Joy the Baker

Homemade Hot Dog Buns

by 150 Comments

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We are officially in ‘Last Meal’ territory.

You know that weird question people ask you… ‘What would you choose to eat as your last meal?’. Geeeez what a daunting question!  People ask it so frivolously.   When asked this question (and I’m asked this question with weird frequency) this dialogue runs through my head:

You know that’s actually going to happen right!?  We’re actually all going to have a last meal, because we’re all going to die.  I think you want me to talk about chocolate chip cookies right now, or prime rib, or I don’t know… but all I’m thinking about now is my own mortality and all the ridiculous things I have to ask God forgiveness for.  And now I’m thinking about your mortality… how do you like that?  And now I’m thinking about my cat’s mortality and really, I think that’s a rude thing for your to make me think of.  Why would you do that?  I thought we were friends.

It’s complicated in this brain.  Too real.

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Aaaaaaannnyyway.

Hot dogs would totally be my last meal.  But …since it’s my last meal, these hot dogs must be exactly perfect.

All-natural.  All-beef.  Totes grass-fed.  Majorly organic. Homemade Poppy Seed Bun(!!!).  Hot dog charred to a crisp.  Like really really charred.  Topped with ketchup.  Topped with whole grain mustard.  Dotted with hot sauce.  Loaded with sauerkraut.  Three hot dogs, please.  One big bag of potato chips.  Two root beers with lots of ice.  Crushed ice. Some privacy.  Don’t worry about it.  It’s cool.

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I’ve been meaning to make Homemade Hot Dog Buns for exactly one year.  I’m really good at procrastinating…

Let’s get this show on the road!

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Hot dog buns are made from a yeasted dough.  For this reason they require time, patience, and courage.  We’ve got loads of all three, don’t we?

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This dough comes together in a large bowl with a wooden spoon.  No mixer or dough hook required.

That also means that we have no excuses.

This dough is brought together a little at a time.  Here we have two cups of yeasty milk mixed with three cups of all-purpose flour.

It’s soupy but we’re on our way.

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Flour is added a half cup at a time.

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We’re getting there.  We’re trusting the process.

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This is cup six of six and one half.  Almost there!

Hashtag: math.  Hashtag:  not really.

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My dough was shaggy and lax.  It’s a mellow dough.  Still wet and sticky, and doesn’t want to hold its shape.  Perfect!

A moist dough will result in tender buns.  We want tender buns.

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Our mellow dough can be kneaded with a bench scraper.  It’s folded and kneaded until it comes together.

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The dough should come together into a big ol’ loose dough.  Technical term.

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Time for oiling, resting and rising.

This dough rests until double in size.

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Big body dough.

It’s time for the shaping!

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We’re going to divide the dough into eighteen pieces.

First though, we’re going to divide the dough into six pieces.  Baby steps.

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Eighteen mostly-even/ kinda-not-that-even/ totally-fine/ it’s-cool Pieces.

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Four and a half inches long.  That’s what we’re going for.

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Hot dog dough gets all cozy on a tray and ready for its second rise.

It’s really important not to futz with the dough too much during and after its second rise.  You don’t want to deflate the precious rise you’ve created.  A tender hand and a light kitchen towel to cover the dough will do.

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Dough is brushed with beaten egg and sprinkled generously with poppy seeds, sea salt, and coarse black pepper.

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Baked!

They sound hollow when tapped.  That’s how you know they’re done.

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Consider these homemade hot dog buns your summertime bragging rights.  Yea!  They’re that good.

This yeasted dough is pretty forgiving, but to get the best results, try not to over-proof the dough and don’t get too touchy with it after the dough is shaped.  It’s an exercise in letting it be.

Happy Summer!  I hope it’s sunny and delicious.

Homemade Hot Dog Buns

recipe from King Arthur Flour 

makes 18 buns

Print this Recipe!

2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 packets or 2 scant tablespoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
2 cups warm milk (105°F to 115°F)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
6 to 7 1/2 cups all-purpose flour*
egg wash: 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water
poppy seeds, coarse black pepper, and sea salt for topping (optional)

*King Arthur Flour gives a fairly wide flour measurement variation for a couple of reasons. First, you’ll find in the summer that you’ll need a bit more flour to absorb a given amount of liquid than you will in the winter. This is because it’s humid and flour acts somewhat like a slightly dampened sponge as a result.  I used 6 1/2 cups flour for my hot dog buns.

King Arthur Flour also notes that this particular dough should be quite slack, i.e., very relaxed in order to make soft and tender buns. So you want to add only enough more flour, past the 6-cup point, to make the dough just kneadable; sprinkling only enough more to keep it from sticking to you or the board.

