

– i used 125g of bread flour as a starting base but after adding mentaiko, the dough got too sticky and wet. hence, i had to add flour by the tablespoon. this is how the recipe worked out to be 125g + 5 tbsp bread flour
– if you do not have a professional bread proofing machine at home, you can also place warm water (temperature between 30-35 degrees C) in a styrofoam box. then place your dough on top of a metal tray, supported by 4 glasses on each corner in the box. cover the styrofoam box and proof dough
– if you do not have trehalose (an all natural sugar, sometimes known as “mushroom sugar”), feel free to use caster sugar

yummy yummy yummy! like like like!!!  ((┌|o^▽^o|┘))♪

Pollution index: 101 (lightly polluted Chengdu)