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A few months ago, I had never even thought of making my own hamburger buns. Why would I do that when I can just go down to the grocery store and buy them for like $4? Cheap, easy, done.
Then, one Sunday, we wanted to grill hamburgers, but didn’t have any buns. Necessity being the mother of invention, or bun creation in this case, I made the bready delights myself.
I’ll tell you why it’s worth it to make your own hamburger buns. THEY ARE SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE ONES YOU BUY AT THE STORE. So. Much. Better. They’re really not hard to make, either. Is it as easy to make them as it is to get them at the grocery store? Certainly not, and I’m not saying that there is never a reason to just buy them. There is always room for shortcuts here.
However, homemade buns are one of those foods that are almost unrelated to their commercially produced counterparts. Make them once and you’ll be converted. Also, it’s a serious flex at your next neighborhood BBQ. Just sayin’. Look at these babies:
Shiny, buttery, sesame seed studded beauties. Now, onto the process!
This recipe is adapted from Joshua Weissman’s hot dog bun recipe linked here.
- proof the yeast. This just means heat your water and milk to between 90 and 95 degrees. I went a little over. It was fine. Wait 5-10 minutes for bubbles and foam to form. If nothing happens, your yeast is dead and you need new yeast.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the flour, salt, and sugar together until combined.
3. To the dry ingredients, add the whole egg. Separate an egg by cracking it into your hand over a bowl. let the white go through your fingers, while you keep the yolk. Add the yolk to the dry ingredients.
4. With the dough hook, mix on medium speed and add the milk/water/yeast mixture. Mix until combined,
5. One tablespoon at a time, add the butter until totally incorporated before the next addition. Knead until smooth.
Then let rise, covered, at room temperature for an hour. Then, Take the dough out of the bowl, and cut it into 10 equal pieces. I weigh mine for maximum uniformity (weigh the total dough in grams, then divide by 10, and weigh out each piece. Mine were 83 grams each), but you do you.
Next, you will shape each dough piece into a ball by pulling each side from the bottom to the top, until you get something like this picture:
Here is a video on how to shape the buns:
After the buns are all shaped, you place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, cover them and let them rise for about 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. Then add an egg wash (this makes the buns shiny and makes the sesame seeds stick), add sesame seeds and pop those bad boys in the oven set at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Check them at 15. Right after they come out of the oven, brush them with butter. This will make them soft.
Voila! You have made hamburger buns! These are also completely delicious for breakfast sandwiches. Impress your friends, and enjoy the scrumptious fruits of your labors.
Homemade Hamburger Buns
Ingredients
For the Buns
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 3 and 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 whole egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 3 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
For the Egg Wash
- 1 whole egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
For Final Butter Brush
- 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
Instructions
- Combine the water and milk in a microwave safe dish, and heat in the microwave in 20 second intervals until it reaches around 95 degrees (warm but not hot).
- Add the yeast and sugar and stir. Leave for 5-10 minutes at room temperature, or until the yeast looks puffy.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the bread flour and salt and mix until combined.
- Separate an egg, adding the yolk to the mixer bowl. Discard or save the white.
- Add an additional whole egg to the bowl.
- Add the milk, water, yeast and sugar mixture, and mix until combined.
- in 3 additions, add the softened butter. Mix until completely incorporated between each addition.
- Knead until smooth, just a couple of minutes.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 1 hour at room temperature, or until doubled in size.
- After the first rise, cut the dough into 10 equal pieces. Weigh each piece if you want them to be really even.
- Shape each piece into a ball (see video in post).
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 2 inches apart. Let the buns rise for 45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Mix an egg with 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl. With a pastry brush, brush the egg wash on top of each bun.
- After the egg wash, sprinkle sesame seeds on top of each hamburger bun.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, turning the tray halfway through.
- Right after they come out of the oven, brush the top of each bun with melted butter. This will make them soft and delicious.
- Let cool completely and enjoy!
