Shio Pan - Japanese Salt Bread #BBB

For November, Karen has shared with us a nifty little butter crescent she discovered at a Japanese bakery.  They are called Shio Pan or Japanese Salt Bread.  These flavorful beauties are stuffed in the middle with a long piece of butter that melts out around the baking bread, and browns up and crisps the bottom of the roll. That brown butter adds even more flavor.  (Be warned, you should use a baking sheet with a rim to avoid butter oil spilling in the oven and creating smoke.)

These are a wonderful, small batch recipe which my hubby devoured while making happy noises and then made the simple declaration, "Oh, yes."  He ate his piece warmed, with a little homemade jam and it was delightful.  Our host kitchen tried some with the salt sprinkle, some with an everything bagel sprinkle, and had the wonderful suggestion of possibly adding some flavor to the butter stick that bakes inside the crescents.

We would love to have you try out these rich and easy rolls with us this month and share how they turned out and what you thought!  New recipes are posted every month on the 16th. Check out our Facebook group to see the participants' baking results during that time.  If you would like to post your results with a Buddy badge on a blog, let us know in the comments or on the Facebook page.

Shio Pan - Japanese Salt Bread
makes 6 rolls

210g bread flour
10g granulated sugar
¾ tsp fine sea salt
½ tsp instant yeast
70g cold milk
70g cold water
7g softened unsalted butter
15g butter, melted, for brushing
60g butter, cut into 6 x 10 gram strips as pictured.*

Flaked sea salt for topping

Combine flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a stand mixer bowl.  Add the milk and water and mix briefly until just combined.  Add the softened butter and knead to incorporate.

Knead the dough for about five minutes, until smooth.  The dough will be somewhat sticky but don't add more flour unless your workspace is quite humid.

Let the dough rise until doubled, about 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on ambient temperature.

Turn the dough out onto an un-floured work surface and form it into a ½ inch thick, round disk.

Cut the dough into 6 wedges with a bench scraper.

Roll each piece of dough into an oblong cone shape, pinching the seam, and let them rest, covered, for 10 minutes.

With your hands, press each section into a triangle and then using a rolling pin, shape each into a very long, thin triangle.  (Longer and thinner will yield more layers.)  Lightly brush each triangle with melted butter.  Place a 10 gram butter stick on the wide end and roll up the dough and form it into a crescent. Place it on a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet.  (Butter oil will leak out of these rolls, use a rimmed sheet to prevent a super smoky oven!)

* ~10 gram butter stick

Repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise until puffy, about 45 minutes to an hour in a warm spot. 

Heat your oven to 400º F.

When ready to bake, spray the shaped rolls with water until the tops are moistened. Sprinkle each with a pinch or so of flaked sea salt.

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes, until lightly golden on top and crispy and browned on the bottom.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly.

These are best warm from the oven or within two hours. Leftovers may be warmed in the oven, toaster, or air fryer.  Wrap and freeze additional leftovers for reheating in the oven the next day.

Enjoy!

The rest of the Bread Baking Babes

• Blog from OUR Kitchen – Elizabeth
  
• Judy’s Gross Eats – Judy
• My Diverse Kitchen - Aparna
• Bread Experience - Cathy
• Thyme for Cooking - Katie
• My Kitchen in Half Cups - Tanna
• Feeding My Enthusiasms - Elle 
• Karen's Kitchen Stories - Karen