Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: So rich and tasty, with a tiny hint of sweetness.
Texture: Paradoxically light and fluffy AND rich, with a slightly crusty exterior.
Ease: This dough takes about 10 minutes to come together and is on the sticky side, but follow the recipe exactly, and you’ll be enjoying these fantastic buns in no time.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: These homemade Hamburger Buns are about 1,000 times better than any store-bought burger buns.
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I have had a longtime obsession with these Burger Buns. Be warned: once you make these, you’ll never want store-bought buns again!
They’re the perfect way to elevate your burger game. Your summer cookouts will never be the same.
These homemade Hamburger Buns feature a light brioche base, which makes them incredibly fluffy yet rich, and a little crusty on the outside. They’re soft yet sturdy enough to contain even the juiciest burger or any sandwich.
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Below, I’m sharing all my tips and tricks for how to make my homemade Hamburger Bun recipe, which will seriously wow anyone who comes to your next summer BBQ.
Get ready to enjoy the best burgers of your life!
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Homemade Burger Buns from Scratch
Which Yeast Is Best to Use For Burger Buns?
Instant yeast, also called rapid rise or quick rise yeast, helps these buns rise faster. It’s specifically formulated so you can skip proofing (the step where you combine the yeast with warm liquid and allow it to sit for a few minutes until it becomes bubbly) and simply add it in with all the other ingredients. You can buy my favorite yeast online.
Can I Use Active Dry Yeast Instead Of Instant Yeast?
Yes, you can swap instant yeast for active dry yeast at a 1:1 ratio. Active dry yeast will take about 20% longer to rise. Here’s how to slightly speed up that process:
- Combine the active dry yeast with the warm water and warm milk called for in the recipe and allow it to proof for 5 minutes, until frothy.
- Then add to the bowl with the other ingredients and proceed with the recipe as written.
Do I Have to Use Bread Flour? Can I Use Just All-Purpose Flour Instead?
For best results, I really recommend sticking with both bread and all-purpose flour as written.
Bread flour contains more protein than all-purpose flour, which helps develop the gluten in the dough. Gluten is the backbone of any bread’s structure and since we are adding ingredients that prohibit gluten development (butter, egg, sugar), this dough needs that additional protein to develop its structure and prevent them from falling flat.
When testing this recipe, I found that making the buns with all bread flour resulted in buns that were too tall and stiff. A little all-purpose flour balances this out.
Can I Use Whole Wheat Flour For These Burger Buns?
Check out my Whole Wheat Burger Buns recipe, where I’ve made the adjustments so you don’t have to!
Why is There Sugar in the Dough?
These buns contain just a little sugar, bringing some moisture to the buns and helping with browning, without making them too sweet. Please don’t skip the sugar. Learn why sugar is so important in baking here.
The Eggs
You’ll need two large eggs (not medium or XL – about 56 grams in shell), at room temperature. One goes in the dough and the other is for the egg wash, to aid in browning while baking. The egg (along with the milk and butter) helps enrich the dough to make the buns rich, tender, and soft.
Topping for Hamburger Buns
I love to top these buns with sesame seeds. You can also use poppy seeds, everything bagel seasoning, or leave them plain, if preferred.
Can I Knead This Dough By Hand Without A Mixer?
Yes, but it’ll require some elbow grease and patience. Many readers have successfully kneaded by hand, but this dough is on the sticky side and requires a lot of kneading to develop that gluten. If you’ve got a mixer, it’s worth lugging out of the cabinet. If you don’t have a stand mixer, check out my How to Knead Dough article here.
How To Make Fluffy Buns
- Avoid adding too much extra flour to the dough. Since this dough is enriched and takes quite a while to come together, it’ll look really wet and sticky. Your instinct might be to add extra flour; however, any extra flour will create a denser, tougher bun instead of the light, fluffy, brioche-style bun we want.
- It’s better to be sticky than dense. The sticky factor will continue to lessen as the dough is kneaded and especially as it rises. If the dough doesn’t seem like it’s coming together at all, let it rest for about 10 minutes before continuing to knead, to allow the gluten to relax.
How to Tell When Dough Has Properly Risen
- After kneading, shape the dough into a ball. Place in a lightly oiled mixing bowl. I like to use a glass bowl, so I can see how much it’s rising. I’ll even snap a picture of the dough before rising, so I can compare it later.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free location. Near a sunny window, warm oven, or laundry dryer (away from scented dryer sheets) are great options. Ideal rise temperatures are between 80°F and 90°F. Lower temperatures will require more rising time.
- The dough is done rising when it’s about doubled in size and passes the “ripe” test. Gently stick two fingers in the risen dough up to the second knuckle and then take them out. If the finger marks remain, the dough is ready for shaping into balls. If not, cover and let the dough rise longer until it is.