To mix the dough:  In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar and then the yeast in the warm water. Add the milk, oil, salt and 3 cups of flour to the yeast mixture. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes.

Gradually add flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface.

To Knead the dough:   Knead until you have a smooth, elastic dough. Because this dough is so slack, you may find that a bowl scraper or bench knife can be helpful in scooping up the dough and folding it over on itself.

To rest and rise the dough:  Put the dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat the entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a tightly-woven dampened towel and let rise until doubled, about one hour.

To shape the buns:   Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. Divide into 18 equal pieces. This is done most easily by dividing the dough first into thirds, then those thirds into halves, then the halves into thirds.

Roll the dough into cylinders, 4 1/2-inches in length. Flatten the cylinders slightly; dough rises more in the center so this will give a gently rounded top versus a high top.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly grease the parchment paper.

For soft-sided buns, place them on prepared baking sheets a half inch apart so they’ll grow together when they rise. For crisper buns, place them three inches apart.

Second Rising: Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.  Just drape a towel over the buns for the second rose, a piece of plastic wrap may stick and deflate the buns when the plastic is removed.

To Bake:  Fifteen minutes before you want to bake your buns, preheat your oven to 400°F. Just before baking, lightly brush the tops of the buns with the egg wash and sprinkle with whatever seeds strike your fancy.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the internal temperature of the bread reaches 190°F. (A dough thermometer takes the guesswork out of this.)

When the buns are done, remove them from the baking sheet to cool on a wire rack. This will prevent the crust from becoming soggy.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Tiffany Rooprai

    Just made them to go with some locally made hot dogs, so easy and soon amazing. I subbed out the milk with 1 cup whipping cream thinned with 1 cup water, that is what I had. Am making them as burger buns for next weekend.

    Reply

  3. victor Aka Captain Dingo

    Joy, thank you. I’ve just started a hotdog cart business with a friend, we were looking for ways to stand out. These will do the trick. Already have one named, the Spartan. Grilled premium linked Connecticut hotdog, vidalia onions, jalapenos, feta cheese and our special dingo sauce.

    2 questions, Can the buns be frozen and what is the estimated cost?

    Thank you

    Reply

  6. CJ

    Love your site!! Made hotdog rolls for Superbowl yesterday. Came out a little flat and were crispy on the bottom. The flavor and crunch we awesome though. Split my dogs in half lengthewise and it worked out perfectly. My question is did I make the dough TOO soft?

    Reply

  7. Jim Nenow

    I’m making your Hot Dog buns for the first time today. Practicing making them for Super Bowl. My dough did not stay shaggy & lax like yours so I let my Kitchen Aid do the kneading for me. I’m letting it rise for a little longer hoping it will make up for the rough treatment. I’m looking forward to trying these on Sunday. I’m going to try your Honey wheat bread next.

    Reply

  8. Al

    Hi,
    Loved this recipe.. I tweaked it to make larger yellow and poppy street sausage buns. Added a cup of corn flour ,table spoon and a half turmeric , teaspoon and a quarter clubhouse yellow food colour. Only glazed with water and topped with poppy.
    Remove about a cup to 2 cups flour since corn flour acts different to water! Also didn’t flatten , this made 10-12 proper street sausage buns!

    Reply

  9. 'The Little Dutch Pastry Baker'

    Hi there,

    I was wondering why all recipes are measured in ‘cups’ and ‘spoons’. That makes it hard to make exactly as it should. A better way is in refular weight sizes like ‘grams’, ‘kilo’ or ‘ounces’. And the best way is to mention the ingredients in percentage. Then the floor will be 100%, water/milk probably around 60-65%, yeast around 3% and salt max 2%.
    And let us be well, a weight scale costs only a few bucks and the real home made bakers between us do have one already.
    So please let us know your results. Thank you.

    Reply

  10. pam

    made these this morning…they did deflate a bit, but i think that was user error…they still taste bloody fantastic! good crunch on the exterior and soft and flaky inside. can’t wait to get a hot dog on one…if there are any left by tonight.

    Reply

  11. Karen

    I made these a few weekends ago and my girls loved them! Does anyone know if I could make the dough the night before and let the first rise happen overnight in the fridge? I can’t squeeze the whole process into a weeknight and would really like to make this week. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

    Reply

  14. Claire

    Would almond milk work instead of regular milk? I would love to make these for my son’s birthday (hot dogs are his favorite!), but alas he is allergic to dairy.

