Nothing says All American than a Sesame Seed Bun Burger that is at cookouts across this country during summer. Americans love a burger including myself but where did a sesame seed bun come from?
The one thing that I have started doing lately is making my own homemade hamburger buns and sesame seed buns are truly an American Classic.
Dating back to the 1950's it is believed that Robert Wian founder of the Bob's Big Boy. created a "carved sesame-seed bun into three horizontal slices, slapped two beef patties between them, topped with cheese, relish, and lettuce in between." At least that is what an article said from,1955 Times Mag. It wasn't until 1968 that McDonald started making the Big Mac the same way.
Today, the sesame seed is the perfect bun for an All-American hamburger. So let's get started in making a soft white hamburger bun filled with sesame seeds.
Grocery Store Items
Dry Ingredients
- King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour - My favorite
- salt
- instant yeast
Wet Ingredients
- water
- butter, at room temperature
- egg
- honey
How to Make Hamburger Buns
- Gently spoon flour into a cup, then sweep off any excess and add to the mixer bowl along with the salt, and yeast. Then mix wet ingredients together and pour slowly into the bowl while it is kneading.
- You can mix by hand or a stand mixer with a dough hook — knead until it becomes a soft dough to become a smooth ball and there is no sticky dough going on.
- Cover the mixer bowl with plastic wrap then if you have any shower caps place one on top. Let the dough rise until it's nearly doubled in bulk, about 1 to 2 hours.
- To shape the buns, deflate and divide dough into eight equal pieces and roll them into tight balls.
- Flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand until it's about 3 inches wide.
- Place the buns on a lightly greased or parchment paper baking sheet or if you have a bun pan. Cover and let rise until puffy which is about an hour. Toward the end of the dough rise, preheat the oven to 375° degrees.
- Mix egg with 1 tablespoon of water, then take a pastry brush and brush egg wash on the top of the buns, This is when I do the sprinkling of sesame seeds on top of the buns after the egg wash.
- Bake the buns in the preheated oven for about 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown.
- Cool the buns on a rack before slicing them in half.
Variations
There are different toppings for buns such as poppy seeds or dry onion flakes. Another favorite is brushing butter on top of the buns for extra softness.
Tips And Tricks
- The best way to test old active dry yeast is to place it in a small bowl and add a little lukewarm water with a ¼ spoon of sugar. If it bubbles it's good if not, chuck it.
- If you need bread to rise quickly, find a warm place in your home. Mine is the garage so I cover it up and leave it until it doubles in size.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make it ahead of time? Yes, make these ahead of time. I make extra and freeze them so I can use them when we decide to make burgers which is at least once a week.
Can I freeze Sesame Seed Bun? I always do it in an airtight container.
Making bread is so much easier than I thought and it has no ascorbic acid or high fructose corn syrup. Once I started making my Sesame Seed Bun, I never looked back to store bough buns. I hope you love this recipe as much as I enjoy eating it. See ya next time as my quest continues in search of the perfect bite!
More All-American Recipes
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Sesame Seed Bun Burger is ALL American
Ingredients
Buns
- 3 ½ cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- ¾ cup water lukewarm*
- 2 tablespoons butter at room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons sugar or 2 tbsp of honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
Sesame Seed Topping
- 1 egg whisked
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds
Instructions
Buns
- Gently spoon flour into a cup, then sweep off any excess and add to the mixer bowl along with the salt, and yeast. Then mix wet ingredients together and pour slowly into the bowl while it is kneading.
- You can mix by hand or a stand mixer with a dough hook — knead until it becomes a soft dough to become a smooth ball and there is no sticky dough going on.
- Cover the mixer bowl with plastic wrap then if you have any shower caps place one on top. Let the dough rise until it's nearly doubled in bulk, about 1 to 2 hours.
- To shape the buns, deflate and divide dough into eight equal pieces and roll them into tight balls.
- Flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand until it's about 3 inches wide.
- Place the buns on a lightly greased or parchment paper baking sheet or if you have a bun pan.
- Cover and let rise until puffy which is about an hour. Toward the end of the dough rise, preheat the oven to 375° degrees.
Sesame Seed Topping
- Mix egg with 1 tablespoon of water, then take a pastry brush and brush egg wash on the top of the buns, This is when I do the sprinkling of sesame seeds on top of the buns after the egg wash.
- Then sprinkle of sesame seeds on top of the buns after the egg wash.
- Bake the buns in the preheated oven for about 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown.
- Cool the buns on a rack before slicing them in half.
Notes
- The flour that is used will make all the difference in the world so buy good quality flour for the best results.
- The best way to test old active dry yeast is to place it in a small bowl and add a little lukewarm water with a ¼ spoon of sugar. If it bubbles it's good if not, chuck it.
- If you need bread to rise quickly, find a warm place in your home. Mine is the garage so I cover it up and leave it until it doubles in size.
CINDI DANO
I love your recipes and the step by step photos - for the all American bun - do you have any recipes for gluten free?
Lizzy
I'm working on a sourdough glueten-free starter to make bread but it's turning out to be harder then I thought. Thanks for visiting, xoxo Lizzy
Phyllis
Love this recipe, so easy will never buy buns again.
Lizzy
Thank you, xoxo Lizzy