Back when I used a baking stone I made small breads I called Mae West's Breasts. You get the idea, larger than a burger bun.

Beautiful Burger Buns

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

Buns

• 3 1/2 cups (420g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 3/4 to 1 cup (170g to 227g) water, lukewarm*
• 2 tablespoons (28g) butter, at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon (9g) instant yeast

*For best results (a smooth, slightly soft dough), use the smaller amount of water in summer (or in a humid environment), the greater amount in winter (or in a dry climate); and something in between the rest of the time.

Butter glaze

• 3 tablespoons (43g) butter, melted; divided

Seed topping (optional)

• 1 large egg white, whisked with 2 tablespoons cold water*
• sesame seeds, or the seeds of your choice

*For added richness and color, add the yolk left over from separating the egg to the dough above. 

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Instructions

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

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

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

   

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

Tips from our Bakers

• For slightly smaller buns, divide the dough into 12 pieces instead of 8. Bake the buns for 12 to 15 minutes, instead of 15 to 18 minutes. And how about "slider buns" — about 3" in diameter? Divide the dough into 24 pieces, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

• To make these buns using our hamburger bun pan: Divide the dough into six pieces (about 128g each) and shape them into balls. Place the balls into the lightly greased wells of a hamburger bun pan, and gently press them with your hand to fill the bottom of the wells, or until they're about 3 1/2" to 4" wide. Proceed with the recipe as written.

• Join King Arthur baker Martin Philip and his family as they bake Beautiful Burger Buns together, start to finish. (And turn the dough into mouth-watering cinnamon rolls!) Watch Martin Bakes at Home - Burger Buns & Cinnamon Rolls now.