These light, airy, 100% whole wheat sourdough hamburger buns are made with fresh-milled flour. They make the perfect healthy base for any meal! Get ready to try the best, healthiest hamburger buns you’ve ever had!
So soft with those beautiful air pockets… You won’t believe that these buns are 100% whole wheat!
These buns are excellent for burgers, chicken salad sandwiches, or my kids even use them for a basic tuna sandwich! I love making batches of these, slicing them, and freezing them to have on hand whenever we need them for a meal.
This recipe uses a technique called a tangzhong, which is a paste made by whisking a small amount of flour in milk over the stove until it thickens. Similar to making a roux. It only takes a few minutes, and this tangzhong will go into the dough to help give it a soft, fluffy texture. A tangzhong is also said to help breads stay fresh a little longer.
If you’ve ever made homemade playdough, it’s actually pretty similar to making that. Ha!
Why Fresh Milled Flour?
Fresh milling flour is eating grain the way God made it – with the germ, bran, and endosperm all together. Modern flours have been ultra-processed to enhance shelf life and produce the white flour-based foods that many people are accustomed to today. Milling your own flour ensures that you are keeping the vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other essential nutrients contained in the bran and the germ.
Many people are finding that they feel so much better when they eat whole grains, especially when it has been milled fresh. I’ve enjoyed seeing home flour milling increase in popularity again over the last couple years.
My husband and I have been milling our own grains since we first got married, and I wrote a post about the mill we use here: Komo Classic Grain Mill 13 Year Review.
What Grain Should I Use for Hamburger Buns with Fresh Milled Flour?
For these buns, I used organic hard white wheat from Azure Standard. I buy all of my grain from them – soft white, hard white, hard red, rye, etc. They have excellent quality, and it is a great price when you buy in bulk.
Check out Azure Standard and find a drop location near you HERE.
Tools You Will Need:
- Kitchen Aid Mixer
- Parchment Paper
- Baking Sheets
Tips for Making the Buns
Prepare the Flour – I try to remember to grind wheat the night before, so that the flour has time to cool to room temperature and so that I’m not waking anyone up in the morning with the noise of the grinder.
The night before you plan to make sourdough hamburger buns, mill a bowl full of hard white wheat flour, setting your grinder to the finest setting possible.
Tips for using your sourdough starter – Be sure to use an active starter that is rising and falling with regular feedings. It’s okay if you keep it in the fridge, but if it hasn’t been used for a while be sure to feed it a few times before making bread so that it is active again.
I personally keep a stiff sourdough starter and feed it 50% fresh milled rye flour and 50% white flour at each feeding. I feed it morning and night when I’m using it, and then store it in the fridge when I need to take a break.
How to Make Sourdough Hamburger Buns with Fresh Milled Flour:
Start a Levain the Night Before
The evening before you want to make sourdough hamburger buns with your fresh milled flour, prepare a levain. A levain is simply a sourdough feeding that is designated for a specific recipe. I will typically feed my starter as normal before bed, and also start a levain if I plan to bake the next day. In this case, I create a levain that is all fresh-milled flour, plus a little maple syrup to boost the activity.
In a jar, combine:
100g filtered water
100g fresh milled flour (I use hard white wheat)
25g active sourdough starter
20g maple syrup
Stir well, and cover with a breathable lid (such as my jar cover free sewing pattern)
Set aside overnight, about 12 hours.
In the morning, it should have risen nicely and have air bubbles as shown below. It’s okay if it has started to fall a little by the time you get it in the bread.
In the Morning:
Prepare the butter:
Cut 1 stick of butter into small cubes and set aside to soften to room temperature.
Prepare the Tangzhong:
In a small saucepan, combine:
1 cup milk (260 grams)
1/2 cup (62 grams) fresh milled flour
Set the pan over medium heat and whisk constantly until the mixture becomes a thick paste, about 4-6 minutes. As you whisk. you will feel it start to thicken, and it may even look like it is going to get lumpy. Keep whisking briskly and it will smooth out again and become a very thick paste. If you’ve ever made homemade play dough, it is actually really similar. Set the tangzhong aside to cool.
