How to Make Soft and Fluffy Gluten Free Burger Buns at Home
Updated: Mar 6
These gluten free burger buns are the softest, fluffiest buns imaginable, and - they taste exactly like regular bread. No iffy texture, no odd after taste. You'll be pinching yourself when you have your first burger with these little guys!
When I say these burger buns taste like a regular wheat flour bun I'm not exaggerating - and that's coming from someone who eats gluten regularly. I ate three quarters of one of these buns completely plain with no toppings trying to find something, ANYTHING odd about the taste and texture, only to further convince myself that it could have been a regular bun I was eating. To top it off it toasted beautifully and held up in a burger without crumbling. Don't believe me? You'll just have to try them yourself!
The secret to the fluffy texture and amazing flavour of these buns is the high proportion of starch in the flour combination. Ok, so it might not be the most nutritionally dense bread you've ever eaten, but we're not after healthy here (we are making burgers after all!). We're after a gluten free copy of the bread you miss having in your life, and this is it.
How to Make Gluten Free Burger Buns
Mixing the Dough: this bread dough starts life the same way many gluten free bread doughs do: with a psyllium gel. Now, it's not the prettiest ingredient to work with, but it does result in in the most amazing bread dough that we can shape but also holds enough moisture to create incredible bread. The psyllium just needs a few minutes to gel with the water, then it's ready to go. If you're making these gluten free burger buns with a stand mixer you shouldn't have any trouble getting your dough nice and smooth, but if you're mixing it by hand,get your hands in there to give it a good knead to make sure there are no lumps of psyllium gel or dry flour.
First Proof: the first proof is pretty low-maintenance. It's in the recipe mostly for the purpose of developing great flavour in the bread, but it's flexible in terms of how long you leave it. I leave mine for between 45 and 60 minutes, and I just look for the dough to double in size. If I happen to leave it for a a little bit too long it won't have much effect on the final dough.
Shaping: I always start the shaping process by kneading the dough until it's smooth. It only takes a couple of minutes, we're just looking to knock the air out of dough so we can shape it easily. Then, after dividing the dough into six equal pieces (I use my scale to get them exactly even), we work with one piece of dough at a time. I knead each piece again so I have one really smooth side, then flatten it out, smooth side down, on my floured surface. We can then gather all the edges into the middle and flip it over and rotate to tighten. (Watch the video below to see how I shape my burger buns!)
Second Proof: the second proof is where we have to make a judgement call. It takes a bit of practice to determine when gluten free bread is ready to bake (the way you judge wheat flour bread doesn't really work for gluten free bread), but here are my pointers: I always take note of which bun I shape first and which I shape last. Then, I leave them to proof for about 40 minutes and come back and give them a gentle prod. I'm looking for the dough to feel really light with lots of tiny air bubbles inside. If both the first and last buns feel light and airy, then they're ready to bake. But, if either of them still feel dense, even a little bit, I'll give them another 10 minutes and check again. Getting the second proof right is important for the shape and texture of the bread. If they're under proofed you might find they split along the side in the oven as they try to expand, or that you get big, gaping holes inside the buns when you cut into them. If they're over proofed they might come out a bit flat and sad-looking.
Egg Wash and Baking: once you've decided the buns are ready to bake we're up to the easy bit! They just need a brush of egg wash (or milk for an egg-free version) and a sprinkle of sesame seeds and in they go! I like to preheat my oven hotter than I need it for buns like this, it helps to get an even colour on all of them. Just don't forget to reduce the oven temperature when you put them in!
Cooling: unfortunately, it's best to let the buns cool before you slice into them. They'll be ok if you slice them slightly warm, but definitely don't cut into them when they're hot - they'll be all gummy and sticky inside!
Ingredient Substitutions
This recipe is already gluten free and dairy free, and it can easily be vegan by substituting the egg wash with milk of your choice or other vegan egg wash substitute. In addition, there are a few other substitutions you can make in this recipe if you need to:
Sorghum Flour: I buy my sorghum flour either online or I sometimes find it at my local Indian grocer. If you can't get your hands on it I find that brown rice flour is a decent alternative.
Tapioca or Potato Starch: if you need to swap out either of the starches in this recipe try another starch instead such as cornflour.
Sesame Seeds: the sesame seeds in this recipe are pretty much there just to make the buns look like a traditional burger bun. You can leave them off entirely or swap them for another seed of you choice.
Egg: if you can't have eggs a great substitute for the egg wash is whatever type of milk you have on hand - dairy or dairy free.
Whole Psyllium Husk: if you can only find psyllium husk powder you can still use it, just reduce the quantity to 80% - so for this recipe you'll use 10g.
Watch How to Make Gluten Free Burger Buns
Storage
Like all homemade breads (gluten free or otherwise) these buns are best on the day they're made. They do, however, keep pretty well at room temperature in an airtight container, but you'll be better off toasting them after a day or two. You can also freeze them, which is best done with freshly baked and cooled buns. I just let mine cool completely, then put them in a freezer safe bag.
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