Oyster ‘banh Mi’ Sando & Japanese Milk Bread (Shokupan)

Food and recipe styling Martin Bosley / Photography Amber-Jayne Bain

	PICKLED VEGETABLES
	2 carrots, peeled
	1 daikon radish, peeled
	2 cloves garlic, peeled
	2 tablespoons sugar
	2 cups white vinegar
	FOR THE SANDWICHES
	vegetable oil, for frying
	24 oysters
	1 cup flour
	1 egg, beaten
	1 cup panko breadcrumbs
	¼ cup mayonnaise
	¼ cup sriracha
	6 shokupan rolls or 12 slices bread (see recipe)
	cucumber, peeled into thin strips
	¼ cup tonkatsu sauce
	coriander, mint and basil leaves, picked, mixed together
	JAPANESE MILK BREAD (SHOKUPAN) makes 1 loaf or 6 rolls / prep 20 mins plus 1½ hrs rising plus 1 hr cooling / cook 25 mins (for rolls) , 50 mins (for a loaf)
	TANGZHONG STARTER
	45g flour
	120ml milk
	120ml water
	DOUGH
	120ml milk, plus a little extra
	2 teaspoons dried yeast
	60g unsalted butter, softened
	330g flour
	60g sugar
	a healthy pinch of salt

1.	PICKLED VEGETABLES
2.	Cut the carrots and daikon into thin strips using a vegetable peeler. Put the carrots into a bowl.
3.	Rinse the daikon strips under cold running water for several minutes.
4.	Add to the carrots and tuck in the garlic cloves.
5.	Bring the sugar and vinegar to a simmer and when the sugar has dissolved pour the mixture over the vegetables and leave to cool for an hour.
6.	This can be made several days ahead.
7.	SANDWICHES
8.	Put the vegetable oil into a medium- sized saucepan or benchtop kitchen fryer, using enough oil to fill to a depth of at least 6cm. Heat the oil to 180 ̊C.
9.	Drain the oysters and pat them dry on absorbent kitchen paper.
10.	Dredge each oyster lightly in flour, then in beaten egg.
11.	Lift the oysters into a bowl filled with the panko crumbs, making sure the oysters are evenly coated with crumbs.
12.	Deep fry the oysters in small batches until lightly browned and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.
13.	Mix the mayonnaise and sriracha together.
14.	If using bread rolls, slice them in half.
15.	Spread the mayonnaise onto the bread, then layer on the cucumber strips, pickled vegetables and fried oysters.
16.	Drizzle the tonkatsu sauce over the oysters and top with the herbs.
17.	JAPANESE MILK BREAD (SHOKUPAN)
18.	First make the starter by whisking the flour, milk, and water together in a saucepan until smooth.
19.	Bring to a simmer and cook until it has thickened, about 3-4 minutes.
20.	Pour into a bowl and leave to cool. This makes more starter than you need.
21.	For the dough, warm the milk and mix in the yeast. Leave for about 5 minutes to dissolve.
22.	Put ½ cup of the starter, the butter, flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric benchtop mixer fitted with a dough hook and add the yeast mixture.
23.	Knead for 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and a little bit sticky. Cover and leave to rise for an hour.
24.	Turn the dough onto a lightly oiled bench and knead for a few seconds.
25.	To make a loaf, use a scraper or knife to cut the dough in half and form each half into a ball.
26.	Butter a large loaf tin and place the balls smooth-side up in the tin.
27.	Leave to rise for 30 minutes, brush the tops with a little extra milk and bake at 180 ̊C for 50 minutes.
28.	Remove from the oven and leave the bread to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
29.	Cool for at least an hour to let the crust soften. Cut it too soon and the air bubbles will collapse and the bread will sink.
30.	To make rolls, divide the dough into 70g pieces, shape into balls and put them, almost touching, on trays lined with non-stick baking paper.
31.	They don’t need to prove again before baking. Bake at 220 ̊C for 20-25 minutes.

Martin Bosley

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