Homemade hamburger bun help

May 13, 2007 3:58 AM

Has anyone here tried to make thier own hamburgr buns?

I make bread all the time, but when it comes to soft buns, I always end up with these hard, crusty mini-breads that taste grreat, buy overpower the fillings. There's a block party next week where the main courses will be hot dogs and hamburg meat, and I really want to make a bready conribution.
Help, please?

posted by maryh to Food & Drink (15 answers total)

Response by poster: That's "hamburger" of course. Wouldn't be me without an embarrassing typo in the question, ha...ha...(bangs head against monitor for the millionth time)
posted by maryh at 4:07 AM on May 13, 2007

To get something approximating the consistency of a commercial bun (though for the life of me, I can't recommend such a goal) you'd need to abandon most standard kneaded bread receipes in favor of yeast batter bread.
posted by paulsc at 4:14 AM on May 13, 2007

Look at the ingredients for any commercial hamburger bun and you'll see some kind of fat. If you want to prevent your bun from being "bready" and crusty you'll have to shorten the dough. Try including some egg, butter, and/or yogurt in the dough, and use a lower-protein flour.
posted by rxrfrx at 4:58 AM on May 13, 2007

At least your question is Web 2.0 compliant.

j/k.

And yeah, that your buns (no pun intended) aren't like the commercial ones is a good thing^TM
posted by AwkwardPause at 5:08 AM on May 13, 2007

The recipe for hamburger buns in this book is, I think, exactly what you're looking for. I made them more than once and they were lovely. Alas, I can't give you the recipe here, because I lent my copy a long time ago and it never returned.
posted by cilantro at 5:14 AM on May 13, 2007

Mrs. C's hamburger buns

I've never made them, but it looks right.
posted by donpardo at 5:20 AM on May 13, 2007

Best answer: Hey! I found the recipe I just mentioned online.
Here you go!
They are soft like commercial buns, but much more delicious and amazing.
posted by cilantro at 5:20 AM on May 13, 2007

To make bread/buns with a softer crust, it might help to cover the bread as it rises/bakes with a homemade "dome" solution (maybe some carefully-molded aluminum foil), and/or to put a pan of water in the oven with the buns so that the outside doesn't dry out too quickly.
posted by amtho at 7:13 AM on May 13, 2007

I'm pretty sure you can also find even more recipes for dinner rolls. I'm pretty sure these will turn out the same as hamburger buns, just make them larger.
posted by Deathalicious at 10:09 AM on May 13, 2007

The key is the egg, it produces a fluffy texture.
posted by ikkyu2 at 11:20 AM on May 13, 2007

Like ikkyu2 says, the key to the texture is in the eggs. Use challah or brioche dough as your base and cut the recommended baking time for a loaf in half.

amtho's solution of adding water to the oven will actually yield a crisper crust.
posted by clockwork at 12:36 PM on May 13, 2007

Response by poster: Thanks, everyone. I'm so accustomed to making heavy 'healthy' sourdough rye & wheat loaves that I'd completely discounted the use of shortenings and fat. But it's what the people want, and so they shall have. I'm off to knead!
posted by maryh at 1:48 PM on May 13, 2007

There's a terrific recipe in Barbara Kafka's "Party Foods." (In fact, the whole book is terrific.) This is a recipe for "mini hamburgers" which are designed as a finger food for a cocktail party. Very versatile, very conversational.
posted by Newstuffoldstuff at 2:10 PM on May 13, 2007

If you wanted to make some classy buns, you could try using brioche dough. Any bread recipe will grossly overestimate the cooking time, you need to reduce that with a bit of guesswork.
posted by mek at 6:19 PM on May 13, 2007

Best answer: This is an amazing recipe, very very easy and very good. Be sure to check the reviews for tips and hints.

I've made this many, many times, and you can make them the same day you want to eat them. Yum!
posted by pyjammy at 9:08 AM on May 14, 2007 [1 favorite]