Sourdough Hot Dog Buns Recipe

This sourdough hot dog bun recipe is soft, fluffy, perfectly tangy, and ready in the same day. A small amount of yeast gives the dough a reliable rise while your sourdough starter adds flavor, so you get bakery-style hot dog buns in under 4 hours!

You'll also love: sourdough pizza dough, soft sourdough pita bread, and sourdough bread bowls.

Craving The Recipe Details?

Homemade sourdough hot dog buns on a baking sheet.

What it is: Soft sourdough hot dog buns with a golden exterior and chewy crumb, perfect for dogs, sausages, or sandwiches.

Why you'll love it: Easy to make with tangy sourdough flavor and the satisfaction of bakery-style buns right from your oven.

How to make it: Mix yeast, milk, water, and sugar. Add in sourdough starter, bread flour, and sea salt. Then knead in butter. Let the dough rise, shape into buns, proof until puffy, brush with milk, then bake at 350°F until golden.

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Perplexity

There’s something magical about the marriage of a perfectly grilled or smoked hot dog and a deliciously soft bun. It’s one of life’s simple pleasures, one that keeps even this foodie coming back again and again.

Over the years, I’ve tried to perfect my dog bun recipe with little success. But this time, I was determined to get it right.

The result? Homemade sourdough hot dog buns with a slight chew, delicate taste, and sturdy structure that stands up to even the juiciest toppings without becoming soggy.

This sourdough hot dog recipe is dedicated to determination.

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Craving The Recipe Details?
Key Ingredients
Variations + Substitutions
How To Make Sourdough Hot Dog Buns
Expert Tips
Working With Enriched Dough
Sourdough Hot Dog Buns FAQs
Why This Recipe Works
More Sourdough Recipes
📖 Printable Recipe

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Key Ingredients

Ingredients for sourdough hot dog buns o marble counter.

Bread Flour: For best results, use a high-protein unbleached bread flour to build structure and create soft, sturdy buns able to stand up to all your favorite fillings!

Butter: Butter helps give the dough a soft texture, locks in moisture, keeps your buns fresher for longer, and helps to improve the Maillard effect (browning) during baking.

Sourdough Starter: Use a fed and active sourdough starter. Your starter should have been fed within the last 6-8 hours and at least doubled in size. This recipe is based on a sourdough starter with 100% hydration.

Psst.. Want to know more about feeding your starter, storing sourdough starter, how to use discard, or even which is the best jar for your starter? I've got tons of guides to help you!

Variations + Substitutions

Swap out the instant yeast for active dry yeast – just allow it to proof in the warm milk mixture until foamy before proceeding.
Sprinkle the top of the buns with poppy seeds or sesame seeds after brushing with milk to make a seeded hot dog bun.
Make it whole wheat-ish – swap out up to 75g of bread flour for whole wheat flour.

How To Make Sourdough Hot Dog Buns

Make The Dough:

Step 1: In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine 180g warm milk (~80f) , 100g warm water, and 25g granulated sugar, and 7g instant yeast. Mix on low speed until the sugar is dissolved.

Step 2: Then add 100g sourdough discard, 500g bread flour and 6g sea salt.

Step 3: Mix until a rough, shaggy dough forms.

Step 4: Gradually add 30g softened butter.

Step 5: Knead until dough is smooth and elastic. This will take 5+ minutes.

Step 6: Transfer to a greased bowl, cover and rest until nearly doubled in size, usually around 45-60 minutes.

Note: I ferment my dough at room temperature between 70-72 degrees Fahrenheit.

Shape The Buns:

Step 7: Once the dough has doubled, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Step 8: Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and press into a large rectangle.

Step 9: Cut the dough into 10 pieces, approximately 90g each, with a bench scraper or serrated knife.

Step 10: Tuck each of the dough pieces into a tight ball and set on prepared baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and rest for 20 minutes. This allows the dough to relax and makes shaping much easier.

Step 11: Working one ball at a time, roll it into a rough rectangle about 6″ wide.

Step 12: Then roll into a cylinder, pinching the seams shut.

Step 13: Return each shaped bun, seam side down, to the prepared baking sheet, leaving a small gap between the buns.

Step 14: Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until nearly doubled, about 45-60 minutes.

Bake The Buns:

Step 15: Once the buns have nearly doubled, preheat the oven to 350f. Brush each bun generously with milk.

