Kouign-amann

Kouign-amann

A legendary Breton pastry from Douarnenez: a laminated yeasted dough folded with copious butter and sugar that caramelises into a shattering, sticky-sweet crust. Gloriously indulgent and best eaten warm the day it is baked.

Prep

45 min

Cook

35 min

Total

80 min

Serves

8

Difficulty

Hard

Recipe ingredients

• •250 g (8½ oz / ~2 cups) bread flour, strong (high-gluten) flour
• •160 ml (⅔ cup) lukewarm water, around 38 °C / 100 °F
• •5 g (1½ tsp) instant dry yeast, or 15 g fresh crumbled yeast
• •5 g (1 tsp) fine sea salt
• •15 g (1 tbsp) caster sugar, for the dough
• •180 g (6½ oz) unsalted butter, cold but pliable (about 15 °C / 60 °F); European-style 82 % fat is ideal
• •120 g (½ cup + 2 tbsp) caster sugar, fine granulated, for lamination and topping
• •10 g (2 tsp) softened butter, for greasing the tin
• •30 g (¼ cup) caster sugar, for coating the tin

Steps

1. 1 Make the dough: whisk yeast into the lukewarm water, then stir in flour, salt and 15 g sugar to a soft, slightly tacky dough. Knead 8–10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Shape into a disc, wrap and chill 1 hour (or up to overnight).
2. 2 Prepare the butter block: place the 180 g butter between two sheets of parchment and pound or roll into a roughly 15 × 15 cm (6 × 6 in) square. Chill until firm but not rock-hard, about 15 minutes.
3. 3 Roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface into a 20 × 20 cm (8 × 8 in) square. Place the butter square diagonally on top and fold the four corners of dough over the butter to enclose it completely. Press edges to seal.
4. 4 First turn: roll the package out into a 30 × 20 cm (12 × 8 in) rectangle, brush off excess flour, and sprinkle very lightly with about 1 tsp of the lamination sugar. Fold the short ends in to meet in the middle, then fold in half like a book (book fold). Wrap and chill 30 minutes.
5. 5 Second turn: roll out again to 30 × 20 cm, sprinkle with 1 tsp sugar, fold as before, wrap and chill 30 minutes.
6. 6 Third turn: repeat the roll, fold and chill once more, again with about 1 tsp sugar. After the third turn, wrap and chill 45 minutes to relax the gluten.
7. 7 Prepare the tin: brush a 22–24 cm (9 in) round cake tin (or a ring of eight muffin cups) generously with softened butter. Add the 30 g sugar for the tin to a small bowl and toss/dust the buttered tin so the bottom and sides are coated with a thin, even layer of sugar.
8. 8 Shape the pastry: roll the dough out to about 30 × 30 cm (12 × 12 in). Brush off flour, then sprinkle evenly with the remaining lamination sugar (about 100 g) and press it in lightly with the rolling pin so it sticks. Trim the edges square, then cut into 9 equal squares (or into 8 triangles if using a muffin tin).
9. 9 If using a round tin: gather the squares into a loose ball, then press flat with your hand into the sugared tin, letting the dough crack naturally; the cracks are what create the signature crisp ridges. If using a muffin tin: pinch the corners of each triangle into the centre, then press into the sugared cups.
10. 10 Cover loosely and proof at warm room temperature 45–60 minutes, until visibly puffy (the dough should just begin to dome between the cracks). Meanwhile, place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 220 °C / 425 °F (fan 200 °C / 400 °F).
11. 11 Bake 30–35 minutes: the top should be deeply golden brown and the bubbling sugar at the edges should smell of dark caramel. If the top browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil for the last 10 minutes.
12. 12 Rest in the tin 5 minutes (the caramel will be lava-hot - do not skip this), then turn out onto a wire rack so the sticky caramel does not stick to the tin. Eat warm the same day; kouign-amann does not store well.