Shio pan 塩パン (Japanese sea salt butter rolls)

Shio pan is soft and fluffy on the inside, yet it packs a satisfying crunch with its crust and uniquely buttery and crunchy bottom. My recipe uses a sponge method and includes yogurt in the dough; this gives the bread a more complex flavor with softer and lighter texture.

Shio pan was originated in Japan and has become very popular in Taiwan in the past few years. People would even line up in front of the bakeries before they open in order to buy shio pan.

The best part of shio pan is the crunchy, buttery bottom that smells and tastes amazing. When the bread is baking, the salted butter that's rolled inside the bread melts and flows to the bottom, so the bottom part is "fried" in the butter. The butter eventually becomes brown butter and gives a delightful aroma to the bread.

After making more than 150 shio pans with different recipes, I came up with this recipe that I'm really satisfied with in both appearance and taste. They are so delicious that it's impossible to just eat one!

Why You Should Try This Recipe

• If you haven't tried this before, once you try it you'll understand why people line up out the door for them!
• You only need a few ingredients that you probably already have at home.
• Using sponge method makes the bread extra flavorful and tasty!
• I will show you how to make the best shio pan with a helpful video, step by step pictures and clear instructions.

Ingredients You'll Need

Here are the main ingredients you'll need for making this recipe. Check the recipe box below for the full ingredient list with actual measurement.

Notes

• Cake flour - Adding cake flour gives the bread a lighter and softer texture.
• Butter - We will use unsalted butter in the bread dough and salted butter to roll in the bread. Using good quality salted butter is the key to make tasty shio pan. I recommend using European-style butter, like Kerrygold or President.
• Sea salt - Use fine sea salt in the dough and flaky sea salt (I use fleur de sel) to sprinkle on the top.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1 - Make sponge starter the day before.

Mix instant yeast with warm water before stirring in yogurt and bread flour. Stir in the same direction for about 30 seconds until it's well combined.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit on the counter for about 40 minutes to an hour before storing in the fridge overnight.

The volume of the sponge starter should roughly triple by the next day. Make sure you use it within three days for the best result.

Step 2 - Make bread dough.

Add all the dough ingredients except salt into a stand mixer, knead for 10 minutes on medium speed before adding salt and knead for another 10-15 minutes until the dough is smooth and passes the windowpane test.

Take the dough out from the mixer, form it into a ball by folding the edges to the center and pinching together. The dough should be soft and fairly easy to handle.

Put it seam side down in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 40 minutes to 1 hour in room temperature until the dough almost doubles in size.

Quick tip - If you find it difficult to tell whether it has doubled in size or not, place the dough in a container with about double of the volume of the dough. That way, when the dough nearly fills the container, you know it's done proofing.

Step 3 - Prepare salted butter.

While the dough is proofing, cut salted butter into 10 even pieces that's 5g with the dimension around 0.5(L) x 1.5(W) x 0.5(H) inches, which is about 1.25(L) x 3.5(W) x 1.25(H) cm. Store them in the freezer until it's ready to use.

Step 4 - Assemble shio pan (please see the video for instructions).

Transfer the dough onto a working surface and cut it into 10 even pieces, about 50g each.

Press the dough down into a rough disk shape before folding the edge closer to you over the rest of the dough (reference the video above). Rotate 90 degrees and fold the closer part of the dough over the rest of the dough again. Then repeat this rotate and fold step two more times before before rolling one side of the dough thinner with your hand to form a cone shape.

Cover and let the dough rest for 15 minutes.

Take one piece of dough and roll it out flat into a long triangle, flip it over and continue to roll until it's about 3" (7cm) wide on the top and 14" (35cm) long.

Place one piece of salted butter on the wide part of the dough, fold the top part of the dough down over the butter and lightly press down to seal the butter. Gently roll the top part all the way down to make it look like a croissant.

Repeat the same for the rest of the dough.

Step 5 - Final proof and bake.

Place the shio pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or spray with baking spray, cover with damp towel and proof at 80-85°F (27-30°C) for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, adjust the oven racks so that one rack is on the lowest level while the other rack is one level up from the middle. Place a cast iron pan or baking tray on the bottom rack (in a later step, we will pour water on the hot pan to produce steam while baking shio pan).

Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) in the last 15 minutes.

Once the bread is done proofing, brush water on the surface and sprinkle a pinch of flaky salt on top of each shio pan before placing them on the upper rack in the oven.

Pour a cup a water into the cast iron pan or baking tray in the bottom to produce steam and quickly close the oven door. Make sure you wear oven mitts and be careful of the hot steam.

Bake for 13-14 minutes or until golden brown.

Take the tray out of the oven, let the bread cool down a little and enjoy while they're warm. They taste the best when they are freshly baked!

If you want to try more delicious Asian style breads, make sure you check out my tuna bun with corn and mozzarella cheese and Taiwanese milk butter buns.

Happy baking!!

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• Make sure you weigh all the ingredients with a kitchen scale.
• When shaping shio pans, try working fast so there won't be too much difference in terms of proofing time between the first and the last one.
• If you are new to making bread and need more time, store the first few rolls in the fridge (covered with damp towel) to slow down the proofing process. Take them out to do the final proof with all other rolls once they are all assembled.
• The rolls should look puffy after the final proof. To check if the rolls are proofed enough, dip your finger with water and gently press the surface of the bread, if it bounces back yet leaves a light dent, then you know it's done proofing. Over proved bread will be tasteless and under proofed bread will be dense.
• If you prefer a crispier crust on the surface, omit the 10g of butter in the dough mixture. However, the texture of the bread will be a bit less soft and fluffy.

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