Marbled Chocolate Shokupan
If you visit Japan, be sure to stop by a local bakery! You’ll often find shokupan and marbled chocolate bread, though it’s not quite the same as babka. This marbled chocolate shokupan is like a hybrid between babka and shokupan, combining the soft, fluffy texture of Japanese milk bread with delicate chocolate swirls. What I love about this bread is that it’s not too sweet. The dough also contains less egg compared to babka, making it lighter while still rich and satisfying. If you don’t have a Pullman loaf pan, you can use a pound cake mold instead.
Making this bread took me a whole day, but you can easily split the process over two days to make it more manageable!
Chocolate Sheet
You're going to make a pliable chocolate sheet that will create beautiful swirls in your bread. While you can make this over the stovetop, I find the microwave method much easier and more convenient. You can prepare this chocolate sheet a day before baking to save time. For the best deep, chocolaty flavor, be sure to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder.
The Dough
This dough is very similar to my shokupan bread from my cookbook Make It Japanese, but with the addition of an egg to enrich it. I also used sugar instead of honey this time since the dough is already quite wet. It’s a very soft and sticky dough, but as you knead, it becomes more elastic and manageable. I made it entirely by hand since I don’t own a stand mixer, but if you have one, feel free to use it! It will make the process easier.
1st Proof
Place the dough in a warm spot and let it proof until it doubles in size, about 1 hour. Be careful not to let it triple or more, as that’s a sign of over-proofing. To check if it’s ready, dust the dough and your finger with flour, then gently poke the dough—if the indentation stays, it’s ready.
If you don’t plan to bake the bread right away, you can freeze the dough at this stage. When ready to use, defrost it in the fridge for 5–6 hours before continuing with shaping and baking.
Shaping
Shaping isn’t too tricky, but you’ll need to let the dough rest so the gluten relaxes, making it easier to roll out. I followed @yurina.oono's YouTube video for shaping. She used a pound cake mold, but I used an 8 x 5 x 4 ½-inch Pullman loaf pan instead. Be sure to grease the pan well so the bread releases easily after baking.
That’s it!
It took me an entire day, but this bread was so worth it—soft, rich, and delicious! It stayed soft for 3–4 days in winter when wrapped in plastic and kept at room temperature. However, during hotter months, I recommend storing it in the fridge after a couple of days.
If you can’t finish the whole loaf within 3–4 days, slice it, wrap the slices individually, and freeze them for later. Just pop a slice in the toaster when you're ready to enjoy it again! 😊
Tag me @riemclenny on Instagram if you make it!
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Marbled Chocolate Bread
Prep time 15 minutes
Cooking time: 5-6 hours
Makes 1 loaf
For chocolate filling
25g all purpose flour
20g unsweetened dutch processed cocoa powder
50g sugar
20g dark chocolate (I used 72% cacao), coarsely chopped
1 pinch sea salt
65g whole milk
10g unsalted butter
For the dough
375g bread flour
40g sugar
½ teaspoon salt
5 g dry yeast
40g whole milk
1 large egg, whisked
160g luke warm water
20g unsalted butter
Preparation
Make chocolate filling. In a heat proof bowl, sift flour and dutch cocoa powder into the bowl. Add sugar, chocolate and salt. Whisk to combine. Add milk and mix well. Microwave the mixture for 1 min. Using a rubber spatula, mix them well. Add butter and microwave for another 30 seconds. Mix well and cool to room temperature. Once the filling is cool down to touch, place it on a plastic and flatten it to ½ inch, 6 inch x 6 inch square by using your hands. Chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
Make the dough. In a large bowl, add bread flour, sugar, salt, yeast, lukewarm milk, water and egg. Using a rubber spatula, mix until the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a surface, knead the dough until elastic and tacky, for 5 minutes. Using bowl scraper, gather the dough and slap against the surface and knead, for 5 more minutes. Flatten the dough and add butter. Knead until the butter is fully incorporated. Take a small piece of the dough and stretch it and when you can see through from the dough it is ready.
Using a bowl scraper, tuck the dough into a ball shape and transfer it to a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Place the bowl in a warm spot and proof the dough until it doubles in size, about 1 hour. To check if the dough is ready, sprinkle it with flour and poke it with your finger—if the hole doesn’t bounce back, it’s ready.
Dust flour on the work surface. Using a bowl scraper, transfer the dough onto the work surface. Use your fingers to tap the dough and release the air. Stretch the dough into a rectangle and roll it up. Wrap it in plastic and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Roll out the dough into a large enough rectangle to wrap the chocolate sheet. Place the chilled chocolate filling in the center. Wrap the dough around it and pinch to seal the seam. Roll out the dough into a rectangle, then fold the top third over the middle and the bottom third over the top (letter fold). Wrap the dough and rest it for another 30 minutes.
Take the dough out from the fridge and roll it out into an 8” x 18” rectangle and do another letter fold. Rest the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
Grease an 8 x 5 x 4 ½-inch Pullman loaf pan with oil.
Roll out the dough into an 8” x 14” rectangle, then roll it up halfway. Using a sharp knife, cut the unrolled portion into 1-inch-wide strips. Take each strip and gently twist it before rolling it up toward the already rolled portion of the dough. Repeat with the remaining strips to complete the shaping.
Transfer the dough into the pan. Cover with a damp cloth or paper towel and proof for 60–80 minutes, or until the dough rises to 90% of the pan height.
While the dough is proofing, preheat the oven to 375˚F. Place the loaf pan on a baking sheet and bake the bread for 30 minutes. Drop the loaf pan onto a hard work surface to prevent shrinking.
Remove the bread from the pan while it’s still hot and let it cool completely on a wire rack.
Recipe adapted from @yurina.oono..