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Tangzhong Pumpkin Loaf

by · 85 comments
Pumpkin Loaf01

As thanksgiving is coming around the corner, I am thinking of making more foods / dishes with this super food —— pumpkin. You might have known that I am a big fan of tangzhong breads if you followed this blog for a while. So, it’s so straight forward to come up with the idea of making a tangzhong pumpkin loaf.

This pumpkin loaf is tremendously soft and fluffy. Its golden orange colour is very eye-catching. I made this loaf the other night and it still kept very soft the next morning. That’s the magic done by tangzhong. I also incorporated a secret ingredient, honey, adding an extra fragrance that enticed my family to come back for more.

Tangzhong Pumpkin Loaf (Printable recipe)
By Christine's Recipes
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 170 mins
Yield: 1 toast(tin sized 20.5cmx10.5cmx9.5cm)

Pumpkin Loaf03

Ingredients:
  • 120 gm tangzhong (please refer to this recipe to make tangzhong and measure out the desired quantity)
  • 100 gm pumpkin puree
  • 50 gm whisked egg
  • 110 ml milk
  • 40 gm honey
  • 12 gm milk power
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 350 gm bread flour
  • 2 tsp instant dried yeast
  • 25 gm butter, melted
  • pepitas (pumpkin seeds), optional, for garnish
Pumpkin Loaf Procedures01
Left bottom: the dough passed the windowpane test and could be stretched to a thin membrane.
Pumpkin Loaf Procedures02

Method:
  1. Add all ingredients (except butter) into a breadmaker, the wet ingredients first, then followed by the dry ingredients: tangzhong, pumpkin puree, egg, milk, honey, milk powder, salt, flour and yeast. (Note: I used to make a small well in the flour, then add the yeast into it.)
  2. Select the “dough” mode (refer to the manual of your breadmaker to select the kneading dough programme). When all ingredients come together, add the butter. Knead until the dough passes the window-pane test (as picture shown).
  3. After kneading is finished, let the dough complete the 1st round of proofing in the machine, about 40 minutes, until it’s doubled in size.
  4. Transfer the dough onto a clean floured surface. Deflate and divide into 3 equal portions. Cover with cling wrap, let it rest for 15 minutes at room temperature.
  5. Roll out each portion of the dough with a rolling pin into an oval shape. Fold 1/3 from top edge to the middle and press. Then fold 1/3 from bottom to the middle and press. Turn seal downward. Roll flat and stretch to about 30cm in length. With seal upward, roll into a cylinder. With seal facing down, place in the loaf tin. Complete the 2nd round of proofing, until it’s doubled in size.
  6. Brush whisked egg on surface. Sprinkle pepitas on top. Bake in a pre-heated 180C (356F) oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer onto a wire rack. Let cool completely.
Pumpkin Loaf02

Notes:
  • As honey is added, the surface will easily burnt. If you found the surface turns brown too quickly, loosely cover with a foil on top until finished baking.
  • The honey will help bake a loaf with a softer texture and pleasant fragrance.
  • To make your own pumpkin puree, simply peel and deseed the pumpkin. Steam or cook in a microwave oven until it’s softened. Discard the excess water. Use a large spoon or fork to press into a paste. Then measure out the amount you need.

85 comments :

  1. Hi Christine
    The bread look so soft.....and a healthy bread too!

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a coincidence, I just bought half a pumpkin with the intention of making pumpkin bread. Thanks for sharing the recipe. It came just in time. By the way your bread looks beautiful, I just loved the colour.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for sharing. I made it almost immediately after reading your post and absolutely love it!

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  4. wonderful, I will do it for sure, thank you very much.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I made this today using mixer to knead, my dough is so sticky that I have to add. Ore flour. I unable to shape them into Swiss roll as they are too sticky, so I just bake them in two loaf tin.
    Taste is ok but didn't taste pumpkins lol

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tangzhong dough is very wet and sticky. But after kneading enough in a bread machine, it won't be too sticky.

      The taste of pumpkin is not significant. It lends a very attractive orange colour though.


      Delete
  6. Hi Christine,

    I have tried the recipe using the bread machine from start to finish three times but three times unsuccessful. The dough rised very nicely but then collapsed when it start to bake. The bread turned out hard and dense. I have a ALDI bread maker and used the basic program for 1kg loaf.
    Can you tell me which program I should use?

    Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I also used the basic model of Aldi bread maker. Its performance is quite good. I often select the "dough" mode to do the kneading for me. After the first proofing, the dough will puff up. You have to deflate it and shape it before the 2nd proofing.

      If you want to bake your loaf in the machine, then leave it inside and let the machine does all the job. If so, select the "bake" mode.

      Refer to your user's manual. It explains all the function modes.


      Delete
    2. Hi Christine,

      I followed your recipe from start to finish and bake the bread in oven instead of bread machine. It worked and the loaf was very soft! My husband is very proud of me and kids can have homemade fresh loaf without any additives. Now I want to try all the other tangzhong recipes!

      I have another question. My mum doesn't like adding butter because its too fat for seniors. Can I replace it with other oil like grape seed, rice bran or olive oil?

      Thanks

      Delete
    3. Wonderful. Congrats on your big success.

      For making this bread, you can use any kind of vegetable oil instead of butter. Make sure you use the oil without a strong smell as you don't want the overpowering effect. So, I recommend not to use olive oil.

      Delete
  7. Hi Christine, what if I wanted to add wheat germ to this recipe?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Feel free to test run with wheat germ if you like.

      Delete
  8. Christine, why do we need to do #4 & #5? Why can't we do just 1 big loaf?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Method #4 and #5 are for shaping to get a better presentation. If you like a big loaf, it's ok.

      Delete
  9. Oohhh another thing, if i want to add more pumpkin puree...how do i alter the receipe? What needs to be added or reduced? Thanks christine.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry, haven't tested what's the maximum amount of pumpkin puree with this recipe.
      Please bear in mind that adding more puree, the texture of the bread will be altered too.

      Delete
  10. How would I knead the dough by hand since I don't have a breadmaker?
    Thanks!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you haven't tried hand-kneading, I would recommend you to try another bread recipe first, like this chao shao bao because it's not sticky as the tangzhong bread dough. There are some video tutorials out there on the internet. Search and have a look.

      Delete
    2. when do I add butter?

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    3. Please see Method: step 2 - "When all ingredients come together, add the butter." There's a picture shown at the top right side.

      Delete
  11. Hi Christine, ur bread looks wonderful. I tried making them today but the dough is a little too sticky to roll into shapes unlike urs... But taste is ok. Thks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bravo. Thanks for your feedback.
      The tangzhong makes the dough quite sticky. So, that's why I used my breadmaker to knead the dough.

      Delete
  12. Hi Christine, your bread look so light and fluffy. I wanna try making it tonight and keep overnight for tomorrow breakfast. May I know the best way to store freshly baked bread overnight?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Simply let it cool completely, then keep it in a sealed plastic bag or container. You might reheat the bread a bit in your oven if you like. It's just like fresh bread from oven.

      Delete
  13. Hi Christine!
    Thank you very much for your Pai Bao recipe. i tired it 2 days ago , its so yummy and amazing !my son love them so much. i want next time i will double your recipe, i just want to ask you if i double the recipe, can i use my bread maker for kneading? (my bread maker is haminton bleach 2bls)
    thank you very much!

    My Hong

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad that you loved this recipe.

      It's better to check your manual out how many flour your bread maker can handle.

      Delete
  14. Hello Christine
    thx for your blog...am in love with the tangzhong methodology you teached us...
    i was wondering, do u put honey only in this case (with the pumpkin) or is it better to put honey as well in the other receipes with tangzhong (like pai bao for exemple)
    and if yes, should we juste put the 40ml and deduce sthg?
    Thank for your answer (and ur patience)
    Nadine

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I feel honey goes really well with pumpkin. Not only this recipe, you can replace the sugar with honey for other sweet dough recipes as long as its taste goes with other ingredients and fillings.

      Delete
  15. Hi Christine, thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes. I would appreciate your help on another of your older post: Pai Bao (http://en.christinesrecipes.com/2010/11/pai-bao-hong-kong-sweet-buns.html). On the ingredients amongst others are: 1 egg yolk and 30g whisked egg. I am not sure if i am to add both the yolk and the whisked egg into the dry ingredients or am i to add only the yolk and leave the whisked egg for brushing the proofed bread, since you have stated "brush whisked egg" on bread before baking. Appreciate your kind clarification. Thanks in advance! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Gayle,
      Sorry for the confusion.
      For making the pai bao dough, add 1 egg yolk and 30g whisked egg. Then some extra whisked egg for brushing the proofed bread.

