Soft, fluffy gluten free hamburger buns are just crusty enough to hold together well. And, both the regular and dairy free versions taste great! Enjoy your own gluten free, dairy free buns at picnics, backyard barbecues, and wherever you eat hamburgers. They're good enough to share with the non-gluten-free crowd, too!
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I've tested many variations, and these are the best gluten free hamburger buns that I've found! The nice thing about gluten free yeast baking is that it doesn't require a second rising. Even allowing one hour for rising, you can have fresh buns in under two hours!
July 16, 2021 edit: While the recipe instructions are for a stand mixer, I've since made these hamburger buns without one. They rose up even better than usual! If you don't have a stand mixer and would like to make them by hand, simply follow the instructions in the Notes section at the end of the recipe.
Ingredients
- Potato Starch - Don't use potato flour. It's very different from potato starch.
- Tapioca Flour - Tapioca starch is the same as tapioca flour, so it's fine to use either one of these. Learn more about gluten free flours.
- Xanthan Gum - Guar gum can be substituted for xanthan gum, it you prefer.
- Instant Skim Milk Powder - For dairy free hamburger buns, replace the powdered milk with an equal volume of soy flour. This gives the buns a nice flavour as an alternative to the very neutral taste of the milk powder option.
- Butter - Melted butter is easily replaced by avocado oil to make your buns gluten free. I choose avocado oil for its neutral taste and ability to tolerate high temperatures.
Instructions
Measure sugar into a large bowl. A stand mixer makes gluten free bread making easy! Add the warm water. Give it a swirl to dissolve most of the sugar. Then sprinkle instant yeast over the top. Let that sit for five minutes.
The temperature of the water is important here. If it's too hot or too cold, it can kill the yeast. The ideal temperature is between 100° and 115°F (38° - 46°C). If you don't have a thermometer, test it by touching it with the inside of your wrist. It should feel comfortable, neither too hot nor too cold, to you.
While the yeast is blooming, combine your dry ingredients in another bowl.
Then, beat the liquid mixture just a little, to stir in the yeast. Add the vinegar and eggs. Beat this until the mixture is foamy.
Add the dry ingredients to the liquid in the mixing bowl, and beat at medium-low speed with the medium mixing paddle of the mixer for about 3 to 5 minutes, until the batter is smooth.
Add the melted butter (not too hot) or avocado oil and beat until it is well incorporated.
Spread the batter into oiled metal rings until the tops are level. Some oil on your spatula will help to keep the batter from sticking to your spatula, so you can spread it out smoothly. Then, sprinkle sesame seeds over the tops, if you wish. Set this to rise in a warm place, free from drafts, for an hour.
Bake your burger buns in a preheated 400°F (204°C) oven until their internal temperature reaches 180° to 190°F (82° to 88°C). This should take 15 to 20 minutes. Don't over bake them, or they could become too dry. On the other hand, if they are undercooked, they will be doughy inside. I can't overestimate the value of a good, instant-read thermometer!
Let your buns cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, remove them from the rings, and leave them to continue cooling until you're ready for them.
Recipe Tips and FAQ's
The best way to make sure your gluten free bread, or buns in this case, is not crumbly is to use the xanthan gum (or guar gum) in the amount specified in this recipe and avoid over baking. Not over baking is key. Your buns may not look overdone, but they could become dry and crumbly inside long before they look burnt on the outside.
Once your buns have cooled, seal them in an airtight container. As with all home baking, you should refrigerate what you don't use the first day. These buns are best used when they're as fresh as possible. Like most gluten free bread, they can become dry and crumbly after they've been frozen and thawed. They really are terrific gluten free hamburger buns if you use them while they're fresh!
Ready to try some more gluten free breads?
Recipe
Gluten Free Hamburger Buns
Equipment
- 3.75" English muffin rings
- 2-cup pyrex measuring cup
- baking sheet
Ingredients
Yeast Mixture
- 1 tablespoon raw sugar
- 1 ½ cups warm water (115° F, 46° C)
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
Dry Ingredients
- 1½ cups white rice flour
- ¾ cup tapioca flour
- ½ cup potato starch (NOT potato flour)
- ¼ cup sorghum flour
- ⅓ cup instant skim milk powder OR (⅓ cup/36 g) soy flour (for dairy free)
- 2 teaspoons xanthan gum
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg white
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup butter melted (OR avocado oil for dairy free)
- oil for oiling rings and smoothing the tops
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, optional
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper. Grease six English muffin rings, and set them on the parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Combine the sugar and warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the yeast over top. Let it sit 5 minutes.
- Whisk the dry ingredients (flours, skim milk powder, xanthan gum, and salt) together in a mixing bowl.
- Add the vinegar and eggs to the yeast mixture in the stand mixer bowl. With the medium paddle, beat the mixture until it's foamy.
- Add the flour mixture, and beat it all on medium-low speed for 3 to 5 minutes until the batter is smooth. You might want to stop once to scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure that all of the dry mixture has been incorporated. The batter will be thick, moist, and sticky.
- Add the melted butter. (Make sure it isn't hot.) Beat another minute or two until it is well blended in. The batter will be much more moist and soft than regular wheat bread dough.
- Spread the batter into the prepared baking rings.
- Smooth out the batter with an oiled spatula. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, it desired.
- Allow the dough to rise for an hour in a warm room.
- Bake in a preheated 400° F (204° C) oven until the buns reach an internal temperature of 180°-190° F (82°-88°), about 15 to 20 minutes.
- Allow the tray of buns to cool on a wire rack. Remove the buns from the rings when they're cool enough to handle.
- Slice cooled buns in half horizontally to use for hamburgers.
Notes
- It's important that the water be neither too hot nor too cold, or it will destroy the yeast. Between 100° - 115°F (38° - 46°C) is just right.
- Bread dough rises best in a warm room. It's really happy in 80°-90° F (27° - 32°C).
- Don't overcook the buns, or they will become too dry. If you don't have an instant-read thermometer, you might want to consider getting one. It makes it easy to know when your buns or bread are perfectly done.
- Store homemade gluten free hamburger buns in a sealed container in the refrigerator or freezer.
- No stand mixer? No problem! Without a stand mixer, just whisk the dry ingredients together thoroughly, give the wet mixture a really good hand whisking, then stir everything together until it's all combined into a nice smooth batter. Spread it into the rings and allow it to rise as usual.
- No English muffin rings? If you happen to have a jumbo muffin pan, that would be the next best thing use for these buns.
Sharon says
I'm nervous to do these the batter is really wet and I didn't realize I need english muffin rings!
Cathy says
The wet batter shouldn't be a problem. If you don't have English muffin rings, just make them in a large muffin tin or whatever you have. You need something to contain the batter or it will flow to the sides. Gluten free batter is usually wetter than traditional bread batter.