Chocolate Chip Brioche Buns

Brioche dough (make the day before): To make this recipe for chocolate chip brioche buns, start by preparing the brioche dough. Pour the warm milk into the stand mixer bowl.

Add the crumbled fresh baker's yeast...

...and mix these two ingredients together with a whisk to fully dissolve the yeast in the milk...

...until smooth.

Add the flour...

...the fine salt...

...and the caster sugar.

Also add the tempered whole eggs...

...and knead everything with the dough hook attachment on medium speed...

...until the dough is homogeneous. Continue kneading at high speed.

When the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl, add the softened butter cut into pieces...

...gradually, in several batches. Make sure you don't incorporate the butter all at once.

Knead the dough until the butter is fully incorporated.

During kneading, check the dough temperature using a laser thermometer. It should not exceed 25°C.

The brioche dough is ready when it completely detaches from the sides of the bowl...

...as shown in this photo. Stop the mixer.

Remove the mixing bowl and cover it tightly with a sheet of plastic wrap. Let it proof in a proofing chamber set at 28°C until the dough doubles in volume. This will take about 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours.

At the end of the proofing time, you will see that the dough has doubled in volume.

Remove the plastic wrap.

This is what the result should look like.

Deflate the dough by pressing it down with the back of your hand to release as much gas as possible.

Cover the surface of the dough with plastic wrap, ensuring that no air gets in contact with it.

Stretch a second sheet of plastic wrap over the container and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, the brioche dough should have slightly risen, which is completely normal.

Remove the plastic wrap...

...and transfer the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.

Divide the brioche dough using a dough scraper...

...into portions of 50g each. To ensure uniform-sized brioche buns, it is recommended to use a kitchen scale.

Roll a piece of dough in the palm of your hand, rotating it on the floured work surface.

Repeat with all the dough pieces.

Place these dough balls into brioche moulds Ø 7cm.

This is what the result should look like.

Place the moulds on a baking sheet and transfer them to the proofing chamber set at 28°C, until the buns double in volume. This will take approximately 1 hour 30 minutes.

Finish: At the end of the proofing time, apply an egg wash to the surface of the brioche buns using a pastry brush. This egg wash consists of one beaten egg yolk mixed with a tablespoon of water.

Sprinkle the brioche buns with chocolate chips. You can also incorporate chocolate chips into the cold dough at step 26 by gently kneading them in by hand.

Place the baking sheet in a convection oven preheated to 180°C and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Baking time may vary depending on the oven.

Once baked, remove the brioche buns from the oven.

This is what the result should look like.

Release the chocolate chip brioche buns and place them on a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!