Milk Bread

Milk bread, known in Japanese as shokupan, is a uniquely soft, pillowy enriched bread made using a technique called tangzhong. A small amount of flour is cooked with water or milk until it forms a smooth, thick paste, then this paste is incorporated into the main dough alongside butter, sugar and extra milk. The pre-cooked starch absorbs significantly more moisture than raw flour, producing a bread that stays soft and slightly springy for days. The crumb is almost cloud-like in texture. Justin baked milk bread buns from scratch in this episode to use as the base for his barbecue shoulder sandwich, a choice admired by the judges even though the overall balance of the dish cost him the round.