This recipe for light brioche hamburger buns proves that you can make seriously good hamburger buns at home. With a dough that’s simple to make and easy to handle, you’ll never buy brioche burger buns from the store again!
We like our burgers on soft, buttery brioche-style rolls and this NY Times recipe looked like a great starting point to experiment.
What’s interesting, is that this brioche burger bun is lighter than most traditional brioche recipes (hence the title). It’s still soft and fluffy, but not quite as eggy and rich. Even the color is a bit lighter. Incredible!
In my opinion, nothing beats all natural bread. Whether it’s a thick slice of sourdough bread or sandwich bread, good-quality hamburger buns from scratch are absolutely life changing. The taste, quality, and healthiness can’t be beat. These buns are the perfect vessel for sandwiches too! Let me show you how to make them.
How to Make Light Brioche Hamburger Buns {Step-By-Step Recipe}
Step 1: Make the Dough & Let it Rise
- Whisk the warm water, milk, yeast and sugar in a small bowl; set aside. Beat the egg in a separate bowl.
- To a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment: add the bread flour, all purpose flour, salt and butter. Mix the ingredients until the butter is the size of pebbles.
- Add the yeast mixture and the beaten egg. Run the mixer on medium-low speed (I used #3 on my Kitchen Aid) until a dough forms, about 5-8 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and shape the dough into a ball. It will be sticky.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until it has doubled is size. Depending on how warm your kitchen is, this will take about 1-3 hours (mine took 1 1/2 hrs @ 70 degrees F.)
Tip: Giving the dough enough time to rise is crucial in bread baking. In the past, I have rushed this step which caused my bread to be very dense. Rise times will vary, so be patient. Remember to watch your dough and not the clock!
Step 2: Cut The Dough
- Once your dough has risen, dump it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
- Then, gently flatten the dough to get rid of any air bubbles. Using a bench scraper (or a chef’s knife) cut the dough into 8 equal portions.
- If you have a digital kitchen scale weigh each portion so that they’re all the same size. Do this by weighing the entire ball of dough first, and then divide by the number of rolls you want to make.
Step 3: Shape The Dough Into Balls
- To shape, gently flatten each piece of dough like a pancake.
- Pull up each side pinching it together in the center. Repeat until the ball is sealed. Flip the ball over (seam side down) and move to an un-floured part of your board. It will be easier to roll this way.
- To finish, place your palm over the top and gently roll into a smooth ball.
- Transfer each ball onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
Step 4: Second Rise
- The dough will need to rise again, this time for a shorter period than the initial rise.
- The balls should look puffy and slightly risen, about 1- 1/2 hrs. When they’re ready, gently brush each one with egg wash. See how puffy they are?
Tip: At this point, you could add sesame seeds to the top of your rolls if you’d like.
Step 5: Bake The Dough
- Preheat your oven to 400 F and place a shallow metal baking pan on the oven floor.
- Before the dough goes in, add about 1/2 cup of water to the pan to create steam. This will help keep the bread nice and moist.
- Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
More Delicious Brioche & Bread Recipes to Try!
Once you’ve mastered this recipe, branch out and try my soft brioche rolls and this incredible, sliceable brioche loaf – we love it toasted with strawberry jam!
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Light Brioche Hamburger Buns
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Rise Time: ~4 hours @ 70 F:
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours and 35 minutes
- Yield: 8 buns 1x
- Category: Yeast Bread
- Method: Oven-Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Adapted from the NY Times, this recipe for light brioche hamburger buns is perfect for BBQ fare, sandwiches (try bacon, egg & cheese!) and so much more. You’ll never buy from the store again!
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 cup warm water, about 75–85 F
- 3 tablespoons warm milk (I prefer whole milk)
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 3 cups bread flour
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Egg wash
- 1 large egg
- splash of water
Toppings
- sesame seeds (optional)
Instructions
- Whisk together the warm water, milk, yeast and sugar; set aside. Beat the egg in a separate bowl.
- Add the flours, salt, and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix the ingredients until the butter is the size of pebbles.