- The same finger test can be done again after the second rise, when the rolls are shaped and getting ready for baking.
Here’s what my dough looked like before and after the first and second rises:
How To Tell If You Have Over-Proofed Your Hamburger Buns
This can happen easily if your kitchen is very hot, or if you’re busy and forget to check on the buns. If your buns have over-proofed, they will likely deflate while egg washing, or look flattened once baking. Over-proofed buns will look a little sad, but they should still taste fine.
How to Shape Burger Buns
Properly shaping Burger Buns means the difference between sad, flat buns and beautifully round, tall ones that look professional. Just take a look at how this recipe looks when properly shaped vs. improperly shaped:
- Deflate the dough. Once the dough is risen, press it down to deflate it slightly.
- Place on work surface. Place the dough onto a clean surface (not a floured surface).
- Divide the dough. Use a bench scraper to section the dough into 8 equal pieces. Feel free to eyeball it, but if you’re a perfectionist like me, weigh the entire mass of dough, divide that number by 8, then portion each piece perfectly by weight.
- Shape into rounds. As you’re shaping each piece into a round, make sure to tug on pieces of dough to bring towards a central point. Pinch those pieces together to create a very tight, taught ball of dough. Roll the ball on your work surface to even it out. This will help the buns rise beautifully.
- Don’t flour the work surface. Don’t flour your work surface when shaping the buns because you want some resistance to roll them into taut balls.
- Tip if the dough is too sticky to handle easily: Very lightly oil, dampen, or flour your hands – just enough that you can handle the dough without it sticking to your hands.
Can This Recipe Be Made Into Sliders?
Yes! Simply divide the dough into 15 and place in a 9 by 13-inch metal pan. Bake at 400°F for 15-20 minutes, rotating halfway through baking, until the tops are golden brown.
How to Make Burger Buns Ahead Of Time
Most yeasted doughs can be made ahead of time. I recommend preparing the buns through the first rise, dividing and shaping the rolls, letting them rise for about 20 minutes, then covering them well with plastic wrap and refrigerating for up to 24 hours.
Chilling the dough like this stunts the rising, preventing the dough from rising further. Remove from the fridge and allow to sit at room temperature for at least another hour. If the buns haven’t doubled in size yet, continue to leave the buns at room temperature until doubled, before baking as the recipe directs.
To make these Hamburger Buns further in advance, freeze the unbaked rolls after their first rise and shaping. Place the rolls in a baking pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Loosen the plastic wrap and thaw to room temperature. Let rise until an indentation made with your finger into the dough remains before proceeding with the recipe as written.
How to Store Burger Buns
Store baked, cooled Burger Buns inside an airtight container for up to two days at room temperature.
How to Freeze Hamburger Buns
Store baked, completely-cooled buns inside an airtight container in the freezer for up to two months. Let defrost at room temperature or in the microwave before toasting the buns in your toaster or on your griddle or grill.
More Recipes You’ll Love:
Burger Buns
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Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (44 grams) warm whole milk, between 105° and 120°F
- 1 cup (237 grams) warm water, between 105° and 120°F
- 2 ¼ teaspoons (1 packet, 8 grams)
instant yeast 1 - 2 ½ tablespoons (31 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature, slighten beaten
- 3 cups (382 grams) – 3 cups + 3 tablespoons (406 grams) bread flour, approximately2 (do not substitute this)
- ⅓ cup (43 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine salt
- 3 tablespoons (43 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
For topping:
- 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water
- Sesame seeds, optional
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the milk, water, yeast1, sugar, and egg.
- Add the flour to the bowl, and mix until incorporated. Mix in the salt and butter. Knead on medium-low speed for about 10 minutes, or until the dough comes together into a soft yet tacky dough (should not be unbearably sticky). Avoid adding too much extra flour because it will create tough buns; however, depending on climate and humidity, you may need to add up to an additional 3 tablespoons (24 grams) of flour. It’s better to be sticky than dense, I promise!
- Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours3.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper4. Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Gently roll each portion of dough into a ball and place four to a baking sheet, 2 to 3 inches apart. If your dough is unbearably sticky, lightly grease your hands with cooking spray or lightly dust the tops of each dough ball with flour before rolling. Cover with a clean towel and let rise again until puffy and almost doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Brush the tops of the buns lightly with the egg wash. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake the buns about 15 minutes, rotating halfway through baking, until the tops are golden brown. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
- Serve or store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to one month. Let defrost at room temperature before reheating in a 350°F oven until warmed or toasting.
Recipe Notes
This recipe was originally published in 2015 and updated in 2023 with new photos and recipe improvements. Photos by Joanie Simon.
Brilliant, have been making this recipe for a couple of years. Will never be buying burger buns again.
Take care when adding the water it can turn out a little wet.
