Golden brown and glistening with melted butter, a tray of freshly baked bread fills the screen in a TikTok video. The camera lingers on the glossy tops before one bun is gently pulled apart, revealing a cloud-soft interior.
The clip is one of countless videos of Japanese milk buns that have racked up millions of views and thousands of comments and shares, helping to propel the pillowy rolls into UK supermarkets.
Japanese milk bread (shokupan) and buns are having a viral moment. The lightly sweet, fine-crumbed yeast breads trace their roots to a bakery tradition introduced to Japan through western contact, but modern Japanese milk bread evolved during the ۲۰th century as bakers adapted European techniques to local tastes.
They are far from the only Japanese food to find global fame on social media. Japan’s deep-fried sandwiches have inspired queues around the block, while fluffy soufflé pancakes, delicate crepes and Japan’s distinctive fruit sando – fresh fruit and cream layered between slices of soft milk bread – have all found devoted followings online and beyond.
The growing appetite for Japanese cuisine is being reflected in supermarkets. Waitrose says sales of Miso Tasty ramen paste are up ۴۱% compared with last year, while sales of Miso Tasty soup paste have increased by ۲۲%.
But it is the rise of milk bread that Emilie Wolfman, the world foods product developer at Waitrose, said was “one of the most exciting food trends we’ve seen cross over from social media into mainstream kitchens”. Searches for “Japanese milk buns” on Waitrose’s website have risen by ۶۱۷% over the past month, while sales are up ۲۷% over the same period.
As well as their viral success online, Wolfman attributes the growing popularity of milk buns to “London’s cult burger restaurants and east Asian bakeries”.
Black Bear Burger, a London-based chain, has built a loyal following by serving its smash burgers and crispy fried chicken in soft milk buns. In London’s Chinatown, Bun House showcases Cantonese-style baked milk buns with both savoury and sweet fillings.
Outside the capital, Tomás Gormley, the chef-patron of Scottish fine dining restaurant Cardinal, said it opened with milk buns on the menu. “My first pastry chef, Mia, developed an incredible recipe that we still use today. We switch to sourdough every now and then to keep things interesting but always seem to end up back at the milk buns,” he said.
Gormley believes part of the appeal to chefs is how quickly and easily they can be made. “I have all the time in the world for slow-fermented sourdoughs and overnight focaccias, but logistically a bread you can bash out in a couple of hours is a winner in the kitchen,” he said. “It’s also usually less butter-heavy than the French equivalent, brioche, which helps with costs, but also with balancing a menu and how much a guest can really eat over the course of a tasting menu, in my case.”
Michael Booth, the author of Sushi and Beyond and The Meaning of Rice, said Japanese cuisine’s “huge focus on presentation, aesthetics” and social media were a perfect match, with the country having been ahead of the curve for at least a decade. “I can remember visiting a restaurant in Kyoto that was specifically tailored to presenting its food for social media,” he added.
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Booth said he became “totally obsessed” with milk buns and Japanese baked goods when he first visited Japan in the ۱۹۹۰s. “They had long ago mastered that super-light crumb.”
The MasterChef winner and restaurateur Tim Anderson notes the huge variety of milk breads available in Japan, which range from mildly milky and sweet to those rich with eggs, butter, cream and honey that are more akin to brioche. “I think if British bakeries and supermarkets are trying to nail what makes milk bread special they should focus on the yudane and gluten development, which are what give milk bread its unique combination of strength and softness,” he added.
How to serve Japanese milk buns: a guide
Anderson said he would recommend using it to make natto toast, which features fermented soya beans under a layer of crisp melted cheese. Failing that, it works well for an egg sandwich, or “pizza toast is fantastic”.
He added that in the US at the moment it was “peach and tomato season”, both of which would pair well with it. “A toasted nut butter and peach jam sandwich would be exquisite,” he said.
Use it with tomatoes in a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich with Kewpie mayo, thick-cut streaky bacon, iceberg lettuce and the best-quality tomatoes you can get,which should be “sliced thick, patted dry and pre-seasoned with sea salt and MSG [monosodium glutamate]”.
