This sourdough Japanese milk bread is super light and pillowy. It is mild in flavor and the perfect bread for any sandwich!
There are three parts to this sourdough milk bread recipe; the levain, the tangzhong, and the main dough. Make sure to scroll down for the complete ingredient list and recipe.
Sweet Levain
Active sourdough starter – To prepare for the sweet levain, you want to make sure your sourdough starter is active and bubbly before you begin.
Milk – Use whole milk for the best results. I prefer to use it cold from the fridge.
Bread flour – I used a strong flour at 13% protein for this.
Sugar – Regular white sugar to sweeten the levain.
Tangzhong
Milk – I used whole milk at 3,5% fat.
Bread flour – Strong flour at 13% protein again.
Tangzhong is a Japanese baking technique that I often use in my recipes. It involves pre-cooking a portion of the recipe’s flour and liquid, causing the mixture to thicken and gelatinize. In my experience, the Tangzhong causes the bread to remain softer with an extended shelf life.
Main Dough
Bread flour – flour at 11-13% protein. Alternatively, you can use a 50/50 mix of all-purpose and bread flour.
Sugar – Regular white sugar is what you want to use. We just need a little bit to slightly sweeten the bread.
Whole milk – Cold from the fridge to prevent the dough from overheating while kneading.
Eggs – You’ll need 70 grams, one whole medium-sized egg, + one egg yolk.
Cream cheese – Full fat cream cheese all the way.
Sweet levain – All of the active sweet levain.
Tangzhong – All of the cooled tangzhong.
Salt – We always need salt in our doughs for flavor and to help gluten development. Regular sea salt is fine to use.
Butter – I’m using unsalted, softened butter.
The secret ingredient to this bread is cream cheese. The cream cheese is a fun addition that makes the bread extremely soft and delicate with a mild cream cheese flavor.
The milk bread dough is enriched with milk, butter, AND cream cheese. The result will have the most incredible soft texture and flavor – but it will take a bit longer for the dough to rise (compared to if it was just flour and water).
How To Shape Milk Bread
Transfer the dough to your work surface and divide it into four equal pieces. Roll into seamless rounds, cover, and rest for 10 minutes.
With a rolling pin, roll each round into an oval about 8 in/20 cm long. Grab one of the short sides of the oval and roll it up like a roulade. Repeat on all four pieces: cover, and rest for 10 minutes.
With the seam side up, use a rolling pin to flatten each dough piece into long ovals again. Shape the ovals into roulades as you did previously. Transfer to a greased 10-inch bread pan.
Cover the bread tin and proof in a warm spot for 10-12 hours until the dough fills up about 85% of the tin.
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In a bowl, mix active sourdough starter, flour, sugar, and cold milk. Cover and rise in a warm spot for 4 hours. You want the levain to be active but not overly sour and liquid.
Tangzhong
Mix flour and milk in a small pot. Heat up over medium heat. Stir until the mixture thickens and reaches a temperature of 150°F/65°C.
Transfer to a clean bowl. Cover with plastic wrap that is touching the entire surface of the tangzhong. Cool to room temperature.
Main Dough
Add all ingredients (except salt and butter) to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix until the dough comes together. Cover, and autolyse for 30 minutes.
Add the salt, and knead at medium speed for 10 minutes. At this point, the dough should be tacky but not sticking to the fingers.
Transfer the dough to your work surface and divide it into four equal pieces. Roll into seamless rounds, cover, and rest for 10 minutes.
With a rolling pin, roll each round into an oval shape about 8 in/20 cm long. Grab one of the short sides of the oval and roll it up like a roulade. Repeat on all four pieces – cover and rest for 10 minutes.
With the seam side up, use a rolling pin to flatten each dough piece into long ovals again. Shape the ovals into roulades as you did previously. Transfer to a greased 10-inch bread pan.
Cover the bread pan and proof in a warm spot, ideally at 78°F/25°C, for 8-12 hours or until the dough fills up about 85% of the tin.
Bake
Preheat your oven to 355°F/180°C.
