These chocolate milk bread hot cross buns are everything a great Easter bun should be: deeply chocolatey, incredibly soft, and almost impossibly fluffy. The dough uses the tangzhong method, which creates the plush, cloud-like texture that makes milk bread so special. Add cocoa and chocolate chips, and you end up with a batch of buns that feel a little bit decadent but are still familiar enough to belong firmly on the Easter table.
Despite their impressive texture, these buns are surprisingly straightforward to make. The tangzhong takes only a few minutes on the stovetop, and the rest of the dough comes together easily in a mixer before a gentle steam-oven proof and a quick combi steam bake. The result is bakery-quality hot cross buns with deep chocolate flavor, glossy tops, and the softest crumb imaginable.
Why do milk bread hot cross buns work in a steam oven?
A steam oven creates the ideal environment for enriched dough like these milk bread buns. During proving, the humid environment keeps the dough from drying out and encourages a strong, even rise without the need for plastic wrap or improvised proofing setups.
During baking, the added humidity allows the buns to expand beautifully before the crust sets, giving them their signature soft, fluffy texture. The steam also prevents the crust from becoming dry or tough, which is exactly what you want for pillowy hot cross buns.
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Ingredients and substitutions
See the recipe card further down for full method and ingredient quantities.
Tangzhong mixture
- Dutch-process cocoa powder – gives the buns a deep chocolate color and a smooth, rounded chocolate flavor. Natural cocoa can be used but the flavor will be sharper and the color lighter.
- Bread flour – the flour in the tangzhong forms the thick paste that helps the dough retain moisture.
- Milk – adds richness and helps create the soft milk bread texture.
- Water – combined with the milk to hydrate the flour and cocoa as the tangzhong cooks.
Dough
- Bread flour – high-protein flour gives the dough the structure needed for soft but well-shaped buns. If you only have all-purpose you can use that, your buns will just have a little less gluten structure.
- Milk – enriches the dough and helps create a tender crumb.
- Granulated sugar – lightly sweetens the buns and balances the cocoa.
- Milk powder (optional) – boosts the milk flavor and improves softness and keeping quality, though the buns will still be excellent without it.
- Instant yeast – makes the dough easy to mix without blooming the yeast separately.
- Fine salt – balances the sweetness and enhances the chocolate flavor.
- Unsalted butter – melted butter enriches the dough and contributes to the soft texture.
- Egg – adds structure, color, and richness.
- Chocolate chips – pockets of melted chocolate throughout the buns make them extra indulgent.
Crosses
- All-purpose flour – forms the classic hot cross bun topping.
- Water – added gradually to form a smooth pipeable paste.
Glaze
- Granulated sugar – forms a simple syrup that gives the buns their shiny finish.
- Water – dissolves the sugar and creates the glaze.
- Liquid glucose (optional) – helps the glaze stay shiny and slightly sticky for longer, though it’s perfectly fine to skip it.
Variations
Chocolate milk bread hot cross buns are easy to customize to taste.
Swap the chocolate chips for chopped dark chocolate if you prefer slightly larger pockets of melted chocolate. A mix of dark and milk chocolate is also lovely if you want a sweeter result.
If you enjoy the classic spice profile of traditional hot cross buns, try adding a teaspoon of cinnamon or a pinch of mixed spice to the dough along with the flour.
You can also add a handful of dried fruit alongside the chocolate chips for a slightly more traditional Easter feel. Dried cherries or cranberries work particularly well with the chocolate flavor.
How to make chocolate milk bread hot cross buns
View, save and print the recipe card further down in this post; read on for the visual walk-through.
Tips for success
Allow the tangzhong to cool slightly before mixing the dough so the heat doesn’t affect the yeast. It should feel warm but not hot when you add the remaining ingredients.
The dough will feel sticky after mixing, which is completely normal for tangzhong bread. Resist the temptation to add too much extra flour; the dough becomes much easier to handle after the first proof.
For evenly sized milk bread hot cross buns, weigh the entire dough and divide the total by twelve before portioning. This step isn’t strictly necessary but gives beautifully uniform results.
