I love a BBQ and so do the kids, and I’ve almost always got at least some sausages that I can grill when they randomly request a BBQ dinner at 3:30pm on a weekday as we walk home from school. But buns don’t stay fresh long and take up significant freezer space so we’re often without.

So I should just say sorry kids but no, we don’t have time to go shopping, and start the BBQ, and cook… right?

Absolutely not! With this recipe you can be mixing ingredients when you get home from school and eating the warm and fresh buns by 6:00pm with whatever meat you were able to stick on the BBQ!

Ingredients

• Large baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper
• 1tbsp granulated sugar
• 1tsp salt
• 2tsp instance yeast
• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 60ml (1/4 cup) warm water
• 225ml (1 cups) warm milk
• 350 to 450g (3 to 3 1/2 cups) plain flour

Method

• Combine the sugar, yeast and warm water in a standing mixer with dough hook
• Add the milk, oil, salt, and 175g (1 1/2 cups) flour and mix on medium speed (4 or 5 on most mixers) until thoroughly combined.
• Reduce speed to low (2 on most mixers) and gradually add flour 30g (1/4 cup) at a time, continuously mixing thoroughly until dough starts to come away from the sides of the bowl.
• Stop adding flour as soon as this consistency is reached, and continue to mix on low for 5 minutes.
• Place the dough in an oiled bowl, roll it around to coat, cover bowl with clingfilm or damp towl, and leave somewhere warm to rise for 1 hour.
• Turn dough out, divide into 6 to 10 equal pieces (depending on your desired size) and shape into either hotdog or burger buns.
• Place buns on the baking sheet and flatten slightly – 1 inch space will result in soft-sided tear-appart buns, more space will result in crispier seperated buns.
• Cover again and leave for 45 minutes and by the end of this time preheat the oven to 220°C conventional /200°C (400°F) fan/gasmark 6
• Bake for 20 minutes
• Immediately transfer to a wire rack to cool

Tips

• If you don’t have a mixer with a dough hook you can do this by hand, it’s just a little messier (which might be more fun for the kids) and take a little longer to kneed.
• Using the opposite method to most dough recipes, this one gets amazing texture by adding the dry ingredients gradually to the wet until it gets to exactly the right consitency, which also makes the process quicker by stretching the gluten as you add!
• Makes 6 to 10 buns depending on how you shape them – if you want to be really precise regardless of size, bake until the buns internal temperature reaches 90°C (190°F)
• Don’t be tempted to use bread flour! The extra gluten and protein will change the results
  • You can technically substitute all-purpose flour for bread flour if you add less water, mix the dough more gently and for a shorter period of time, and don’t expect the same results.
• You can optionally egg-wash the buns for an extra golden shine, or add sesame seeds if you’re shaping them for burgers.