Custard buns are soft milk bread filled with a creamy custard filling in the centers. They are delightful soft buns that make perfect snacks or breakfasts.
It may seem to you that I am slathering the blog with bread recipes lately, and I have no argument with that. From last week’s recipe, the Ube bread rolls, we now have these custard buns that filled our house once more with the wonderful aroma of fresh bread baking in the oven.
Custard Buns
These buns are soft and slightly sweet, and they are actually the same buns from the milk bread recipe that I posted weeks back.
I find the recipe so versatile and easy to make that I have been experimenting with incorporating delicious elements to it. This time, the addition of custard filling makes them even more special.
The custard filling blends beautifully with the bread each time you bite. It adds sweetness to the bread. I always grab one of this buns for a quick fill me up during the day, and of course, they are perfect with a mug of your hot drink for breakfast.
The Ingredients
Custard Buns: The Process
Proof the Yeast
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast, warm water and about 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Let this sit until foamy, about 5-7 minutes.
Make the Dough
- Add the milk, cream, the remaining sugar, egg and salt. Stir everything with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer.
- Add 3 cups of flour, one cup at a time to the bowl, beating at low speed after each addition. Then, add the remaining 1 cup of flour and beat, starting at low speed then speeding up gradually as the flour becomes incorporated.
Kneading the Dough
- Knead the dough using the mixer for 5-8 minutes until it starts to gather in the center of the bowl. Increase the speed to high and continue to beat for 5-7 minutes more, gradually sprinkling about 3-5 tbsp. of flour to release the dough from the bottom of the bowl.
- The dough is ready when it starts to slap the sides of the bowl. It should now be smooth and elastic.
First Rise
- Shape the kneaded dough into a ball. Place it in a bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let this rise for 1 ½ hours, or until doubled in bulk.
- Meanwhile, make the custard filling.
Shape and Fill the Dough
- Gently deflate the risen dough. Shape it into a log and cut it into 16 equal potions.
- To fill them, flatten a portion into a disc. Spoon about a tablespoon or two of the custard. Fold the edges of the dough towards the center to cover the filling.
- Twist the ends of the dough to seal it close. The shape will be a smooth ball. Arrange the portions on a 9x 13 inch baking pan that is lined with parchment paper. Make sure the buns are spaced evenly.
- Transfer the remaining custard on a piping bag with a piping tip.
Second Rise and Piping the Custard
- Cover the buns loosely with a towel once more. Let it rise for 40 minutes to 1 hour. The buns should now be touching each other.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Pipe some spiral on the surface of the buns.
Bake
Bake the buns at 350 F for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly golden on top. Brush the tops with melted butter. Serve warm.
How to Make the Custard Filling?
- Stir together milk, flour and sugar in a medium saucepan until no lumps remain. Cook this over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbles stars to emerge on the sides. Turn off heat.
- Scoop out about 1/4 cup of the heated milk and gradually pour it over the yolks in a steady stream while beating the yolks constantly. Pour this mixture back to the saucepan.
- Continue to cook the mixture in the saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Once the mixture is thick like a paste. Turn off heat. Stir in butter and vanilla until incorporated. Allow the custard to cool completely.
Frequently Asked Questions
I do not recommend cutting this recipe in half. If this batch is too much for you, you can freeze one half of the dough after the first rise. In turn, you can cut the custard recipe in half.
Yes. You can freeze the dough after the first rise. Gentle deflate it and wrap it well in plastic film. Then in foil. Freeze for up to 2 weeks.
Thaw frozen dough in the fridge. Shape it as instructed in the recipe, then allow the assembled buns to do its second rise as usual.
Additional Notes
- The dough will start off as a sticky and shaggy mass. After about 8 minutes of kneading, the dough should still feel a little bit tacky but it is starting to gather in the center of the bowl.
- Gradually increased the speed to high and knead for 5-7 minutes more. Sprinkling some flour gradually will help the dough to be released form the bottom of the bowl.
- You are literally watch out for that slapping sounds the dough will make against the bowl. This is a sign that your dough is ready.
- Use a light colored pan to bake the buns. Darker pans can make the bottom of the buns brown too quickly.
I hope you enjoy these as much as I did. And if you think you still don’t have enough bread in your life, or if you enjoy baking bread, stay tuned for I have more bread lined up here in the blog for the coming weeks.
