Fluffy Hamburger Buns
Don’t ever buy hamburger buns from the store again. Use this recipe for quick, easy, delicious hamburger buns for your next cook out!
I’m going to be real with you here… the hamburger buns you buy at the store in the bread section are simply not good for you. No, not because it’s bread. But because the ingredients are far less than ideal and there’s an abundance of them. I’ll list ingredients from a very well-known brand (I’ll leave them unnamed but trust me, pick up almost any pack and the ingredients will look VERY similar) to prove my point. Then below I’ll list the ingredients for my fluffy hamburger buns!
POPULAR BRAND: Enriched Wheat Flour, Flour [Malted Barley Flour, Reduced Iron, Niacin, Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Folic Acid], Water, Sugar, Yeast, Vegetable Oil [Soybean, Sunflower And/Or, Canola], Salt, Wheat Gluten, Preservatives [Calcium Propionate, Sorbic Acid], Grain Vinegar, Datem, Monoglycerides, Corn Flour, Cellulose Gum, Vegetable Protein [Pea And/Or, Potato And/Or, Fava Bean], Maltodextrin, Spice & Coloring, Dextrose, Citric Acid, Monocalcium Phosphate, Cornstarch, Soy Lecithin, Sesame Seeds.
*crickets* Now that you’ve been able to pick up your jaw off the floor, you don’t have to worry because I’ve got you covered! You only need 2 hours of prep time (only 20 minutes of which you actually need to be doing something) and 15-17 minutes of baking time. I know, I know, you’re welcome.
MINE: Organic Unbleached Flour, Organic Yeast, Mineral Sea Salt, Organic Raw Honey, A2 Whole Milk, Sourdough Discard*, Grass-fed Butter, Organic Pasture Raised Eggs
Tips for baking these hamburger buns:
– Always follow the recipe exactly how it is written. When it comes to bread, it is very finicky so just changing one or two ingredients or skipping steps can give you a completely different result.
– Do NOT overproof or underproof your dough. Ask me how I know. Look, I know life gets busy and time flies by when you’re having fun.. but trust me, set the oven timer or your phone timer. If the dough over-proofs or under-proofs, the end result will be dense and gummy.
How to make these fluffy hamburger buns step-by-step:
In a large bowl add the warm milk, sugar, yeast, and flour.
In a separate smaller bowl mix sourdough discard, softened butter, egg, and salt.
Add the sourdough mixture with the flour mixture and mix until dough comes together.
Knead by hand for 10–12 minutes. The dough should be smooth, slightly tacky but not sticky.
Drizzle some mild flavored oil (like avocado) in the bowl and place the dough in it and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1–2 hours.
Divide into 12 equal pieces. Shape the dough into a ball until it is tight and smooth (refer to notes for a detailed way on how I shape the buns if you can’t seem to get them smooth.) Place on a baking sheet spaced an inch or two apart. Cover loosely and let rise another 30–45 minutes until puffy.
Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Brush tops with egg wash and sprinkle with optional toppings like sesame seeds. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Fluffy Hamburger Buns
Ingredients
Method
- In a large bowl add the warm milk, sugar, yeast (Let sit for 5 min if using active dry yeast – no need to proof instant yeast) and flour.
- In a smaller separate bowl mix sourdough discard, softened butter, egg, and salt. Add the sourdough mixture to the flour mixture and mix until dough comes together.
- Knead by hand for 10–12 minutes. The dough should be smooth, slightly tacky but not sticky. Add 1 tbsp flour if the dough is not manageable.
- Drizzle some mild flavored oil (like avocado) in the bowl and place the dough in it and cover. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1–2 hours.
- Divide into 12 equal pieces. Shape the dough into a ball until it is tight and smooth (refer to notes for a detailed way on how I shape the buns if you can’t seem to get them smooth.) Place on a baking sheet spaced an inch or two apart. Cover loosely and let rise another 30–45 minutes until puffy.
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Brush tops with egg wash (1 tbsp milk and 1 egg) and sprinkle with optional toppings like sesame seeds. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown
Notes
- You can use all-purpose flour or bread flour. The difference between the two is bread flour gives you an open, airy crumb. While all-purpose gives you more of a tight, structured crumb. Either way, it will be delicious. However, if you do decide to use bread flour rather than all-purpose, I recommend to reduce the amount of flour by 25g (or 3 tbsp). You could also try half AP and half bread!
- If measuring in grams, different yeast brands come in different measurements. Red Star Organic is 9 grams but Fleischmann’s is less, around 7 grams. It doesn’t matter as far as the recipe goes but just something to know! If using instant yeast, there is no need to proof the yeast. However, if using active dry yeast, it will need to be proofed like I mentioned in step 1.
- Please, please, please consider using Redmond Real Salt or Celtic Sea Salt. There are greater benefits to using true mineral sea salt vs regular kosher or table salt.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!If you loved this recipe for Fluffy Hamburger Buns make sure to check out my Pepperoni Pizza Rolls and my Parmesan Garlic Knots