I made this recipe and the whole wheat version today and I wish I could return the buns I bought at the store recently. It is true, you will not want store bought buns after you make these. The white version dough remained very sticky so I kneaded it maybe closer to 15 minutes. I should have reread where it states to let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Resisting adding more flour, I slicked up my hands and got the dough in the bowl to rise, which for me was a little more than an hour. Both recipes turned out great. I’m learning more about finger testing my dough during each rise to see when the dough is ready. My husband loves these! With both recipes, I made 8 hamburger buns and 8 hot dog buns with the hot dog weenie being cooked inside the dough. When I shape hot dog buns again, this recipe could easily make 10 or more as the hot dog doesn’t need as much dough. Would love to see a recipe with sprouted wheat flour or be taught how to convert. I know I can go other places, but I trust Handle The Heat the most when it comes to baking. Thank you!
So thrilled that you enjoyed these buns so much, Joann!!
Hi Tessa, thank you for your recipes. I will like to know if bread flour is the same as white flour. I’m in Nigeria and most of the grains in the stores are usually labelled as “whole wheat, unbleached all purpose flour, white flour” and thd gluten free alternatives. I’m yet to come across “bread flour” even at the high end stores.
Please advice
Hi Yvonne! I’m not sure if white flour in Nigeria is bread flour, that’s typically all-purpose flour in the U.S., which we don’t recommend for this recipe. I’m guessing that white flour is bleached all-purpose flour. Are you able to purchase bread flour online?
Amazing recipe. I will never buy store bought again. I only had skim milk so substituted with whipping cream, and no bread flour so I used AP flour but added wheat gluten.
Still turned out amazing.
I will pick up bread flour for the next time.
5 stars, hands down!!
So happy you loved this recipe!
What if you don’t have milk? Substitutes?
We don’t bake with substitutes, so I can’t say for sure!
These were the best burger buns. (no more grocery store for me) Nice and soft but sturdy. I was concerned since they were so soft that the buns would fall apart but that was not the case. Please do watch Tessa’s tutorial on this burger buns recipe, I think it had very helpful information. Thank you again, Tessa!
Wonderful! So happy you loved this recipe, thanks for the rave review! 🙂
This bread mixture is way too wet. I’ll cut down on the water next time but it was way too sticky to even work with.
They turned out! Not quite as evenly dark as yours, but just as light and fluffy and pillowy soft. I was worried, as the dough never really seemed to “come together.” The beautiful lump that I started kneading (in my Kitchen Aid mixer), quickly turned soft – almost like batter. I tried the 10-minute rest and more kneading. I eventually added another 3 to 4 tablespoons of flour (my altitude should handle it, I hoped), and increased the speed a notch.
We did not have instant yeast on hand, so I started the dry yeast with water and sugar for 5 minutes. I used the King Arthur altitude tips of reducing the yeast and making a “sponge” of the yeast, milk, balance of the water, and 127 grams of bread flour, letting it “work” for a few hours in the refrigerator. Then I mixed egg and sugar, added the sponge, and continued with the rest of the flour, and finally the salt and the butter. My butter may not have come fully to room temperature.
Finally, though – I didn’t give up! – the dough began to show some “windowpaning” in the bowl. I started tearing off pieces – there was no way that dough was going to let me cut it into 8ths – and rolling into (uneven) rounds for the final rise. Some egg wash and sesame seeds, a slightly warmer oven (405°), and 12 minutes later a gorgeous set of burger buns. (Photos are on instagram @doulosg.)
Thanks for a great recipe!
Yay! I’m glad they still turned out well for you! They looked absolutely delicious on IG, I’m so happy you enjoyed them 🙂
I have made these 3 times and the last time I made 32 for a gathering. Unbelievable. Fantastic. I tried forming into a loaf and also amazing. After forming into a ball I flattened them a little. Gorgeous. Thank you
Amazing!! I’m so thrilled to hear this, Vivian 🙂
Thank you for posting this great recipe for hamburger buns. The recipe was easy to follow and the video on “how to” was great to watch prior to baking. You do a great job of explaining your recipes. I will say that a “store bought” hamburger bun will never grace my home again!
Great recipe! Great explanation too. I made some buns last night and it came out beautiful soft and better than store bought.. Thank you so much and may God bless you
The best recipe ever. Can you make a loaf of bread with this recipe?
Hi Joni, I’m so glad you love these burger buns! I haven’t tried baking these into a loaf, and I’m not sure that would turn out. You can check out my Ultimate Simple Dough recipe, which includes instructions for how to make a loaf of sandwich bread: https://handletheheat.com/ultimate-simple-dough-recipe/
Thank you. I have used your Hamburger bun recipe and nothing compares. I will check out the ultimate dough recipe. Does that make a soft loaf. So many bread recipes for bread are heavy and not light that’s why I thought about the hamburger bun recipe but, I will check this out.
It does make a soft loaf! I hope you give it a try!