Step 16: Bake at 350f for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. You can check the doneness with an instant read thermometer, the internal temperature should be 190f.
Step 17: Brush the top of the buns with butter, then allow to cool on the baking sheet before separating them.

Expert Tips

Brushing the buns with milk prior to baking helps give them a deep, rich color while brushing them after baking with butter helps to soften the crust and ensure the best bun possible.
I bulk ferment and proof my bread dough at room temperature, but if you're in a warm place (warmer than 70-72f), your rising times will need to be shortened.
Allow the buns to rise until big and puffy before baking, this helps to ensure big, puffy buns.
Leave a small amount of space between the buns on the baking tray – we want them to have room to expand during the proofing process, but also to touch each other during baking to help keep their shape.
I find that adding a small amount of yeast gives these buns a little extra resiliency and bounce-back after shaping. Enriched sourdoughs, those with ingredients like eggs, butter, or milk, tend to perform better with a touch of yeast alongside the starter, helping the dough rise more predictably and maintain structure.

Working With Enriched Dough

If you've never kneaded butter into your dough after the fact, you have to trust the process a little! I have been playing around with Pain De Mie, brioche, and other enriched doughs in my free time, and have a growing appreciation for this method of dough making.

We are adding butter to this dough because it makes a nice tender crumb and improves the structure of the dough. If it looks like the dough is falling apart in your mixer or just turning into a sticky mess, that is ok - don't hit the panic button yet. It will come together.

My dough took nearly 10 minutes to complete, and that's totally normal! You're looking for a dough that's soft, tacky to the touch, and elastic.

Try another enriched dough: Sourdough Cinnamon Roll Christmas Trees

Sourdough Hot Dog Buns FAQs

How do I store sourdough hot dog buns?

Keep your homemade hot dog buns in a sealed container for up to 3 days, though they really shine the brightest on the first 2 days. A quick zap in the microwave can help to bring back a little vibrance on day 3, or if you forget them in the back of the bread box, slathering with butter and toasting face down on a cast iron skillet is a great way to revive them.

Alternatively, they can be frozen. For best results, freeze your buns as soon as possible after completely cooled. Label and date a large freezer bag and place the buns into the bag in a single layer, gently squeeze out as much air as possible, then freeze for later!
Frozen sourdough hot dog buns are best used within 3-4 months, but they will last at least 6 months.

Why are my sourdough hot dog buns dense?

Dense buns usually come down to one of two things: the dough didn’t proof long enough, or your starter wasn’t active enough. To fix this problem, make sure your starter is bubbly and at its peak before you begin, and give the dough plenty of time to rise in a warm place, it should look noticeably puffy and feel airy when you gently poke it.

Can I use all-purpose flour instead of bread flour for hot dog buns?

Yes, you can use all-purpose flour and still get good results. The buns will be a bit softer and less sturdy, which is fine for lighter toppings. If you’re planning to load them up with chili, sauerkraut, or other heavy toppings, bread flour is worth it for the extra structure and chew.

Can I make sourdough discard hot dog buns?

You can substitute 100g unfed discard for the active starter. For timing as written (2-3 hours total), increase yeast to 10g. For slower fermentation keep yeast at 7g but expect 4-6 hours for first rise.

Why This Recipe Works

High-protein flour builds structure. Bread flour has more protein than all-purpose, which generally means better gluten development. Better gluten development leads to a stronger rise.

Enriched doughs need a little extra help. Ingredients like butter and milk actually slow down fermentation and make it harder for the starter to do its job. Adding a small amount of yeast compensates for this, ensuring your buns rise dependably and recover from shaping well.

Gradual butter incorporation prevents a sticky mess. Adding the butter slowly lets the dough absorb it properly without breaking down the gluten structure you’ve already built. Trust the process even if you’re convinced it won’t work, it will come together into a smooth, elastic dough.

Butter makes them soft and shelf-stable. Kneading butter into the dough after it’s come together creates a tender crumb and locks in moisture. This means your buns stay fresh longer and won’t dry out after a day or two.

The double brush technique is crucial. Brushing with milk before baking gives you that golden-brown color through the Maillard reaction, while the butter brush after baking softens the crust and adds richness. Skip either step and you’re missing out.

Separated sourdough buns on a baking sheet.

More Sourdough Recipes

If you tried this Sourdough Hot Dog Bun recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!

📖 Printable Recipe