Soft and Fluffy Sourdough Hamburger Buns or Dinner Rolls

Why this recipe works:

The addition of milk, honey, oil, and an egg enrich the dough and keep it soft.  The plentiful amount of sourdough starter ferments and leavens the buns easily.

Note:

I highly recommend measuring the starter by weight for accuracy since it is bubbly and active.  All other ingredients can be measured by volume if you prefer.

Tip:

If this is your first time making these buns, you may want to use white flour or bread flour for best results.  Once you have mastered the recipe, you can transition to whole wheat flour.  The buns in the photo use a bread flour from Azure call Ultra-Unifine that has some of the bran removed.

Soft and Fluffy Sourdough Hamburger Buns or Dinner Rolls

• 475 grams flour (all purpose, bread flour, wheat flour, or a combination)
• 350 grams active sourdough starter at 100% hydration
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 egg
• 2 Tablespoons oil
• 2 Tablespoons honey
• 1/2 Tablespoon salt

Before mixing your dough, make sure your starter is active:

It should be roughly doubled in volume since the time that you fed it. 

Drop a spoonful of starter into a glass of water to perform a float test.  If the starter floats, it's ready to use and you can proceed with the recipe.

Morning of bake day:

Place all ingredients EXCEPT salt in a mixing bowl and combine until a shaggy dough forms.  Allow to autolyse for 15-30 minutes.

Add salt and knead for 5 minutes.  While kneading, observe the moisture level of the dough.  It should be soft and stretchy.  If it's tough and hard, add more water.  If it's too sloppy and wet, add more flour.

Allow dough to proof for roughly 4-6 hours (from early morning till lunch time).

Lunch time (or mid-day) on bake day:

Shape the dough into 12 buns. 

For hamburger buns, my preferred method is to roll the dough into a rectangle that's roughly 1/2" thick.  Then I use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 12 square buns and place on a greased baking sheet.

For dinner rolls, shape into 12 or 15 round rolls and place in a greased 9x13 pan.

Raise for 4-6 hours (from lunch time till supper time) or until doubled in size.

Time to bake!

Preheat oven to 350.  Bake for 23 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 190-200 degrees.  After removing from the oven, rub a stick of butter over the tops of the buns to create a glossy surface.  Cool before slicing.

Leave a comment below if you have questions, need more clarification, or want to share your success with the recipe!