More Bread Recipes
- 20 Everyday Bread Recipes
- Whole Wheat Potato Dinner Rolls
- Milk Bread
- Pandesal
- How to Make Ensaymada
- Brioche Braid
- Yema Rolls
Custard Buns
Ingredients
FOR THE MILK BREAD
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- ¼ cup warm water 105-115 F
- 2/3 cup whipping cream
- 2/3 cup warm milk
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 and 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour plus up to 5 tbsp extra
FOR THE CUSTARD FILLING
- 4 egg yolks lightly beaten
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 ¼ cup milk
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For Brushing on the Baked Buns
- 2 tbsp melted butter
Instructions
MAKE THE MILK BREAD
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm water, yeast and about 1 tsp of the sugar. Let this sit for about 5 minutes, or until foamy.
- Add the warm milk, cream, the remaining sugar, egg, and salt. Stir this until the ingredients are incorporated. Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer.
- Add 3 cups of flour, one cup at a time, beating at low speed to incorporate the flour after each addition. Add the remaining cup of flour, and starting on slow speed, beat the mixture until the flour is moistened. Gradually increase the mixer speed, and beat for 5-8 minutes, until the dough starts to gather in the center of the bowl.
- Beat for 5-7 minutes more on high speed, until the dough starts to slap the sides of the mixer with actual slapping sounds. You can sprinkle up to 3-5 tbsp. of flour gradually to help the dough release from the bottom of the bowl. The dough should now be elastic and smooth.
- Shape the dough into a ball. Place it in a bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let this rise for 1 ½ hours, or until doubled in bulk. Meanwhile, make the custard filling.
- Gently deflate the dough. Shape it into a log and cut unto 16 equal portions. Flatten each portion into a flat circle using your palms. Spoon about 1-2 tablespoon of custard in the center. Fold the edges of the dough over the filling. Twist the seams to seal, shaping the dough into a smooth ball.
- Transfer the remaining custard into a piping bag fitted with a straight piping tip. Arrange the filled dough into a light 9x13 inch baking pan that is lined with parchment paper, spacing them evenly. Cover the dough with a clean towel and let it rise for 40 minutes to 1 hour, or until the buns are now touching and are puffy.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Pipe the remaining custard on the surface of the risen buns, drawing a spiral design (see photos in the post). Bake the custard buns at 350 F for 25-30 minutes, it until the tops are lightly golden. Brush with melted butter. Enjoy warm.
CUSTARD FILLING
- In a medium saucepan, stir together flour, sugar and milk until lump-free. Cook this over medium heat, sitting constantly, until it begins to bubble on the sides. Turn off heat.
- Scoop out about 1/4 cup of the heated milk mixture. Pour this in a steady stream over the egg yolks while beating the yolks constantly. Pour back the yolk-milk mixture to the sauce pan. Turn the heat to medium and continue to cook the mixture, stirring constantly until it starts to thicken. Once the custard is thick like a paste, turn off heat, Stir in vanilla extract and butter. Allow this to cool completely.
Notes
- Watch the stand mixer during kneading at high speed as it may move and fall off the counter.
- Make sure to stir the custard constantly when the heat is on to prevent the mixture from sticking at the bottom.
- Thicken the custard to the point that it s not pourable anymore. It needs to to be thick enough to stay in place when filling the dough. Additionally, it is easier to pipe the custard if it has a thick consistency.
- Use a light colored pan to bake the buns. darker buns can brown the bottom of the bread too quickly.
- To store the baked buns, place them in a container with tight lid at room temperature for up to 3 days. Refrigerate for longer storage. If needed, reheat them in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
Carol O'D says
made first batch in shallow baking pan 2nd batch in deeper pan, the buns on browned on the bottoms, used egg wash both batches, any ideas why tops did not brown?
sanna says
Hello Carol! I am thinking they need more time either kneading and/ or rising. 🙂
Sarah says
these were a hit with my family and taste just like what I remember the store bought ones being like. I used half all purpose and half bread flour. I did find the dough to be quite wet even with 4 cups of flour so I ended up adding quite a bit of extra flour until the dough balled up, probably an extra 4-5 tablespoons. I can’t wait to make a second batch with the leftover dough in the freezer!
sanna says
I am so glad you liked this Sarah! Thanks for the feedback!
S.N says
Hello there,
Thank you for the recipe!!! The buns turn out amazing … love the recipe so much!! Just one quick question about the remain dough, what should i do with them after in fridge if i want to make the same buns ?
