These sourdough hot dog buns are light, fluffy, and packed full of flavor. They are super easy to make and will take your next family barbecue up a notch. 

hot dog with ketchup and mustard in a homemade sourdough hot dog bun on a wire rack. More hot dog buns in the background

Summer has arrived in Missouri. Weโ€™ve had multiple very hot days already, but thankfully, it feels like the typical Missouri June weather is coming back. 

These types of days call for a hot dog roast over a fire or BBQ. Since this is the first summer ever with a back porch, fire pit, and grill, we are totally living it up. Weโ€™ve had so much fun building family memories out there already.

How do you elevate regular olโ€™ hot dogs? Make some sourdough hot dog buns to serve them in! Delicious, tangy, and healthier than the store-bought bun, they are also pretty darn easy. 

I understand that hot dogs are not necessarily a โ€œhealth foodโ€, but people arenโ€™t usually choosing hot dogs to eat healthier.

They can, however, make a fun and delicious meal on occasion. We love choosing grass-fed hot dogs for a healthier option.

Most of the steps for the sourdough hot dog rolls are done the night before, so the day of, you just roll the dough, allow to rise one more time, and bake. 

For a long time, when a long-fermented recipe called for eggs, I would wait until after the bulk fermentation to add the eggs, which can be tricky.

More recently, Iโ€™ve just been adding the egg when Iโ€™m mixing the dough, and it has been totally fine. But this will totally depend on your comfort zone. Iโ€™ve done this ten times now, and weโ€™ve been fine.

6 sourdough hot dog buns on a wire rack with one sliced open

Tips For Making Sourdough Hot Dog Buns

  • This recipe can be fermented overnight for the most health benefits, or can be made into a quicker version for when you don’t have as much time.
  • Make sure your sourdough starter is nice and bubbly. A active starter is what is going to give this bread its rise.
  • If you buns are not rising the dough could be over-proofed, under proofed, or the temperature was too cold during rising. Also, if your starter is not super active it can take longer for the dough to rise.
  • If you are new to sourdough, make sure to see how to make your own sourdough starter and how to care for it.

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What is the best bread for hot dogs?

Sourdough bread is, in my opinion, the best bread for hot dogs. This is because it adds so much flavor and is fermented, making the bread more nutritious. 

six sourdough hot dog buns with a gorgeous golden brown crust on parchment paper
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Ingredients

  • Sourdough starter โ€“ active and bubbly
  • Warm water
  • Unbleached all-purpose flour 
  • Coconut oil or butter โ€“ or any neutral tasting oil
  • Honey 
  • Salt 
  • Eggs
side view of six sourdough hot dot buns on parchment paper

Tools

Stand mixer

Grain mill to grind fresh grain (optional)

Measuring cups

Berkey water filter

Baking sheet

Parchment paper

How To Make Sourdough Hotdog Buns

hands holding a hot dog with ketchup and mustard drizzled on top in a sourdough hot dog bun.

The Day Before

Feed sourdough starter 4-12 hours before starting the dough. You want the starter to be really active and bubbly before it starts to come down.

In a stand mixer, add warm water, unbleached all-purpose flour, melted butter or another neutral tasting oil, sourdough starter, honey, salt and egg. 

Knead with a dough hook for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap for 8-10 hours.

Optional: For a longer fermentation, transfer the dough to the refrigerator and chill overnight, covered.

The Next Day

eight balls of dough on a white quartz countertop next to a bench scraper

Divide the dough into ten equal pieces. I like to use a bench scraper.

sourdough dough balls being rolled out into small rectangles

Shape the hotdog buns by rolling the dough out with a rolling pin to form a 6 inch by 4 inch rectangle and then roll them up.

sourdough hot dot buns shaped and placed on parchment lined baking sheets

Cover the buns with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and allow to rise until doubled.

sourdough hot dog bun dough shaped onto parchment paper, allowed to rise a final time, and an egg wash brushed over

Create an egg wash by beating an egg yolk with water, then brush the tops of the buns with the mixture.

close up picture of golden brown sourdough hot dog buns

Bake the buns for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees until golden brown.

close up of a sourdough hot dog bun cut down the side with a hot dog with ketchup and mustard nestled inside

For A “Quicker” Version

  1. In a stand mixer with a dough hook, add sourdough starter, warm water, all purpose flour, melted butter or coconut oil, honey, egg, and salt. Knead for 5-10 minutes.
  2. Shape buns and let rise until doubled, approximately 1-2 hours.
  3. Create egg wash and brush on top of the shaped buns.
  4. Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven until lightly browned on top, approximately 25-30 minutes.
  5. Let cool completely before slicing and serving.

