One proofing,soft and fluffy buns filled with spicy cheese tuna an top with more cheese. A homemade bread from scratch that is totally worth it. This bread requires only 1 proofing which means you can have this ready sooner than later. How does saving 1 extra hour sounds to you? Good, right? Imagine what you can do in extra 1 hour. 

This week bread of the week is Tuna Cheese Buns or Cheesy Tuna Buns. However you prefer to call it, just do not forget the cheese because there’s lots of cheese in this bread, inside and out. This bread is one of my favorite to make for the week. It’s perfect for breakfast, filing enough to make me last until lunch time, and also great as a snack with some salad on the side.

Tuna is one pantry item that I often keep stocked up. It is so versatile and I can use it for any meal of the day. I love using it for making breakfast item, but they are so flexible for use during lunch or dinner time. This tuna filling that I used in recipe is something that I also use for making tuna salad, tuna omelette and just a simple spicy tuna flakes. When I am me using it as a salad or spread, I leave out the mayonnaise. It is delicious and flavorful as it is and great for serving with steamed rice, for fried rice or omelette filling or for pasta sauce mix in. Only 1 can of tuna is all you need and you got yourself a a super easy cheesy tuna filling.

Tips for a Successful Soft Homemade Bread

• Liquid Temperature – Yeast grows in temperature between 105 – 110F, so its important to have the water that you are using to “proof” it in this range. If you go lower or higher, the yeast might not proof properly. That means the bread will not rise as much, resulting to a flat and tough bread. 
• Check Yeast Expiry a Date – you might be wondering how come the bread did not rise when you followed exactly the recipe. Well, first thing first, make sure the yeast is not yet expired. Expired yeast is the common reason for flat and dense bread. If your bread did not expand or rise during the rest period, it is most likely that the yeast is not fresh or the water temperature is too hot or cold.
• Amount of Yeast – Just because you want a tall bread doesn’t mean you have to put as much yeast in the mixture. Sometimes adding too much yeast can cause the bread to collapse during the rest period. Just imagine putting more air than what is needed in a balloon, the balloon will explode. The same case with bread. 
• Right Type of Yeast – We’ve discussed the 3 types of yeast above. Make sure to use the right one for your recipe, and make necessary adjustments if you want to swap one from another. 
• Rest Period – Yeast bread needs time to rise. There are bread that uses less yeast but requires more rest time, the likes of No Knead Bread or Artisan Bread which usually require 8- 16 hours rest period to get the volume and to develop the flavor. There are 1 hour bread like my Rosemary Dinner Rolls like a 1 proofing only bread. The point is, give it time to rest, don’t touch it just leave it in a warm place. The first rest period will normally tell you if your dough is good or not. If it rise and almost double in size, then your on the right track.  
• Expiration and Quality of the Flour – The quality of the flour greatly affect the texture of the bread. All-purpose flour could differ from country to country although they are all called as all-purpose flour. Sometimes it depends on the brand too. The closer the flour to expiration date or if it is already expired, the flour could tend to be drier, which means it would require more liquid than mentioned in the recipe. This is a common issue of way sometimes the dough tend to be tough and dry. This is why sometimes you have to add few more tablespoon from the suggested flour measurement to get the right texture. The dough should be soft, smooth and elastic. If it is too wet, add a bit more flour until it is no longer to sticky to handle. If it is too dry, a small amount of liquid helps provide moisture to the dough. A clean side of the bowl, with the dough slightly sticking at the bottom, a soft, smooth and elastic dough is what You are aiming for.

How do I Know if I Made the Bread Dough Correctly?

• Activating the Yeast –  This is the first thing that you should get right, otherwise do NOT proceed. After 5 – 10 minutes you should see a foam forms on top of the water, this is an indication that the yeast is alive. If you do not get this, either the yeast is old or the liquid temperature is too hot or cold. The temperature should be 100F, lukewarm but not hot.
• Clean Bowl After Kneading – The sides of the bowl should be clean, while the bottom is slightly sticking to the dough. This means that amount of liquid to the flour is correct. Enough to make a clean bowl and still make a slightly wet dough.
• Soft Dough – Soft dough means the amount of flour to liquid is enough. Too much flour could make the bread dense and heavy, and too much liquid could make it too wet. Both will affect how the bread rise in the rest period. Try to push your fingers in the dough, it should leave a “dimple” on the dough and should gradually disappear.
• Smooth Dough Surface – Again, this is a sign of correct flour to liquid ratio. A “bumpy” surface could mean that the dough is dry and tough.
• Elastic Dough – A soft dough is usually elastic. If your dough is dry and tough, it wouldn’t be as elastic when you pull it apart.
• Rest Period – The dough should almost double in size. This is a sign that the activation of the yeast work which is crucial to making a soft and fluffy bread. This also means the yeast is alive (not yet expired) and the liquid temperature is correct. I always use baking thermometer to check the temperature of the liquid. The bread dough should be really puff up and should fill in the gaps between each bread. This is crucial and the final state of the bread before baking. If you are able to make it puff-up, that is a good sign that there are air trapped inside which will make the bread fluffy.

Why is My Dough too Wet or too Dry?

