What happens when you have plenty of time at home to experiment with the power of tiny yeast fungi feasting on sugar and starch to create pockets of air in dough? In this case, the happy result of this type of boredom is these Sourdough Hamburger Buns.
The sourdough craze happening right now is unreal! I think the current crisis has made us all lean a little harder into our somewhat suppressed human need to be self-sufficient.
I’m finding myself fascinated with doing things the long way, the old fashioned way… there’s something a little more satisfying and romantic about it all. Maybe you are too?
The idea of being able to make these beautiful Sourdough Hamburger Buns any day of the week with pantry staples is so wonderful to me. They definitely brought our weekly burger night to the next level!
They do require a lot of time, but most of it is just letting the dough do its thing while it sits on the counter. There’s really very little hands-on time here.
This Sourdough Hamburger Bun recipe does contain both active, bubbly sourdough starter and a small amount of active dry yeast. This allows you to make them the same day that you start the dough.
I’ve included a possible timeline at the end of this post for making the buns in order to have them ready for dinner. If you are interested in keeping a sourdough starter (it is a little like keeping a pet), King Arthur Flour is a wonderful resource.
You may have success making your own sourdough starter from flour and water, but it is easier to start your own from the discard of a friend who has an established starter. It can even be dehydrated and sent by mail!
The boys and I have been making all things sourdough, including waffles, pizza, pretzels, and cinnamon rolls. The Clever Carrot has been such a great resource for us. All of Emilie’s recipes have turned out perfectly.
It’s so fun for the boys to watch the sourdough starter bubble up and learn the science behind it. It definitely counts as school around here!
This Sourdough Hamburger Bun recipe is adapted from my Butterhorn Rolls recipe. It is an enriched dough, meaning that it has milk, eggs, and butter. The glossy top comes from brushing an egg whisked with water over the surface of the risen bun just before baking.
I used my KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook attachment to mix and knead the dough. It can also be done by hand but will take longer.
It is also very helpful to have a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients (especially the starter and flour) precisely. I also love using a bench scraper for portioning out the dough and for cleaning up my work surface.
I think the most difficult part of baking with sourdough is just being patient enough. You can’t rush the rise! If you try to bake your buns before they are ready, you’ll get a heavy, dense bun.
The more you experiment and practice, the more you’ll be able to rely on the feel of the dough and your intuition to know when it’s ready for the next step.
Possible Timeline
7am (or night before) – feed sourdough starter
10:30am – Mix dough together.
11:00am – Dough rests.
11:30am – Knead dough.
11:45am – Bulk rise.
2:15pm – Shape buns.
2:30pm – Buns rise.
3:45pm – Brush egg wash on buns and preheat oven.
4:00pm – Bake for 20 minutes.
4:20pm – Cool, then slice.
5pm – Grill those burgers, these buns are ready!
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #lovelylittlekitchen
Can't get enough?
Subscribe and I'll send all my recipes right to your inbox! You can also keep up to date by following me on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.
Print
Sourdough Hamburger Buns
- Prep Time: 5 hours
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 5 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 buns 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
These fluffy, golden Sourdough Hamburger Buns will bring your burger night to the next level! Start the dough in the morning, and buns are ready by dinner.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup (60 grams) bubbly, active sourdough starter
- 1 cup (240 grams) whole milk, warm
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon (2.85 grams) active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon (6 grams) salt
- 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
- 3 1/2 cups (430 grams) all-purpose flour, divided
- 3 tablespoons (42 grams) butter, soft
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash
- 2 teaspoons (6 grams) sesame seeds
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, mix sourdough starter, milk, 1 egg, yeast, salt, sugar and 300 grams of flour on medium speed until a loose, shaggy dough is formed. Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let rest in the bowl for 30 minutes.
- With the dough hook, knead the dough for 7-8 minutes, gradually adding an additional 130 grams (or more) flour and 3 tablespoons of softened butter in small cubes. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky, but pulling away from the edges of the bowl as it kneads.
- Pour the dough, scraping the bowl to release, onto a floured work surface. Clean the bowl, then grease, and place the dough back into the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp towel and place it in a warm, draft free place. I like to keep it in the oven with the light on, but the heat off.
- After 2-3 hours, the dough should double in size. Remove it from the bowl and place it on a floured work surface. Divide the dough into eight equal portions (about 100 grams each). To shape the dough into buns, pull the edges of the dough balls into the center, then cup your hand around the dough and roll into a tight ball (see video). Place the shaped buns onto a parchment lined baking sheet a good inch apart. Cover with a plastic wrap sprayed with nonstick spray (damp towel may stick), and let the buns rise.
- After about 1 hour and 15 minutes, the buns should be doubled in size and touching each other on the baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Whisk 1 tablespoon of water and one egg in a small bowl, and brush onto the surface of the risen buns. Sprinkle each bun with sesame seeds.
- Bake the buns at 375 degrees for 20-22 minutes or until deep golden brown. The internal temperature should be about 190 degrees. Allow to cool a bit, then transfer to a cooling rack. Wait about 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Bun
- Calories: 301
- Sugar: 4.9g
- Sodium: 331mg
- Fat: 7.4g
- Saturated Fat: 3.8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.8g
- Trans Fat: 0.2g
- Carbohydrates: 49g
- Fiber: 1.9g
- Protein: 8.9g
- Cholesterol: 61mg
:D says
Can instant yeast be used in place of active dry yeast?
