Sausage Bun with Milk Bread Dough

What is the type of buns or bread that you eat most often? Growing up in Malaysia and subsequently residing in Singapore, I am more familiar with Asian soft buns. For instance, ham & cheese bun, red bean bun, pandan coconut bun, crab stick bun, and of course, sausage bun or more commonly known as “hotdog” bun. When I was in primary school, my mum used to buy buns and egg tarts for us as afternoon snack from an “uncle” (meaning middle-aged man in Singlish), who drove a blue car, and went around our residential area every morning to sell all kinds of buns and snacks. We would immediately know that the bread vendor “uncle” had arrived by just listening to his car horn.

There was another old “uncle” who used to ride a motorcycle, and went around our residential area to sell bread in the evening as well. Sadly, I haven’t seen them for a long while, perhaps for decades. I could not even picture clearly in my mind how they looked like back then. Time flies, and thing changes. However, one thing that doesn’t change is my love for soft Asian buns. “Hotdog” bun is such a common bun, but it is a flavour that stays through decades and generations.

Watch the video below to see how I made sausage buns with a milk bread dough:

Ingredients for milk bread dough

Ingredients (yield: 12 buns)

(A) Bread dough

Bread flour 300g
Sugar 70g
Salt 4g
Instant dried yeast 6g
Egg 1 no.
Milk 130g
Butter 30g

(B) Filling & topping

Sausages 12 pieces
Egg wash, as needed
Bread crumb 30g
Grated parmesan 30g
Dried parsley 1 Tbsp

Method:

1. To prepare the topping: Mix bread crumb, grated parmesan and dried parsley together until well combined. Spread it out on a tray.
2. To make the bread dough: In a big mixing bowl, put together bread flour, sugar, salt, yeast, egg and milk. Mix and knead to form a ball.
3. Add butter to the dough, and mix well. Continue to knead the dough with hand (or use a dough hook if using a stand mixer), until the dough is elastic and its surface is smooth.
4. Cover the dough with a wet cloth or plastic film, and let it rest for an hour at room temperature.
   

   Before resting

   

   After resting for an hour
5. Punch down the dough to release large air pockets.
6. Cut and divide bread dough into 12 portions, weighing at about 50g each. Round the dough and rest for 15 minutes.
7. Take a bread dough and roll it into a rope, starting from the centre of the dough.
8. Wrap the rope-shape dough around a sausage. (See video for demonstration)
9. Using a pastry brush, apply a thin layer of egg wash on the top of the bun, and coat this side with the bread crumb mixture.
10. Arrange buns on a baking tray. Proof for about an hour at room temperature until the buns double in size.
11. Meanwhile, preheat the oven at 200 degree Celcius.
12. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 -15 minutes, until it is cooked and the top is brown.
13. Transfer buns to a cooling rack to cool down before serving.