Once the tangzhong has cooled to room temperature, and the butter is close to room temperature, you are ready to mix your dough.
Mix the Dough:
In the bowl of a mixer, combine:
500g fresh milled hard white flour
300g water
The tangzhong
The levain
12g salt
20g maple syrup
Using the paddle attachment, set your mixer to STIR and mix for 1-2 minutes. The dough will be pretty wet. Scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula and switch to the dough hook.
Using the dough hook, mix on a medium-low speed for 7 minutes. You may need to scrape down the sides one more time after the first couple of minutes. It should all come together and start to cling to the dough hook rather than sticking to the sides of the bowl.
Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 10-20 minutes in the bowl.
In the meantime, check that your butter is softened to room temperature.
After the dough has rested in the bowl, it is time to incorporate the butter.
Turn the mixer back to low and slowly add the butter one piece at a time, allowing several seconds between pieces so the butter is gradually incorporated into the dough. This should take about 5-7 minutes.
Once the butter is fully incorporated, turn up the speed slightly and continue mixing for 1-2 more minutes.
You can now transfer the dough to a separate bowl for bulk fermentation, or leave it in the mixer bowl, depending on your preference.
Cover the bowl and allow the dough to bulk ferment for 3-4 hours until double in size.
Shaping the Sourdough Hamburger Buns:
Once the dough has had 3-4 hours to rise, it is time to shape the hamburger buns. Using a bench knife, cut the dough into 12 pieces, approximately 117 grams each.
Dust your work surface and hands with a little finely ground fresh milled flour as needed.
Take each piece of dough and hold it in your palm while using your fingers to wrap the dough inward on itself on all sides, creating tension across the top of the bun. Continue to fold the sides in and pinch the top, and once you have a nice round shape, set it down on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper, pinched side down.
Once you have a nice round shape, flip it over onto a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper, so that the pinched side is down on the sheet.
I found that my hamburger buns were more rounded than I wanted, so I like to shape them and then gently flatten them out a little on the pan.
The Second Ferment:
Cover the baking sheets lightly with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place for another 2-3 hours. Once they are ready to bake, they should feel very marshmallow-y to the touch, as if you can feel the bubbles just below the surface.
Check them after 2 hours, and if they still feel kind of firm to the touch, let rise another 30 min to 1 hour.
Baking the Hamburger Buns:
When you are ready to bake the buns, preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
If desired, whisk 1 egg with a little splash of milk and brush the tops of the buns lightly. Don’t overdo it or it will burn on the underside of the buns.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional)
Bake the buns at 450 degrees for 15 minutes
Rotate the pans in the oven, reduce the heat to 425, and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until golden brown. (7 minutes was perfect for a softer bun. 10 minutes makes the exterior crisp up just a bit more.)
Transfer the buns to a wire rack and allow them to cool completely.
Storing the Sourdough Hamburger Buns:
Fresh quality breads don’t have all the preservatives like store-bought breads, so you want to use them fairly quickly. Store the buns in an airtight container and keep them for up to 4 days at room temperature.
Slice the buns and place them in freezer ziplock bags, then keep themin the freezer for up to 3 months. I love to have these sourdough hamburger buns and other sourdough breads on hand in the freeze for any time we need them.
Pin for Later:
Save the recipe to Pinterest for later by clicking the image below.
I hope you enjoy these healthy, homemade sourdough hamburger buns with fresh milled flour as much as my family does! Let me know if you try them!
Looking for more sourdough recipes?
