Japanese Milk Bread

We're still baking bread for lunch every week. Last week we tried another bread from Bread Illustrated, the Japanese milk bread, or Hokkaido milk bread. It looks like a regular loaf of white sandwich bread but it has a fluffier texture. It also uses a unique shaping method: portions of dough are rolled thin and formed into tight spirals. The spirals organize the gluten strands into coils and they bake into feathery sheets. There are 2 spirals placed in the loaf pan which is why the bread looks like two giant dinner rolls fused together. This bread also uses a technique called tangzhong which incorporates extra moisture into the dough in the form of a flour-and-water paste. The paste makes it easier to shape the dough, which is well-hydrated. 

I'm not a fan of white sandwich bread. The "fluffiness" is what I consider unpleasant, as soon as the bread is in my mouth it seems gummy and gross. I have to toast or make a grilled cheese/panini with sandwich bread. So I didn't try this plain. I toasted it. Toasted for lunch, it was a  yummy sandwich bread and had a bit more flavor than regular old white sandwich bread. SP ate it untoasted and said it's yummy Wonder Bread. The same texture, but more flavorful.

Recipe: Japanese Milk Bread