Japanese White Bread (Yudane Method)
Today I want to share with you the best Japanese White Bread: a quick version of the softest white sandwich bread made with a small amount of yeast. It is super light, soft, and chewy at the same time. The secret is in using the Yudane method.
Yudane is a traditional Japanese bread-making technique where boiling water is mixed with flour before preparing the final dough. This process gelatinizes the starches in the flour, allowing the dough to absorb more moisture and resulting in bread that stays incredibly soft and fresh for much longer. The final texture is truly unique — fluffy and airy while still slightly chewy and wonderfully moist.
One of the things I love most about this bread is how delicate and cloud-like the crumb becomes. The slices are soft enough to pull apart effortlessly while still holding their shape beautifully for sandwiches or toast. The crust remains very thin and tender, making this bread especially popular for breakfast and everyday sandwiches.
Despite its bakery-quality texture, this recipe is surprisingly approachable and much quicker than many traditional Japanese milk bread recipes. With only a small amount of yeast and the help of the Yudane method, the dough develops wonderful flavor and texture without requiring complicated techniques.
This bread is perfect toasted with butter and jam, used for sandwiches, or even transformed into incredibly soft French toast. Fresh from the oven, it fills the kitchen with the comforting aroma of warm milk, butter, and freshly baked bread.
If you are searching for an exceptionally soft homemade sandwich bread that stays fresh for days, this Japanese White Bread recipe is absolutely worth trying. Once you experience its texture and flavor, it quickly becomes difficult to go back to ordinary sandwich bread again.
This recipe was adapted from talented @bakewithpaws
Ingredients for 8×4 loaf pan
Yudane
- 70g bread flour(20%)
- 70g hot boiling water(20%)
Dough
- 280 g bread flour (80%)
- 200g milk (57%)
- 2g instant dry yeast (0.6%)
- 35g sugar(10%)
- 7g salt (2%)
- 17g soft unsalted butter(5%)
Directions
Yudane
Yudane Method is made by mixing bread flour and hot boiling water. Adding hot boiling water gelatinises the starch. Which gives super softness to the bread.
- 8 am mix flour and hot boiling water, cover and let cool down before use in the dough .
Dough
- 8 am while yudane mixture is cooling off, let’s mix the rest of ingredients for autolyse. In a bowl of stand mixer add milk, yeast sugar and the flour, mix all together let autolyse for 30 min.
- During the autolyse period the flour becomes fully hydrated. This activates gluten development.
- 8.30 am add yudane to the dough, start mixing the dough on low speed of your mixing machine for 2-3 minutes, or KitchenAid on speed 3 for 5-6 minutes until well incorporated.
- Add salt mix for a couple more minutes. The dough should wrap the paddle.
- Add soft butter, increase the speed of mixer, mix for 10 more minutes until the dough is well incorporated and comes up together. You will be able to perform windowpane test.
- Cover the dough and let it proof for 2 hours at 76-80F/ 24-28C.
- During that time perform 1 stretch and folds.
- The dough should become puffy.
- 10.00 am Sprinkle work surface with flour.
- Divide the dough in 2 equal pieces roll each dough piece into a rectangle, fold long sides to the center to create long strip, then roll the strip into a tight roll. Place both rolls into a baking pan ( the amount of the dough should be enough for baking pan 8×4 inches).
Note: I used 2 square baking pans and put 270g of the dough in each.
- Cover the loaf and let it proof for 1-2 hours at 76-80F/ 24-28C until the dough will reach 1/2 inch from the top of the pan.
- 12.00 pm Bake at 375F for 15 min, 350F for 10-13 min(if using square loaf pan),or 15 min if using 8 x 4 inch baking pan
Enjoy!
