Savoury Braided Brioche Bread - Parāoa Tōpuku Mōkarakara

A delicious brioche loaf braided in to perfection.

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 45

Rising Time Total 2 30

Servings large loaf (16 slices)

Ingredients

Te Pokenga - The Dough

⅔ C wai wera (hot water, from the tap)
½ C miraka (milk)
3 tbsp huka hāura (brown sugar or any sugar will work)
1 ¼ tbsp (10 g) īhi tere (instant yeast)
2 hēki (eggs, size 6)
4 ¼ C (637 g) puehu parāoa kounga (high grade flour)
2 tsp tote (salt, fine)
90 g pata kūteretere (softened butter, cut into small pieces)
140 g tīhi (cheese, I use mozarella broken in to rough pieces, optional)

The Glaze - Te Mōhinuhinu

1 hēki (egg)
1 tsp huka hāura (brown sugar or any you have)
2 tbsp bagel topping mix (optional)
30 g pata kua rewaina (melted butter)

Instructions

Te Pokenga - The Dough

Add the wai wera (hot water), miraka (milk) and huka hāura (brown sugar) in to a large bowl. Stir it all together until the sugar is dissolved.
Stir in the īhi tere (instant yeast) and allow to activate for five minutes until foamy.
Add in the hēki (eggs), puehu parāoa (flour) and tote (salt). Whakaranuhia - mix it all together to combine. Once you have a shaggy dough, it is time to knead it.
Knead until the dough comes together. You can do this for 4 minutes by hand or in a mixer with a dough hook for 3 minutes.
Then if you kneading by hand, spread out the dough and dot on the pata kūteretere (softened butter). Knead for 10 minutes. If you are using a mixer, add in the pata (butter) in one go and knead it for 8 minutes.
The dough is quite sticky but try not to add extra flour. It should be soft and stretchy!
Form the dough in to a ball, place in a bowl and cover. Leave for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until it has doubled in size.
Cut the dough into four equal portions. I weigh mine for accuracy but you can just eye ball it if you want to. Roll each portion into a 30 cm rope.
Arrange the the pieces side by side. Pinch the four ends together.
Take the fourth strand (on the right) and weave it over and under the others strand until it lands on the other side. With each weave, I add a little pieces of cheese, make sure it is hidden in the dough so it oozes in the bread as it bakes.
Repeat this process until all the dough is braided, always taking the strand from the right hand side and weaving it under and over all the other pieces. Don't forget the cheese (if you are using it).
Tuck both of the ends in so you have a nice shape and place it on to a well oiled tray. Cover with a tea towel and rise for 50 - 60 minutes.
10 minutes before the bread has finished rising, preheat the oven to 180 °C.

The Glaze - Te Mōhinuhinu

Combine the hēki (egg) and huka hāura (brown sugar) in a small bowl. Whisk it until smooth and baste all over the parāoa (bread).
Brush this all over the braid with a pastry brush. This helps the bread become golden when baking. If you don't have an extra egg, mix the huka (sugar) with 4 tbsp of miraka (milk) and brush that on.
Sprinkle over the bagel mix (if you are using it).
Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes at 180 °C.
Then, turn the oven down to 160 °C and bake for a further 35 minutes.
Remove from the oven and brush with the pata kua rewaina (melted butter). Serve warm with your favourite toppings. This also makes the most delicious toast for brunch the next day!