Dan’s father’s side of the family is Southern. Before I traveled to Tennessee to visit his relatives, I had never tasted barbecue. Those moist, tender shreds of pork were a big revelation to this recovering vegetarian. After years of eating only tough and tasteless meat followed by years of not eating it at all, I was shocked how delicious it could be.
But there was something else I noticed on that first trip to the South: the barbecue was served on either spongy white bread or cottony hamburger rolls. It’s like I never noticed how gross these everyday foods were before I tasted them next to something so delicious.
Since then, I’ve wasted a lot of money of bakery-quality hamburger buns that are never exactly what I want. In the past year, I’ve sworn off supermarket and bakery buns in favor of homemade. They are cheap, easy, and they last close to forever in the freezer. (Just remember to split them before freezing!)
This recipe is adapted from Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Breads, known around here as “The Bread Book.” I have made it both with 100 percent all purpose flour and as I’ve written it here, with both white and whole wheat flours. If you like burgers, try this. It’s easier than you think.
Homemade Half Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns
Makes 12 buns
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 envelopes yeast
2 tablespoons butter, cut up into bits
2 cups hot water
Combine 1 cup wheat flour, 1 cup white flour, salt and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer, and stir with a fork to combine. Drop in butter and add water, stirring with a wooden spoon until the butter has melted and a smooth batter has formed.
Using the mixer’s dough hook, mix the dough, adding the remaining white and wheat flour in 1/2 cup increments. The dough should pull away from the sides of the mixer, but it’s OK if it clings to the bottom. It should be a bit sticky. If it’s too sticky–so that it sticks to the sides of the bowl–add few more tablespoons flour.
Knead with the dough hook on medium speed for 5 minutes, and then turn the dough into a greased bowl, cover with plastic, and let rise until doubled in size, about 40 minutes.
Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces, forming each into a ball and then flattening into a four-inch wide bun, and setting the buns onto a silpat- or parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise a second time for 30 minutes. Preheat your over to 400.
After the second round of rising, uncover the buns and bake them for about 20 minutes, until the bottom is brown and they sound hollow when tapped. Use immediately or let cool completely and then freeze.