Japanese White Bread (Yudane Method)
Ingredients
- 70 g Bread flour (20%)
- 70 g Hot boiling water (20%)
- All of the cooled Yudane paste (From the stage above)
- 280 g Bread flour (80%)
- 200 g Whole milk (57% – Lukewarm to activate the yeast)
- 2 g Instant dry yeast (0.6%)
- 35 g Sugar (10%)
- 7 g Salt (2%)
- 17 g Unsalted butter (5% – Softened completely to room temperature)
Equipment
- Stand Mixer (Fitted with a paddle and dough hook attachment)
- Standard Loaf Pan (An 8×4 inch or 9×4 inch baking pan size)
- Kitchen Scale (Highly recommended for exact bakery weights)
- Plastic Wrap or clean kitchen towel
Method
- 8:00 AM: In a small heatproof bowl, mix the 70g of bread flour with the 70g of hot boiling water until it forms a thick, gelatinized paste. Cover tightly and let it cool down completely to room temperature before adding to the main dough.
- While your Yudane mixture cools, prepare the autolyse phase. In the bowl of your stand mixer, add the 200g of lukewarm milk, 2g of instant dry yeast, 35g of sugar, and the remaining 280g of bread flour. Mix cleanly together until a shaggy mass forms, cover, and let autolyse undisturbed for 30 minutes to fully hydrate the flour.
- 8:30 AM: Add your cooled Yudane paste straight into the autolysed dough bowl. Attach the paddle or dough hook and mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes (or if using a KitchenAid mixer, run it on speed 3 for 5 to 6 minutes) until the paste is completely incorporated.
- Sprinkle in the 7g of salt and mix for a couple more minutes until the dough starts to bundle together and wrap nicely around the attachment.
- Add the 17g of soft room-temperature butter. Increase your mixer speed to medium-high and knead continuously for 10 more minutes until the fat incorporates seamlessly, the bowl walls are clean, and the dough passes a flawless windowpane test.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough proof for 2 hours in a warm environment at 76–80°F (24–28°C). Perform exactly 1 round of structural stretch-and-folds halfway through the rise; the dough should look light and puffy.
- 10:00 AM: Lightly sprinkle your work surface with flour and tip the expanded dough out. Using a bench scraper, divide the mass cleanly into 2 equal pieces.
- Using a rolling pin, roll each piece out into a flat rectangle. Fold the long outer sides neatly inward toward the center to create a long strip, then roll the strip up tightly from bottom to top into a firm cylinder to build internal crumb tension.
- Place both tight rolls side-by-side into a greased baking pan (perfect for an 8×4 or 9×4 inch pan size). Cover loosely and let it proof for 1 to 2 hours at 76–80°F (24–28°C) until the crown of the dough reaches roughly 1/2 inch below the rim of the pan.
- 12:00 PM: Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Slide the pan into the oven and bake at 375°F (190°C) for exactly 15 minutes to set a proud oven spring.
- Lower the oven temperature down to 350°F (175°C) and continue baking for an additional 12 to 15 minutes until the top crust turns a beautiful, uniform golden brown. Unmold immediately and allow the loaf to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
Nutrition
Notes
- The Starch Gelatinization Secret: Mixing a portion of your bread flour with hot boiling water instantly gelatinizes the starches, meaning they can hold onto significantly more moisture during baking than a raw flour mix. This process yields a uniquely pillowy, cloud-like crumb with a subtle natural chewiness that keeps the bread tasting freshly baked for days on your counter.
- Troubleshooting Shrinkage (Overproofing): If your beautiful loaf deflates or shrinks slightly as soon as it hits the hot oven, it is an indicator that the dough overproofed during the final pan rise. Keep a close eye on your pan during step 9—once the highest curve of the dough sits roughly 1/2 inch away from the top edge of the pan, slide it into the oven immediately to secure a strong rise.
- Large 13×4 Pullman Pan Scaled Modification: If you prefer to bake a large, uniform pullman-style pan loaf using a 13×4 inch pan, you can scale the ingredients as follows: For the Yudane, use 105g bread flour and 105g boiling water. For the Main Dough, combine 400g bread flour, 278g milk, 2g instant yeast, 42g sugar, 9g salt, and 27g soft butter. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 15 minutes, then drop to 350°F (175°C) for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Plant-Based Sub-Ins: This recipe is incredibly adaptable if you have dairy sensitivities or choose to keep things vegan. You can comfortably replace the whole milk with your preferred rich nut milk (like oat or almond milk) and substitute the dairy butter dynamic-for-dynamic with a high-quality vegan butter block. The resulting loaf will turn out just as light and delicious.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Hello good night dear. All right with you and your family. I would like to thank you for your kindness in sending your recipes. All wonderful. I really like this type of bread. Kisses in the heart.