Bake the milk bread for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown. Cover the surface with aluminum foil if it browns too quickly—the internal temperature when finished: 200°F/95°C.
Take the bread out of the bread tin and brush the surface with melted butter (optional). Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings) *The nutrition facts are automatically calculated. I can not guarantee the accuracy of the data. Please don’t consider it a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Hi Elise. I would like to make this in my 13x4x4 Pullman loaf pan and want to know if you can help me adjust the amount of each ingredient to do so. Thanks!
PS – Love all of your recipes and the time and care you take to share the instructions and schedule with us. It really helps a home baker like myself visualize and understand everything.
Hi, Jason. Thanks so much for your kind words and the five-star vote – I really appreciate it! If you take all the ingredients and multiply them by x 1,2, you’ll get a dough that weighs roughly 940g. Maybe that will fit better in your 13in loaf pan?
Loved the bread but I especially like the schedule. I like that most of the work can be done in the evening and baking the next morning. Fits well with my routine.
The website is very well done, by the way. Good job!
I did recipe last night and it turned out beyond amazing thank you for the recipe.
Just a note my dough fully proofed in less than 7 hrs it filled up the tin to almost 100% although the temperature was the same ftom 25c to 27c ,so i decided to bake it and as i mentioned it turned out amazing.Thanks again
Thanks Elise for detailed recipe! Just woke up to a completely over proofed dough after leaving it for 10 hours at 25degrees. Will bake anyway. I was wondering if i can do a retarded cold proof In the fridge? If you’ve tried that before with this recipe!? It works better with my schedule to proof during the night and hopefully a colder temp will stop it from over proofing next time.
Hi! I’m sorry to hear your dough over-proofed. You could try placing the dough in the fridge overnight after kneading (maybe do a little 2 hrs proof at room temp first), and then shape it in the morning so that you’re able to keep a better eye on it. This dough needs its warm proof, so only doing the cold proof would not work. Another thing you could try is lowering the hydration slightly, this will make the dough proof a little slower. Also make sure your dough doesn’t overheat during kneading as this speeds things up. Hopefully it turns out better next time!
Thank you Elise! This is a fantastic recipe. For me, since it is only around 7-10C where I am, everything took a long time to happen. eg the dough took 18 hours of proofing for it to be ready for the oven. The sweet levain also took a long time to be ready… almost 36 hours from start to finish. I am very happy with the result though :-). Thank you for your recipe once again!
Hii elise i already try your sourdough cinnamon roll and it’s great love it bery much. Now i want to try for this tangZong milk bread, but i wonder whether i can replace the cream cheese or not since it pretty expensive in my country, thank you 😘🙏🏻
Delicious!!! One difference was that I made the sweet levain and Tangzhong the night before and kept it at RT overnight. I started the main dough the next morning and I was worried that it wouldn’t turn out since I didn’t follow your schedules. But it all worked out GREAT!! I will be making this bread regularly!
I’ve been looking for a sandwich bread recipe using sourdough starter and tangzhong and your recipe has not disappointed! I’ve made this 5 times now, once a week for my family and it has always turned out amazingly well. Omitting the cream cheese doesn’t affect the texture too much. I’ve added nuts and different flavouring and it’s worked out great.
I have been baking sourdough for 45 years. Got started in the Bay Area with sourdough in 1989. Your recipe is perfect. Has convinced me to try the bulk of your sourdough recipes. Thank you so much!
26 Comments
Jason
Hi Elise. I would like to make this in my 13x4x4 Pullman loaf pan and want to know if you can help me adjust the amount of each ingredient to do so. Thanks!
PS – Love all of your recipes and the time and care you take to share the instructions and schedule with us. It really helps a home baker like myself visualize and understand everything.
Bread by Elise
Hi, Jason. Thanks so much for your kind words and the five-star vote – I really appreciate it! If you take all the ingredients and multiply them by x 1,2, you’ll get a dough that weighs roughly 940g. Maybe that will fit better in your 13in loaf pan?
Lei
Can you use this recipe to make cinnamon rolls?
