Hi! I’m back with another mash up recipe. On Sunday, some friends got together for a small get together. I spent the week prior stressing over an upcoming econ exam so this was the perfect excuse to get back in the kitchen.

Last time, I used an Asian dough in a European pastry. This time, I decided to use a European dough in an Asian “pastry”: using brioche to make brown sugar buns => Brown Sugar Brioche Buns. Brown sugar buns are typically steamed. Of course brioche can’t be steamed (nor do I have a steamer), so I baked them

Guess what? It worked! Even better, it worked AND worked in an air fryer. They were fluffy, rich and a real crowdpleaser. The brown sugar melted into a delicious oozing toffee. Given how well this worked, perhaps I should experiment some more. Char Siu brioche buns next perhaps 😉

Notes:

1. Keep the butter cold. The kneading takes a while and soft butter just makes it messier. Also, cold butter = more layers
2. It’s possible the overnight proof before shaping. If you choose this route, make sure to let the dough warm up at room temperature for 20-30min before shaping
3. If you don’t have a pastry brush, use a sturdy paper towel to brush on the egg wash
4. You can make the dough savoury: Cut the sugar in 1/2 and add 2-3g of salt.

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Ingredients:

• 372g all purpouse flour
• 1.5 sticks salted butter, cut into 1 cm cubes
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 64ml warm milk
• 44-50g sugar
• 8 g instant yeast
• egg wash (1 egg yolk + 2 tbsp water)

Directions

Making Dough

1. Mix flour, sugar and yeast in a large bowl. Add milk and eggs and form into a scraggly dough. Knead for 4 min or until the dough is smooth is elastic
2. Form a well in the dough ball. Add 1/4th of the butter and knead for 1-2 minutes until semi incorporated. Repeat 3 more times for the rest of the butter is added. The dough will be very loose and messy. THIS IS NORMAL!
3. Knead for 25-30min until the dough forms a smooth ball. Alternately, use a dough hook or bread machine. It’ll take about 1/2 the time and 1/(arbitrarily large number) the effort

Shaping and Proofing

1. Divide dough into 11 portions and roll into balls, the then flatten into disks
2. Spoon 1/5tbsp of brown sugar into the centre of each disk. For each disk, bring the edges of the disk together to seal in the sugar. Be sure to seal the seam tightly. Reform into a ball and place seam side down onto a tray. Repeat until all 11 buns are formed
3. Cover and refrigerate for 12-14 hours.
4. Remove from fridge and allow to rest at room temperature for 2 hour (second proof). After the 2 hours, brush with egg wash

Cooking

1. Spray and preheat air fryer to 305F.
2. Place buns in at least 2 in apart (you will have to cook in batches) and airfry for 10-11min or until golden brown on top and the bottom is slightly browned.
3. Cool, serve and enjoy!

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I hope everyone has a great week. Until next time, bye!

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