Serving suggestions
Milk bread hot cross buns are best eaten the day they’re baked, when the crumb is at its softest and the chocolate is still a little melty. Split them open and spread generously with butter for the ultimate Easter treat.
If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. They keep a little longer than regular bread rolls, thanks to the addition of the tangzhong, and they reheat beautifully. Toast split buns or warm them whole using Combi Steam, 300°F/150°C, 50% (medium) humidity for 5-8 minutes.
Milk bread hot cross buns also freeze well. Freeze the cooled buns in a sealed bag for up to a couple of months, then thaw and warm gently before serving.
These chocolate milk bread hot cross buns are a fun and indulgent twist on a classic Easter bake. The tangzhong method gives them their signature soft, fluffy texture, while the cocoa-rich dough and chocolate chips make them feel just a little bit luxurious. Best of all, they’re surprisingly straightforward to make, especially with the help of a steam oven for perfectly controlled proofing and baking. Whether you serve them warm with butter for breakfast or as a sweet afternoon treat, these buns are guaranteed to disappear quickly.
Want more amazing bready steam oven recipes for Easter? Try my classic Japanese milk bread, or my traditional hot cross buns recipe.
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Chocolate Milk Bread Hot Cross Buns
Ingredients
Tangzhong mixture
- 8 Tbsp Dutch-process cocoa
- 3 Tbsp bread flour
- 1/2 cup milk whole/full-fat; cold
- 1/3 cup water
Dough
- 4 cups bread flour plus extra for dusting
- 1/2 cup milk whole/full-fat, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3 Tbsp whole milk powder dry milk powder, optional, see notes
- 3 tsp instant yeast
- 2 tsp fine salt 10g
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter melted 1 stick
- 1 egg large, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups semisweet or dark chocolate chips chilled, for ease of folding into the dough
Crosses
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 Tbsp water you may need up to 3-4 Tbsp depending on your flour's moisture content
Glaze
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp water
- 1 tsp liquid glucose optional, if you haven’t got any don’t buy a whole jar. The buns will be fine, the glaze just won’t be as shiny/sticky
Instructions
Make the tangzhong (roux)
- In a small saucepan, whisk the cocoa, flour, milk, and water until no lumps remain. Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until the mixture has thickened to the consistency of instant pudding (never had instant pudding? You're looking for a very thick, 'blobby' consistency that plops off the spatula, rather than running off).8 Tbsp Dutch-process cocoa, 3 Tbsp bread flour, 1/2 cup milk, 1/3 cup water
- Transfer the tangzhong to the bowl of a stand mixer and cover the surface with a piece of cling wrap so it doesn't form a skin. Leave to cool for 10-15 minutes.
Make the dough
- When the tangzhong has cooled to warm, remove the cling wrap and add the flour, milk, sugar, milk powder, yeast, salt, melted butter and egg to the bowl. Using the dough hook, mix on medium-low speed until a soft, sticky dough forms, scraping down the bowl a couple of times to make sure everything gets incorporated.4 cups bread flour, 1/2 cup milk, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, 3 Tbsp whole milk powder, 3 tsp instant yeast, 2 tsp fine salt, 8 Tbsp unsalted butter, 1 egg
- Increase the mixer speed to medium-high and continue mixing until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 15 minutes total. Every few minutes, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. The dough will never completely pull away from the bowl, and it will appear to be slightly sticky. Don't worry, that is normal and the dough will become manageable after its first proof.
First proof
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and put it in your steam oven. Set to Steam, 80°F/27°C, (100% humidity), or use a dough proving setting if you have one. Let the dough rise until puffy and doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Add chocolate and form the buns
- Use a dough scraper to gently ease the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently form the dough into a square and scatter two thirds of it with the chocolate chips (cold choc chips will be easiest to work with, especially if you're baking in a warm climate!). Fold the last, uncovered, third over towards the center, then fold again so you've enclosed the chips. Press out again, and fold into thirds the other way, starting with one of the open ends. Gently press out again into a square. This should distribute the chocolate evenly through the dough; if it seems like it's uneven, fold in half once more.1 1/4 cups semisweet or dark chocolate chips
- Use the dough scraper, or a butter knife, to divide the dough evenly into 12 pieces. If you're pedantic like me, you can weigh the whole piece and divide into 12 by weight to make sure you get even-sized buns. But I won't judge you if you don't!
