Bui’s Breads

This pandemic has changed many of our best laid plans. Michelle Bui was supposed to be helping with her last Norman Music Festival before moving to Melbourne, Australia when the pandemic emerged. But when life handed us a pandemic, like many, Michelle Bui made bread. Unlike most of us, she did it so well she turned it into a business.

“I find baking bread extremely therapeutic. There’s something about the details and precision that really gets my brain going and encourages me to experiment with how the little changes can make such a big difference in the end,” says Bui. “A lot of my inspiration is to make it not just taste great, I want the bread to look beautiful or have its own character. That could mean swirling doughs together with different colors and flavors, braiding, or scoring a design into the dough before baking.”

Bui’s baking hobby started about four years ago when she intently learned about sourdough starters. She began baking for friends and family and then started selling her breads here and there in the fall of 2019. When COVID hit, she was uniquely positioned to turn her hobby into a true small business. She branded Bui’s Breads and has been selling direct to customers and expanding through the Paseo Farmer’s Market, Market at Commonplace, and Oklahoma Contemporary Café.

The Hokkaido milk bread is her most popular, followed by sweet potato rolls and soft sourdough pretzels. Bui’s milk breads are made with a roux called tangzhong, using bread flour, milk, and water.

“That’s what helps make the bread so soft and pillowy. I always try to use Marak’s milk to support local and because it’s so delicious. After kneading all of the ingredients together (milk, eggs, tangzhong, bread flour, sugar, dry milk powder, yeast, salt), you let it rise for an hour or so,” Bui explains. “You can make buns, but I like making loaves by rolling the dough into a spiral for an extra detail to the bread. After it rises again, I brush the top with an egg wash and pop it into the oven. After another half hour, a fresh loaf is ready.”

Bui’s Breads will continue to be available through the Spring of 2021. Michelle still plans on moving to Melbourne but doesn’t have a definite date yet. No matter what, she promises she’ll give plenty of notice for those who have become regulars in ordering Bui’s Breads.

> Bui’s Breads, instagram.com/buisbreads