Don’t get frustrated if your dough did not turn out immediately as what you see in the photo or video. Most likely It is not because you did not follow the recipe. When it comes to bread making, the amount of flour and liquid is not always 100% precise. This is why often times you will encounter recipes that says, if your dough is dry, add a bit more liquid. If your dough is too wet, add a little bit more flour. This instructions are not meant to confuse you, they are meant to guide you on how to adjust as you work through your dough. The reason for this is that  although the measurement of water and flour are specified in the recipe, it still could slightly vary depending on many factors. For instance, all-purpose flour could very from country to country, or even from brand to brand. Don’t be surprise if you find that some brand tends to require a bit more liquid as the others. On top of this, the amount of liquid is also affected by the state of your flour. How old is the flour that you are using? Older flour nearing expiry tends to be drier and this requires more liquid. Humidity also affects baking. The more humid it is, the more likely the dough will be sticky and wet. Bread making requires patience, and practice. Once you learn how to feel the right texture of the dough, everything will be quick and easy. You can instantly tell if you need to add more water or flour to get the dough in right state.

Key Things to Remember:

• If using tuna in oil, use the tuna oil for sautéing instead of using olive oil
• Do not skip draining the tuna as too much liquid could make the filling watery. You will end up with a soggy buns 
• Feel free to add other vegetable, like bell peppers, corn, green peas and carrots. 
• When filling in the bread, make sure to layer the cheese first before the tuna filling. This way, when you cut up the top, the side with cheese will be facing up. Also, this will prevent the cheese from oozing out of the buns 
• You can make 8 smaller pieces instead of 6 medium size.  

Dough Ingredients:

• 1/3 – 1/2 cup warm Full Fat Milk (110F) – microwave 20 seconds
• 1 Egg – room temperature
• 3 1/2 tablespoon granulated Sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast or 1 teaspoon Instant Yeast
• 1 1/2 cups Bread Flour or All-Purpose Flour
• 3/4 teaspoon Salt
• 2 tablespoon softened unsalted Butter

Tuna Filling

• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 can Tuna – drained
• 1 stick Green Onion
• 1/3 cup Red Onion – chopped 
• 1 stick Celery Stick
• 2 cloves Garlic – minced 
• 1/4 cup Cilantro – chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Red Chili Flakes
• 2 tablespoon Mayonnaise 
• 1 cup grated Mozzarella Cheese (1/2 cup for Tuna, 1/2 cup for filling and topping)

Instructions:

1. Activate the Yeast: Microwave the milk for 20- 25 seconds until lukewarm but NOT hot, aim for 110F. If you have a baking thermometer, use it as it is the best way to be sure of the temperature. Hot milk will kill the yeast and the bread will not rise properly. Transfer milk in bowl of stand mixer (Refer to discussion above for other Methods of making this) and add 1/2 tsp of the granulated sugar and stir. Add the yeast and let rest for 10 minutes until mixture is foamy. If the mixture did not become foamy, either the yeast is old or the milk is too hot. Do NOT proceed until corrected, otherwise you will end up with a tough dense bread
   • If using instant yeast, mix the yeast with the dry ingredients. No need to activate it.
2. Add Wet Ingredients: Add remaining sugar (3 tbsp) and egg to the yeast mixture.
3. Add Dry Ingredients: Followed by the flour and salt.
4. Knead the Dough (Speed 2) Using the paddle attachment, mix for about 30 seconds just to bring the mixture together. Replace with the dough/hook attachment and knead for 15 minutes (KitchenAid Speed 2). If the dough is too dry, add 1/2 teaspoon of milk until it reach a smooth, soft and elastic texture. The side of the bowl should be clean, while the dough is slightly sticking to the bottom of the bowl.
5. Add the softened butter and knead for another 15 minutes. When you add the butter, you will notice the dough will break apart and it will look like it is too wet. Do not panic, this is expected. Continue mixing (even if longer than 15 minutes) until the dough comes together completely (it will), the side of the bowl is clean and the dough is slightly sticking at the bottom of the bowl. Do not stop mixing until you get to this stage. It takes time to fully incorporate the butter to the flour mixture, be patient.
   • To Check: The dough should be smooth, soft, elastic and slightly sticking to the bottom of the bowl
6. Divide and Shape the Dough: Divide the dough into 6 portions, or up to 8 for smaller portions. Roll and flatten to about 4-inches.
7. Add the Filling: Add cheese and tuna filling on top. Gather the dough and pinch to seal, almost like making a dumplings but round.
8. Let Rest: Cover loosely with plastic wrap or warm towel, and then let rise in a warm place for at least 60 minutes to 90 minutes, or until doubled. (Rising time is dependent on the temperature of the room; let rise until the dough is doubled). I find 60 – 75 minutes my sweet spot, perfectly fluffy.
   • Trick: Pre-heat the oven to 110F then turn it OFF. Put the covered dough inside.
9. Oven: Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350F in the last 10 minutes of 2nd rest time. If you are using the oven to rest the dough, do NOT forget to take the dough out before pre-heating.

After the rest period, the bread should expand, like in the photo.

9. Brush the top with egg wash and using a scissor, snip the top to create an ‘X’ mark. Sprinkle cheese and dried parsley on top.

10. Bake for 15 – 18 minutes, until deeply golden brown. Turn the tray half way though for even baking.

Let Cool completely to allow the bread texture to get better

Makes 6 pieces

Enjoy! If you make this, share and tag me in Instagram #SweetNSpicyLiving. I would like to see your creations too.

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