Japanese milk bread

Combine 135 g whole milk and 75 g bread flour in a saucepan and cook over medium heat about two minutes until a thick paste forms, thick enough to clump in the wires of a whisk.

Alternatively combine the milk and flour in a bowl and microwave on high for a minute and 20 seconds, stopping every 20 seconds to stir.

Work the tangzhong paste into 720 g bread flour by hand, the way you would butter into a pie crust, breaking it into little pieces evenly distributed through the flour.

Add the granulated sugar, kosher salt and instant yeast and toss to distribute.

Add the room temperature whole milk, heavy cream and honey.

Knead with the dough hook 8 to 12 minutes for a strong developed gluten structure.

During kneading add the room temperature butter one or two tiny pieces at a time, fully incorporating each before the next. Keep kneading until the dough is soft, supple and bouncy and passes the windowpane test.

Roll into a taut smooth ball, place in an oiled bowl, cover with a moist cloth and proof at 86 degrees Fahrenheit and 85 percent humidity for 45 minutes, until grown by about 50 percent and springing back only a little when poked.

Divide the dough by weight into four equal pieces, roll each into a taut tight ball, and arrange them shoulder to shoulder in a heavily buttered Pullman loaf pan, the centre two slightly more compressed than the outer two.

Butter the lid, slide it on and proof about 30 minutes until the dough reaches about 80 percent of the height of the pan.

Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 45 minutes, until the loaf fills the pan and its thickest point registers about 205 degrees Fahrenheit.

Do not cool it in the pan; trapped moisture makes the exterior dense and gummy even when the crumb is well proofed.

As soon as it comes out of the oven give it a few spirited taps and turn it straight out onto a wire rack.

Cool completely, at least four hours, before slicing.