Thank youu
sanna says
Hi! I am glad you loved it! For the remaining dough, just take it out the fridge, shape and fill them and let them rise again for an hour or so, then bake:)
Raylene says
Can u make the dough and fill it ahead of time (like night before) and just bake on the day? Would they need to be at room temp?
Can’t wait to try
sanna says
You can shape and fill the dough, store them all laid out in your pan in the fridge. Then allow to rise again before baking the next day. Enjoy!
Joanna Lim says
This looks amazing! I want to try making it soon. Just want to ask… can you prep custard ahead of time and store it in the fridge? If yes, how long does it last? Thank you
sanna says
Hi Joana! You can prep the custarda day ahead amd just store it in the fridge.When you are ready to use it, allow it to stand at room temperature first 🙂
Joanna Lim says
Made the custard ahead and used another milk roll recipe and it was really good! 🙂 Thanks for sharing your recipe with us!
Elizabeth Huang says
Made these last night because we are missing our visits to our favorite Asian bakery in San Francisco. These were exactly the flavor and texture I was hoping for! So easy to make and they are delicious. My husband loved them, too!
sanna says
I am so happy you loved them, Elizabeth!
Mary Richardson says
Thank you for this lovely looking recipe. I would love to try it but I would
End up eating them all by myself. I will have to wait for this terrifying time to
Be beyond us so that I would be able to share. A lot of ladies from Newfoundland
Make these so I had to google for a recipe. This looks awesome.
sanna says
I hope you make them soon, Mary! I hope you love them 🙂
Lori Anderson says
Thank you so much for this recipe! They came out as good as the bakery I usually get them from in Atlanta. I won’t put custard on the outside next time (mine didn’t look pretty like yours ) but I followed the recipe exactly and they were wonderful! I will definitely make them again!
sanna says
Thank you so much! I am glad you loved them:) and trust me, my bread did not look as good on the first tries too 🙂
Nani says
Does heavy whipping cream work ion this recipe of heavy cream is not available?
sanna says
Hello Nani! Yes, it will. I think heavy cream will be the same as heavy whipping cream. Good lUck and I hope you love them!
Ngoc says
I’m so glad I found your blog! This recipe looks lovely and I cannot wait time try this! My nephew loves custard buns so I cannot wait to try this! For the bread, can I use bread flour instead of all purpose flour? Thank you!
sanna says
Hello there, Ngoc! Yes you can use bread flour 🙂
Alyssa Rodriguez says
Is it possible to make the buns first and then when you set them for the second rise leave them in the fringe over night and bake them in the morning ?
sanna says
Yes Alyssa. Leave them in the fridge after you assemble them.Cover them with plastic wrap. You might have to let them rise the next morning until they are doubled in size.:)
Rachel says
Made these for my mom’s 66th (erm, Sweet Sixteen) birthday. Used my own hokkaido milk bread recipe, and your custard and baking instructions. Tasted just like my childhood!!! Thank you….
sanna says
Aaaw Happy birthday to your Mom! I am glad you liked the custard! Thank you so much!
Susan says
I have these in the oven now and I can’t wait to try them! They smell so good! They were so easy to prepare and they are turning out beautifully! My mom and I always grab these from the store when we go shopping together so I thought I’d try making them for a change. Glad I gave them a go! Thank you for the recipe!
sanna says
Hi Susan! I hope you loved them 🙂
Emma says
followed your instructions exactly but my dough never came together, it remained way too liquid and sticky. I added almost a cup more of flour plus some corn starch and nothing helped. Even after letting it rise it was too sticky and I ended up having to throw out the whole batch.
sanna says
Hello Emma! I am sorry to hear that you had trouble with this. This dough was tested though and used in most of the recipes. I will try and verify one more to check the issues you encountered.
Hannah says
is there a way to make these gluten free?
sanna says
Hello Hannah! Unfortunately, I have not tried baking gluten-free 🙁
Villy says
Hi the buns look beautiful! Did you use top and bottom heat in the oven to bake this? Or just bottom heat? I want to try making coconut custard buns (similar to this recipe but with desiccated coconut in the custard) and I’m scared that the custard and dried coconut on top will become crispy (they need to be soft!) or even get burnt while the bread is browning.
Thanks for your help!
sanna says
Hello Villy! I used top and bottom heat. I have a similar recipe for coconut buns. I sprinkled the coconut flakes after baking so I do not run into problems of burning. However, I put the coconut cream on top prior to baking and it did not burn at all. I hope that helps. Happy baking!