If you like Japanese baked manju but want to make many servings at once, try this easy local Hawaii style pan manju recipe. You can substitute any filling you like. Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links.

Welcome back to Manju Madness here at Mochi Mommy. Continuing our series of manju recipes, today I have for you PAN MANJU.

What is Manju?

If you’re new here, manju is a Japanese wagashi (confection) that originally came from China. It consists of some sort of carb-y shell stuffed with a sweet filling. If you’ve had dim sum, you’ve probably had a modern version of Chinese manju.

In Japan, manju is commonly made with wheat flour for the outer shell, although you can find variations with rice flour, nut flour, and more. It is also commonly steamed (mushi manju) but can be baked (yaki manju) as in this recipe.

What is Pan Manju?

Japanese immigrants to Hawaii developed some of their own fusion-y recipes, one of which is this pan manju. Instead of stuffing individual pieces of dough with filling and baking them like little hand pie spheres, they made a giant slab manju in one pan. Then you can cut it up into many many servings! It’s super easy and great for bringing to a party or potluck. It’s very American in that you have giant servings, whereas Japanese recipes usually make only 5 or 6 at a time, especially given that many Japanese homes do not have large ovens.

Being Japanese-American myself, naturally I LOVE the idea of pan manju! I took the manju recipes from my beloved Japanese church cookbook and after many rounds of recipe testing, adapted them to the manju recipes you see on the blog today, including this one pan version.

Tips and Tricks for Baking Manju

#1 Flatten out dough before putting in the pan

The way pan manju works is that you layer your manju crust in the baking pan, then add the filling, then add the second crust layer on top. One way to make this much easier is to flatten out the top layer of crust into a 9×13″ rectangle BEFORE you put it on top of your filling. You can use a large sheet of plastic wrap to do this. Sandwich the dough between the plastic wrap and roll or flatten it out. Then transfer it to your baking pan!

#2 Use a very dry filling

The most common filling for manju is probably red bean paste, but you can use any sweet filling you like that has a similar texture. In these photos, I’m using mashed Okinawan sweet potato. The key is to use a filling that’s fairly dry, otherwise your crust will get soggy while baking.

#3 You can halve the recipe!

Okay, so maybe you don’t need a 9×13″ slab of manju? That makes almost 50 servings? No problem! Halve this recipe and bake in a 9×9″ square pan instead.

More Local Recipes

Looking for more of your favorite local Hawaii versions of Asian food? Check out these recipes:

pan manju four slices cross section on cutting board
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Pan Manju (Hawaii Style Japanese Baked Pastry)

Mochi Mommy
Make Japanese baked manju in one pan in this easy local Hawaii style recipe. Use any filling you like – red bean paste, Okinawan sweet potato, or more.
Servings: 1 9×13″ pan (about 40-50 pieces)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
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Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb room temperature unsalted butter (454 g), 4 sticks
  • 2 cups sugar (200 g)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup evaporated milk (180 mL), see notes
  • 5 cups all purpose flour (625 g)
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3 cups filling of choice (around 330 g), see notes

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease and line a 9×13" metal baking pan.
  • In a large mixing bowl, add butter, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Cream with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
  • Add evaporated milk and flour. Mix until a dough forms.
  • Split dough into two halves. Press half the dough into your prepared baking pan so it covers the entire bottom of the pan.
  • Add filling on top of dough and gently spread with your hands.
  • On a large piece of plastic wrap, flatten out the remaining half of the dough into roughly a 9×13" rectangle. Transfer the flattened dough to your baking pan on top of your filling.
  • Brush the top with the beaten egg (you may not need the entire amount) and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Let manju cool before slicing into rectangles. Leftovers keep in an airtight container in the fridge for several days.

Notes

  • This recipe can be halved for a 9×9″ metal baking pan.
  • You can substitute whole milk for the evaporated milk if you’d like. You can also substitute sweetened condensed milk for a more crumbly crust (similar to pie crust) and a deeper brown color.
  • The most common filling is probably red bean paste, which you can make from scratch or buy premade. You can also use mashed Okinawan sweet potato. If you use another filling, make sure it is fairly dry otherwise your crust will get soggy.
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