Home > Roti Isi Keju (Bread Bun with Cheese Filling)

Roti Isi Keju (Bread Bun with Cheese Filling)

Posting Date: 10/16/16

Roti Isi Keju (Bread Bun with Cheese Filling) is like Chinese bread bun you find in Asian bakeries in US, except it has cheese filling inside. Roti in Indonesian language mean bread, so it is different than roti in India which is more like pita bread. You can find Roti Isi Keju in any bakeries in Indonesia. The bakeries also sell the buns with other filling, such as pineapple jam, chocolate, mocha, chicken, etc. My mom used to buy them for breakfast or lunch.

To make roti isi keju, I use cheddar cheese since it has stronger flavor and thus, you can taste the cheese. For the dough, I use Chinese bread bun recipe since it is similar to the Indonesian's bread buns. In addition to cheese filling, I sometimes substitute cheese with chocolate chips which makes it chocolate filling. It tastes good if you prefer your bread bun to be sweet rather than savory. To make the dough, I use a mixer but you can also use food processor if you don't own it.

The recipe makes 16 bread buns

Ingredients:

To activate yeast: 1 tablespoon active dry yeast (1 package)
To activate yeast: 1 tablespoon sugar
To activate yeast: 1/4 cup warm milk. Make sure the temperature of the milk is between 105 to 110 deg F before adding yeast.
1 egg
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup warm milk. Make sure the temperature of the milk is between 105 to 110 deg F so that it will not kill the yeast.
2 tablespoons sugar
3.5 cups bread flour and more for kneading
1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese. You can use other cheese type but I found cheddar cheese is best because it has stronger flavor.
To brush the bread: 1 teaspoon water
To brush the bread: 1 egg yolk
To brush the bread: 1/2 teaspoon sugar
Optional: 1/4 teaspoon sesame seeds

Methods:

Add yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in a small bowl. Make sure the temperature of milk is between 105 and 110 deg F before adding it into the yeast and sugar mixture because if the milk temperature is too hot, it will kill the yeast. If the milk temperature is too low, it will not be able to activate the yeast. Wait for 5 min. The yeast should foam. If not, the yeast used is old and thus, discard the yeast mixture solution, get fresh package of yeast, and start over.
Add egg, vegetable oil, and 3/4 cup milk into a bowl. Make sure the temperature of the milk is between 105 to 110 deg F so that it won't kill the yeast. Pour the yeast sugar mixture in the bowl and stir the wet ingredient mixture.
Put 2 tablespoons sugar and flour in a mixer. Attach dough hook on the mixer and run it for 1 min. If you don't have a mixer, you can also use food processor.
While the mixer is running, pour the wet ingredient mixture in the feeding tube in a steady stream. Keep running the mixer until the dough is pulling away from the side. During the process, you may need to add more flour ( a tablespoon at a time) if the dough is too sticky or wet.
Take the dough out of the food processor and put it on a working area that has been lightly floured so that the dough won't stick on your working area.
Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. During kneading, you may need to dust it with flour to prevent it from sticking to your work surface.
Put the dough in a bowl that has been oiled inside so that it won't stick to the wall during rising. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. I also put kitchen towel on top of the plastic wrap. Leave the bowl in a warm spot and let the dough rise until it becomes doubled, about 1 hour.
Put the dough in a working area that has been lightly floured. Punch it down.
Cut the dough in half and shape each half into a 12 inch long log. Cut each log into 8 pieces. Using a rolling pin, roll each piece into a 4 inch circle. Split the cheese into 16 portions. Put each cheese portion on the center of each dough piece. Bring the edge of each dough piece to the center of the circle so that it covers the cheese filling. Pinch the edge to close and seal the opening. Place the bun with the sealed side facing down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat this step for each dough piece. Make sure you give 1.5" space in between each bun since it will rise. Let the buns rise to double for 30 min to an hour.
Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
Beat egg yolk with water and sugar. Brush it on top and side of the buns.
Bake the buns for 20 min. You should rotate the baking sheet half way during the baking to get uniform baking.
Take the baking sheet out of the oven and place the buns on cooling rack.

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