Incredible Oven Spring & Silky Crumb: Egg & Milk Pullman Loaf❤️

Our backyard hen laid an extra-large egg today, so I decided to bake an egg and milk Pullman loaf. Since I also had some leftover old dough (pâte fermentée) from yesterday, I made the old-dough version shown in the ingredient photo. Below, I have written out both versions: with and without old dough.

❤️At the end of this post, I shared my personal tips for preventing a dense gummy bottom streak and getting a tall oven spring.

🍞Ingredients: (For one 450g Pullman loaf pan)

🍭With Old Dough Version:

Egg 60g, old dough (pâte fermentée) 87g, bread flour 230g, sweetened condensed milk 10g, sugar 20g (this amount tastes savory-neutral and works great for sandwiches; add an extra 15g sugar if you prefer a sweet loaf), salt 3g, icy cold milk 90g, instant dry yeast 3g, butter 20g.

🍭Without Old Dough Version:

Egg 60g, bread flour 270g, sweetened condensed milk 10g, sugar 20g (savory-neutral for sandwiches; add 15g more for a sweet loaf), salt 3g, icy cold milk 120g, instant dry yeast 3g, butter 20g.

🍞Instructions:

1️⃣Mix all ingredients except the butter into a rough dough, then cover and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (Photos 3 and 4).

2️⃣After chilling, the dough will easily mix to the thick membrane stage. Add the softened butter and mix until you reach full windowpane stage (a thin, translucent membrane). Shape into a tight ball for the first proof (Photo 5).

3️⃣Once doubled in size, gently degas, divide the dough into 3 equal portions, round into balls, and let bench rest for 15 minutes before shaping (Photos 6 and 7).

4️⃣Place in a warm, humid spot for the second proof until the pan is 90% full. Bake at 180°C for about 30 minutes, tenting with aluminum foil as soon as the top is golden brown.

5️⃣Tap the pan firmly on the counter upon removing from the oven, unmold immediately, and cool on a wire rack.

🔆Helpful Tips:

1. As the weather warms up, controlling dough temperature is critical. Chilling the mixed dough for 30 minutes solves this effortlessly.

2. Give the dough a full bench rest so it rolls out smoothly without snapping back. After rolling into an oval tongue shape, flip it over so the smooth skin faces outward when coiling.

3. Thin out the bottom edge before sealing, and pinch the seam gently rather than overly tight.

4. Ensure plenty of humidity during the second proof.

5. Bake your Pullman pan on the lower-middle rack. Strong bottom heat is essential to drive upward oven spring and prevent a dense gummy streak at the bottom.