Hamburger and Hot Dog Buns

I rarely buy hot dog or hamburger buns anymore.  These are so much better than store-bought.  Each recipe will make about 9-10 hamburger buns and about 12 hot dog buns.




Hot Dog and Hamburger Buns:
1 c. warm water
2 tbs. yeast
1/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. oil
1 tsp. salt
1 beaten egg
3 1/3 c. flour

Add water to a mixer and sprinkle yeast over top.  Sprinkle sugar over top of the yeast and mix it slightly to get everything wet.  Add in the oil, salt, egg, half of the flour.  Mix until smooth.  Slowly mix in the rest of the flour, letting the flour incorporate between each small addition.  You may not need all of the flour, and yet you may need a little more.  You want a soft dough that is not sticky to the touch.  I always know there is enough flour when the dough cleans the sides of the bowl itself as it mixes. Let the dough knead at least 5 minutes.  

If you are making hamburger buns, roll out on your counter top about 1/2' thick.  Cut out the buns using a wide-mouth mason jar lid.  Place on a greased cookie sheet and let rise until double, about 25 minutes.  Bake at 425 for about 10 minutes.  

I like to determine if the thickness of the dough by knowing that the dough should be as thick as the ring itself.  

If you are making hot dog buns, first make rolls with the dough. I use a kitchen scale.  I measure the dough and then divide it into 12 equal pieces.  If you don't have a kitchen scale, just eyeball 12 equal pieces.  Now take one of the rolls and stretch it slightly so that it is about 4 inches long or so.  Next, use a rolling pin to make a rectangle that is approx. 3" x 6".  It doesn't need to be exact.  Then roll up the rectangle starting with the wide side.  Pinch the ends and tuck them under slightly, and place seem side down on a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Do this with the remaining rolls until you have 12 buns.  Bake at 425 about 10 minutes.  

For hotdog buns form 12 rolls first. 

Stretch the roll slightly by pulling on it. 

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a small rectangle.

Roll the rectangle up, starting with the long end.  Pinch the ends under and place seam-side down on a greased sheet.  Let rise and bake.  

For a video on how this is done, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNWx8qxP704&t=193s.  There is no need to watch the entire video as she gives a recipe that is not the same as mine (and also is in metric units) in the beginning.  Skip to the tutorial on how to roll them out which is around 3:15 on the video.  This is where I learned to shape my buns.