      Delete
  16. Hi Christine, I've tried the pumpkin loaf using my breadmaker. My breadmaker takes one and half hour to do the kneading+1st proofing. The mould was so...... sticky that I can't even mould it. Do you know where does it wrong ? I've attended a bread making class which the instructor taught us to do 1 proofing only. Can you kindly advise me is there any difference between 1 proofing and 2 proofing?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If the dough was kneaded well and generated enough gluten, passed the window-pane test (see the picture on this blog shown in the first picture), followed by properly proofing, it won't be too sticky at all.

      Did you test your dough before 1st round of proofing?

      Delete
  17. Hi Christine, thanks for your reply. I did not do the window-pane test. I just like the breadmaker do the job for one and half hour (kneading +1st proofing). Is it necessary to do 2 proofing? Thinking of letting the breadmaker do the kneading (half an hour), take the dough out and let it proof for 1 hour , then put in oven to bake. Can this be done?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not necessary. But the bread finished by 2 rounds of proofing is better than only 1 round, especially if you shape the dough after the 1st round.
      It helps the dough to relax the gluten inside.

      Delete
  18. Hi Christine, thanks for your lovely recipe. I've tried making the pai bao last week.
    I used a very old model of bread maker,thr kneading and rest stageswere 20 minutes only. I repeated this process for a few times but the dough was still very sticky and couldn't pass the test. I finally finished kneading by my hand mixer and my own hands.
    I have some questions, is there any problems if I over kneading the dough.
    2. What will happen if the temperature for proofing is too high.
    3. I rolled the dough too thin in the final shaping and the bread turned out very hard and flat.
    Please kindly reply and advise.
    DL



    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you find the dough hasn't passed the windowpane test after finishing one cycle of kneading in your bread machine, you might knead a few more minutes. That's enough.

      Dough can be over kneaded as a result that it becomes dense and tough. I'm afraid that your dough was over-kneaded so it's turned out very hard and flat.

      If the temperature of proofing is too high, the yeast will grow too fast and too many that will make your bread smell.

      Delete
  19. Hi Christine, thanks for the sharing. It looks really great. I have tried making your tang zhong wholemeal loaf and it was a great success. I would like to try this pumpkin loaf soon too. Just wondering if I can replace the pumpkin puree with other puree such as apple, banana or avocado?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sure, feel free to experiment with any kinds of puree you like. You might need to adjust the amount too.

      Delete
  20. Hi Christine, I just want to give credit to you and your recipes! I tried a few of them and was a great success! Thank you !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jennifer,
      Thanks for your love of my recipes. :)

      Delete
  21. Hi Christine, I use bread machine to knead the dough. However the dough is usually too sticky to roll into shapes. And tips on how to roll or shape a sticky dough????

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If the dough is kneaded enough, passed through window-pane test, and proofed properly, it won't be too sticky. It looks like mine in the picture shown above.
      Presume that all the ingredients were measured correctly, your dough after the first round of proofing would be fine for shaping. Might need to sprinkle a bit, not too much, flour to prevent from sticking to the surface of your work place.

      Delete
  22. Hi Christine

    I tried baking your sausage rolls (HK style) yesterday and it is so soft! I received so many compliments from friends and families for my sausage rolls. Just one question, I used to use your tangzhong recipe to make bread loaf (e.g. the wholemeal loaf recipe) and I use my kenwood breadmaker to complete the cycle. The result is good but I also find that there is not much difference btw tangzhong and non-tangzhong loaf if I complete the cycle using my bm. But this hand shaped sausage rolls really surprise me. Do u think tangzhong can achieve best result if to be hand shaped and bake in the oven? The tangzhong loaf that was completed by breadmaker really can't defeat the hand shaped sausage rolls. That's why I am puzzled. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your feedback. You've brought up quite a lot of issues concerning making bread. Just a quick reply here.
      Honestly, I found what tangzhong bread is so different is that it can be kept soft for more days than those without tangzhong.
      If you bake the proofed dough in a bread machine, all breads including those with tangzhong will be drier than those baked in oven as you can't control the baking temperature and time. But for using oven, you have full control.

