These homemade vegan whole wheat burger buns are fluffy, soft and healthy, and they are perfect for that delicious veggie burger you just grilled up. Vegan, soy-free and nut-free recipe.
Summer is all about grilling, and you can't find a better bread to cradle that delicious veggie burger you just cooked up than this vegan and whole wheat burger bun.
This is an amazing bun: soft, fluffy, and it slices into half perfectly. You can make it either part whole-wheat or all-whole-wheat, and get a great result either way.
You can easily customize this recipe to get the right texture for your bun: soft, or slightly crusty. I'll show you how.
What you'll love about this vegan burger bun
- It's delicious and flavorful.
- It's half whole-wheat so actually good for you.
- It's customizable for texture--make the buns softer or crustier, depending on how you like them.
- It's easy, you don't need to be a skilled baker--but follow instructions closely, especially if you are a new baker.
- They are great for warming up on the grill--sturdy, and you don't have to worry about them falling apart under your fingers, the way some buns do.
Ingredients
- Whole wheat flour
- All purpose flour
- Active dry yeast
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Sugar
- Vegetable oil
- Sesame seeds or poppy seeds (optional, for topping the buns)
- Vegan butter (optional, instead of the oil, for softer buns)
- Nondairy milk (optional, for softer buns)
Tips and steps for foolproof burger buns
- Follow instructions. I can't repeat this enough. Especially if you are a new baker, and until you understand baking well enough to tweak ingredients, just follow the recipe.
- You need whole wheat flour for this recipe and you can use the regular whole wheat flour you can buy off the shelf or, if you have it, use a softer whole wheat like the durum whole wheat flour sold for rotis. That's because it is finer textured and will create a bun with a more delicate, softer crumb. The buns you see in the photo above were made with regular whole wheat flour and they are soft and fluffy and slightly crusty. The buns in the photo below (from when I posted this recipe earlier 10 years ago) were made with durum whole wheat flour). For softer buns, also check out further instructions in the FAQ section below.
Make the buns
- Bloom the yeast: To make the burger buns, begin, as you will most bread recipes, by "blooming" the yeast in lukewarm water with a bit of sugar added in to feed the yeast. You need to wait five minutes and make sure the yeast bubbles and froths, indicating it's alive. If it doesn't, the yeast needs to be replaced.
- Sift in dry ingredients: Once the yeast has bloomed, sift in all the dry ingredients--flour, baking soda and salt. If the bran stays back in the sieve, just add it back in to the flour as you want it in there for a healthier bun.
- Knead the dough: Mix all the ingredients by hand or with a dough hook set to medium speed, then slowly trickle in the remaining lukewarm water until a soft, supple dough forms. You might not need all of the water depending on where you are and the weather outside. I usually use up all of the 1 ½ cups but this time I made the buns on a humid day and needed about 2 tablespoon less.
You just need to knead the dough for three minutes once it comes together, then add the oil, mix it in until incorporated. Form the dough into a ball, put in in a covered bowl coated in oil and set it aside in a warm spot in your kitchen for two hours, during which time it should more than double. - Shape the buns: Once the dough has risen, gently fold it over itself to deflate it. Form into a ball again, then divide into eight pieces. Shape each into a smooth ball. Place the buns on a baking sheet (preferably lined with parchment) side by side with at least two to three inches between each bun. You can flatten the tops of the buns slightly with your fingers, if you wish. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and return to a warm spot until the buns have doubled, about an hour and a half.
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 370 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Sprinkle on the seed topping (optional): You can bake the buns as they are, but if you like a seed topping, make a mix of one teaspoon oil, one tablespoon nondairy milk and a quarter of a teaspoon of maple syrup in a bowl. Brush this on the top of each bun. The sprinkle on sesame or poppy seeds over the top of each bun.
- Bake the buns: Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Let the buns cool thoroughly on a rack before eating.
FAQs
To make the buns softer, replace ½ cup of water with lukewarm milk and the vegetable oil with softened vegan butter. You can also use just all purpose flour and leave out the whole wheat flour altogether for a softer bun.