Try my:
Easy Sourdough Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Sourdough Discard Triple Gingerbread Scones
How to Score Sourdough Bread Like a Pro
Sourdough Hamburger Buns with Fresh Milled Flour
Equipment
- Kitchen Aid Mixer
- Baking Sheets
- Parchment Paper
Ingredients
For the Levain:
- 100 g filtered water
- 100 g fresh milled flour hard white wheat
- 25 g active starter
- 20 g Maple syrup
For the Tangzhong:
- 1 cup milk 260 grams
- 1/2 cup fresh milled flour 62 grams
For the Dough:
- 500 g fresh milled flour hard white wheat
- 300 g filtered water
- 12 g salt
- 20 g maple syrup
- Levain
- Tangzhong
- 1 stick butter, softened 113 grams
Instructions
Mix the Levain (the night before)
- In a quart jar or weck jar, combine 100g fresh milled flour, 100g filtered water, 25g active sourdough starter, and 20g maple syrup. Stir well and cover with a breathable lid.
- Set aside overnight, about 12 hours
Prepare the Butter:
- In the morning, cut 1 stick of butter into small cubes and set aside on a plate to soften to room temperature.
Prepare the Tangzhong:
- In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup milk and 1/2 cup fresh milled flour
- Set over medium-high heat and whisk constantly until the mixture becomes a thick paste, about 4-6 minutes.
- As you whisk, you will feel it start to thicken, and it may even start to get lumpy. Keep whisking briskly and it will smooth out again and become a very thick paste
- Set the tangzhong aside to cool to room temperature.
Mix the Dough:
- In the bowl of a kitchen aid mixer, combine 500g flour, 300g water, the tangzhong, the ripe levain, salt, and maple syrup.
- Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment and set to STIR for 1-2 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the dough with a rubber spatula (the dough will be pretty wet), and switch to the dough hook attachment.
- Using the dough hook, mix on low or medium low (I set it between 2 and 4 on my mixer) speed for 7 minutes. Pause once more in the first couple minutes to scrape down the sides one more time. The dough should start to come together and cling to the dough hook rather than sticking to the sides of the bowl
- Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 10-20 minutes in the bowl
- In the meantime, check that your butter is nice and soft and your finger can easily leave an indent in one of the pieces. If it's still a bit firm, you can put it in a microwave for a couple seconds.
- Once the dough has rested in the bowl and the butter is ready, turn the mixer back to a low speed and slowly add the butter one piece at a time, allowing several seconds between pieces so that each piece has time to incorporate into the dough. This should take about 5-7 minutes.
- When the butter is fully incorporated, turn up the speed slightly and continue mixing for 1-2 more minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a separate bowl for bulk fermentation (or leave it in the mixer bowl).
- Cover the bowl and allow the dough to bulk ferment for 3-4 hours until double in size.
Shape the Hamburger Buns:
- Once the dough has risen for 3-4 hours, turn it out onto a smooth work surface and using a bench knife, cut it into 12 pieces, about 117 grams each.
- Use a little fresh milled flour to dust your work surface and fingers as needed.
- Take each piece of dough and hold it in your palm while using your fingers to wrap the dough inward on itself on all sides, creating tension across the top of the bun.
- Continue to fold the sides in and pinch, and once you have a nice round shape, set it down on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper, pinched side down.
- If you don't like a super round bun, use your fingers to slightly flatten out the balls of dough on the pan.
- Repeat with all the buns.
- Cover the baking sheets lightly with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place for another 2-3 hours.
- When they are ready to bake, they should feel like a fluffy marshmallow to the touch, as if you can feel the bubbles just below the surface.
- Check after 2 hours, and if they still feel kind of firm to the touch, let rise another 30 min to 1 hour.
Bake the buns:
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
- If desired, whisk 1 egg with a little splash of milk and brush the tops of the buns lightly with the mixture. This gives the a nice shiny golden color. Try not to let the egg pool down under the bun or it can cause the underside to burn.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional)
- Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.
- Next, rotate the pans in the oven, reduce the heat to 425 degrees, and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until golden brown (7 minutes was perfect for a softer bun. 10 minutes makes the exterior crisp up just a bit more.)
- Transfer the buns to a wire rack and allow them to cool completely.
- Once cool, slice them and serve, or slice them and place in a freezer ziplock bag and freeze for whenever they are needed.
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