Thank you so much my dear, Maria 🙏
Sooo I am sure I did something wrong as I’m a newbie to bread baking, but I don’t know what I did. My bread seemed still very doughy after baked. I put it in for an additional 15 minutes. But it’s still doughy.
Sorry about that, did it proof well?
Can you use this recipe in 9×4 loaf pan to make a full loaf?
Yes!
It will be exact amount for 9×4
This bread looks amazing! Question- the loaf only takes 15 minutes to cook? That seems like such a short amount of time.
Thank you, you have to bake it at 375 F for 15 min, then 350F for 12-13 min
Ohhh!! Thank you for clarifying !🍞
If I want to bake it in the morning can I put in the fridge for the night after the 2 hours proofing ?
Yes!
It should work
Hi so every thing worked well trying this recipe however when I put it into the oven it shrunk down notsure why could it be not enough yeast I’m using or just my oven?
Hi!
Usually it happens when dough is overproofed
Try to cut final proofing time a little
Thank you for this recipe! My bread turned out perfect!😊👍
My family and I continue to pray for 🇺🇦!
Thank you so much for all your support 🙏
Hi! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I’ve been looking for a good sandwich loaf recipe for a while. I’d like to know how much sourdough starter should I use to replace the instant yeast. Will the process be the same?
Can I replace the butter for olive oil?
I would really appreciate if you could answer.
Hi!
This is great recipe with sourdough
https://natashasbaking.com/white-sandwich-loaf/
Hey . Can I prepare the dough and put the mold in the refrigerator to rise overnight and bake in the morning?
Yes!
But it might needed more proofing in the morning.
Looking for how to make this in the 13x4x4 pan like you showed on instagram. Is it doubled from this recipe?
Yudane
105g bread flour(20%)
105g hot boiling water(20%)
Dough
400 g bread flour
278g milk
2g instant dry yeast
42 sugar
9g salt
27g soft butter
Find the full detailed recipe on my website under Japanese white bread (yudane method)
How long do you bake the larger loaf like this for?
375F for 15 min, 350F for 25-30 min
Can u use Nut milk and Began butter in this recipe?
Yes, it will be delicious 😋
Hi, does the temperature of the milk matter? Should it be cold from the fridge or room temp?
I prefer to use lukewarm milk, to start the yeast going.
Lovely recipe! I am a huge fan! I have just ordered your Baking Sourdough with kids book from Amazon and hope to bake with my grandchildren.
I do wish to make the Japanese soft bread with my 13” pan but can’t find the recipe for that. Can you help?
IWe are hosting guests (family of 4) from Ukraine and continue to pray for Ukraine. ❤️
Arlene, hi!
Thank you for your kind words and for your support.
Here’s the amount of ingredients for 13×4 pan
Yudane
105g bread flour(20%)
105g hot boiling water(20%)
Dough
400 g bread flour
278g milk
2g instant dry yeast
42 sugar
9g salt
27g soft butter
Thank you, recipe is perfect , suger content perfect. No mixer option :hand knead with roux till smooth( 6min), no need window pane test, fridge overnight, I found the dough is still very active. Temperatures on a home oven :slightly undercooked inside at 190c so I followed yur instructions to reduce temp to 160 and cook for another 5 minutes.
Can this be done manually? If stand mixer is not available?
Hi,
Looking for how to make this in the 12.6 x 4.8 x 4.7 pan? Is it doubled from this recipe?
Tried this but I am a. bit confused as to the Yudane (is it made with a subtracted amount from the whole recipe, or in addition to?) I also used 50 grams of rye flour since I did not have “Bread” flour. They came out fine in all respects but the %’s are driving me to question the whole thing. Maybe I am reading too much into it. Also downsized the whole thing to give six 92 gram rolls.
Thank you in advance, C