These buns look like they come from a fancy burger restaurant, but you can make them right at home.
Photo by Gwenael Le Vot
MAKES 8 HAMBURGER BUNS OR 16 ROLLS (APPROXIMATELY)
4 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1-1/3 cups water
2 tablespoons honey
1 large egg (or ¼ cup buttermilk, if egg allergy)
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Sesame seeds, white and black
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water for bread wash (or ¼ cup cream, if egg allergy)
Sesame seeds or dried herbs, optional
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, yeast and salt. In a 2-cup measuring cup, combine water, honey, egg and butter. Add to flour. Using the handle of a medium to large wooden spoon, stir until blended. The dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature* for 2–3 hours, until double in size.
Flour a clean, dry work surface and scrape dough onto surface. Sprinkle top of dough and hands with more flour. Using a bench scraper or hands, fold dough over onto itself—top, bottom and sides—and divide equally into desired number of buns or rolls. Buns should weigh 4½ ounces each. Use a scale, if available.
Using as much flour as necessary, roll each portion into a ball and place onto parchment-lined sheet pans or baking sheets. Slightly flatten each bun/roll with the palm of your hand. Cover with a clean, dry kitchen towel. Let rise (called proofing) for 1 hour.
During the last 30 minutes of proofing, preheat oven to 425 F. At the end of the proofing time, brush the top of each bun/roll with egg wash or cream and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 15–20 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack.
*If your kitchen is colder than 70 degrees, put bowl in the oven or microwave.
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Tips and techniques
All about yeast. This recipe calls for instant yeast. If you do not make bread often, store yeast in the freezer. Yeast is a living organism. Freezing “pauses” it and extends the lifespan.
Check label for instructions. Instant yeast can be mixed in with flour and does not require activation. Active dry yeast needs to be activated with warm water before mixing with flour.
All about flour. Flour becomes compacted as it sits in the container. Stir flour with a whisk to aerate it before measuring.
Flour differences are based on the amount of gluten each contains. Gluten gives bread its elasticity. The higher the gluten, the more stable the bread. These recipes will work well with either all-purpose flour (8% to 12% gluten) or bread flour (11% to 14% gluten).
How to make a bread “wash.” A simple application of bread wash will help seeds and herbs adhere to the bread. Egg wash (1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water) is common, but milk, cream or melted butter work equally well, especially for those with egg allergies.
Preheat, please. Always preheat the oven for 30–45 minutes prior to baking bread. Dutch ovens and pizza stones should also be preheated.
Working with dough. Keep hands well-floured at all times to prevent dough from sticking. Wetting hands with water or a little oil can achieve the same results.
Fermentation rules. While these recipes call for 12 hours of fermentation, it will not hurt dough to rest for a full 24 hours. Dough can be refrigerated for 3–4 days after mixing. Allow dough to come to room temperature before continuing at the proofing stage of the recipe.
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