Bake

Milk Buns with Salted Maple Butter

November  4, 2024
5
12 Ratings
Photo by Ty Mecham
  • Prep time 2 hours 30 minutes
  • Cook time 30 minutes
  • Serves 9 buns
Author Notes

If I had to rank my favorite recipes, these milk buns with maple butter glaze would certainly make the top three. They’re incredibly soft and feathery, the perfect balance of sweet and salty, and beat all Parker House rolls I’ve had at past holiday dinners. However, there are a few things to keep in mind in order to achieve the perfect texture, so I highly recommend reading the tips and tricks section below as well as fully reading each recipe step before starting:

Tips & Tricks:
• This recipe is made with tangzhong, which is a popular Asian baking technique that involves pre-cooking the flour and liquid (in this case milk) until it reaches at least 150ºF/65ºC and resembles a paste. The cooking process gelatinizes the starches in the flour, which helps the dough to absorb more liquid later on. Adding tangzhong to a dough helps to create a much fluffier, softer and tender texture.
• Kneading is one of the most important parts of making milk buns when looking to get that pillowy-soft and feathery texture. The longer you knead, the more you develop the gluten, and the more feathery strands the buns will have. I write more about how to know if you’ve kneaded enough in Step 3. If you don’t knead long enough, the buns will be more bready and almost crumbly.
• Make sure you let the dough proof long enough both in the first and second round. If you don’t, the buns might crack on the top and around the sides while baking. To test, gently poke your finger into the dough. If it barely dents and springs back completely, it needs to rest longer. If it dents and springs back halfway, it’s ready. (PLEASE NOTE: You also don’t want to overproof them. If the dent doesn’t spring back at all, they have overproofed.)
• If you want to speed up the proofing process, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, turn the light on in your oven, and proof the dough in the oven until doubled in size. You can do the same thing with the second proof too.
• You can use active dry yeast instead of instant, just make sure you activate the yeast. After adding the tangzhong to the bowl of the mixer, heat the remaining milk to 98ºF (no hotter as this can kill the yeast). Pour in the milk, then sprinkle in the yeast. Let the yeast activate for about 5 minutes.
• If doubling the recipe, follow instructions as written, but either bake in a 9x13-inch baking dish or bake in two separate skillets.
• To make ahead, prepare the recipe the evening before through step 5. Wrap in plastic wrap and let the buns slowly proof in the refrigerator overnight. Remove them from the fridge to come to room temperature about 30 minutes before baking, while the oven preheats.
Nea Arentzen

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • TANGZHONG:
  • 3 tablespoons (22 grams) bread flour (all-purpose is fine too)
  • 1/2 cup (113 grams) whole milk
  • DOUGH:
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons (7 grams) instant dry yeast (see tip)
  • 1/2 cup (113 grams) whole milk
  • 4 tablespoons (57 grams) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup (49 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Diamond crystal kosher salt
  • 2 3/4 cups
    2 tablespoons (345 grams) bread flour (divided; all-purpose is fine too)


  • TO ASSEMBLE:
  • 1 tablespoon whole milk, for brushing
  • 2 tablespoons (28 grams) butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons (39 grams) maple syrup
  • flakey sea salt
Directions
  1. Make the tangzhong: In a medium saucepan, combine the flour and milk. Place it over medium heat and whisk until thickened and reaches at least 150ºF on a kitchen thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes. At 150ºF the starches gelatinize. If it turns into a glue-like texture that doesn’t really thicken all that much start again–this means too much of the liquid has evaporated.
  2. Make the dough: Transfer the tangzhong to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough attachment, then add the yeast, milk, sugar, butter, egg, salt, and 2 ¾ cups of the flour. Knead the dough until it mostly comes away from the sides but still partly remains on the bottom of the bowl, looks smooth, and feels tacky but not too sticky, 15 to 20 minutes (you may need to knead longer depending on your mixer–don't stop until you've successfully completed step 3). NOTE: If it still looks too wet, add the remaining 1 to 2 tablespoons; this will depend on the humidity level in your kitchen and time of year).
  3. Grab a small piece of dough and stretch it between your hands to perform a window pane test. If you can stretch it wide and thin enough where light comes through, it’s ready to proof. If it breaks quickly or easily, keep kneading. It’s crucial that you knead the dough long enough in order to get a really feathery, soft texture with lots of gluten development.
  4. Cover tightly with plastic wrap (this helps prevent the top from drying out and forming a skin) and place it in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hours. You can check to see if it’s done rising by poking it; if it pops back quickly it needs to rise more, if it comes back slowly or stays mostly dented it’s done.
  5. Shape the dough: Divide the dough into 9 equal sized pieces (my risen dough weighed 666 grams so I divided each into balls weighing 74 grams, but if you don’t have a scale just eyeball). Without flouring the surface, use a rolling pin to roll a ball of dough into an 8x3-inch rectangle. Fold it in thirds lengthwise, then turn 90 degrees and use a rolling pin to flatten it again. Roll up into a cylinder, then flip the ends down so it turns into a ball. Cup your hands over and drag it gently across the counter until it’s round and has a smooth surface. Assemble in a 10-inch cast iron skillet lined with parchment paper. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and set aside to proof until nearly doubled in size, another 45 minutes.
  6. Bake the buns: While the buns are proofing, preheat the oven to 350ºF with a rack placed in the lower rack. Brush the tops with milk, then bake until deep golden brown and read at least 190ºF on a kitchen thermometer, 30 to 35 minutes (place tin foil on top if browning too quickly).
  7. Combine the melted butter and maple syrup; season with a pinch of salt. Brush over the warm buns and sprinkle with a generous amount of flakey sea salt.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Andrea Courtois
    Andrea Courtois
  • China Millman
    China Millman
  • Nea Arentzen
    Nea Arentzen
  • thisismyF52pw
    thisismyF52pw
Nea Arentzen

Recipe by: Nea Arentzen

Test Kitchen Content Creator & Recipe Developer at Food52

26 Reviews

thisismyF52pw December 2, 2024
Winner! So good! Everyone loved them - the only downside was that I forgot to check my pan size (and had to do a TG morning run to a store to purchase the correct pan size). Warning: my Kitchen Aid mixer was feeling QUITE HOT by the end... so just be careful if you have an older machine (as I do)...
 