Yes, absolutely. Just use three cups of whole wheat flour, skip the all purpose. Also add a tablespoon of vital wheat gluten along with the whole wheat flour, which will give you fluffier buns.
You can shape these into six larger buns or 12 smaller buns, which will be more like slider buns. If you make smaller buns, cut down baking time to 22 minutes.
These buns are soft but crusty and sturdy and yes, they do beautifully on the grill.
Veggie burger patty recipes to serve the buns with
- Bean and Oats Burgers
- Vegan Black Bean Burger
- Quinoa and Black Bean Burger
- Curried Jackfruit Burger
- Vegan Sprouted Mung Bean Burgers
Whole Wheat Burger Buns
Ingredients
- 1 ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- 1 ½ cups warm water (sub ½ cup water with nondairy milk for softer buns)
- 1 ½ cups whole-wheat flour
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil (sub with 1 tablespoon room temperature, softened vegan butter for softer crust)
Instructions
- Mix the sugar, ½ cup warm water and the yeast in a mixing bowl and set aside for five minutes or until the mixture starts to froth, indicating the yeast is alive and well.
- Sift all the flours, salt, and baking soda into the bowl. Knead on low speed in a stand mixer or by hand for about 3 minutes, trickling in 1 cup of water until you have a dough that's smooth and supple. You might not need all of the water.
- Add the oil and continue to knead until the oil has been absorbed by the dough, about 1 more minute.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, turning over once to coat all over with oil, cover with a kitchen towel, and set aside in a warm spot for 1 ½ hours until the dough has more than doubled.
- Fold the dough over itself to deflate. Form into a ball again, then divide into 8 equal sized pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth ball.
- Place the buns on a baking sheet that's either been lightly greased or is lined with parchment. Space the buns at least a couple of inches apart. Flatten the tops slightly with your fingers, if you like. Cover the buns loosely with a kitchen towel and set them in a warm spot to rise for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 370 degrees.
- Before the buns go into the oven, you can sprinkle seeds on the tops of the buns if you like. To do this, mix 1 teaspoon vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon nondairy milk and ¼ teaspoon maple syrup in a bowl. Brush the tops with this mixture, then sprinkle sesame seeds or poppy seeds on the tops.
- Place the buns in the oven and bake 25 minutes. Remove the buns to a rack and allow them to cool thoroughly before serving.
inthecathouse
Hi! I just wanted to let you know I a made your awesome whole wheat buns and blogged about it. If you want to see to post go here:
I can't wait to make them again!
Anonymous
Hi.
I just made these today, and I think I made a mistake. Was I supposed to add just enough of the 1 cup of water to the flour mix to get a smooth slightly sticky dough? I poured the whole 1 cup and then added an extra cup of flour because it was so liquidy.
I also would like to know if bread recipes can be doubled?
Thanks so much!
Anonymous
We just tried this recipe and had the same result you did. Looked like thick oatmeal, and after rising for two hours, was still too thin. I added some flour to get it separated and will try to bake them after they rise for another hour. Was thinking to add just enough of the one cup of water UNTIL the dough looked like bread dough. Am I right?
Vaishali Honawar
You were likely working on a moist or humid day. And yes, add just enough of the water to get a workable dough.
Kyle Howard
It's so hard to say with bread.. the humidity can definitely affect your dough, but what I find is the biggest factor, is how the Original Poster measured their flour. If you pour the flour out of the bag vs. dipping and scooping inside the bag, I believe the difference can be off by as much as 30% !!! This is always why I prefer when dough recipes use weight instead of volume. Also, when I made this dough, I added the full 1 cup water, and thought it was quite wet and shaggy of a dough, but after kneading for maybe 5 minutes, the dough became smooth and elastic and slightly sticky. The wonders of kneading are amazing... I wasn't successful making any dough recipes for a long time until I learned how to knead properly, and the differences since then have been phenomenal!
