The Secret Ingredient That Makes Cinnamon Rolls Extra Soft And Fluffy

When you picture a breakfast pastry, what comes to mind? Perhaps you conjure up visions of biscuits or scones, maybe even the odd Danish. There's a decent chance that cinnamon rolls will pop up on your mental roster of breakfast pastries, too. The sweet, warming treat is a special delight straight out of the oven, so we wouldn't be surprised if you've tried making them on your own. 

Fortunately, homemade cinnamon rolls aren't as difficult to bake as they may seem. As long as you have a working knowledge of yeast and there's a rolling pin in your cupboard, you can whip up a delicious batch of cinnamon rolls in a single morning. If you want to really impress your friends, though, don't just settle for creating "perfectly good" rolls — one secret ingredient can seriously amp up your cinnamon roll game. 

If you haven't heard of tangzhong before, get ready to upgrade your bread-making skills. Derived from Japanese culinary practices, tangzhong offers a surefire way to make the end result of any bread product pillowy-soft and tender, with a light crumb structure. It's often used in brioche recipes to achieve the bread's signature feathery, melt-in-your-mouth texture, and the technique applies just as well to cinnamon rolls.

By now you're probably wondering: What exactly is tangzhong? Don't worry, you won't need to go on an extensive hunt through specialty store shelves to obtain some elusive ingredient. In fact, you won't find tangzhong on any shelves. Rather, it's something you'll make yourself using two ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen: flour and either milk or water.

With just flour, liquid, and a stovetop, you're well on your way to creating the softest bread to ever come out of your kitchen. The process of heating up the mixture on the stovetop helps the flour granules expand, allowing them to absorb more liquid than they can in their dry, room-temperature state. This means the percentage of liquid in your recipe can be higher than it would be otherwise, without turning your dough into a mess to work with. 

"Pre-gelatinizing" your dough in this way makes it far more capable of retaining moisture, and that goes for your cooked product, too. You'll probably find that bread products made with tangzhong stay soft for longer than their non-tangzhong counterparts. In fact, that may be the most noticeable difference tangzhong makes: Your bakes will stay tasting fresh for up to several days after baking, rather than becoming hard overnight.

Despite its seemingly complicated name, tangzhong is actually quite easy to make; however, you'll want to follow a cinnamon roll recipe specifically formulated with tangzhong rather than making your own substitutions. You'll combine the flour and liquid (typically in a 1:5 ratio) in a small pot on the stovetop. Cook the mixture, whisking regularly, over low to medium heat. Be careful not to let the mixture sit too long without stirring; otherwise, you run the risk of burning whatever undissolved flour may sink to the bottom.

The preferred temperature to get your mixture to is 149 degrees Fahrenheit, but, unlike with some other complicated bakes, the exact temperature matters less, here. Just keep an eye on it — you'll want to end up with a smooth, thick paste that's almost reminiscent of mashed potatoes. Make the tangzhong at the beginning of your baking process and give it a few minutes to cool as you prepare the rest of your ingredients. Refrain from mixing it with yeast when it's still piping hot; otherwise, the yeast could die.

If you don't consume dairy but you still want the rich, full flavor of a bake made with milk-based tangzhong, simply use your favorite plant-based milk alternative in a 1:1 substitution for whatever liquid your recipe calls for. Most of all, though, remember that practice makes perfect. Even though it's a relatively simple technique, if making tangzhong is new to you, it might take a couple tries to get it right — before you throw your hands up in frustration, try it in a few bakes to get the hang of it.