Beautiful Burger Buns

Beautiful Burger Buns

from kingarthurbaking.com
160 min
8 servings
250 kcal / serving

The following recipe created quite a stir when "Moomie" first posted it on our original online community. Baker after baker tried these buns and declared them THE BEST. Soft, vaguely sweet, and golden-yellow from the butter and egg, these simple buns are perfect for burgers (whether beef or plant-based), or any of your favorite sandwich fillings.  

Ingredients

  • 3 ½ cupsking arthur unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cupplus 2 tablespoons (198g) water, lukewarm
  • 2 tablespoonsbutter, at room temperature
  • 1 largeegg
  • ¼ cupgranulated sugar
  • 1 ¼ teaspoonstable salt
  • 1 tablespooninstant yeast
  • 3 tablespoonsbutter, melted; divided
  • 1 largeegg white, whisked with 2 tablespoons cold water
  • sesame seeds, or the seeds of your choice

Directions

  1. 1

    Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.

  2. 2

    To make the dough: Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — to make a soft, smooth dough.

  3. 3

    Cover the dough and let it rise until it's nearly doubled in bulk, about 1 to 2 hours.

  4. 4

    To shape the buns: Gently deflate the dough and divide it into eight pieces (about 100g each); to make smaller or larger buns see "tips," below. Shape each piece into a ball.

  5. 5

    Flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand until it's about 3" in diameter.

  6. 6

    Place the buns on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise until noticeably puffy, about an hour. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 375°F.

  7. 7

    To add the butter glaze: Brush the buns with about half of the melted butter. To make seeded buns, brush the egg white/water mixture right over the melted butter; it'll make the seeds adhere. Sprinkle buns with the seeds of your choice.

  8. 8

    To bake the buns: Bake the buns for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden. Remove them from the oven and brush with the remaining melted butter; this will give the buns a satiny, buttery crust. If you've made seeded buns, apply the melted butter carefully, to avoid brushing the seeds off the buns.

  9. 9

    Cool the buns on a rack before slicing in half, horizontally. Use as a base for burgers (beef or plant-based) or any favorite sandwich filling.

  10. 10

    Storage information: Store leftover buns, well-wrapped, at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.