Hillary says
I made these today and was so excited about them. I followed the recipe to a T, even weighing my measurements. Unfortunately the recipe said to put a damp kitchen towel over the buns for the second rise and that completely ruined the recipe for me. The towel stuck to the buns causing them to completely deflate while sticking to the towel. Such a mess and a frustrating waste of time since they take all day. I’m sure these would’ve turned out great had I covered them with a dry towel and not damp though. Just disappointing and now we need to run to the store last minute for buns. :/
Derick says
Why would you put the towel directly on the dough….
Katrina says
I wish I had read your review before diving in because the same thing happened to me. Darn that damp towel! But I proceeded anyway and the buns were good enough. Next time I will skip the towel and add salt.
Julie says
I’m so sorry! I just edited the post so that it says to use plastic wrap sprayed with nonstick spray instead of a damp towel. Thank you!
Lori says
These turned out great! Definitely more brioche-like because of the enriching ingredients and less sour doughy but soooo delicious and pretty easy! I followed the schedule and it was super helpful. Great recipe thanks!!
Mariloy Galle says
Thanks for this recipe. I made these today, Saturday to have for dinner Easter Sunday but they didn’t last that long. Ohhh so good. I made the buns 50 grams to be dinner rolls and they are perfect.
Michelle Ong says
Hi Julie
Thank you so much for your great recipe. I made a batch just now and it’s so yummy. I made it using my discard and change the flour to bread flour instead. And it turned out really well.
Used it to make pork burger for lunch and my 2 years old loved it.
Sheena says
Thank you very much for the detailed recipe, my hamburger buns turned out really nicely. Amazing as this my very first time using sourdough starter (I was gifted some starter recently and wondering what to do with it as my family doesn’t enjoy sourdough loaves). But when I came across your site, I felt the recipe is quite doable and not so intimidating after all. Thanks again!
Julie says
I’m glad this recipe worked out well for you. Great job for your first time!
Justin says
Just made these yesterday and they were AWESOME. They held up especially well to the very sloppy burgers my partner made for us and our friend. Thanks for sharing this!
Julie says
So good to hear they turned out well, Justin. Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
Carol says
Can you add cheese and jalapeños
If so when would I add them
Julie says
I would add them at the very beginning when you add the flour to the dough.
Micaela says
Hi Julie,
Do active dry yeast and butter play a key role in the recipe? Do you think if I omit them I won’t have good results?
Julie says
I’ve baked many a sourdough boule, but no hamburger buns until now. Your recipe turned out fantastic! My husband and son absolutely loved the buns. They had a great flavor, held up a juicy burger without falling apart. My family also enjoyed the buns with pork BBQ. I would venture to say these buns would be just as good with sloppy joes or other tasty fillings. This recipe is a keeper. Thank you for sharing!
Julie says
It’s always fun to find a new way to use your sourdough. I’m so glad you enjoyed these!
Emissa says
I made them with rice milk and non dairy’butter’ and they still turned out great! It’s next to impossible to find dairy and soy free hamburger buns so I’m thankful these worked out 😁
Julie says
So glad to hear that they worked out well for you!
Paula Hammer says
Great recipe. Just wanted to confirm the amount of granulated sugar. By weight 2 tablespoons is way more than 12 grams. Is there a misprint? Thanks
Paula Hammer says
Love these buns. Please confirm the amount of sugar required. Thanks!
Julie says
It should read 25 grams of sugar. Thank you for catching my error.
john barfoot says
Hi Katie. I bake sourdough and use the poke test to gauge fully proofed. Is there a similar test for these rolls or just the doubling in size
NIna T. says
The rating is really for the list of ingredients since I used the bread machine on “dough” setting and shaped the buns after the first rise. The buns are wonderful but, oh so large! I will try making them half size next time.
Joy says
When I googled “sourdough burger buns”, your recipe came up alongside one from King Arthur Flour’s website. I had planned to go with that one, but it called for Potato flour, which I don’t have on hand and didn’t choose to go and buy. So I used your recipe, and I’m SO GLAD I DID!!! I’ve only been baking with sourdough for a week, and I don’t know if I will ever plan to buy buns again.
SO delicious!
Julie says
Joy, that is exactly what I did… who has potato flour on hand? 🙂 So glad these worked out well for you and that you are getting the hang of sourdough. It’s so fun!
Susan says
I am using the 2x recipe and in the ingredients it calls fir 6 tblspns butter. In directions it says add 3.
Is it 6 or 3??
Julie says
The programming that automatically doubles the recipe when you click that button will only change the number of the amount listed in ingredients, not in the recipe directions. So you need to use 6 tablespoons.
Kourt Bacon says
The damp towel over the buns 100% ruined the buns. Stuck to it to the point that it deflated and tore them apart. Take out this step.
Peg says
Wow!! This is the first time I’ve made these and they turned out perfect!! They are delicious!! I don’t plan on ever buying hamburger buns ever again!!! I got a late start on them today so we are having hamburgers tomorrow on them!!! They are so soft!!
Thank you for such a fantastic recipe!!!
Sam says
These were amazing! Appreciated that the recipe was in grams, used sourdough and the dough was a joy to work with. The softest buns.