      If you add some wholemeal flour, the gluten generated inside will be decreased. So that's why wholemeal loaf is not as soft as the sausage rolls.

      Delete
  23. Hi Christine,

    If I replace the pumpkin puree with corn kernel cream, will it still work out well ?

    Regards
    Daniel

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Daniel,

      Think that corn kernel cream will work as well. The consistency of corn kernel cream is quite different from pumpkin puree, so you have to experiment to get the right amount to use.

      Delete
    2. ok, will try it out soon, thanks.

      Delete
  24. Hi Christine,

    Thank you for another awesome recipe! I do not have a bread maker or a mixer, so everything is kneaded by hand. The dough is indeed very wet. I added more flour and used room temperature butter instead of melted butter. To my surprised the result is still soft and fluffy! This is indeed a great recipe to keep!

    Regards,
    Emily

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Emily,
      Good on you. Amazed that you manged to make this loaf by hand successfully.

      Delete
  25. Hi Christine
    Its really challenging to knead this dough by hand because its so sticky.But the resultant pumpkin loaf is well worth the effort.You are right about the honey too.It gives a special fragrance to the bread.My honey sunflower seeds toppings seems to complement this bread very well.Thanks for a wonderful recipe!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Tried it juz now. My dough turns out super wet. Can't even shape it. Knead for 30 mins in machine but still wet. Might be the pumpkin purée was too wet, hope it turns out ok. Baking in process now.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Hello!! Can i just put all the ingredients in the bread maker and let it mix and rise and bake in there??? Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sure, you can.
      The crust will be thicker and harder than those baked from oven if you don't mind.

      Delete
  28. Your recipe is it for 700gram bread using breadmake
    r

    ReplyDelete
  29. Hi Christine
    Thanks so much for your recipe. I let my bm do all the work from knead, proof to bake.
    My bread didnt achieve the soft fluffy texture like yours. It has a very chewy crust and the bread has texture mildly similar to honeycomb cake.
    May I know what is likely the reasons? I used a setting with two kneading cycles n 3 proofing cycles. It then bake at 136deg for an hour.
    Appreciate your advice!
    A novice baker who loves to eat fresh bread

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Two crucial steps to bake bread: kneading dough that passes the dough the windowpane test (see the left bottom picture in the first photo on this blog) and proper proofing that the dough doubled in size.
      Did you test your dough?

      Delete
  30. Hi Christine,
    Can I replace the 40gm honey with caster sugar? And for the milk, does it has to be warm? I intent to use purple sweet potatoes puree. Hope it turns out well too.
    I recently made matcha red bean buns using one of your recipe. I feel that my buns had a yeast smell. Do you know why is that so?

    Thanks for your help.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Yvette,
      Yes, you can replace honey with sugar. For the milk, it's at room temperature.
      Hope you'll be successful with the experiment.
      If your dough is proofed in a very hot place and the yeast grows too rapidly or too long, your buns will have strong yeast smell.

      Delete
  31. Hi Christine
    I have just tried out your recipe, the dough was super wet and I was unable to shape it by hand. After baking, the surface of the bread collapsed, may I know what is the reason? Can I add more flour to the recipe?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Alyssa,

      Yes, the tangzhong dough is quite wet, and more challenging to handle than those regular dough.

      You might sprinkle a bit flour to prevent from sticking to your hands when shaping.

      If your bread collapsed after baking, it could be under-kneaded or over-kneaded. Not sure which was your case as I didn't observe how you made the bread.


      Delete
  32. I've tried both your Hokkaido & pumpkin loaf with my KA. They turned out beautifully! Thank you for such yummy recipes!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kiddiegoat,

      Wonderful ! Glad that you liked them. :)

      Delete
  33. Hi, I, too failed to produce this loaf. I was using a stand mixer to knead and it took me too long, can't pass window pane test until I have to add extra butter & flour. Finally I got window pane but the dough was still too sticky & hard to manage. I wonder if it was because the recipe is meant for bread maker only? Or Due to too much pumpkin?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry to hear about your experience.
      It could be the pumpkin puree was too wet, or the water absorption of the flour you used was very different from mine.

      You took a good move and adjusted the consistency of the dough as you went. Kneading tangzhong dough is quite challenging with a stand mixer. You're so right. I found a bread machine performs so much better in kneading tangzhong dough.