    Reply

  15. R.Eacret

    I’d like to try to make these with a “pocket” inside for the dog………could I form the dough around a greased dowel rod? Would that change the baking time? Thx

    Reply

    • joythebaker

      You’re like a mad scientist, and I LOVE it. You can definitely wrap it around the dowel. Time will still stay the same, just keep an eye on them because they might might faster at the top because they’d be higher up!

      Reply

    • joythebaker

      Cow’s milk has that natural fat in it that helps the dough’s texture and softness in this recipe…I’m not sure which other milk you can use to achieve the same texture.

      Reply

  17. jo

    Someone commented this could be done in a bread machine. Could someone explain the details …ir steps involved to do it that way, please?

    Reply

  19. Erica Lea

    Homemade buns a way a bajillion times better than store-bought. There really is no comparison. I’m jealous of your grass-fed dogs. But you forgot the butter on the bun! ;)

    Reply

  21. Nicola Lynde

    Hot dogs would also be in my ‘last meal’ category, especially with caesar salad. I don’t know why, but I just feel like nothing goes better with a roasted onion and mustard covered dog, but creamy home made caesar dressing. Yum. These buns look awesome, I will have to try on a day where I’m full of bread baking patience.

    Reply

  22. foodienewz

    Your food photos are amazing. You can share your mouth watering photos with us at foodienewz.com. foodienewz.com is a new food sharing site and we actually try our best to promote your food photos. At foodienewz.com all your food photos will be published without any editorial review so I really hope you come and join us.

    Reply

  23. Nicole

    I made these for the 4th, and they were fab. These tender buns, combined with grilled brats and clear-your-sinuses mustard, made for a delicious cookout meal. Gotta tell you though, the toasted bun I had the next day with turkey, lettuce, and cheese wasn’t too shabby.

    Reply

  26. Tanya

    Oh, these buns scream summer grilling! They look incredible. Store bought buns are always forgettable but yours are sure to be remembered. Great post!

    Reply

  30. Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie

    Just the other day I thought about making hot dog buns after finally making homemade hamburger buns. And here you are with this recipe. Get out of my head! Or rather stay there and keep making what I want haha.

    Reply

  33. Stephanie

    I like how you staggered the rolls on the baking sheet. These looks fabulous. I’ve made my own hotdog/hamburger rolls before, and of course they were better than anything I could buy at the supermarket, but I like the look of these as mine were pale. Of course, the folks at KAF are stellar at baking. Thanks for posting.

    Reply

  34. Christine

    These look perfect! Just the right height, you know? Not overly bun-y. So the ratio of hot dog to bun looks yum. Will make before a year goes by… but I can’t pinkie swear it.

    Reply

  35. kristine

    it’s breakfast time. some people aren’t even up yet.
    it’s 8:20 & my boyfriend dropped me at home on his way to work.
    i haven’t eaten, i’m a vegetarian, and i have 0 access to a kitchen because my household is asleep & would beat me up if I woke them

    but now, now I want hot dogs. or veggie dogs. & lots of sauerkraut and those amazing buns.

    damn you. i love you. but … damnnnnnnnnnn.

    dinner tonight. for sure.

    Reply

  38. Jayne

    Hot dog buns! Yours look so fluffy and tender. I would totally make this if I had the patience. Maybe I will next week. Maybe I will.

    Reply

  39. Stoich91

    DELICIOUS yum and yes.

    And yep, that question totally sends me into a state of confusion, too. Med geek over here thinking like, “Well, if I was on a deserted island, probably something tropical, but if it were like in a war zone I guess it would be one of those weird prepared meals but maybe I will die of old age and my last meal will be rice pudding oh gee i hope my last meal is not rice pudding”

    AND see what kind of person would make that run through a friends’ mind!?!?!

    Reply

  43. erinn johnson

    Personally I am not a hot dog eater, but my kids love them. About 4 or 5 times a year a will made them as a treat. We call it fancy hot dog night and they get to top them with whatever they want. One does avocado, another does sauerkraut and melted cheese, another does sauerkraut, tomatoes, pickles and melted cheese and the last likes them with just plain old mustard and sauerkraut. Perhaps for the 4th we will do a fancy hot dog night and go all out with the homemade buns.

    Reply

  44. maryann

    I am SO glad to see you cover the dough with a tea towel; plastic wrap seems so contrary to the spirit of home-made hot dog buns. If you let the rising time get away from you and your bread gets over inflated you can punch it down and form it again. Of course with your egg wash and poppy seeds, it would be a little touchy, but still do-able. Just smash them down with your knuckles and let them rise again. Ask me how I know how to do this.:)

    Reply

  47. Tess

    Joy!! Thank you so much, I was planning on making hot dog buns for the Fourth of July, your timing could not have been better!

