Delicious Melon Pan (Japanese Sweet Bread with Cookie Crust) Recipe
Melon Pan is a popular Japanese sweet bread characterized by its soft, fluffy interior covered with a crisp, cookie dough crust. This recipe guides you through making the delicate bread dough and the buttery, vanilla-flavored cookie topping that is scored to create its signature melon-like appearance. With a proofing and baking process that yields eight delicious servings, this treat is perfect for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients
Bread Dough
- 300 g baker’s flour
- 4 g salt
- 160 ml milk
- 1 extra large egg
- 3 g dry yeast
- 40 g butter, chopped
- 25 g sugar
Cookie Dough
- 240 g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 80 g butter
- 80 g sugar
- 1 extra large egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
- Granule sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Make the cookie dough: In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla essence, mixing until well combined. Gently fold in the plain flour and baking powder until the dough forms.
- Chill the cookie dough: Divide the cookie dough into 8 small balls and place them in the refrigerator to chill and firm up.
- Prepare the bread dough liquids: In a small bowl or jug, combine the egg, dry yeast, milk, and sugar to mix thoroughly.
- Mix the bread dough: In a large bowl, combine the baker’s flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add the liquid yeast mixture. Stir to form a soft dough.
- Knead the bread dough: Transfer the dough to an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Knead for about 10 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic. While the mixer is running, add the chopped butter gradually and continue kneading for another 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and silky.
- First proofing: Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover it, and set it in a warm place. Allow it to prove for 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
- Divide and shape bread dough: Punch down the dough and divide it into 8 equal-sized balls. Knead each ball lightly on a floured surface until smooth.
- Roll out cookie dough: Remove the cookie dough balls from the fridge and roll each one out on cling wrap to about 5mm thickness.
- Combine doughs: Place each bread dough ball on top of a rolled cookie dough piece and wrap the cookie dough around the bread dough using the cling wrap to enclose it completely.
- Score and sugar cookie dough tops: Remove the cling wrap carefully, then score the surface of each cookie dough ball diagonally to create a crisscross pattern. Sprinkle granule sugar generously over the top.
- Second proofing: Place the prepared buns onto a baking tray lined with cooking paper. Cover with a clean damp cloth and set aside for about 40 minutes or until the buns have doubled in size.
- Bake the Melon Pan: Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F). Bake the buns for 15 minutes or until the cookie crust is golden and crisp.
Notes
- Make sure the butter for both doughs is at room temperature to ensure smooth mixing.
- Do not overproof the bread dough; overproofing can cause a flat texture.
- Scoring the cookie dough not only creates the signature melon-like pattern but also helps the cookie crust to expand properly during baking.
- Use granule sugar for sprinkling to add extra crunch and sweetness on top.
- Allow buns to cool slightly before serving to enjoy the best texture.