- Gently form each piece of dough into a ball. There are lots of ways to do this, I do so by pulling the raggedy edges into the center to make a ball shape, and then flipping over to have the smooth side on top. Roll each ball on the counter under a cupped hand a couple of times to make it nice and even. Place the dough balls, with just a little space between each one, into a 9×13 inch (23x33cm) baking tray or dish.
Second proof, make crosses and bake
- Cover the buns with a clean dish towel and leave them to rise at room temperature (ideally about 71°F/22°C – higher or lower temp will alter your rising time). You want them to puff so they're about a third larger in size, and the dough springs back when gently pressed with your index finger; about 30 minutes.
- While you wait for the buns to proof, make the cross mixture. Mix the flour and water to make a smooth paste, about the consistency of heavy cream. It might seem quite elastic; let it sit for 10-15 minutes and it'll be much easier to work with.1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 2 Tbsp water
- Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to Combi Steam, 350°F/180°C, 60% (high) humidity. Put the cross mixture into a piping bag, or a sandwich bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe a line down the center of each row of buns, then turn the tray 90 degrees and do the same thing the other way, making a cross on top of each bun.
- Bake the buns until they're puffed, a touch darker than when you put them in, and cooked through, about 25 minutes. If you want to test them by temperature they should be 190°F/88°C in the center. Remove the buns from the oven and let them cool slightly while you make the glaze.
Glaze
- Make the glaze by putting all the ingredients into a small saucepan and bringing to the boil. Simmer for a couple of minutes to make sure all the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has evaporated a little.2 Tbsp granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp water, 1 tsp liquid glucose
- Brush the hot glaze over the hot buns and leave to cool completely before serving, split, with butter.
Notes
- Tangzhong bread dough. This is originally a Chinese method, made popular by Taiwanese cook Yvonne Chen, in her book 65°C Bread Doctor. It involves cooking a small portion of flour and liquid (in this case, we add cocoa to the flour as well) until it becomes a smooth, thick paste. This gluey paste is cooled and mixed in with the bread dough. It works like this: heat and liquid make the starch molecules in the cooked flour swell and bond together. This creates a gel-like structure that can trap and hold water. When this gelatinized mixture is added to dough, it provides moisture without making it difficult to handle; thus, pillowy bread that has a super soft texture and stays fresh for longer.
- Cocoa powder. My preference is for Dutch-processed cocoa powder, which means the cocoa has been alkalized. It’s darker in color and has a smoother, more rounded chocolatey taste than natural cocoa or cacao.
- Milk powder. This is optional so if you don’t have it in your pantry, you can skip it without affecting the recipe too much. Adding a little extra milk solids to the dough just increases the softness and keeping qualities of the buns.
- Glucose for the glaze. As with the milk powder, if you don’t have liquid glucose in your kitchen, you don’t need to buy a whole jar. Adding a little to the glaze makes it more sticky and shiny, and helps it to sit on top of the buns for longer, rather than a straight sugar glaze which will soak in after a few hours.
2 Responses
Oh no!! I did not have any trouble putting the chocolate chips straight in once I’d pressed out the dough (the dough really shouldn’t be hot after proving, only lukewarm). But perhaps my chocolate was cooler to start with? I’ve updated the recipe to include a step to put the chocolate chips in the fridge before adding to the dough, to help ensure no future lava cake issues…
Maybe I did something wrong – should the dough be left to stand after taking it from the oven after the first proof? Your receipt doesn’t specify, so I waiting a few mins, but the dough was still so hot it melted all the choc chips and I basically ended up with a massive square lava cake!! lol. I’ll have to try it again….any further words of advise.