We were baking a lot of bread between Christmas and New Year this time. Not only because we were stuck at home in a lockdown situation, but also because the holidays were mostly on weekdays so there was no bakery open for days to get fresh bread for breakfast – so the only solution was to bake some bread at home. I’m not a big fan of white bread, but for sandwiches and especially for grilled cheese we needed decent sandwich bread. Shokupan is always the first thing that comes to my mind when I need bread for sandwiches and this one here is made with spelt flour – the somewhat “healthier” alternative to a regular wheat bread ;)

We switched to whole grain bread years ago – which means we either buy whole grain bread or make it at home. Two of my favorite recipes are this Easy Wholemeal Spelt Oats Bread and this Simple & Easy Whole Grain Bread). For a diabetic like me, it’s the best bread to eat. Wholemeal bread does not affect the blood sugar levels that much and is better for your digestive system in general. I actually have a flour mill* https://amzn.to/38ccHSI at home to make my own wholemeal flour. It’s the best! Anyway. That does not mean that I don’t like to use simple white bread here and there ;) Have you ever made a grilled cheese with whole-grain bread? It’s not nice :P
In order to make a “bad” sandwich or grilled cheese slightly “healthier”, I am using bread made with spelt flour – like this Spelt Shokupan here. Spelt flour is very similar to regular wheat flour, but your body digests it a bit better and due to the degree of grinding, which is normally a bit coarser compared to regular a/p flour, there are more minerals left in the flour. Nothing in comparison to wholemeal flour, but you have to work with what you have. If you can’t give up those “little sins” this is a way to make it a bit healthier ;P

Shokupan is a white bread / milk bread that has its origin in Japan – the name probably gives that away already. I got a Shokupan recipe here on the blog already, but that one is made with regular all-purpose flour. It’s also a slightly different preparation method, but the result is similar… light, fluffy and the ideal bread for sandwiches.
If you like your bread a little less dark – the Shokupan bread you get in Japan is normally a bit lighter in color – you should cover the bread with some aluminum foil as soon as it got some color on top and continue baking. We like it a bit darker so you get a nice crunchy crust – but not everyone appreciates that on a sandwich ;P
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
0.7 oz. (20g) spelt flour (Type 630)
3.5 oz. (100g) water
For the dough:
12 oz. (340g) spelt flour (Type 630)
0.5 oz. (15g) dry milk powder
0.14 oz (4g) active dry yeast
0.7 oz. (20g) sugar
0.25 oz. (7g) salt
3.9 oz. (110g) lukewarm water
1 large egg
0.7 oz. (20g) butter, at room temperature
20g Dinkelmehl (Type 630)
100g Wasser
Für den Hauptteig:
340g Dinkelmehl (Type 630)
15g Milchpulver
4g Trockenhefe
20g Zucker
7g Salz
110g lauwarmes Wasser
1 Ei (L)
20g weiche Butter


DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Add the spelt flour, dry milk powder, yeast, sugar, and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix to combine. Add the tangzhong, the lukewarm water, and egg and mix with a dough hook for about 4-5 minutes. The dough should look smooth and feel slightly sticky. Add the room temperature butter and knead another 10 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for about 60-90 minutes or until doubled in size.
3. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for another 20 minutes. Lightly grease a 9×4.5 inches (23x11cm) loaf pan and line with a strip of baking parchment. Set aside.
4. Stretch out each of the dough balls into an oval – the longer sides should face away from you. Fold the side facing you to the center and then the opposite side on top so you get a little three-layered package. Turn around in a 90° angle so the side with the layers is facing you and stretch out into an oval again. Repeat the folding to the center to get another package. Place the two packages with the open sides down into the prepared loaf pan, cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for another 50-90 minutes. The risen dough should at least fill out all the gaps in the loaf pan and come up to the rim of the pan or slightly over it – depending on the temperature in your kitchen this can take quite a while.
5. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place the loaf pan in the lower third of the oven. Place a heatproof bowl with some water on the bottom of the oven and bake the bread for about 35 minutes or until nicely browned. When adding the bread you also might want to sprinkle some water on the bottom of the oven to create steam and give everything a jump start – but be careful not to burn yourself with the hot steam. If your oven has a function for that – use that one. Take the finished bread out of the oven and remove from the pan. If you knock on the bottom of the bread and it sounds kind of hollow the bread is done. Let cool down completely on a wire rack.
2. Das Mehl für den Hauptteig, das Milchpulver, Trockenhefe, Zucker und Salz in die Schüssel einer Küchenmaschine geben und verrühren. Den Tangzhong, das lauwarme Wasser und das Ei dazugeben und mit den Knethaken für etwa 4-5 Minuten zu einem glatten, leicht klebrigen Teig verkneten. Die weiche Butter dazugeben und weitere 10 Minuten kneten lassen. Den Teig dann zu einer Kugel formen und in eine leicht gefettete Schüssel geben. Abdecken und an einem warmen Ort für etwa 60-90 Minuten geben lassen, bis sich das Volumen verdoppelt hat.
3. Den Teig auf eine leicht bemehlte Fläche stürzen und in zwei gleich große Stücke teilen – jedes Stück zu einer Kugel formen. Noch einmal abdecken und für etwa 20 Minuten ruhen lassen. Eine 23x11cm (9×4.5inches) Kastenform leicht einfetten und mit einem Stück Backpapier auslegen. Zur Seite stellen.
4. Die Teigkugeln jeweils zu Ovalen auseinanderziehen – die längeren Seiten des Ovals zur Mitte hin einschlagen, damit ein kleines Päckchen mit drei Lagen entsteht. Dieses Päckchen so auf die Arbeitsfläche setzen, dass die offene Seite mit den drei sichtbaren Schichten zu einem zeigt. Daraus wieder ein Oval Ziehen und noch einmal zur Mitte hin zu einem neuen Päckchen zusammenfalten – die Schichten müssten jetzt theoretisch im 90° Winkel zueinander gefaltet worden sein. Die beiden so gefalteten Päckchen mit der offenen Seite nach unten nebeneinander in die vorbereitete Form setzen. Mit einem Tuch abdecken und an einem warmen Ort für weitere 50-90 Minuten gehen lassen. Der Teig sollte alle Zwischenräume gefüllt haben und mindestens bis zum Rand der Form oder sogar etwas höher aufgegangen sein – je nach Temperatur in der Küche kann das sehr unterschiedlich lange dauern.
5. Den Ofen auf 180°C (350°F) vorheizen. Die Form mit dem Teig im unteren Drittel des Ofen platzieren und dann eine kleine hitzebeständige Schüssel mit Wasser auf den Boden des Ofens stellen – für etwa 35 Minuten backen. Wenn ihr die Wasserschüssel in den Ofen stellt, könnt ihr auch noch etwas Wasser auf den Boden sprühen und den Ofen sofort schließen, damit der entstehende Dampf den Teig in Fahrt bringt ;) Seid aber vorsichtig – entstehender Dampf ist heiß und ihr könnt euch verbrennen. Wenn ihr einen Ofen mit Dampffunktion habt, dann verwendet natürlich die. Das fertige Brot aus dem Ofen holen und aus der Form lösen. Wenn man auf die Unterseite des Brotes klopft, sollte es hohl klingen, dann ist das Brot perfekt. Auf einem Kuchengitter komplett auskühlen lassen.

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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Spelt Shokupan Bread
- Prep Time: 00:35
- Cook Time: 00:35
- Total Time: 05:00
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Bread
- Cuisine: Japanese
Description
Soft Japanese Shokupan bread baked with spelt flour – perfect for sandwiches.
Ingredients
For the tangzhong:
0.7 oz. (20g) spelt flour (Type 630)
3.5 oz. (100g) water
For the dough:
12 oz. (340g) spelt flour (Type 630)
0.5 oz. (15g) dry milk powder
0.14 oz (4g) active dry yeast
0.7 oz. (20g) sugar
0.25 oz. (7g) salt
3.9 oz. (110g) lukewarm water
1 large egg
0.7 oz. (20g) butter, at room temperature
Instructions
1. Add the spelt flour and water for the tangzhong into a small pot and mix to combine. Place on the stove and heat up over low heat, stirring constantly until the mix thickens and turns into something like a pudding. If you pull with a rubber spatula through the mix you should be able to see the bottom of the pot. Remove from the heat and let cool down.
2. Add the spelt flour, dry milk powder, yeast, sugar, and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix to combine. Add the tangzhong, the lukewarm water, and egg and mix with a dough hook for about 4-5 minutes. The dough should look smooth and feel slightly sticky. Add the room temperature butter and knead another 10 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for about 60-90 minutes or until doubled in size.
3. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for another 20 minutes. Lightly grease a 9×4.5 inches (23x11cm) loaf pan and line with a strip of baking parchment. Set aside.
4. Stretch out each of the dough balls into an oval – the longer sides should face away from you. Fold the side facing you to the center and then the opposite side on top so you get a little three-layered package. Turn around in a 90° angle so the side with the layers is facing you and stretch out into an oval again. Repeat the folding to the center to get another package. Place the two packages with the open sides down into the prepared loaf pan, cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for another 50-90 minutes. The risen dough should at least fill out all the gaps in the loaf pan and come up to the rim of the pan or slightly over it – depending on the temperature in your kitchen this can take quite a while.
5. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place the loaf pan in the lower third of the oven. Place a heatproof bowl with some water on the bottom of the oven and bake the bread for about 35 minutes or until nicely browned. When adding the bread you also might want to sprinkle some water on the bottom of the oven to create steam and give everything a jump start – but be careful not to burn yourself with the hot steam. If your oven has a function for that – use that one. Take the finished bread out of the oven and remove from the pan. If you knock on the bottom of the bread and it sounds kind of hollow the bread is done. Let cool down completely on a wire rack.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
Keywords: Japanese, bread, shokupan, milk, sandwich, toast
Thanks for the recipe! I plan to make it soon. Would spelt benefit from adding a little vital wheat gluten?