Orly D
When do you add the yeast and sugar mixture?
Vaishali
You sift the flours etc into the bowl that contains the yeast and sugar mixture.
Anonymous
I noticed that the recipe calls for salt but there are no instructions for adding it. May I assume that it goes in with the flour and baking soda?
Vaishali
Yes, add it with the flour and baking soda. I'll add to the post as well. Thanks for pointing out.
Go Veggie Go
Wonderful recipe! I just tried it today and I'm so happy with the result! Nice, soft whole wheat buns, perfect for veggie burgers. Thank you so much!
Dragish
I was under the impression that Ap flour is not vegan because part of the bleaching process uses animal bone meal. Is this untrue or do you use unbleached ap flour? I am a vegan friendly non vegan looking to open a restaurant that features both vegan and non vegan menu items and I'm doing my best to learn as much as I can.
Vaishali
I'm not sure-- I googled this and see all sorts of claims on the internet, but it's hard to verify. I don't know of any vegans who don't eat AP flour because it's not vegan, and I've never run into this claim before.
Vaishali
It's Fahrenheit. You might want to check a conversion chart, but I'd guess that's around 175-180 Celsius.
Yuko
Hi!
I am going to make these hamburger buns today. I am a little confused about 370 degrees - is it F or Celsius?
Priscilla
I made these buns for our 4th of July veggie burgers. I love the flavor and texture. I kneaded these by hand. I had to add quite a bit of extra flour (about 1/2 cup) to keep them from sticking to my hands and the counter while I kneaded the dough. But they still turned out great! I really enjoy your blog. Your recipes are so different from most vegan cooking blogs, and I appreciate your thorough and well-written instructions.
AP
I just used this recipe to make my first ever bread - you've inspired me to keep going! they were lovely, fluffy inside with a crusty outside, and no-one could believe they were home made!! thank you so much, keep up the great work!
Vaishali
AP, congratulations on your first bread! And I do hope you keep going! Thanks for the feedback. 🙂
Vidya
I just made these to rave reviews by everyone that tried them! I never realised how much I used milk and honey in my bread recipes before going vegan. These are so delicious, earthy and "healthful" tasting, but still soft with an incredible crust. I didn't have gluten flour; I used 1.5 cups of white bread flour, which if I'm not mistaken, is higher in gluten/protein, and 1.5 cups of normal whole wheat. I also made sure I kneaded the dough until very smooth and elastic, which took longer than 5 minutes. I ended up making 8 rolls, and I like the size. I'm planning on filling them with the veggie burgers over at Oh She Glows.
Apron Appeal
Although super yummy, my burger buns don't look as perfect when I vegan-ize them or use whole grain. Can't wait to try these out.
Samarpita
Hi,
I so agree with you on the fact that we can be very healthy if we follow a well balanced vegan diet. After almost a year of vegan diet, I went for a blood test recently. I have hemoglobin count of 13.5 out of 15.5, protein count of 7.4 out of 8.5 and every single parameter is perfect including cholesterol. Yes, I do pop a multi vitamin and multi mineral pill every day, but I follow a very good diet as well.
But I think all these raw vegan and stuff might not be good. Just saw Megan Fox has ditched her primarily raw vegan diet since she was getting thin (which is understandable)
Vaishali
Advitha, White whole wheat, albeit lighter than regular whole wheat, would still make a fairly dense bread by itself because of its low gluten content. Do you have vital wheat gluten flour? It's available in grocery stores, including Whole Foods. If you are doing all-whole-wheat, I would advise adding 3 tbsp of gluten flour to the recipe. If you do try it without the gluten, I'd be interested in knowing how the buns turned out. In that case, be sure to knead for 4-5 minutes longer to develop the gluten in the flour.
advitha
Vaishali, I'm planning to bake this WW bun in the weekend. I have white whole wheat flour from Trader Joes. Can I use that for all 3 cups, do I need APF at all?
divya
Looks excellent and healthy..