      Delete
  34. Hi Christine,
    Thanks for sharing your recipe. I've managed to make this pumpkin loaf after my 3rd attempts. My first and second attempts failed terribly and I told myself to give up making this loaf. But somehow I wanted to give it a final try yesterday and it went well. I think I still need a few more attempts in order to improve my skill in making this loaf.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Tiong,

      You're marvelous. Congrats on your success !

      Delete
  35. Hello Christine

    I found the breads (no matter in loaf or bun form) that I've baked have really hard crust (skin). They're different from those breads we bought from the bakery where the skin is soft and pillowy like the inside. Any advice?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This pumpkin loaf should be very soft.
      If the crust is hard, it's likely that the oven temperature is too high or the dough has been proofed properly.

      Delete
  36. Hi Christine, may I know about how long I need to knead this dough in a breadmaker before it can pass the pane window test?

    What kind of milk powder should I use? And if I don't have it, can I skip the milk powder?

    Thank you :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Thitirat,

      The kneading time is already programmed by the breadmaker, normally from 20 mins to 30 mins, different from brand to brand. This dough will be ready after finishing the kneading cycle.

      The milk powder is to increase the aroma of the bread. Simply use any full cream milk powder. If you don't have any at hand, just skip it then.

      Delete
  37. Thanks Christine for your prompt reply :)

    ReplyDelete
  38. Hi Christine, may I know what bread machine you are using? Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've got two bread machines. One is Sunbeam, the other Lumina from Aldi. Both works fine for me.

      Delete
  39. Hi Christine, I have tried making this loaf twice. First I use mixer & didnt pass the test. Then, I bought a breadmaker & still didnt get the windowpane result. I follow your recipe to the T except I am using Japanese bread flour. Does it make any difference ? It does double the size after the first proofing & I am baking it now. Tks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As pumpkin puree is added, it's quite hard to get this dough pass the window pane test. Check the protein content of your Japanese bread flour on the packaging, see if it's around 12.5% to 13.5%.
      No worries though. If you used high protein flour, the dough was kneaded enough and proofed properly, your loaf would be soft too.

      Delete
  40. Hi Christine, this looks lovely and I'm very excited to bake the loaf-version for my dad who loves pumpkin with my newly-purchased BM250.
    Could you help me with a couple of questions?
    1. I'm not familiar with this breadmaker yet. If I'd like to let the machine to all the work, from start to finish, which setting should I use?
    2. If I am referring to a recipe that doesn't use the tangzhong method, how can I incorporate it? Do I have to reduce the amount of the flour with the same amount of flour that I use to prepare the tangzhong? Same goes for the water?
    Much appreciate your advice!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi there,
      I haven't used your bread machine model. So can't tell which button you should press. Some brands called "bake", some called "bread". Please refer to your user manual. It should explain everything you need to know.

      If you're on the new start trying baking bread. I highly recommend you follow tangzhong bread recipes and simply follow the instructions and add all the ingredients into the machine. It'll save you from errors. That's easy.

      Delete
  41. Hi, you've got very good recipes that i'd like to try in the future. Well done for all your efforts. I had tried pumpkin bread n they turned out well. I shaped them into buns and filled them with Spanish Chorizos. My hub loved very much. I dion'T hv bread machine so hand kneading is the only way. The dought was sticky so i added more flour. Next time i'll try this recipe without adding more flour. Thank you for your generousity to share.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good on you! You kneaded the tangzhong dough by hand. It's quite challenging.
      I can imagine how good the taste of the pumpkin bread with chorizos. Clever combination.

      Delete
  42. Hai, Christine, instead of Pumpkin, can I replace with sweet potatoes or potatoes?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Cindy,
      I haven't experimented with sweet potato. But it sounds a good idea. Please adjust the amount of the wet and dry ingredients accordingly.
      Happy baking !

      Delete
  43. Hi Christine,
    I using 1/2 portion of this recipe to bake 8 pcs sweet potatoes bun instead of pumpkin. It’s taste good and fluffy. I slightly add milk to 60ml instead of 55ml. I also using soften butter instead of melted butter. Thank you so much for your recipe!

    ReplyDelete
  44. Hi, this recipe requires milk and milk powder, I only have milk, can I add more milk instead? How do i substitute it? Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  45. Hi Ast,
    The milk powder is to enhance the fragrance. If you don't have any, just skip it.

    ReplyDelete