Find More Sourdough Recipes:

Sourdough Hot Dog Buns

4.45 from 86 votes
Light, fluffy, and full of that lovely sourdough tang, these sourdough hot dog buns are an excellent way to amp up your next BBQ.
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Additional Time: 10 hours
Total: 10 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 10
hot dog with ketchup and mustard in a homemade sourdough hot dog bun on a wire rack. More hot dog buns in the background
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Ingredients 

  • 1/2 cup sourdough starter, active and bubbly (113g)
  • 3/4 cup warm water, 177g
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, 420g
  • 1/4 cup melted coconut oil or butter, 60g
  • 3 tablespoons honey, 63g
  • 1 teaspoon salt, 6g
  • 1 large egg

Egg wash (optional)

  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 tablespoon water

Instructions 

  • Feed sourdough starter 4-12 hours before starting the dough so it is nice and bubbly for baking.
  • In a stand mixer, add warm water, unbleached all-purpose flour, melted butter or another neutral tasting oil, sourdough starter, honey, salt and egg.
  • Knead with a dough hook for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.
  • Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap for 8-10 hours.
  • Divide the dough into ten equal pieces.
  • Shape the hotdog buns by rolling the dough out with a rolling pin to form a 6 inch by 4 inch rectangle and then roll them up.
  • Cover the buns with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and allow to rise until doubled.
  • Create an egg wash by beating an egg yolk with water, then brush the tops of the buns with the mixture.
  • Bake the buns for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Notes

  • Optional: For a longer fermentation, transfer the dough to the refrigerator and chill overnight, covered after the first bulk fermentation.

Nutrition

Calories: 225kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.002g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 242mg | Potassium: 52mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 52IU | Vitamin C: 0.03mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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4.45 from 86 votes (68 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




118 Comments

  1. Kristin Wells says:

    5 stars
    These are delicious! Just a note, the grams measurements doesnโ€™t change when you hit one or 2 times, so if youโ€™re following grams you need to be sure you double or triples that because itโ€™s not changing when you hit the buttons.

  2. Sheryl says:

    No stretch & pull required?

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      Nope!

  3. mac says:

    5 stars
    these are delicious! how would you recommend storing the extras if you plan on eating them within the next day or two?

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      In a bag!

  4. Tami says:

    Can this recipe be doubled? Iโ€™m needing 20 or so hot dog buns.

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      Yes, it can!

  5. Jeff says:

    Just wondering if you leave them in the fridge over night do you still let them rise after you take them out or take from the fridge and bake them ?

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      Yes, that is correct.

  6. Brooke says:

    Do you use store bought eggs or unwashed pasture raised eggs? This was my second time making this and Iโ€™ve used pasture raised eggs but I canโ€™t always get my hands on those types of eggs so I was wondering if it was safe to use store bought. Or can I leave the egg out? Or only ferment them in the fridge?

  7. Lisa says:

    (Optional: For a longer fermentation, transfer the dough to the refrigerator and chill overnight, covered after the first bulk fermentation.). Does that mean I have to do the 8-10 hour rise 1st then refrigerate? Or can I do the 8-10 all in the refrigerator? Thank you.

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      You need to do the first ferment on the counter at room temperature.

  8. Nigel Hoffmeister says:

    Nhแปฏng phรขn tรญch ฤ‘แป™c ฤ‘รกo cแปงa bแบกn thแบญt ฤ‘รกng nแปƒ phแปฅc vร  ฤ‘แบงy cแบฃm hแปฉng.

  9. Becca says:

    Iโ€™ll never buy store bought buns again! It is crazy to me that people are following the same recipe and getting such varying results. My dough was too wet so I ended up adding about an extra cup of flour (I used all bread flour because we were low on AP, so that very well couldโ€™ve been the reason). However, they turned out beautifully! We used these for hot dogs on July 4th and had a couple leftover that we used as hoagie buns for some chicken salad. Amazing!! Iโ€™m going to make this dough again for dinner rolls this week and will use the same recipe to shape for hamburger buns as well. So, so yummy! Thank you, Lisa!

    1. Carly says:

      5 stars
      I make these into hamburger buns regularly for turkey burgers. I also usually split them into 12 equal pieces and they are plenty big enough for hot dogs or burgers. I make these on a regular basis, making a mix of 6 hot dog & six burger buns today

  10. Erin says:

    4 stars
    I loved these and didnโ€™t have any of the baking issues mentioned in other comments. I did however find that the bottoms were too crusty, some even a little burnt. Is that normal for this recipe? Is that fixable? I used parchment paper like the recipe images showed.

    1. Lisa Bass says:

      You may have to adjust your oven temperatures slightly, or move them further up from the bottom burner.

    2. Leslie says:

      5 stars
      I had the same issue. The buns are beautiful, golden, and taste delicious, but the bottoms are way too dark. Would using the convection setting instead of the bake setting work?