Divine Pav Bun

If you want soft, buttery melt in your mouth buns for your pav baji or vada pav then this is the recipe for you. The original idea came from here. There is a good step by step presentation in her site. I made some changes to the recipe to make it easier for me. Try it and you will not be disappointed.



Buns with Pav Baji


Ingredients:
- 3 cups bread flour plus about 1/4 cup for dusting and kneading
- 2 1/4 tsp active yeast - I used the bread machine yeast. See below for an explanation of the various yeast available in the market.
- 1 1/4 cup lukewarm milk
- 1 tbsp margarine or butter
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp oil

Method:

1. In a bowl add the bread flour, salt, sugar butter and yeast. Now slowly add the milk and start mixing it. The dough should be sticky. If it is not mixed well add up to 1/4 cup lukewarm water to it.
2. Once all the ingredients are mixed well sprinkle some flour and dump the dough and start kneading. You will need to knead it at least for 15 minutes. If the dough gets sticky then keep dusting it with more flour.
3. Now in a bowl (make sure the bowl is at least double the size of the dough) add a teaspoon of oil and rub it so that the bowl is well coated. Now place the dough in the bowl, cover it and place it in a warm place.
4. In about 2 hours your dough should have raised and would be double the size.
5. Now remove the dough and punch it down. Separate the dough into 12 equal size balls. Place it in a cookie sheet leaving about 2 inch space in between each ball.
6. Cover this with a wet paper towel and let it rise again. This should take about 30- 45 minutes. Meanwhile start pre-heating the oven at 350F.
7. Remove the paper towel and place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake it for 25-30 minutes. You will see the top turning a golden brown.
8. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 10-15 minutes. You should be able to remove it from the sheet without it sticking to the bottom.

There you have the softest and melt in your mouth buns.

Notes: A little explanation about various yeast if you are a first time baker can be found here. I have a jar of bread machine yeast with me and when a recipe calls for a packet of active yeast I just use 2 1/4 teaspoon of the bread machine yeast. The only difference is I do not proof the yeast. Typically to proof active dry yeast you sprinkle the yeast in warm water and a pinch of salt. Let it stand for 10-15 minutes. If the liquid becomes bubbly and creamy then you know your yeast is alive else it is best you don't use it.

Kneading bread - This is also an important step in bread making. Here is a nice video that shows how to knead a bread.

This one goes to the Bake-off event at Versatile Kitchen