Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread

Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread Recipe

I watch a lot of cooking television shows, maybe too much (according to the kids). Not only because I am constantly looking for inspiration, but also because I love to watch someone with a passion for cooking.

And on one of these programs about street food in other countries, I saw this bread on a program about popular Korean street food. Don't ask me where, I have no idea (that's what you get when you watch a lot of programs ;-), but the enthusiasm was so contagious). I had to bake and taste it myself.

This bread is a white, slightly sweet bun, which is filled with sweet cream cheese and then soaked in garlic butter. It’s baked twice! This bread is, contrary to regular garlic bread, sweet and savory at the same time. And of course, you may think that this combination will not work, but the opposite is true. This is super delicious! 

The creamy slightly sweet cheese, the thick garlic butter, and the bun, flavors blend and make it super exciting, and delicious! And after several attempts, I found the perfect recipe! Let me share it with you quickly.

What do you need for this Creamy Garlic Bread?

For the preparation of Korean Garlic Bread, you need the following ingredients (the correct amounts can be found at the bottom of the blog in the recipe card):

• Yeast: This recipe uses one teaspoon of instant yeast. If you prefer to use fresh yeast, you require ¼ oz. If you use dry yeast, you also need 1 teaspoon. Note: with both fresh yeast and dry yeast, you must first dissolve the yeast in lukewarm water before adding it to your dough, so it already starts doing its job.
• Flour: Use all-purpose flour. You can also make the bread dough with whole wheat flour, bread flour, or spelt flour, but then the amount of water will have to be adjusted (you will probably need 4 to 5 tablespoons of extra water)
• Cream Cheese: Use natural cream cheese at room temperature so you can mix it well.

How to make this Korean bread with cheese and garlic butter

A recipe with extensive steps, the right amount of ingredients, and which you can also easily print can be found at the bottom of the blog.

1. Making Dough: Knead the dough until it is elastic and soft. Check the dough after 10 minutes because you don't want to under-knead or over-knead. You do that by pulling a fleece. Take a ball of dough and flatten it. Stretch the dough slightly, turn it in your hands a quarter turn and turn again. Then stretch the dough again and turn a little once more. Do this until a thin membrane (which you can see your fingers through) is formed (you cannot do this in one go) tears before you see a thin membrane, the dough is not done yet, and you knead it for another 2 minutes. After kneading the dough, let it rise. 
2. Making cream cheese mixture: While rising, make the cream cheese mixture and store it at room temperature until use. Then you can handle it better when piped into the bread. Place the cream cheese in a piping bag.
3. Forming bread: After rising, press the air out of the dough and divide into 6 equal pieces. Form them into buns. Let it rise again.
4. First baking round: Bake the bread for the first time (you will bake it twice in total). Egg wash the top of the bun. Then the buns will brown nicely.
5. Apply the filling: Let the buns cool down for a while (otherwise you'll burn your hands). Cut the bread into 8 equal slices (crosswise), but not all the way to the bottom. You can put the cream cheese in the cuts between the wedges. Make sure to use about half of the cream cheese.
6. Garlic butter: To ensure that the garlic butter is well absorbed by the bread, warm it, so the butter will melt and becomes liquid. Do this au Bain-Marie, which means that a bowl hangs over a pan of hot water. Warming the butter while stirring prevents the butter from burning and prevents the egg from scrambling. Use a small bowl for the garlic butter custard.
7. Dip, dip, dip: Dip the buns in the melted garlic butter. Make sure everything is well covered (a little twisting is really necessary). The melted garlic butter should be all over. Now fill the buns with the rest of the cream cheese filling.
8. Baking and filling: Sprinkle with salt (coarse sea salt is delicious) and bake the buns again until they are deliciously crispy.