• Turn the oven on to its lowest setting- mine goes as low as 170 F. Let it preheat, then turn it off. This will be the place where you let your dough rise. If it is too hot, leave the door open.
• Warm the water in the microwave oven for one minute. Ensure the water is warm and not boiling, as it will kill the yeast.
• Put the bread flour, sugar, salt, and instant yeast in a large mixing bowl. Use a wire whisk or turn your hook on to slow. When the ingredients are incorporated, slowly add the warm water and mix on medium-high until for three minutes. Set the electric mixer setting to fourth setting. Please refer to the photo above.
• Add the softened butter and knead the dough for 14 minutes until smooth and elastic. Set your stand mixer to high speed. This is the sixth setting.
• Then, do the window test. Pull a small amount of the dough and see if it will now break when pulled as shown above. If it breaks, add two more minutes of kneading.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and form it into a ball. Spray the mixing bowl with nonstick spray and put the dough back in it. Spray your plastic wrap with nonstick spray and cover. Let the dough rise in a warm place. In this case, I put it in the warm oven.

First Rise

• Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a the plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise warmly for about 45 minutes to an hour.

Shape the Dough

• Once the dough has risen, punch it to release the air and shape it again into a ball and let it rise in a warm place for thirty more minutes. Test the dough it it is risen enough, by dusting your finger with bread flour. Poke the dough in the middles. If the dough springs back, it need to rise more.
• Weight the dough and divide the dough into four equal portions. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for ten minutes.
• Dustt rolling pin with flour and flatten each dough to one centimeter thick and fold each side. Roll the dough and seal.
• Place the two logs in a greased Shokupan Pan. Ensure that the direction of the shaped dough is similar to the photo above. Please put it in the pan in the same direction with the sealed side down.

Second Rise

• Cover the loaf pan with plastic wrap and let the dough rise again in a warm place until it has risen just above the rim of the pan. Because I live in a cold area, the dough rose for three hours. It might be longer or shorter in your case. I let it rise near my window.
• You can cover the dough with the lid, or you can leave it open.

Bake

• Put the oven rack to the middled. Preheat the oven to 400 °F. Please refer to the above for instructions on how to set your pan in the oven. Bake the bread for thirty-five minutes until the top is golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and let it cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Then, transfer the bread to a wire rack to cool completely. Brush the top of the uncovered loaf with melted butter. Let it cool completely. You can let it cool overnight or for five hours before serving.