Have You Tried Master Jin Dawang's Classic Hong Kong-Style Loaf Yet?

I held off on trying this famous loaf for a long time because the 50g of sugar made me hesitate. However, since I have been eating super healthy sourdough and whole wheat walnut bread lately, I figured I earned a little sugar allowance🤣! Once I baked it, I understood why a classic becomes a classic. It really has a special charm, so I highly recommend giving it a try.

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

Bread flour 250g, sugar 50g, milk powder 8g, fresh compressed yeast 9g (or instant dry yeast 3g), salt 2g, egg 30g, ice water 135g (adjust as needed), butter 20g.

🍞 Instructions: Direct Method

1️⃣ Place all ingredients except the butter into the mixer bowl. Mix on low speed until combined, switch to medium speed for about 3 minutes, then back to low speed for 2 minutes. Check if the dough can stretch into a thick membrane. If ready, add the softened room-temperature butter, mix on low speed until incorporated, then alternate medium and low speeds until the dough reaches the full windowpane stage (thin, translucent membrane).

2️⃣ Shape the dough into a tight ball, cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap, and ferment at room temperature until doubled in size. Poke the dough with a floured finger; if the hole does not spring back, bulk fermentation is complete.

3️⃣ Gently press out the large air pockets without tearing the gluten, divide into 3 equal pieces, shape into balls, cover, and let bench rest for about 15 minutes.

4️⃣ Roll out and coil once or twice depending on your preference, then place into the Pullman loaf pan.

5️⃣ For the second proof, I place a bowl of hot water inside the switched-off oven to create humidity. Proof until 90% full in the pan.

6️⃣ Bake at 190°C for about 35 minutes, adjusting for how your oven runs. Tent with aluminum foil as soon as the top browns.

❤️ Baker's Tips:

1. Now that the weather is warmer, chill your dough hook and mixer bowl in the fridge ahead of time to keep dough temperature down. Wrap an ice pack around the mixer bowl if you have one, and always use ice water.

2. 50g of sugar sounds like a lot, but I do not recommend cutting it. The baked loaf is not overly sweet at all, and spread across all the slices it is quite modest. We can always bake lean healthy bread again in a few days🤣!