Bread by Elise
I would recommend using my sourdough cinnamon rolls recipe.
Krystal
Just baked my first one and it is amazing!! Although it took all day it was worth the effort and wait!
Sandy
Came out perfect! Thanks for the photos and detailed instructions.
Bread by Elise
Thank you, Sandy. That makes me so happy to read!
Elly Mak
Hai nice to meet you…im Elly from indonesia ..🙏
Waladdin
Hi Elise, Thanks for keep sharing the taste receipes and inspiring posts. It is hard to find such dedication these days, keep the good work.
Regards,
A fan of sourdough baking
Waladdin
Kavita
Hi Elise,
The bread looks super amazing. Is there an alternative for egg?
Don Lundman
Loved the bread but I especially like the schedule. I like that most of the work can be done in the evening and baking the next morning. Fits well with my routine.
The website is very well done, by the way. Good job!
Pingback:
Fatima
I did recipe last night and it turned out beyond amazing thank you for the recipe.
Just a note my dough fully proofed in less than 7 hrs it filled up the tin to almost 100% although the temperature was the same ftom 25c to 27c ,so i decided to bake it and as i mentioned it turned out amazing.Thanks again
Vittoria
Thanks Elise for detailed recipe! Just woke up to a completely over proofed dough after leaving it for 10 hours at 25degrees. Will bake anyway.
I was wondering if i can do a retarded cold proof In the fridge? If you’ve tried that before with this recipe!? It works better with my schedule to proof during the night and hopefully a colder temp will stop it from over proofing next time.
Bread by Elise
Hi! I’m sorry to hear your dough over-proofed. You could try placing the dough in the fridge overnight after kneading (maybe do a little 2 hrs proof at room temp first), and then shape it in the morning so that you’re able to keep a better eye on it. This dough needs its warm proof, so only doing the cold proof would not work. Another thing you could try is lowering the hydration slightly, this will make the dough proof a little slower. Also make sure your dough doesn’t overheat during kneading as this speeds things up. Hopefully it turns out better next time!
Cara
Thank you Elise! This is a fantastic recipe. For me, since it is only around 7-10C where I am, everything took a long time to happen. eg the dough took 18 hours of proofing for it to be ready for the oven. The sweet levain also took a long time to be ready… almost 36 hours from start to finish. I am very happy with the result though :-). Thank you for your recipe once again!
Candra
Hii elise i already try your sourdough cinnamon roll and it’s great love it bery much. Now i want to try for this tangZong milk bread, but i wonder whether i can replace the cream cheese or not since it pretty expensive in my country, thank you 😘🙏🏻
Isabel
Hi Elise, my sourdough starter is a half whole wheat and half white starter. Will it work for the levain? Thanks!
Bread by Elise
Yes 🙂
Eva Abraham
Hi Elise!!
I love your recipes, I make some and I love them, thank you for the details and schedule.
Thank you again!!!!
Ale Mass
L O V E D-I T ! !
thank you very much for sharing!
Alya
Thank yoh for the detailed recipe with clear descriptions it has amazing taste 🤩
Dana
Delicious!!! One difference was that I made the sweet levain and Tangzhong the night before and kept it at RT overnight. I started the main dough the next morning and I was worried that it wouldn’t turn out since I didn’t follow your schedules. But it all worked out GREAT!! I will be making this bread regularly!
Elsie
I’ve been looking for a sandwich bread recipe using sourdough starter and tangzhong and your recipe has not disappointed! I’ve made this 5 times now, once a week for my family and it has always turned out amazingly well. Omitting the cream cheese doesn’t affect the texture too much. I’ve added nuts and different flavouring and it’s worked out great.
Amy
Hello! Have you tried making this sourdough milk bread with 100% whole wheat flour? I would love the recipe if you can! Thanks!
Lisa Bresnahan
I have been baking sourdough for 45 years. Got started in the Bay Area with sourdough in 1989. Your recipe is perfect. Has convinced me to try the bulk of your sourdough recipes. Thank you so much!