Butter Rolls (バターロール, Batā Rōru)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Kitchen scale
• •Stand mixer with dough hook, or a clean work surface for hand-kneading
• •Small rolling pin
• •Bench scraper
• •Baking sheet
• •Proofing box (hakkōki), or a turned-off oven with a bowl of warm water

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the ingredients

   Warm the milk to about 30°C, just gently warm against the inside of your wrist. Beat the whole egg. Leave the butter soft enough to press, but not melted. Melted butter slips around the flour and greases the dough; softened butter can be worked in cleanly after the gluten starts.

2. 2

   Mix the dough

   Put the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a mixing bowl, keeping the yeast and salt on separate sides until you stir. Add the warm milk and beaten egg, then mix until no dry flour remains. This first shaggy dough lets the flour drink before the butter arrives.

3. 3

   Knead for structure

   Knead for about 8 minutes by hand, or 4 minutes in a mixer on low speed, until the dough gathers and begins to stretch. It will feel a little firm. That's good. The flour needs some strength before the fat softens everything.

4. 4

   Add the butter

   Add the softened butter in three or four additions, kneading until each piece disappears before adding the next. The dough may smear, then gather again. Keep going until it turns smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky, about 8 to 10 minutes by hand or 4 to 6 minutes in a mixer.

   A small windowpane is enough here: stretch a bit of dough thin enough to let light through before it tears. Bread dough is not a medical exam. Don't overdo it.
5. 5

   First rise

   Round the dough, set it seam-side down in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise at warm room temperature until roughly doubled, 60 to 75 minutes. Press it with a floured finger. The dent should fill back slowly halfway. The dough tells time better than the clock.

6. 6

   Divide and rest

   Turn the dough out and press gently to release the largest gas bubbles. Divide it into 12 pieces, about 50g each, then round each piece under your palm. Cover and rest for 15 minutes. This bench rest relaxes the gluten, so the pieces roll out neatly instead of snapping back.

7. 7

   Make teardrops

   Roll each ball into a short teardrop, thick at one end and narrow at the other. If a piece fights you, cover it and wait five minutes. Forcing tight dough gives you torn skin, and torn skin bakes into rough bread.

8. 8

   Roll the spirals

   Place one teardrop with the narrow point facing away. Roll it with a small rolling pin into a long triangle, about 22 to 25cm long and 6 to 7cm wide at the thick end. Starting at the wide end, roll toward the point with light, steady tension, then tuck the point underneath on the tray.

   Tension is the detail that decides the shape. Too loose and the roll squats; too tight and the center bursts. Firm hands, not hard hands.
9. 9

   Proof the rolls

   Set the rolls seam-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving about 5cm between them. Cover loosely and proof until puffy and light, 35 to 45 minutes. Heat the oven to 190°C during the last 20 minutes. Underproofed rolls split; overproofed rolls lose their ridges.

10. 10

    Brush and bake

    Mix the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon milk and brush the rolls thinly, letting no egg pool in the grooves. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until the crust is egg-yolk gold, the ridges are defined, and the bottoms are lightly browned. A thin wash gives color; a thick wash glues the shape.

11. 11

    Cool and serve

    Move the rolls to a rack and wait at least 15 minutes before tearing one open. The crumb is still setting when it leaves the oven, and cutting too early makes it gummy where it should pull soft. Serve plain, with a small block of butter, or split for a bento sandwich.

Chef Tips

• •Use bread flour around 12 percent protein. All-purpose flour will make an edible roll, but its lower gluten gives a squat shape and a shorter pull. Kyōrikiko is the Japanese name to look for at a Japanese market.
• •Use whole milk and butter you like the smell of. In a plain roll there is nothing hidden; tired butter announces itself more loudly than any seasoning.
• •This is a ストレート (straight) dough. 湯種 (yudane, scalded-flour starter) gelatinizes part of the flour starch, and NARO's bread research helps explain why that keeps shokupan moist for days. Here it would soften the shape more than we need; the panya roll is defined by its clean spiral.
• •Dust the bench lightly. Too much flour keeps the rolled layers from meeting, and the spiral opens like a poorly folded letter.
• •For meal prep, freeze the baked rolls the day they're made. Rewarm them wrapped in foil at 150°C for 8 to 10 minutes, then let them sit a minute before opening.

Advance Preparation

• •After the first rise, press the dough down, cover it well, and refrigerate up to 12 hours. Shape while cool but pliable, then allow an extra 15 to 25 minutes for the final proof.
• •The rolls can be shaped, covered, and refrigerated up to 8 hours before baking. Let them finish proofing at room temperature until puffy, then brush with egg wash just before they go into the oven.
• •Baked rolls keep two days in an airtight container at room temperature, or one month frozen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 47g)