These Brioche Burger buns are soft and fluffy, but because I used less eggs than typically used in traditional brioche buns, they are not as eggy and rich. When you pick them up, you can feel that they are lighter than regular brioche buns. I think they have the perfect texture and taste, and I won’t be using store-bought burger buns again.
This is a yeast dough, so it takes some time to get the buns done, but you can prepare them easily the night before, bake them the next day and freeze them after they have cooled. In fact, I keep some in the freezer all the time.
The burger buns they are slightly sweet and buttery. As already mentioned, they are soft, but not too soft so they do not fall apart or soak right through when assembling the burger.
Tools & Equipment
- 2 quarter baking sheets or 1 half baking sheet
- Liquid measuring cup
- Parchment paper
- Pastry brush
- Plastic wrap
- Stand mixer fitted with the dough hook
- Whisk
- Wire rack
Recipe Tips
Texture of the Dough: this dough will be sticky with a shaggy appearance. Keep in mind that the more flour you knead in, the tougher the buns will be. In other words, try not to add too much flour.
1st Rise: place a damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap on top of the bowl and let the dough rest until it has doubled in size. Depending on how warm your environment is, this will take about 1-2 hours. It is important to give the dough enough time to rise so the buns will be nice and fluffy. Be patient and pay more attention to the dough than the clock!
2nd Rise: once you have shaped the dough balls, placed them on a baking sheet and covered with plastic, they need to rise for another 1-2 hours at room temperature. At this point, you can also put the sheet into the fridge overnight if you plan to bake the buns the next day.
Ingredients for Brioche Burger Buns
Step by Step Guide – How to Make Brioche Burger Buns
Make the Dough
Mix the warm water, milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, for about 5 minutes. Beat one egg.
In the bowl of a stand mixer whisk the flours and salt together. Add the butter and mix until the butter has the size of crumbs. Small bubbles should have appeared on the surface of your yeast mixture by now.
With the mixer running on medium-low add the yeast mixture, followed by the beaten egg and knead until a dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball. It will be sticky, add a little more flour if needed. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise until it doubles in size.
Shape the Buns
Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Gently flatten each piece to shape the dough into balls, gather the ends together and pinch the dough to seal in the center. Turn the dough over, cup the surface with your palm and roll into a ball.
Place the dough balls on the baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, lightly coated with non-stick spray, and let the buns rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours or in the fridge overnight.
Bake the Buns
Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F and place a skillet or metal baking pan on the bottom of the oven. Whisk the remaining egg with water and brush the tops of the buns with the egg wash. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using.
Before the dough goes into the oven, add about 150ml of water to the skillet/baking pan to create steam. Bake the buns for about 15-20 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Storage: keep the burger buns in a plastic bag at room temperature for up to 5 days. To freeze, wrap the buns tightly in aluminum foil, place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
To thaw, place the buns on the counter for 1 hour and then bake at 150°C / 300°F for about 10 minutes. Another option is to take the foil-wrapped buns out of the freezer, remove the freezer bag and loosen the foil. Place the loosely-wrapped buns on an oven rack and bake at 150°C / 300°F for 15-20 minutes.
My Summary for Brioche Burger Buns
Difficulty: simple.
Taste: these buns are mild sweet and slightly buttery. In terms of taste, they are somewhere between a white bread and a brioche.
Texture: they are soft and fluffy, but by reducing the eggs they are not quite as eggy, heavy and rich as traditional brioche buns. The color is also a little lighter.
TIME: the dough needs time to rise. The first rise is about 1-2 hours and the second rise of the dough is also about 1-2 hours at room temperature or placed in the fridge overnight. The baking time is 15-20 minutes. I prefer the “overnight in the fridge” method for the second rise, as you can prepare everything the night before and bake the buns directly the next day.
