Yamagata Shokupan (山型食パン, mountain-shape loaf)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1-kin shokupan pan, or an 8 1/2 by 4 1/2-inch loaf pan
• •Stand mixer with dough hook, or steady hands and a clean bench
• •Kitchen scale
• •Cooling rack

Instructions

1. 1

   Make yudane

   Put 80g bread flour in a heatproof bowl and pour the boiling water over it all at once. Stir until no dry flour remains and the paste turns thick and glossy. Cover and let it cool completely, at least 1 hour, or refrigerate it overnight. The hot water pre-gelatinizes the starch, which is why the finished crumb stays moist instead of turning dry the next day.

2. 2

   Mix the dough

   Tear the cooled yudane into small pieces and put it in a bowl with the remaining bread flour, sugar, salt, yeast, milk, and water. Mix until a shaggy dough forms and no flour sits loose at the bottom. Keep the salt and yeast from sitting in one dry pile together at the start, because salt slows yeast when it hits it directly.

3. 3

   Knead with butter

   Knead until the dough begins to smooth, then work in the softened butter a little at a time. At first it will look as if you've ruined it. Keep kneading. The dough will tighten again, turn satin-smooth, and stretch thin enough to show light without tearing at once. Butter goes in after the flour is hydrated so gluten can build first.

4. 4

   First rise

   Shape the dough into a ball, set it in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm place until doubled, about 60 to 90 minutes. Press a floured finger into the dough. If the dent slowly remains, it is ready. If it springs back at once, give it more time.

5. 5

   Divide and rest

   Turn the dough out gently and divide it into two equal pieces. Shape each into a loose ball, cover, and rest for 15 minutes. This rest matters because tight dough fights the rolling pin, and fighting dough makes a coarse crumb. Let it relax and it will shape cleanly.

6. 6

   Roll and coil

   Flatten one piece into a long oval, fold the long sides toward the center, then roll it up from the short end into a snug coil. Repeat with the second piece. Set both coils seam-side down in a greased shokupan pan or loaf tin, with the spiral ends facing the long sides of the pan. The two coils help the loaf rise evenly and give yamagata its rounded shoulders.

7. 7

   Proof carefully

   Cover the pan and proof until the dough rises about 1 inch above the rim, usually 50 to 75 minutes. Touch it lightly. It should spring back slowly and leave a faint mark. This is the step to watch. Underproofed dough tears upward in the oven, and overproofed dough loses strength and sinks after baking.

8. 8

   Bake unlidded

   Heat the oven to 180 C. Brush the top lightly with milk, then bake without a lid for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cap is matte gold and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Baking without the lid is what makes this yamagata, not kaku. If the top darkens too quickly, tent it loosely with foil for the last 10 minutes.

9. 9

   Cool before slicing

   Remove the loaf from the pan at once and cool it on a rack for at least 1 hour. The crumb is still setting while it cools, however tempting the warm bread looks. Slice too early and the soft interior compresses under the knife. Tear a corner if you must. I won't report you.

Chef Tips

• •At the panya, ask for yamagata shokupan if you want the rounded top, not kaku shokupan. They are not the same loaf in the hand, even when the dough is close.
• •Straight dough, or sutoreto, means all the flour goes into the dough at once. It makes good same-day bread. Yudane takes one small extra bowl, and the reward is a crumb that stays tender longer.
• •Use bread flour with enough strength, ideally around 12 percent protein. Weak flour gives a loaf that tastes fine but cannot climb into a proud cap.
• •Store the loaf wrapped at room temperature for two days. For longer keeping, slice it thick and freeze it. Toast from frozen and the crumb comes back cleanly.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the yudane the night before and refrigerate it, covered. Bring it close to room temperature before mixing so it blends into the dough evenly.
• •The baked loaf can be cooled, sliced thickly, wrapped, and frozen for up to 1 month. Toast slices directly from frozen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 650g)