- Add the yeast mixture and the beaten egg. Run the mixer on medium-low speed (I used #3 on my Kitchen Aid) until a dough forms, about 5-8 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary, and shape the dough into a ball. It will be sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a very damp kitchen towel, and let the dough rise until it has doubled is size, about 1- 3 hours @ 70 F. *See notes below.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a floured dough scraper (or chef’s knife), divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. If you have a scale, weigh each piece to guarantee that they’re all the same size.
- To shape the dough into balls, gently flatten each piece like a pancake. Gather the ends and pinch the dough to seal in the center. Flip the dough over, cup the surface with your palm, and roll into a ball. Transfer to your baking sheet, placing them a few inches inches apart. Cover and rest for 1-2 hours, or until puffy and slightly risen.
- To make the egg wash, beat the egg with a splash of water. When the buns are finished with the 2nd rise, gently brush each one with egg wash. At this point, you could add sesame seeds to the top of your rolls.
- Preheat your oven to 400 F. and place a skillet or metal baking dish on the oven floor. Before the dough goes in, add about 1/2 cup of water to the pan to create steam. This will help keep the bread nice and moist. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Giving your dough enough time to rise is crucial in bread baking. Rise times will vary depending on temperature, so be patient. Remember to watch your dough and not the clock!
Comments
Barbara Harteis says
Thanks for such clear directions. You explained the steps better than many others.
Emilie Raffa says
You’re very welcome, Barbara! Thank you 🥰
sam k says
Hi
Made these bins, were nice but would make them with plain / all purpose flour in future.
I used strong white bread flour which made them dense.
I also split the dough into 12 pieces, would make 24 pieces in future
thankyou
Kristine Kirsch says
As promised, I’ll never buy brioche rolls from the store again. These rolls are amazing! I’ve never made rolls before and they turned out perfectly! Thank you so much!
Emilie Raffa says
Kristine, I’m so glad you liked them! This recipe is special. And once you get the hang of it, like you said, there’s no going back. 🥰
Michelle says
can I freeze the dough that I don’t need until it’s time to make more rolls? We only need 2 at a time.
Ag and Jim says
Awesome 🙌 thank you
Jack says
Amazing recipe! Super soft and pillowy brioche buns! Made the best hamburger 🍔 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Julie says
I can’t tell you how happy I am that I found this recipe! These buns turned out so perfect. We love brioche buns, and these are a bit lighter than store bought, but held together perfectly for burgers. They look beautiful and wish I could post a picture!! This will be my go to recipe, and will be passing it along to others!- Thanks
Laura says
This is literally the BEST bun recipe ever!!! I made 100 buns for a graduation party…perfect with Smashburgers! I make them often for BBQ parties! Thank you Emilie xo
Chay says
Thanks for this brilliant recipe, Emilie. I don’t like the slightly chemical taste (and overt richness) of supermarket brioche buns, but I absolutely love the flavour and texture of these! SO good for hamburgers and also with quick-pickled cucumber, lettuce, dill aioli and tempura snapper for fish burgers. OMG, never buying brioche again!
Megan says
Can this dough be tested in the refrigerator overnight?
Kim says
This is the best bun recipe, however I wouldn’t call it a brioche. Great for burgers it somehow has enough texture to hold up the all the toppings and sauce even though it’s light and has a chew to it. Closest recipe to a commercial bun without that weird commercial taste. I will definitely peruse all the other recipes as this was my first one. Thank you
Flo says
I am so looking forward to trying, they sound amazing. Once baked, how long would you say they last for? Many thanks
Chloe says
I NEVER comment on recipes but wow 5 stars does not do this justice. Every time I make these they just get better. Sometimes i accidentally forget the egg and realize as im mixing. I add it in before the first rise and it’s still perfect. My husband tries to eat these for dessert. I guard them like a good defensive dog.
Debbie says
I will never buy hamburger buns again! I followed the recipe to the T and they turned out to be the most beautiful looking and perfect textured buns I could have hoped for. I used two cups strong flour (type 65) and 1 cup semi-wholemeal flour. I live in France and hamburger buns are either horrible imported processed rubbish or proper brioche which is way to sweet and cake-like. My previous attempts at turning ‘normal’ homemade bread into buns resulted in buns that were too difficult to eat as a burger. The softness of these ones is utterly perfect. And gosh did they look good – my gobsmacked husband whipped out his phone to take a photo to send to foodie family members! So thank you!
