Homemade Potato Buns are the softest, most delicious hamburger buns on the planet. Whether you are prepping these for burger night or to enjoy just as potato rolls, this recipe never disappoints.
We made them for burgers and couldn't help ourselves from digging into them right away. The main ingredient is the humble potato and it's ideal to give us that soft and fluffy texture! The potato within the dough helps the buns retain their moisture and ensures a light and bouncy crumb. It's the perfect, foolproof recipe for any level of baker!
Table of Contents
Why This Recipe Works
When it comes to baking yeast dough, it can seem like an intimidating task. But using instant yeast instead of growing the yeast (like we do in our cinnamon rolls) makes this recipe a breeze and about as quick as a homemade hamburger bun gets.
This recipe gives you simple ingredients to work with and comes equipped with clear instructions. Even a novice baker can whip up perfect buns on the first go-round!
Important Ingredients
- Russet Potatoes | Russet potatoes are the best potatoes for light and fluffy mashed potatoes. It only makes sense that we would enlist them for making light and fluffy potato rolls. We do not recommend using any potatoes of the new or waxy variety for this recipe.
- Rapid Rise (Instant) Yeast | Instant yeast activates and makes your dough rise much faster than if you used active dry yeast. Using it for this recipe makes these burger buns a quick and easy baking project. It's the difference between a baking project that lasts all afternoon and one that only takes a couple of hours.
- All-Purpose Flour | Many potato bun recipes out there call for a combo of all-purpose flour and bread flour. The truth is that you can use both or one or the other. Bread flour gives the buns more chew, but we went with all-purpose since it's more commonplace in most people's pantries than bread flour.
- Buttermilk Powder | Don't be weirded out by this product; it's baking magic. It is dehydrated buttermilk that can be stored in the fridge for over a year. You find it in the baking aisle of your grocery store, and it's an amazing product for adding moisture and a touch of tang to baked goods. In this recipe, we combine it with the potato water for an oomph of starchy goodness, tang, and moisture retention throughout the dough.
How to Make Potato Buns
Boil the Potatoes | To kick off your potato buns, start by cutting the russet potatoes into cubes. Add your cubed potatoes to a saucepan along with about 1-½ cups of water. Bring the potatoes to a boil and allow them to cook for about 10 minutes, just until they are fork tender.
Mash the Potatoes + Add Butter | Remove the potatoes using a slotted spoon and transfer them to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Set the saucepan with the starchy potato water aside and take care not to accidentally discard it! You will use it (once it's cooled) in your dough. Add butter to the potatoes in the stand mixer and mix on low just until the potatoes are mashed.
Add Ingredients to Mashed Potatoes | Once the potato water has cooled to room temperature, add 1 cup of it to the bowl along with all-purpose flour, buttermilk powder, sugar, yeast, salt, and 1 of the eggs. Then, turn on your stand mixer and mix on low until everything is combined.
Knead the Dough | After the mixture for your potato buns comes together, you'll swap out the paddle attachment for the dough hook and mix on low for about 1 minute. Then, increase your speed to medium and knead the dough for about 8 minutes more.
Cover and Rise for One Hour | After the time is up, use floured hands to form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a large, lightly oiled bowl. Note, the dough will feel very soft and somewhat tacky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour.
Divide Into Buns | After the dough has doubled in size, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. Ready a baking sheet with parchment paper, roll each piece into a ball, and transfer the potato buns to the prepared pan.
Make sure that you space each dough ball about 2 to 3 inches apart so that they have room to grow, and gently press on the tops to slightly flatten.
Rise the Potato Buns for One Hour More | Cover and allow the formed buns to rise about 1 hour more. Once the buns are close to double in size, begin preheating your oven to 350°F.
Add Egg Wash + Bake | After the hour is up, make an egg wash by whisking together 1 egg and about 2 tablespoons of water. Brush the top of your potato buns with the egg wash and transfer them to the preheated oven to bake for 18 minutes, or until the top of the buns are golden brown and color.
Allow Buns to Cool | Then remove the buns from the oven and allow them to cool on a rack for 10 to 15 minutes.
Pro Tips for Foolproof Potato Rolls
- Use Russets potatoes — Use russet potatoes for the fluffiest potato buns!
- The stand mixer is your friend — This is a sticky dough, and if you have a stand mixer, you'll definitely want to use it for this recipe. It makes the kneading process a breeze!
- Don't throw out the water — Don't discard of the potato cooking water! You will need it.
- Make ahead help — These buns are delicious the next day, but also freeze amazingly. To freeze buns for up to 2 months, let them cool completely and then place them in a freezer-safe zip-top bag. (Tip: Use a straw to suck all the air out before sealing!) Make sure not to smoosh them during storage.
- Make them extra pretty — Don't skip the egg wash! This step makes the buns absolutely gorgeous and show-stopping.
5 More Baking Recipes You'll Love
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Potato Rolls
Ingredients
- ½ pound Russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
- ¼ cup room temperature unsalted butter
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup dry buttermilk powder
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons rapid rise (or instant) yeast
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs (you will need one for the dough and one for the egg wash)
Instructions
- Add the cubed potatoes and about 1-½ cups of water to a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Scoop out the potatoes with a slotted spoon and transfer them the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Set the saucepan with the water aside to slightly cool. Do not discard.
- Add the butter to the potatoes and mix on low until the potatoes appear mashed.
- Once the potato water cools down to lukewarm, add 1 cup of the water to the bowl and discard the rest. Then, add the flour, buttermilk powder, sugar, yeast, salt, and 1 egg. Mix on low until combined.
- Switch out the paddle attachment for the dough hook and mix on low for about 1 minute, then, increase the speed to medium (#6 on Kitchenaid stand mixer) and knead for 8 minutes.
- Once the dough has finished kneading (it will soft and somewhat tacky), use floured hands to form it into a ball and transfer it to a large, greased bowl. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to proof in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until is has almost doubled in size.
- On a floured work surface, divide it into 8 equal pieces and roll each piece into balls.
- Transfer them to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing them about 2 to 3 inches apart, and press down on the tops to gently flatten.
- Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for about 45-60 minutes more, or until the buns have almost doubled in size. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1 egg and 2 tablespoons of water. Brush the tops of the buns with the egg wash and bake for 18-22 minutes, until golden in color.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes. Then, serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Source: Medium.com
Cate says
This recipe looks great, I love potato buns, excited to make my own! Can the russet potatoes be subbed for yellow potatoes? I only have yellow on hand, I wasn’t sure if they have a different texture or cook up differently? Thank you in advance for your help 🙂
Kelly Anthony says
I have not tested the recipe with yellow potatoes, but they are less starchy, less fluffy, and firmer in texture than Russets. Russet is most definitely the safest choice! Hope that helps 🙂