The Yudane Method is a Japanese method for making bread that is very soft and fluffy. It involves pouring boiling water onto flour (at a ratio of 1 to 1) and mixed, resulting in a thick, sticky and glue-like paste. This paste is then refrigerated for 3-12 hours before being added to the dough. The purpose of mixing hot water and flour is to gelatinise the starch in the flour; water is absorbed by the starch in the flour making it swell up. Thus, hydration of the dough increases, resulting in a springier texture that stays fresh and soft longer than in conventionally baked bread. Usually the paste used is 10-25 % of the total flour weight in a recipe.
Ingredients:
- Making the yudane:
- 80 g bread flour
- 80 g boiling water
- Bread Dough
- 425 g bread flour
- 100 g wholemeal flour, hydrated with 100 g water
- 200 g water
- 40 g sugar
- 7 g yeast
- 7 g salt
- 50 g butter
Method:
- Add bread flour and boiling water in a bowl.
- Mixed them into a paste.
- Cover the bowl.
- Let the paste sit for 3 to 12 hours in the refrigerator.
- Prepare the baking pan:
- Size - 9 inch x 5 inch x 4 inch
- Grease and line it with parchment paper
- Add water, sugar and yeast into the bowl of a mixer.
- Once the water is frothy, add bread flour, hydrated wholemeal flour, salt and all of the yudane to the bowl.
- Knead till the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a ball.
- Add butter and continue kneading till window pane is achieved.
- Grease a bowl and transfer the dough to it. Cover the bowl with a cling wrap.
- Let the dough rise till double in size.
- Once it has doubled, punch down the dough to release the air in it. Round up the dough again.
- Shape the dough and place it into the prepared pan.
- Let the dough rise till it reaches the brim of the pan.
- Bake it in a pre-heated oven at 175 degrees for about 35 minutes.
- Once baked remove the bread from the pan and let it cool down on a metal rack.
- Slice and enjoy.
