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Melon Pan Recipe

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3.9 from 9 reviews

Melon Pan is a classic Japanese sweet bread featuring a soft, fluffy bread dough covered with a thin, crisp biscuit dough that creates a signature sugary crust. This recipe guides you through making both doughs from scratch, including tips on kneading, proofing, shaping, scoring, and baking to achieve the perfect melt-in-your-mouth texture with a delicate golden crust.

Ingredients

Bread Dough

  • 225 g bread flour (1¾ cups + 2 Tbsp; plus more for dusting)
  • 25 g cake flour (3½ Tbsp)
  • 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
  • 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1¼ tsp instant yeast
  • 1 large egg (50 g, beaten)
  • 50 ml whole milk (3 Tbsp + 1 tsp; at 86ºF/30ºC)
  • 50 ml water (3 Tbsp + 1 tsp; at 86ºF/30ºC)
  • 35 g unsalted butter (2½ Tbsp; cubed; at room temperature)

Biscuit Dough

  • 60 g unsalted butter (¼ cup or 4 Tbsp; cubed; at room temperature)
  • 100 g granulated sugar (½ cup)
  • 1 large egg (50 g, beaten; added slowly)
  • 200 g cake flour (1⅔ cups)
  • ½ tsp baking powder

Topping & Garnish

  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar (for coating)

Instructions

  1. Prepare Ingredients: Weigh all your ingredients accurately using a kitchen scale to ensure the best results. Flour should be measured by spooning and leveling if no scale is available.
  2. Make Bread Dough: In a large bowl combine bread flour, cake flour, kosher salt, and sugar. Whisk in instant yeast. Add beaten egg, whole milk, and water at about 86ºF (30ºC); mix until forming a loose, sticky dough ball.
  3. Knead Bread Dough: Transfer dough to floured surface. Knead for 5 minutes by folding, rotating, and pressing with palms until elastic. Add cubed butter gradually and incorporate fully, continuing to knead for about 10 minutes with slam-and-fold technique until dough is silky and passes the windowpane test.
  4. Bulk Fermentation: Shape dough into a ball, place seam side down in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and proof in a warm place (about 100ºF/38ºC) until doubled in size, approximately 1–2 hours.
  5. Make Biscuit Dough: In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, blend softened butter and sugar until smooth. Slowly add beaten egg in small increments mixing well after each addition. Sift cake flour and baking powder into the mixture and blend until just combined. Form into a ball, divide into 10 equal portions (~40–41 g each), roll into balls, and chill in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
  6. Divide and Pre-Shape Bread Dough: Punch down risen bread dough, dust hands with flour, fold edges in thirds and shape into a ball. Cut into 10 equal pieces (~46–47 g each). Shape each piece into a smooth ball and rest on lined baking sheet, covered with plastic wrap, at room temperature for 15 minutes.
  7. Shape Melon Pan: Flatten each biscuit dough ball into a 4-inch flat circle. Flatten a bread dough ball and fold sides in thirds to form a smooth ball. Place bread dough ball seam side up on biscuit dough circle, flip so biscuit dough is on top, and gently stretch biscuit dough around bread, leaving the base uncovered.
  8. Add Sugar Topping and Score: Coat the biscuit dough top generously with granulated sugar. Using a knife or dough scraper, score a crisscross pattern about ⅛ inch deep (three horizontal and three vertical lines) to create the characteristic melon pan crust.
  9. Final Proof: Place assembled melon pan on baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying, and let proof in a warm place (100ºF/38ºC) until 1½ times larger, about 50 minutes.
  10. Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and position the oven rack in the middle.
  11. Bake: Remove plastic wrap and bake melon pan for 13–15 minutes until the biscuit crust becomes light golden brown. Rotate halfway through baking if necessary to brown evenly. Avoid overbaking to keep bread moist.
  12. Cool and Serve: Transfer baked melon pan to wire rack and cool for 5 minutes before enjoying warm or at room temperature.
  13. Storage: Once cooled completely, wrap each melon pan individually in plastic wrap and store in airtight container in refrigerator up to 3 days, or freeze up to 1 month. Reheat by defrosting and warming in a 350ºF (180ºC) oven until crispy.

Notes

  • Use whole milk for best texture and flavor; avoid reduced-fat milk.
  • If using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, activate the yeast in warm water before mixing.
  • Lightly dust hands and surface with bread flour to prevent sticking, but avoid adding too much flour to keep dough soft.
  • The slam-and-fold kneading technique helps develop gluten effectively.
  • The windowpane test is a crucial check to ensure dough elasticity and gluten development.
  • Keep the biscuit dough chilled before shaping for easier handling.
  • Do not cover the bottom of the bread ball with biscuit dough to ensure proper expansion and crust texture.
  • Avoid overbaking to prevent dry melon pan crust.
  • Final proofing can be done in a warm steamy environment if no proof setting is available.
  • Adjust proof time according to ambient temperature.

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