Anpan
| Ingredient | About 15 Buns | About 15 Buns |
|---|---|---|
| bread flour | 3 cups | 380g |
| eggs | 2 | 2 |
| milk | ¾ cup + 1 Tbsp. | 200cc |
| butter | 3 Tbsp. | 3 Tbsp. |
| sugar | 3 Tbsp. | 3 Tbsp. |
| salt | 1 tsp. | 1 tsp. |
| active dry yeast | 1 tsp. (heaping) | 1 tsp. (heaping) |
| anko | about 2 lbs. | 800-900g |
These buns, filled with moist, sweet Azuki bean paste, make for a healthy snack or an alternative to donuts at breakfast. They’re mildly sweet and rather dense, so the perfect accompaniment is considered to be a glass of milk (though you could substitute coffee or tea of course).
If you’ve never had Azuki bean paste (anko) before, it’s tastier than it sounds — a little like sweeter, drier baked beans perhaps. It can be eaten straight, but baked into anpan (pan means “bread” in Japanese) it’s one of the most popular snacks for Japanese children, and loved by adults as well. There’s even a cartoon superhero called Anpan-man.
Preparation
- Prepare one batch of tsubuan (or, if you prefer a smoother texture, koshian).
- Divide the prepared Azuki paste into about 15 balls around the size of an egg.
Directions
- Prepare the dough.
Use your bread machine to make dough from the following ingredients: Flour, milk, butter, sugar, salt, dry yeast, and 1 1/2 eggs; save the remaining half of an egg. Use the dough cycle and add the ingredients according to your bread machine’s instructions. - Punch down the dough and let it rest.
When the machine has finished, remove the dough and punch it down. Then, divide it into about 15 balls and let it rest for 10-15 minutes with a damp cloth laid on top to keep them from drying out. - Wrap the bean paste in the dough.
Gently flatten out each ball of dough, then put a ball of azuki paste in the middle. Pinch the dough up around the ball of bean paste, being sure to seal it completely. Turn the ball over (so the pinched-shut end is on the bottom), lay it on the pan, then press gently down on the center so it’s slightly dented in in the middle. It will round itself when you bake it; if you don’t do this, you’ll end up with a gap between the dough and the bean paste. - Let it rise.
Put the buns somewhere warm to rise for 40-50 minutes. When they’ve expanded to twice their original size or so, they’re ready. - Brush on the remaining egg.
Take the half of an egg you reserved, beat it lightly, and brush it on the top of the buns. - Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 15 minutes.