This vegan red bean loaf is a soft and fluffy Japanese milk bread swirled with sweet red bean paste. Egg-free and dairy-free!

What is Red Bean Milk Bread?

This red bean milk bread combines two of my favorite breads – Japanese whole wheat milk bread and anpan (red bean buns). Sweet red bean paste is swirled into soft and fluffy (dairy-free!) milk bread for the most delicious homemade bread. I have a few other milk bread recipes on my blog, but this one might be my favorite. Toast a slice or two and spread on some (vegan) butter or peanut butter, and you have the perfect breakfast!

Key Ingredients

Red Bean Paste ⟶ A sweet paste made from adzuki beans and sugar. You can use the smooth type (koshi-an こしあん) or chunky type (tsubu-an 粒あん) if you don’t mind a few pieces of beans throughout the bread. See this post for how to make your own red bean paste.
Bread Flour ⟶ Bread flour has a higher protein content than all purpose flour. More protein = more gluten development which makes the bread more chewy and fluffy.
Whole Wheat Flour + Vital Wheat Gluten ⟶ I like to use about half whole wheat flour for some whole grains, but this can make the bread slightly more dense. Adding a little bit of vital wheat gluten will improve the texture of whole grain breads. But if whole wheat flour isn’t your thing, feel free to replace it with more bread flour.
Instant Yeast ⟶ I prefer instant yeast over active dry yeast since it doesn’t require activating beforehand. Just add it with the dry ingredients – easy! You can buy a big pack of yeast and store it in the freezer for years – much more economical than those one-use packets if you plan on doing more bread making.
Soy Milk ⟶ I make all my milk breads with soy milk since the higher protein and fat content contribute to a soft, subtly sweet bread. For a soy-free option, you can try oat milk or coconut milk for a rich, coconut-scented loaf.
Sugar + Salt ⟶ For flavor and controlling yeast activity. The yeast feeds on the sugar, while the salt inhibits yeast activity, slowing down fermentation so there is more time for flavor to develop.
Vegan Butter ⟶ A little bit of vegan butter (added after some initial kneading) makes the bread more soft and rich.

Tips for Success

Blot red bean paste (optional) ⟶ Your red bean paste should be moist from all the sugar but not watery. If it’s watery (more likely for homemade red bean paste), use a paper towel to blot out some of the liquid. If the red bean paste is too wet, it will make your bread dough too moist and difficult to shape.

Use the windowpane test ⟶ Take a small section of the dough and gently stretch it into a square, pulling at the four corners. You should be able to stretch the dough out into a very thin membrane that light can pass through. If the dough tears easily, it needs to be kneaded longer. If you stop kneading before your dough passes the windowpane test, it will rip more easily and the resulting bread won’t be as soft and pillowy. Tip: If you’re having trouble getting the dough sufficiently kneaded, let it rest for 10 minutes to relax the gluten.

Proof in a warm area ⟶ Generally, a temperature between 75°F-80°F (24°C-27°C) is ideal for proofing yeast doughs. In the summer, I just let the dough proof on my kitchen counter. But for colder days, I like to place the bowl in my oven and put a pot of boiling water on the bottom of the oven. Keep the oven door closed so the heat doesn’t escape. The moisture from the boiling water will also prevent the dough from drying out.

Drop pan on counter after removing it from the oven ⟶ Once the bread is baked, remove it from the oven and drop the pan on a towel on the countertop a couple times. This allows water vapor to escape which will help prevent the bread from shrinking.

Cool before slicing⟶ I know it’s tempting to cut into it right after you take it out of the oven, but patience is key to a good bread! If you cut into it too early, your bread can lose a lot of moisture and may shrink.

Transfer to wire rack immediately ⟶ Don’t leave the bread in the pan after baking or moisture will pool on the bottom and sides and make your bread soggy. Immediately take it out of the pan (it should come out easily if you thoroughly greased your pan) and place on a wire rack to cool.

Red Bean Milk Bread FAQ

Yes, you can use all bread flour for an even softer and fluffier loaf. You can omit the vital wheat gluten and reduce the soy milk by 15-20 ml since bread flour doesn’t absorb as much liquid as whole wheat flour.

I highly recommend bread flour for the best results. All purpose flour has a lower protein (gluten) content, so the bread won’t be as chewy with all purpose flour, but can be substituted if necessary.

Yes, but first warm the soy milk and water to about 110°F/43°C and mix with the yeast plus a pinch of the sugar. Rest for 5-10 minutes until foaming and bubbly to make sure the yeast is still active. If it doesn’t foam, your yeast is dead and you need to use new yeast.

This is a very wet, sticky dough so it’s hard to knead it sufficiently by hand. A stand mixer or a hand mixer with dough hooks will produce the best results. You can also knead the dough in a bread machine.

This bread will stay fresh for about 2 days at room temperature. Place the bread (preferably unsliced) in an airtight container or bag. After 2 days, the bread will start to dry out, so I recommend freezing it for longer storage. To freeze, cut into slices first, then place in freezer-safe bags.

Sweet red bean paste is a common confectionery in East Asian cuisine. It’s made from adzuki beans (which are a dark red color) and sugar. Some recipes also add oil, but this isn’t common in Japanese red bean paste. Sweet red bean paste, known as “an” あん in Japanese, is common in many traditional Japanese sweets. My favorites are anpan, daifuku, youkan, taiyaki, dorayaki, zenzai, and anmitsu. You can find pre-made sweet red bean paste at most Japanese, Korean, and Chinese markets; on Amazon*; or you can make your own.

