Easy To Make Sourdough Discard Hamburger Buns - So Soft & Fluffy!

six hamburger buns on parchment paper with two stacked behind and a knife

Easy To Make Sourdough Discard Hamburger Buns - So Soft & Fluffy!

Light, fluffy, soft, and easy to make! These delicious Sourdough Hamburger Buns are truly the best part of any sandwich. Ready in just a few hours, requiring only simple ingredients, and definitely a crowd pleaser. There's no way to not love these amazing buns!

Course: Breads

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 20

Additional Time: 2

Total Time: 2 50

Servings: buns

Calories: 154kcal

Ingredients

5½ cups bread flour
1½ Tablespoons SAF Gold instant yeast
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¼ cup granulated sugar
1½ cups cool water 70℉/21℃
1 cup sourdough starter at room temperature
¼ cup olive oil
2 large eggs room temperature

Instructions

Combine flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in bowl of electric mixer fitted with dough hook.
Add sourdough starter, eggs, oil, and water.
Mix on low speed until combined.
Increase speed to medium-high.
Knead dough for 8-10 minutes, until smooth.
Place dough in dough rising bucket that has been sprayed with cooking spray and put the lid on.
Allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Turn dough out and use a bench knife and digital scale to divide into 2½ ounce pieces.
Roll each piece into a ball and place seam side down in bun pan that has been sprayed with non stick cooking spray. (If you don't have a bun pan, a rimmed sheet pan will work fine.)
Brush tops with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap.
Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
While dough is rising, heat oven to 400℉/200℃.
Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

Notes

Room temperature is about 70℉/21℃.
Use an oven thermometer to ensure accurate cooking temperatures.

How To Store:

The wonderful thing about these buns is that they store wonderfully! You can keep them in the fridge in a zip-top bag or go ahead and freeze them in a freezer safe bag!

When you want to reheat them, allow the buns to come to room temperature OR place in the microwave for 15-30 seconds in high power. The amount of time the bun takes to thaw depends on how frozen it is, but they do reheat very well!

Substitutions:

To make this recipe vegan, you can use aquafaba instead of eggs! You will need about 4 ounces of aquafaba. Follow the instructions in the recipe card as stated, just using aquafaba instead of the eggs.

Our Best Tips For Success:

If you don't have bun pans, you can use a rimmed sheet pan.
If you don't have a dough rising bucket, you can use a glass bowl covered with plastic wrap.
A digital scale will really help with getting these buns all the same size. However, you can just "eyeball" it if you're not super picky.
A bench knife is a great piece of kitchen equipment. It will cut through the dough easily and allow you to move it without it sticking. If you don't have one, you can use a sharp knife to divide the dough; but it won't be as easy.
To force the dough to spread out into the pans and not go straight up, top each plastic wrap covered pan with another sheet pan and set something heavy on top to hold it down. (We use cast iron skillets.)
Use a pastry brush to brush the olive oil on top of the hamburger buns!

Nutrition