Anna says
Perfect sized buns, lovely for burgers and breakfast sandwiches! Not difficult to make! I subbed unsalted butter for Salted Butter and just used 1 Tsp salt instead of 1&1/2.
Josh says
Is it possible to do this without a bread mixer? If so, how long would I be looking to knead?
Adrienne says
Do you switch to a dough hook or keep the paddle on when you add the yeast mixture?
Anna says
This recipe worked very well for me (thank you!) even though I didn’t have a mixer so had to work the dough by hand. It was very sticky, as you say in the recipe, so I added quite a bit of extra plain flour while shaping the brioche buns. I also ended up doing a double prove of the buns as they just spread too much after one prove (I maybe left them too long). But after a re-shape and second prove of 1 hour, they baked beautifully and look absolutely incredible. I can’t wait to have them with our wagyu burgers tonight!
Susan Saint says
Hi Emilie – The recipe is delicious and fairly easy to make, thanks! The problem was that the buns with beef patties fell apart. Any tips?
Meegan says
First time baking these burger buns and they turned out amazing!
Will definitely be using this recipe again:-)
Lynn Marie Stanley says
Is there a nondairy milk option that would work well with this recipe? I cannot eat dairy:( Thank you!
DJ says
Looked beautiful coming out of the oven….so hard to wait until they cool a bit to try them. Can these be successfully frozen for use in a few days?
Victoria Olszewska says
Can it be doubled and the buns frozen?
Emilie Raffa says
Absolutely. Just make sure you have a vessel large enough to accommodate double the dough (or make two separate batches). The buns freeze well individually wrapped in plastic wrap. Defrost at room temp.
Abigail says
These are genuinely the best buns I’ve had! So perfectly tender and fluffy, which is exactly what I’ve been wanting. I added dried, minced onion on top with the sesame seeds and it was delicious.
Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe!
Nancy says
The dough may be sticky, but, it is so nice to work with. My only error was not rotating the pan halfway through. Some buns were beautifully browned. Some were a bit light. It only affected the appearance not the taste.
These rolls are so easy to make and taste so good. I won’t be buying hamburger buns anymore! Next time, I will try to make half of the dough into hotdog buns.
Cristina says
I am so glad I came across this recipe. The buns came out delicious!
A says
Throw your other burger bun recipes away as these are phenomenal and so easy to do.
LindaO says
Finally!!!! I can’t tell you how many ‘Best’ burger bun recipes I’ve tried. Years, I’ve looked for this recipe. These buns came out soft and light and delicious! thank you for sharing.
Lisa says
Excellent recipe, exactly as described, light and airy. You will never buy shop bought burger buns again! Thank you so much for this recipe, I have baked countless baps and they were either too heavy or stodgy…. entirely useless. My search finishes here. Regards from Ireland 🇮🇪
Kathy Catanzaro says
Oh, my Lord!! Made these tonight, and they are DELICIOUS!! I doubled the recipe but made 14 4 oz. rolls. I was looking for a slightly bigger hamburger bun. They are light, fluffy, soft, and perfectly flavored. Thank you! They are going to be such a hit at our Monday Smashburger night!!! ❤️
Allie says
Makes the best fluffy buns. Way better than store bought.
Thomas Cappiello says
After years of sourdough baking and quite a few tries, I have yet to come up with a bun I’m happy with. Mine are usually don’t have the tenderness that I would prefer. I will try these, even though I am a sourdough snoot. I have your book too, it’s really great! Many of the recipes work very well without fuss. Many more to try!
Emilie Raffa says
Thank you Thomas! Bread baking takes a ton of practice and repetition, but the hard work pays off and the results are incredibly rewarding. Enjoy!
Bill says
Emilie, I have been using your book to learn to bake sourdough bread. I have gotten used to seeing flour, salt, and such measured in grams, since measuring with conventional measures can be quite variable in density and weight. Do you have weights for the ingredients in this recipe?
Thank you.
