I love mum hacks where we get food prepared quickly! The other day,…
Brown Sugar Raisin Bread
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.
“Cottony” soft brown sugar raisin bread that are slightly denser in texture. These buns have a sweeter flavor from the Yudane, and remain soft and moist, even after 3 days!
How Different Is This Brown Sugar Raisin Bread?
This bread recipe uses the Yudane method, which originated from Japan, can help make the bread stay soft and fluffy for days.
To make the Yudane, you will just need to mix bread flour and hot boiling water together, the day / night before you make the bread. The heated starch will gelatinise and allow the dough to absorb and hold more liquid, thus the softer and moist bread. It also gives an unique “sweeter” flavor to the baked bread.
How To Make The Yudane?
It’s actually very simple to make the Yudane!
Unlike the Tang Zhong method, which needs boiling over the stove, for Yudane, you will just need to pour in hot boiling water to the flour and mix it well together.
Do take note that the hot water has to be at least 90C, so I would recommend using water that has just being boiled.
Once the Yudane is mixed well together, wrap it up in cling wrap and store in fridge overnight. It can appear slightly dry, but should be able to come together in a dough.
What Ingredients Are Needed For This Brown Sugar Raisin Bread?
We just need 8 simple ingredients:
- Bread Flour
- Hot Boiling Water: Use the water just after boiling it.
- Whole Milk
- Unsalted Butter
- Brown Sugar – I’m using brown sugar from Japan, which states 黑糖 on the package. I find it gives a deeper flavor to the bread, compared to the usual brown sugar we get from supermarkets. You can also use the usual brown sugar or just caster sugar for this recipe.
- Instant Yeast
- Salt
- Raisins
I used some milk to brush the top of the bread dough and sprinkled with some oats. The oats will stick to the dough surface better this way. Or, you can simply just leave the top empty without oats or glaze.
>> MORE YUMMY BREAD RECIPES:
- Passion Fruit Cranberry Loaf Bread
- Kitty Bread Buns
- Pandan Killer Toast
- 5 Stars Soft White Bread
- Wu Pao Chun Champion Toast
How Do These Brown Sugar Raisin Bread Taste Like?
I LOVE IT!
The buns are soft and moist! While they are not super fluffy, they are very “cottony” and slightly dense in texture.
You will also find that these buns keep really well. On Day 3, the buns were still soft and not dry at all! So this simple step of mixing bread flour with boiling water, 1 day in advance, really do improve the texture of homemade bread.
I also enjoyed the subtle sweetness from the brown sugar and raisins in the bread. The natural sweetness of the bread dough is also enhanced by the Yudane, which allows the flavor of the wheat flour to better develop.
How Can I Store The Bread?
You can simply store these brown sugar raisin bread in airtight container in normal room temperature. The buns should keep well up to 5 days, however as it is quite moist, I would recommend to eat it within 3-4 days.

Brown Sugar Raisin Bread
- Prep Time: 165 Mins
- Cook Time: 20 Mins
- Total Time: 3 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 8"x8" Baking Pan (12 Buns) 1x
Description
“Cottony” soft brown sugar raisin buns that are slightly denser in texture.
These buns have a sweeter flavor from the Yudane, and remain soft and moist, even after 3 days!
Ingredients
Yudane
- 50g Bread Flour
- 40g Hot, Boiling Water
Bread Dough
- 150g Whole Milk, Chilled
- 15g Japanese Brown Sugar
- 3g Instant Dry Yeast
- 10g Unsalted Butter, Chilled
- 200g Bread Flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 65g Raisins
Topping
- Milk, for brushing
- Oats
Instructions
Yudane
- Make Yudane the day or night before: Place bread flour in a bowl. Add the hot boiling water into bowl and mix well. Cling wrap dough and place in fridge overnight.
Bread Dough
- Pour the room temperature milk into inner bread pan of bread machine or mixing bowl.
- Add sugar, butter, yeast. Tear Yudane into pieces and add it in, followed by bread flour, salt.
- Turn on bread machine to dough kneading mode, or mix the dough with your mixer.
- Add in raisin after kneading dough for about 5 mins.
- When dough is mixed to window pane stage, roll the dough into a round ball and let proof for about 1 hour. Place a piece of cling wrap or clean damp cloth over the dough to prevent drying.
- Punch dough down and divide into 12 portions with a scraper. Roll them into round balls of dough.
- Place dough into lined or greased 8″x8″ baking tray. Place cling wrap or cloth over the tray. Proof 2nd time for about 1 hour.
- Just before proofing ends, preheat oven to 180C. Brush the top of each bread dough with milk and sprinkle with oats. Bake in preheated oven at 180C for about 20-25 mins.
Equipment

Notes
Recipe adapted with thanks from Chopstick Chronicles
- Category: Bread
- Method: Bake
Keywords: Bread
Leave a Reply