Angie November 27, 2024
Oh. My. God. Absolutely incredible and worth the time! The texture and sweetness level are perfection. My kids have never liked my hot roll recipe, and asked me to buy Hawaiian rolls. I find that an abomination on holidays, so I tried this recipe instead. They said these are by far the best rolls they’ve ever had, and I have to agree! Thank you so much for this, it’s going in the holiday recipe box forever!
 
ajsay November 27, 2024
Do you have any instructions for making the dough and shaping ahead? I'd like to make them the morning of thanksgiving and pull out to bake later in the evening. Is this possible?
 
China M. November 27, 2024
As Nea says in the notes, you can prepare them through step 5 the night before - I tested them this way and then baked them the next morning, so I had about a 9 hour rise in the fridge - I would bet you would want a minimum of 6 hours in the fridge, but someone else may be able to weight in on that. You could also just give them a little extra time on the counter before you bake them off.
 
Vanessa November 27, 2024
This was a great recipe to make for thanksgiving! Had to mix dough for about 30min and proof a bit longer for the first proofing. Came out beautiful!
 
Andrea C. November 20, 2024
i am so impressed with how light & fluffy they are. this is the roll recipe i have been looking for!
 
Kvonada November 20, 2024
How fast of a mixer speed should we use when kneading the dough?
 
simann1359 November 20, 2024
I used a 6/7 on my KitchenAid and ended up kneading for 22 min. I did the windowpane test at 16, 18 and then 22min
 
Anna M. November 18, 2024
I’ve been recipe testing rolls for Thanksgiving and these are the clear winner. I’m so impressed. The maple is such a fun festive touch.

Do you think this would scale well or would you recommend just making the single recipe twice for best results?
 
Nea A. November 20, 2024
Im so glad you like them! I think you could definitely just double or triple the recipe. Just be cautious of how much flour you add. I'd add less to start then add more as needed.
 
BrenAlb November 15, 2024
These are SOOOO good! Followed the recipe exactly as written and turned out great! Needed the extra flour and about 30-35 minutes of kneading. The windowpane test tip was so helpful.
 
Nea A. November 20, 2024
Yay so happy to hear this!
 
Jacqueline H. November 12, 2024
I made these for Friendsgiving and they are BY FAR the best buns I have ever had. Everyone raved about them and I WILL be making these for thanksgiving! Thank you Nea! ✨
 
Nea A. November 14, 2024
YAY! So happy to hear this!!
 
josie G. November 12, 2024
I'm kneading the dough and it seems to be a lot dryer than yours in the video. it also is talking more than 20 min. HELP!!
 
Nea A. November 12, 2024
Oh no! I'd add a tablespoon of milk or water if it really feels too dry, but it's okay if it's a little dryer than my video. I experimented with different variations of dryness. Just keep kneading until you can do the stretch test!
 
juliegeyer November 12, 2024
These buns are so, so fluffy and delicious! I ended up having to knead the dough (with a stand mixer) much longer than the recipe suggested, so having the tip about doing the window pane test was wonderful. My whole family adored these, and I will be making them for Thanksgiving!
 
Nea A. November 12, 2024
I'm so glad they turned out well!! Ugh yeah sometimes dough ends up having to be kneaded for a very long time but the window pane test never fails!
 
Arpramstad November 11, 2024
I have these proofing currently and am excited to try these, but wanted to make a couple notes about the recipe directions:

Section 5: Directions say: "Roll lengthwise again. Roll up. Cup your hands over the ball..." "Roll up" is an unclear direction. Doing so doesn't result in a ball, but a cylinder. I think more clarity here would be advised for those who don't work with dough regularly.

You direct us to assemble the rolls in a parchment lined cast iron pan, but don't indicate the pan size. Perhaps it doesn't matter if it's 8" or 10", but a preferred size would be welcome.
 
Nea A. November 11, 2024
Thanks for the notes! I've updated the recipe so hopefully it's a little more clear now!
 
simann1359 November 11, 2024
I was excited to see these come to the website! I’ve never made milk bread before and this was super clear (plus watching the Reel on Instagram). They came out amazing and I’ll def be making them again
 
Nea A. November 11, 2024
Yay I'm so happy to hear that!
 
Josie L. November 10, 2024
I have nothing but good things to say about this recipe! I’ve only tried bread once before this recipe and it was dense mess. I’m not sure how these ended up as flawless as they did but they were AMZING and my whole family loved them! Perfect for thanksgiving!
 
Nea A. November 11, 2024
OMG! This makes me so happy I'm so glad you liked them!
 
Fuzzball November 7, 2024
These rolls taste really great and are nice and fluffy. I had the dough kneading for around 14 minutes but feel like it could have done with a bit longer. Also, the ingredients list a 1/4c of granulated sugar, but the recipe does not say when to add it in, so I put it in with all the other ingredients before kneading.
 
Nea A. November 8, 2024
Oh no! Thanks for flagging! Fixing immediately.