Why You’ll Never Go Back: Quick Homemade Hamburger Buns
If you’ve ever stood in the grocery store staring at the bagged hamburger buns and wondering why they last for weeks without going stale, the answer is simple: preservatives. Most store-bought buns are loaded with additives to keep them soft, shelf-stable, and perfectly shaped — but often at the cost of flavor and nutrition.
The good news? Homemade hamburger buns are surprisingly easy to make, taste infinitely better, and are made from ingredients you actually recognize. Once you’ve had a burger on a warm, fluffy, golden bun fresh from your own oven, you’ll wonder why you didn’t try this sooner.
What’s Really in Store-Bought Buns?
Take a glance at the label on a typical bag of hamburger buns and you’ll often see a list of ingredients longer than your grocery receipt: calcium propionate, monoglycerides, DATEM, high fructose corn syrup, and so on. These are used to preserve texture, extend shelf life, and keep costs low — but they’re not doing your body any favors.
When you make buns at home, you skip the mystery ingredients. What you get instead: flour, yeast, milk, butter, eggs, a bit of sugar, and salt. That’s it. Real food, real flavor.
I have 2 different recipes! Both Below
My Quick & Easy Hamburger Buns (Ready in a little over an hour) These are light, airy, and super quick to make!!
If you have a little extra time before dinner ( 2 hours), My World’s Best Dinner Roll recipe makes my very favorite buns (especially if you sub half of the flour for freshly milled flour- notes on recipe below). These have a bit more flavor and texture.
Both recipes are simple, beginner-friendly, and don’t require a bread machine or fancy equipment. You’ll have fresh, pillowy buns cooling on your counter in no time!!
The Taste Test: Store-Bought vs. Homemade
Homemade buns are soft yet substantial, with just the right amount of chew. They’re rich from the butter and egg, slightly sweet from the sugar, and hold up beautifully to juicy burgers and toppings without falling apart. Once you taste the fresh, wholesome difference, you won’t want to go back.
Bonus: You can customize them — make them whole wheat, sprinkle with everything bagel seasoning, or shape them slider-size. They also freeze well, so go ahead and make a double batch.
Homemade Wins Every Time
In a world where fast food and packaged goods dominate, slowing down to make something from scratch is a quiet act of care — for yourself, your family, and what goes into your body. These buns don’t just hold your burger; they elevate it.
So next time you’re firing up the grill, skip the bread aisle. Grab a bowl, a few simple ingredients, and bake up something better.
Your burgers deserve it.
Quick Hamburger Buns
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Whole Milk
- ¾ Cup Water
- ½ Cup Melted Butter
- 3 Tbsp Honey
- 2 Tbsp Instant Dry Yeast
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 2 Cups Bread Flour
Instructions
- Heat together in a sauce pan milk, water, butter, honey, and salt till it reaches 100- 105 degrees F.
- Add yeast and let sit for 3-5 min to get foamy
- Add 2 cups of flour and mix well until smooth
- Add the remaining flour, mix and knead in a stand mixer for 4 min. You can add a little more flour, a small amount at a time until it seems workable.
- Cover bowl and let rise for 10 min in a warm area
- Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface till its about 3/4 inches thick
- Use a wide mouth mason jar lid or appropriately sized round cookie cutter to cut.
- Places circles on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- Allow to rise for 30 min
- Bake at 375 F for 10-12 minutes
- Slice down the middle and serve
Worlds Best Dinner Roll Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup Whole milk
- ⅓ cup Salted Butter
- ¼ cup Organic cane sugar or honey
- 1 ½ tsp Sea Salt
- 1 Egg
- ½ cup Water – Luke warm (between 105 F – 115 F)
- 2 ¼ tsp Dry active yeast
- 2 cups Bread Flour
- 1 ½ cups All Purpose Flour
If you'd like to use some freshly milled flour for these, the best mix I have found is to sub the 1.5 cup all purpose flour for 233 grams of freshly milled.
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer combine 1/2 cup luke warm water with yeast and allow to soften 5-10 min or until frothy
- In a saucepan combine milk, butter, sugar or honey, and salt and stir until butter is melted
- Remove milk mixture from heat and let cool for about 5 min. Stir in 1 egg.
- Add milk mixture to yeast mixture.
- Add flour and turn on mixer to mix and knead for about 3-5 min
- Cover bowl and place in a warm location for dough to rise (until double in size)
- Remove dough from bowl and break into handful sized pieces. Roll between your hands (like you did to make a snake with playdough) until you have a rope that is about an inch thick and about 8 in long. Tie in a simple knot and place on a baking sheet. Repeat process.
- I like to let them rise again if I have time for about 20-30 min before baking for an extra fluffy roll, but they also can be baked right away after shaping.
- Bake at 400 F for 12-15 min, until the top starts to look slightly golden.
