It’s burger night and while thinking of new ideas for a hamburger, it occurred to me that it wasn’t the hamburger that I needed to re-invent, it was the vessel for the hamburger. I’ve always used store bought buns (prepackaged ones or the so-called ‘fresh‘ ones from the deli) and they will work, but if you want something extraordinary, you NEED to make these buns. They are simple to make and the end result will give you the best tasting most fluffy, moist buns you have ever had. I promise!
There is so much junk in the store bought buns, why eat that when you can have something so much better.
Just a little astro note on the the name: GOMEZ’S LIGHT BRIOCHE BUNS.
Discovered by Arturo Gomez in 1985 , Gomez’s Hamburger is a young star that is believed to be around 900 light years away with a surface temperature of approximetely 18,000 °F. The ‘hamburger buns’ are actually light reflecting off dust. Pretty cool… Back to the mission at hand.
1. Grab a bowl and add the water, yeast, milk, sugar and stir vigorously to combine. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes or until you start to see foam and bubbles forming on the top.
While you are waiting add the flour, butter and salt to a bowl and using your fingers, rub the mixture making crumbs.
Add the yeast mixture and egg to your flour mixture. Using a mixer with a scraper, run for about 8-10 minutes. If you do not have a mixer, use your hands to knead the dough. The dough is going to be very sticky, so put some olive oil on your hands first if you are using this approach.
* I have tried many different brands of bread flour, and I find King Arthur’s to be the best.
2. Shape your dough into a ball (again, this will be very sticky) and place in a bowl. Cover with a damp towel and let this rise until it has doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
*Pay more attention to the size of your dough and not to the time.
3. Punch your dough mixture down to remove any air bubbles and flatten. Using a dough scraper or chef’s knife, divide into 8 equal pieces.
4. One by one, flatten each dough piece, pull up the corners and pinch together. Turn the dough piece over, and using the palm of your hand roll into a smooth ball.
Place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let buns rise in a warm place for 1- 2 hours.
5. Preheat your oven to 400 F. To help keep the buns nice and moist, add a shallow baking pan to the lowest rack in your oven and poor in 1 cup of water. Add your dough and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and cool.
There you have it. Gomez’s Light Brioche Buns. I made this for my Smoked Gouda Backyard Hamburgers.
- 1 cup warm water
- 3 tablespoons warm milk
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast or 1 package of rapid rise
- 2½ tablespoons sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 3½ cups bread flour
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 2½ tablespoons unsalted butter, softened.
- In a bowl or glass measuring cup, combine warm water, milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, beat 1 egg.
- In a large bowl, whisk flours with salt. Add butter and rub into flour between your fingers, making crumbs. Using a dough scraper, stir in yeast mixture and beaten egg until a dough forms. Using a dough hook, knead for 8-10 minutes.
- Shape dough into a ball and return it to bowl. Cover bowl with damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using dough scraper or kitchen knife, divide dough into 8 equal parts. Gently roll each into a ball and arrange 2 to 3 inches apart on baking sheet. Cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel and let buns rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours.
- Set a large shallow pan of water on oven floor. Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in center. Beat remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush some on top of buns. Bake, turning sheet halfway through baking, until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
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