The Best Homemade Burger Buns are easy to make, delicious alone, will elevate any burger you put on them, and hold up to the fattest sandwiches!
Burger Gatherings
Picture it, a huge family gathering, a table spread of burgers, sides, toppings and Buns!
Everyone gets a plate, starts piling lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, squirts of ketchup onto the burger sitting on top of a bun.
- Juices from those perfectly cooked burgers begin to ooze out of the meat, or portobello mushroom burger.
- Throw some cheese on top, close that baby up and head to a seat
- Get ready for your first yummy bite… the bun gives up!
The heat, the juices, the melted cheese were all to much for that wimpy, ‘after-thought’ bun you picked up from the grocery store.
Wow, talk about a deflatable burger moment!
The Best Homemade Burger Bun
Picture this instead, that same huge family gathering.
- Grilled meat, seafood or veggie burgers piled high on top of heated platters.
- Everyone gets a plate, places one of your Homemade Burger Buns open on the plate.
- Lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, squirts of mustard and horseradish begin to mound on top the burger of their choice.
- Go ahead, throw some cheese on there too, so it can melt while the burger is still warm.
- The Burger Bun says, “Is that all ya got, gimme some more, I got this”!
That burger sits proud on the plate, the guests take their first bite, “OMGosh, where did you get these buns”?
The family is now asking about the most delicious bite of bread they’ve ever had. Who cares what’s in the middle! That’s, what I’m talking about!
It’s All About The Bun
In my home, it all starts with a great Bun! Burgers, for us, are not just a summertime meal. Burgers are not always meat.
Burgers are simply a ground patty of something delicious to put between two slices of the most amazing bread, often making the bun the star and not what goes inside.
Even when making 2-bite Slider Burger, something I love to serve on appetizer platters, need stamina for a pick-up-and-bite.
Burger Gatherings in my home, have changed over the years; beef or lamb burgers for some, salmon or shrimp patties for others, while some want a veggie burger that reminds me more of falafel!
Two things all of these burgers have in common? Ground something or other, and the desire for a Fabulous Bun!
One challenge every burger has in common? Nobody likes a soggy bun!
Moist Burgers Firm Buns
A perfectly cooked juicy burger of ground meat, any meat, always poses the problem of making the bun soggy after the first bite.
In my home, a meat burger is most often lamb, because I grew up on Kofta Kabobs with loads of flavor, spices and herbs.
The key challenge is not to dry out the meat during cooking, savoring all the natural juices of the meat.
That first bite tells it all; flavors are there, juiciness was retained, but the next concern becomes the bun.
Buns Are Bread!
These homemade burger buns hold up to quite a lot of expectations, mostly because the dough has substance as well as great flavor on its own.
While soft and fluffy may be the texture you’re after for a loaf of bread, it’s not what you want for a burger.
It just won’t hold up, which is why Homemade Bread is also a big deal in my home!
Which is why I made an entire Spring Inspired Valentine Dinner theme at home, around these fabulous burger buns, fireside, in the dead of winter, because burgers are for winter too!
American Burgers and Their Buns
A few years ago, I married a snob of a European, who used to turn his nose up to the American Burger. I surely fixed that!
Hubby used to tell me that when he first came to America everything was so oversized, especially the burger.
I asked, “Is more of a good thing a problem for you”?
His answer surprised me,“The burger buns here look airy and fluffy but as soon as you take a bite, the soggy bread sticks to the roof of the mouth and ruins the rest of the burger.”
He had a point. It was then, that I decided I was going to make the most amazing burger bun and make him eat his words, along with my fabulous burger!
I did, he did, and now he loves American burgers, well at least my homemade burger bun, American burgers!
Burger Buns Make The Perfect Sandwich Bread
Burgers ain’t the only show in town! Personally, I am more of a sandwich kinda gal.
I love a great homemade pesto schmeared on a homemade sandwich bread, slices of avocado, micro-greens, tomatoes, lots of pepper and salt.
