Shokupan meets Lievito Madre: New impulses for bakeries
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Shokupan offers versatile enjoyment: plain, toasted, or as a base for sweet and savory sandwich creations. Combined with innovative sourdough solutions, this Japanese milk bread becomes a source of inspiration for artisan and industrial bakeries seeking to create new bread experiences with an international profile.
Shokupan impresses with its exceptionally soft, almost woolly crumb, a delicate, lightly caramelized crust, and a mild, subtly sweet flavor. This characteristic fluffiness is due to the milk, butter, and sugar, but above all to special production methods such as Tangzhong or Yudane. In these processes, the flour and water are heated beforehand, causing the starch to gelatinize and allowing it to absorb more liquid. The result is a moist bread with excellent staying power – ideal for toasting, but also a delight on its own.
Historically, shokupan is a product of cultural exchange. Although bread arrived in Japan via Portuguese traders as early as the 16th century, this type of milk bread only experienced its breakthrough after World War II. During times of rice shortages, wheat bread became an important staple food and was consistently adapted to Japanese tastes over decades: milder, softer, and with a finer texture.
For modern interpretations of Shokupan, the combination of traditional Japanese production methods with European fermentation expertise opens up new perspectives.
Lievieto Madre Pane , part of the Mondo Livieto Madre product range, which emerged from the joint venture founded in 2021 between STAMAG 's parent company IREKS and the Merano mill , provides an ideal basis for this.
It is made exclusively from wheat flour and water and nurtured under the careful supervision of specially trained sourdough starters. Time, gentle handling, and careful drying ensure that the yeasts and lactic acid bacteria develop optimally, allowing the sourdough to later reach its full potential.
Lievito Madre Pane is a balanced blend of Lievito Madre, select durum wheat flour, and other carefully chosen ingredients. It gives doughs exceptional suppleness, promotes even and strong oven spring, and results in a tender, airy crumb and a mildly complex aroma. These qualities harmonize perfectly with the texture-focused nature of Shokupan, adding extra depth to this trendy pastry – without compromising its characteristic lightness.
