Homemade Burger Buns

To make baked brie rolls: Make the dough and rise as directed, then grease a casserole dish 9x13" (20x30cm) with butter. Place two rounds of brie in the pan, and cut a criss cross pattern into the brie. Divide the dough into balls weighing about 20g each, then arrange around the brie. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise for about 45 minutes to an hour until puffy and the dough leaves an indentation that slowly springs back when pressed with a finger. While the dough is proofing, preheat the oven to 350°f / 180°c. Brush the dough with egg wash (one egg beaten with a splash of water). Bake for 23-25 minutes, until the dough is golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter and drizzle with hot honey, or I brushed mine with melted honey butter and then drizzled with hot honey. 

How to make ahead of time
If you would like to get a head start on making these hamburger buns, you can do the first rise overnight. I like to make the dough then leave it to stand on the counter for about 15 minutes before putting it into the fridge to do the first rise. I tested this overnight but you could probably do as little as 3 hours in the fridge if you wanted to make the dough in the morning for later in the day.
Remember that the fridge is your friend when you are working with yeasted dough - if for some reason the dough is going to be risen before you need it, you can pop it in the fridge to slow down the rising time.

I try not to leave dough in the fridge for more than 24 hours as the yeast starts to lose its rising power. You should be able to shape the dough into burger buns straight from the fridge but leave it to stand for 10 minutes or so if it feels a little firm. Remember starting with cold dough will mean you need to add some time onto the second rise. Go by how the dough looks, not the time in the recipe. It all depends on your starting dough temperature and the environment.

Do I have to use Bread Flour?
Yes. The dough needs it for strength. If you are outside of the US bread flour is sometimes called high grade or strong flour. If bread flour isn't available in your country you could add in some vital wheat gluten to add strength.

Can I make this recipe by hand?
No. It is a very sticky dough and needs the strength developed by the mixer. If you want a recipe that is developed to be made by hand, my small batch dinner rolls will do the trick - you could shape into larger buns.

How to do you store Burger Buns?
Store burger buns in an airtight container at room temperature. I usually have them fresh the first day then lightly toast after that!

Can Burger Buns be frozen?
Yep! Just pop them into a ziploc or airtight container and stick them in the freezer. Defrost at room temp. They are probably best toasted once defrosted.

How do you replace active dry yeast with instant yeast?
To use active dry yeast in the place of instant you need to activate the yeast first. Pop the warm tangzhong in your stand mixer bowl as usual, then add the cold milk. Stir around - this will warm the milk up a little. Add the sugar then add the yeast then leave to sit for 5-10 minutes until foamy. Then proceed with the rest of the recipe!

Can Burger Buns be made without ring molds?
Yes. Just shape each bun into a tight ball and space well apart on a baking sheet. See images for buns made without rings - they are a little shorter but it works perfectly.

Can this recipe be made into sliders?
Yes! If you wanted to make these as slider buns I would divide the dough into 12. It will fit perfectly into a 9"x13" (20x30cm) pan and make 12 sliders. Alternatively you could double the recipe and bake it into 24 slider buns which would fit perfectly in a rimmed half sheet pan (13"x18" or 33x45cm)

Why did my buns wrinkle when they came out of the oven?
This happens with a super soft dough. If you are using the rings then they might get a little fold around the edge, and the crust might get a little wrinkly. It's all good. You didn't do anything wrong. You just made really soft bunz.