My homemade burger buns are the perfect bread for a spectacular sandwich, which of course also inspired me to make the perfect Whole Grain Sandwich Bread!
Packing lunches to-go, for your loved ones, is one of the best opportunities to show off your homemade burger buns.
PB&J On Buns
The buns will hold up in their lunch bag without getting soggy, taste totally amazing even if the sandwich is just an ole nut butter and jelly, plus that first bite will remind them of home.
Speaking of ole nut butter and jelly… not in my home! I have the fastest (7-minutes), recipe for Homemade Almond Butter.
Also, several easy jam recipes (Orange Marmalade or Strawberry Jam with a kick of chili and thyme), to spoil your family with!
Burger Bun Variations
While my recipe is full-proof, easy to assemble, and rises quickly, sometimes I like to spruce it up a bit.
At times, depending on what I’m serving with them, I will add fresh herbs, or some grated cheese to the dough.
Once egg wash has been brushed across the top of the burger bun, before baking, sprinkle coarse salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or even hemp seeds across the top.
Take this little heart-felt piece of advice from this old grandma, ‘the quickest way to loved one’s hearts, is through a batch of homemade bread’.
So why not make buns too, while your at it!
Let’s Talk Burger Bun Flour
Afterall, the primary ingredient in burger buns is flour, so let’s pump that flour up to take on the task of making your burgers proud!
First of all, I find that by adding just a little flour that is not so highly processed, gives more texture and substance.
As for the bulk of the flour we will use, it must be Bread Flour.
Bread flour is milled from a hard spring wheat, which has a higher protein content than the winter wheat used in all-purpose flour.
Because we are looking for a bread bun that is expected to hold up to juicy meats, veggies and melted cheese, without disintegrating, I use a gluten flour.
Having little experience with gluten-free flour in bread making, other than the tapioca flour I use to make my Pao de Queijo, I don’t know how it holds up to a juicy burger.
Ingredients Needed
- Yeast
- Sugar
- Water
- Milk
- Egg
- Barley flour or rye flour – just a little to create texture, giving your buns muscles to hold up juicy burgers.
- Bread flour
- Salt
- Butter
- Egg wash – an egg with water
Equipment Needed
- Mixing bowl – I have found that bread dough rises better in a bowl made of clay or ceramic, not sure why but it just does, so here is my favorite pick!
- Wooden spoon
- Measuring cup
- Measuring spoons
- Cookie Sheet
- Parchment paper
- Basting brush
- Oven
Best Homemade Burger Buns
Equipment
- 2 Cookie sheets
- Parchment paper
- Large mixing bowl preferably clay
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Quick Yeast
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1/4 cup Water tepid warm
- 1 1/2 cups Whole Milk room temperature
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/2 cup Rye or Barley flour
- 2 1/2 cups Bread flour more for dusting
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 3 tbsp Butter melted, cooled
- Egg Wash
- 1 Egg mixed with 1 teaspoon water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, place the yeast, sugar and water into the bowl and let sit 5 minutes to form a foam.
- Add milk, egg, barley or rye flour and salt. Mix. Add melted butter, taking care that the butter is not hot. Slowly add a little flour at a time, mixing well. When dough becomes too difficult to work with a spoon, it’s time to get a little messy and use your hands. Work as much flour into the dough until it is no longer sticky.
- Oil a clean bowl. Place the dough inside and cover to keep warmth inside and draft out. Let it rise for 60 to 90 minutes in a warm (not hot), place.
- Preheat oven to 400. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
- On a floured surface, roll dough out into a log. Cut desired sizes for the buns.
- Lightly flour and shape each bun and place on prepared baking sheets, taking care to leave space between each.
- Brush egg wash on top of the buns. Sprinkle toppings as desired (coarse salt, sesame seeds etc.). Leave to sit another 30 minutes while oven warms to 400. Pop in the oven and bake for about 18 minutes or until firm and golden. Serve or store airtight for up to 5 days.
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I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.