    Reply

  48. Chris

    Those buns are hot sexy! (I meant the hotdog buns)

    I am SO tired of the store-bought… anything… and the poppy seed just says… hot-boutique-awesome foodz!

    :)

    Reply

  50. margie s

    I’ve made both Hot dog and hamburger buns, and they up the ante big time. Add a home made slaw and it’s a gourmet meal.

    Reply

  53. Eileen

    I would have no problems with a last meal of hot dogs, especially with beautiful buns like these! Although I would personally go for lots of spicy brown mustard and a whole spear of dill pickle in mine. :) Yay!

    Reply

  56. Alexis

    Just in time for the 4th of July! And right after I declared that I’ll keep things simple this year. Who am I kidding…I totally wanna make my own buns for your hot dogs and chicken sausages.

    Reply

  57. Kayleigh

    Alright I gotta ask, if you had to could you make these gluten-less? And or do you know any tricks for how much/what to substitute when baking gluten-less? Also, I love your work, attitude and fondness for New Orleans and LA. Any time I want to get jazzy with a meal I check here first! Thanks

    Reply

    • joythebaker

      thanks for the kind comment Kayleigh! I might try using Cup4Cup gluten-free flour for this recipe. I don’t think you’d have to change much by way of liquid although I haven’t made this recipe with these changes yet.

      Reply

  58. Lucia

    Joy, these hot dogs buns are gorgeous! They make me think about a good movie with my boyfriend, cold beer and the scent of jasmine from the window… Just a question: can other kinds of yeast be used? could you help me with the quantities? i always find it difficult to make things rise with active dry yeast…

    Reply

  61. All that Glisters is not Gold

    ooh stop making me hungry Joy, they look beautifully golden, I can’t wait to get our BBQ going! I think my last meal would have to be a hearty winter supper like chicken and dumpling stew with apple and blackberry crumble with custard for afters! :D
    from Emily x

    Reply

  62. Malgosia

    I will try and refrain from making any comments about “buns” and the optimal 4.5 inch length because we are totally adults and don’t laugh at that sort of thing… Sooo I will just say these look great. Poppy seeds are a must :)

    Reply

  67. meg

    Blast you, Joy! I just finished telling my husband that I don’t have the patience for proper bread-making. But how can I celebrate our nation’s independence without a proper bun for m’dog? And these look so very good….We’re doing this!

    And I might even load a couple with ‘kraut, even if I am the only one who likes it. (It’s so underappreciated!)

    Reply

  69. erin @hooleywithaz

    my last meal would be buffalo chicken tenders with blue cheese, and my mom’s chicken and dumplings soup. (also, so funny, but i also start thinking about mortality and meeting our Maker when people ask about my last meal. glad someone else has the same trigger!)

    Reply

  70. Becca from Cookie Jar Treats

    Oh I love love love eating hot dogs! I will only eat hotdogs if its from a ballpark, at the movies, or if it’s been roasted over a fire. All three of those places make the hot dog taste like 100x better :)

    And having homemade hot dog buns would totally make it taste even better. Man now I want a hot dog! :P

    Reply

  73. Flavia

    Hi Joy,

    My name is Flavia and I have been meaning to introduce myself to you for a while now (better late than never!). I saw you at BlogHer Food but never had the opportunity to come say hi. I so enjoy reading your blog and following you on Twitter. Your blog posts instantly cheer me up when I read them and your recipes are fantastic. You definitely make the food blog world a shiny, happy place. These hot dog buns look perfect. My husband is a huge fan of hot dogs (me, not so much) and I love baking bread, so I think these would be perfect and make one of his favorite foods extra-special. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe. Ciao!

    Reply

  74. Meg H

    My husband just told me that hot dog consumption is going down in this country. Well, I guess we just need yummy rolls like this to jack it back up! And last meal? Well, I hope I don’t know my last meal is my last meal – but maybe I should just eat a grilled cheese every day just to be sure.

    Reply

  79. Sarah

    People tend to throw that last meal question out there, don’t they? It’s one of those bizarrely existential and yet common life things that occasionally blow my mind. Love your work as always though. I prefer to ask, what would you make if Paul Newmdn circa cool hand like was coming over?

    Reply

  80. Trish

    Last meal questions are meant to be dead serious but this post just made my day. Your pictures speak a thousand words and gives a better idea what to expect when I try this.

