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Melon pan

Melon Pan
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Indulge in Melon Pan Recipe, a fluffy sweet bun crowned with crisp cookie perfection!

Ingredients

Scale

Water roux (make first, cool fully):

  • 3 tbsp (24 g) bread flour
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) water

Milk bun dough:

  • 2 3/4 cups (380 g) bread flour
  • 3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup (27 g) milk powder
  • 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (78 g) granulated sugar
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 2 1/4 tsp (7 g) instant dry yeast
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 2/3 cup (160 ml) water, lukewarm (body temperature)
  • All of the cooled water roux (from above)
  • 3 tbsp (45 g) unsalted butter, softened, cubed

Cookie topping:

  • 1/4 cup (60 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 1/2 cups (175 g) cake flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder

To assemble & finish:

  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, for rolling

Instructions

  1. Make the water roux: combine the bread flour and water in a small saucepan. Whisk over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until thickened and semi-translucent. Remove from heat, transfer to a small bowl, cover with cling wrap touching the surface, and cool for 1 hour or until room temperature before use.
  2. Make the dough: combine the bread flour, all-purpose flour, milk powder, sugar, salt and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the egg, lukewarm water and cooled roux. Mix on medium for about 3 minutes until a rough dough forms. (The added water should be at body temperature — too cold delays the yeast, too hot kills it.)
  3. Add the softened butter and continue to knead on medium for 20 minutes, until the dough passes the windowpane test (it can be stretched into a thin sheet that resembles a windowpane without tearing).
  4. Shape into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl for the first proof. Cover loosely with cling wrap and place in a warm spot for 1 to 2 hours, until doubled. (Turned-off oven with a mug of hot water is ideal.) The dough is ready when a floured finger pressed into the center leaves a hole that doesn’t bounce back.
  5. While the dough proofs, make the cookie topping: cream the softened butter and 100 g sugar in a stand mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the egg until combined. Sift in the cake flour and baking powder and beat on low until just combined. Wrap the cookie dough in cling wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour, until completely chilled.
  6. After the first proof, gently press the air out of the dough on a lightly floured surface. Divide into 10 equal portions (about 80 g each) and roll into smooth balls.
  7. Remove the cookie dough from the fridge and divide into 10 equal portions (about 35 g each).
  8. Place each cookie portion between two pieces of baking paper and roll into a 2 mm-thick round, roughly 10 cm (4 inches) across — large enough to cover the top and sides of a bun.
  9. Top each dough ball with a cookie round, gently pressing it down over the top and sides (the bottom of the bun stays uncovered).
  10. Place the 200 g of granulated sugar in a shallow bowl. Roll the cookie-dough side of each bun in the sugar to coat. Use the back of a knife to score a 3×3 crisscross pattern into the cookie surface — press just deep enough to mark, not cut through.
  11. Arrange the buns on one or two baking trays lined with baking paper, leaving 3 inches (8 cm) between buns so they don’t join as they bake. Cover loosely with cling wrap and place in a warm spot for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until visibly puffed (they don’t need to fully double in size — over-proofing breaks the cookie crust pattern).
  12. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Bake the buns for 13 to 15 minutes, until the cookie crust is lightly golden brown and the crisscross pattern has opened up cleanly. Cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Notes

  • Two doughs, one bake: the milk bun dough is yeasted (rises in the oven, soft interior), the cookie topping is unleavened (crisps and cracks open along the score lines). The contrast is the whole point.
  • Cookie topping that’s too cold won’t stretch over the ball; too warm and it tears. Pull it from the fridge as the dough finishes its first proof — it should be firm but pliable when you roll it.
  • Score depth matters: too shallow and the pattern disappears in the bake; too deep and the topping splits into separate pieces. Aim for about a third of the way through the cookie dough.
  • Second proof is shorter than for plain milk buns. Over-proofed melon pan = the cookie cracks across, not along the score lines, and the result looks lumpy. Watch the buns, not the clock.
  • Flavor variations (for future posts): swap 1 tbsp of cake flour for 1 tbsp matcha or cocoa powder in the cookie topping; or add 1 tbsp freeze-dried strawberry/raspberry/lychee powder for a fruit version (this is the strawberries-and-cream variant’s base).
  • Storage: best the day they’re baked. Day-2 buns refresh well with 5 minutes in a 300°F (150°C) oven.

Find it online: https://zhangcatherine.com/melon-pan/