More Yeast Bread Recipes

If you try out this recipe, don’t forget to leave a comment/rating down below and tag me in your photos on instagram @ellielikes.cooking. I love seeing all of your tasty recreations!

Prep Time:45

Cook Time:30

resting time:5

Servings: 1 loaf

Ingredients

Poolish

120 grams (1 cup) whole wheat flour
¼ tsp instant yeast*
80 grams water
40 grams soy milk

Dough

50 grams soy milk
18 grams granulated sugar
¼-¾ tsp instant yeast¹
120 grams (1 cup) bread flour
3 grams (½ tsp) salt
5 grams (1½ tsp) vital wheat gluten*² optional
13 grams unsalted vegan butter cut into small cubes
200 grams sweet red bean paste³

Instructions

Poolish: Mix whole wheat flour, yeast, water, and soy milk together in a large bowl. Cover and rise at room temperature for 1 hour, then transfer to the fridge overnight. The next morning, take it out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature until doubled in size and bubbly (about an hour).
120 grams (1 cup) whole wheat flour, ¼ tsp instant yeast*, 80 grams water, 40 grams soy milk

Kneading

Combine: To the bowl of your stand mixer, add remaining soy milk, sugar, yeast, bread flour, salt, vital wheat gluten (if using) and the poolish. Attach a dough hook to your stand mixer. Turn it on at low speed (1-3) to combine the ingredients, then gradually increase speed to medium (4-5) as the dough comes together. Knead on medium for about 5 minutes. The dough should come together into a ball and loose some of its stickiness. Turn off the stand mixer, cover with a towel, and let the dough rest for 5-10 minutes.
50 grams soy milk, 18 grams granulated sugar, ¼-¾ tsp instant yeast1, 120 grams (1 cup) bread flour, 3 grams (½ tsp) salt, 5 grams (1½ tsp) vital wheat gluten*2
Rough windowpane: Turn the mixer back on to medium speed and knead another 5 minutes or so until the dough is smooth and forms a rough windowpane⁴ (i.e. you should be able to stretch it out fairly thin before it breaks, but maybe not enough for light to pass through yet). Cover and rest again for 10 minutes.
Windowpane: Turn the mixer back on at low speed and gradually add in the butter cubes. Increase the speed to medium as the butter gets incorporated into the dough. Continue kneading on medium speed for 5-10 minutes until the dough reaches the windowpane stage. You can stop to scrape down the dough every couple minutes if needed. If your mixer gets too hot, turn if off, cover the dough, and let it rest for 5-10 minutes.
13 grams unsalted vegan butter

First Proof

Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased large bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set on the counter to rise for 1-3 hours until doubled in size. You can also use the "proof" setting if your oven has one to speed up the proofing time.
Deflate and divide: Press down on the dough to deflate it and transfer to a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into three equal pieces (about 150 grams each). Gently roll each piece into a ball and cover with a kitchen towel. Rest for 10-15 minutes.
Grease pan: Meanwhile, melt about 2 tsp of vegan butter. Use a pastry brush to brush the butter all over the bottom and sides of your loaf pan (and the lid if you are making a flat-topped loaf). You can also use oil if you prefer.

Shape Dough

Lightly flour your work surface. Take one dough ball and roll it out into a vertical rectangle.
Spread the sweet red bean paste onto the dough, leaving a few inches of space around the perimeter of the dough.
200 grams sweet red bean paste3
Fold dough into thirds, overlapping 1-2 inches in the center.
Rotate the dough 90 degrees and roll it out again into a vertical rectangle. Fold dough into thirds and rotate 90 degrees. Repeat the process once more.
Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.
Finally, roll the dough out into a rectangle the length of your bread pan. Cut into thirds about a 1/2-inch down from the top of the rectangle (leave the dough connected at the top), and braid the strands together.

Second Proof

Place the braided dough into your greased bread pan. Cover and let the dough proof until doubled in size, 1-3 hours.
When the dough has risen a little over halfway (after about 40-60 minutes), preheat oven to 385°F/195°C (or 360°F/180°C for convection oven).

Bake

Uncover the dough and place into the oven on the middle rack. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 195°F/90°C. It should be nicely browned on the outside and spring back when you push on it. Tent with foil if the top is browning too quickly (check after 15 minutes).

Cool

Tap the pan on the countertop 1-2 times to let water vapor escape (this prevents the bread from shrinking).
Turn the pan on its side and give it a few thrusts to slide the bread out. Place the bread on a wire rack to cool completely.
Let the bread cool completely before slicing so the structure can set. If you cut into the bread too soon, it may shrink and lose moisture.

Notes

This recipe is enough to fit a Japanese 1-kin (一斤) loaf pan, which is approximately 8×4-inches.

1) Instant Yeast: Use 3/4 tsp in the dough if your kitchen is very cold and you don’t want to wait as long for the dough to proof. I like to use 1/4 tsp for less yeast-y flavor, but the second proof takes about 2 hours in a slightly warm kitchen.

2) Vital Wheat Gluten: You can omit this if necessary, but it will give the bread better rise.

3) Sweet Red Bean Paste: You can follow my recipe to make your own, or find it pre-made at most East Asian markets or on Amazon*. If your sweet red bean paste is very watery, blot out some of the water with a paper towel first.

*Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, but the price remains the same to you. Thank you for supporting Ellie Likes Cooking!

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Vegan Red Bean Milk Bread (An Shokupan) | あん食パン

What is Red Bean Milk Bread?

Key Ingredients

Tips for Success

Red Bean Milk Bread FAQ

More Yeast Bread Recipes