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Bill! Great question. Yes: most bakers weigh their ingredients for accuracy, myself included. However, the original recipe for these buns was written using measuring cups only, so that’s what I use. Why? Because the conversion from volume to grams (and vice versa) in any recipe is not exact, only approximate. In other words: You’ll get two slightly different versions of the same recipe depending on the unit of measure used. This was the issue I ran into when I converted it to grams- totally different texture! With that said: if you do want to play around with converting it, I would lightly spoon and level the flour(s) into your measuring cups and then weigh it to establish a baseline for reference. Hope this helps.
Judy says
Do you switch from paddle to dough hook after you combine all of the in ingredients or will the paddle work to create the dough?
Carrie says
Do you have a sourdough recipe for buns?
Fathima P.S says
It was my first try and it became successful thankyou so much
James C. says
Excellent recipe with great instructions. Mine turned out perfectly. Quick question: Any idea what cooking adjustments I would need to make for slider-sized buns?
Karen Buehner says
Hi there, I have made this so many times absolutely love it and so does anyone I serve it to.
Question can I double the recipe? Or just better to do separately.
Thank you
Lynette says
These are truly the softest, yummiest buns ever! I can’t believe how well they turned out, and how easy they were to make. I amazed even myself. Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe. I’m sure I’ll be making them again and again!
Gretchen says
I love this recipe! The rolls taste amazing – however, I’m having a hard time. For the last rise I cover like it instructs but then my rolls stick to the damp towel I use! Then it ruins the rolls. Help!
Emilie Raffa says
Hi there! As an alternative, use lightly oiled plastic wrap instead of the cloth- it won’t stick. Or, try an inverted sheet pan depending on the height of the rolls (and the depth of the pan). Nordic Ware makes a deep sheet pan.
Patty says
I added 1T. Dried onion baked 15 minutes. Looks ABSOLUTELY beautiful!!! Proof in warm oven.
Emilie Raffa says
Yum! This sounds SO good! Thank you for sharing 🥰
Rachel C says
Crazy good. This was my first time making these and I have had trouble in the past getting light, fluffy buns without them tasting too sweet from the sugar or tasting too much like yeast. This recipe is amazing and 100% recommend. These buns taste so fresh, and insanely delicious. But if you do make them, I’d be sure to keep an eye on the bottoms of the buns as a few of mine burned mildly.
Alicia says
I’ve made naan and flatbreads before so I felt a bit confident in doing a different bread recipe and it went pretty well. My buns were a little dense but that may be because I only used AP flour and didn’t go out and buy bread flour, but the recipe was very easy to follow. Also I didn’t use a stanmixer and only mixed for like 5 minutes and the dough came together really quickly! If you’re hesitant to try this recipe don’t worry!
Ashten says
Turned out perfect! So fluffy!
Lisa Longton says
Hi Emilie! Quick question – can this recipe be edited to use sourdough discard instead or in addition to yeast? Thanks!
Kate Bain says
This recipe was so easy and the only problem was that I did not make enough. My teenage son said that I was going to make him so fat the next time I make these cause they were the best thing he has ever eaten! So delicious!! Perfect recipe!
Laura says
These are the perfect burger buns. I’ve made so many buns that are too dense. But not these! They’re so soft and squishy, but sturdier than the ones you buy at the store. This is my new go to recipe. I accidentally used a dough hook instead of the paddle and it didn’t make a difference as far as I could tell.
Mary says
This is by far THE BEST recipe for homemade buns. Thank you -my quest for the perfect bun has finally been completed :)
Nyia says
I don’t know what I did wrong but my dough was so sticky and wet like that I couldn’t form proper balls I used perfectly measured 3 cups of flour but it was still too wet I also used the correct amount of liquids. It’s my first time trying a sticky dough recipe
Troy says
It’s 3 and a third cups flour.Maybe that could be the reason?Third cup is all all-purpose flour.I only add 3 cups and add enough more until it isn’t a total mess when you handle it.
Joy P says
Absolutely love this recipe!
Carol says
Can you do the dough in a bread machine?
Gawain Simpson says
Can you give the recipe in weights please? Volume measurements are rather variable.
Thank you!