    Reply

  81. Donalyn@The Creekside Cook

    I can definitely see hot dogs as a last meal – they are a guilty pleasure of mine. And since I want death to sneak up on me and catch me unawares, there is every chance that hot dogs might well be my last meal. Though it will have to wait for fall if I’m going to have these buns, because it is way too hot to turn the oven on!

    Reply

  82. eidolons

    I haven’t had my coffee yet this morning. But I felt compelled to say: we have that same jar for our flour. Quite possibly the same scoop, too. (:

    Reply

  84. Sophie

    I recently made homemade hamburger buns, which turned out fantastic. With my dad’s birthday coming up, and his favorite food being hotdogs, I’m definitely going to have to make him some of these!

    You’re awesome as always, Joy!

    xoxo

    Sophie

    Reply

  87. Jane M

    Bestest recipe to date! It’s only break-the-fast time for me and my mouth is watering for a hot diggity dog with yeast buns! YUUM!

    Reply

  89. Pru

    It’s so funny, I was sitting on my mom’s porch yesterday afternoon, and she said “I’ve been seeing a lot of hot dog rolls with poppy seeds on tv lately. They look so good, but I cannot find them in the stores”..

    It’s as if you heard our conversation, because I then replied… “I wonder if we could find a recipe for them…”

    And… I wake up this morning to find this recipe in my inbox. How cool is that? I am going to go out and buy the bestest hot dogs, and bake these rolls and surprise my momma with them. She has cancer, so she’ll only eat about 1/2 of the hot dog, but it will be so worth it. Thank you so much for reading our minds.. :-) I’ll let you know how it goes…

    Reply

  91. maija

    How did you just make a hot dog bun sound so darn tasty!? I mean really- I never appreciated the sacrafice a bun made for a slab of meat! Props lady baker for giving some respect to the buns!!! I might actually do this- instead of just eating hot dogs w/ salad ( oh grownupness… sucks)

    Reply

  93. Raquel

    These look amazing! Definitely on my to-do list for the 4th, as I was never a fan of the store bought prepackaged kind anyway. Wahoo!

    Reply

  94. Christina @ Scaredy Cat Kitchen

    For some reason I never thought to make my own hot dog buns, but this is a truly excellent idea! BBQs need a bit of fancying up and I reckon this should do it.

    I’m all about the proper English mustard on my hotdogs though, I like my mustard to blow my head off and get up my nose a little!

    Reply

  95. Miss Kim @ behgopa

    I haven’t had a really good hot dog in ages! For some reason, to me hot dogs tasted sooooo good after a long day of swimming in the sun. That’s how I spent my childhood summers and the taste of hot dogs after getting out of the pool is unbeatable.

    I have often thought about that question too of what my last meal would be. And I always have NO IDEA! I don’t have a fav food and what I crave changes daily or even by the minute. And my palate is always evolving, so what I love now won’t be what I’ll want ten..twenty…fifty years from now.

    Reply

  96. Three Cookies

    The last meal question is strange. A very very tiny percentage of the people will know they are having a last meal (those on death row). How about asking “what meal would you have if an alien dropped in for dinner on a weeknight”? If the alien is vegetarian, strike off hot dog from the list!

    Reply

    • Bea

      That is a fun question. Reminds me that we used to ask Mom what she would make if the Queen were to come for dinner. Being a very practical and down to earth woman, she would say, “Just whatever we are having today”. Mom was a very good cook, so I’m sure the Queen would have loved whatever she served up. I am going to try the buns. I wonder if our Canadian Robin Hood flour is similar to King Arthur?

      Reply

  101. Averie @ Averie Cooks

    I don’t even eat hot dogs but I would have no problem eating about 3 buns! That dough is BEAUTIFUL! I love big, shaggy, wet, moist doughs like that. That just sort of PUFF into a huge puffball during the first rise. Gosh, I love seeing a big bowl of risen dough. And then the punchdown sound. The best. No, eating one or 3 of these buns – truly the best. Pinned!

    Reply

  102. Julie

    I’ve totally been making my own hot dog buns! I’m spoiled now and cn never go back. I love being able to custom make foot longs…

    Reply

    • Jadlea

      whats your favorit recipes please ? i am looking for a recipe for buns to turn just like the street hotdog one ,

      Reply

Trackbacks

  5. […] little bread rolls (nothing fancy) and some hot dog buns with a recipe I got from Joy the Baker, here – and if you’re wondering, they came out great, I made chili cheese dogs for my mum and […]

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  28. […] Choose a high quality hotdog bun that fits the size of your dogs. There is nothing worse than taking a bite of nothing but hot dog bun. Or if you have the time, try making your own. […]

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