Slider Buns Recipe

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Whip up these fluffy, golden Slider Buns at home with simple ingredients and a straightforward process. Perfect for mini cheeseburger sliders, pork sliders and more! They’re sure to be a crowd-pleaser and oh so much better than store-bought!

Why You’ll Love This Slider Buns Recipe

Making your own slider buns isn’t difficult in the least…it’s just a bit time consuming. Just like any other bread product, you knead it, let it rise, shape it, let it rise again, and bake. 2-ish hours. Easy work, but you do have to wait. Worth the wait though, because you’ll know every ingredient you put into these and they will be fresh, warm, delicious, fabulous and tasty little devils! These slider rolls are perfect for mini shredded chicken sandwiches, sloppy joes, hamburgers or pulled pork.

Ingredients Needed For Slider Buns

Just a few ingredients are needed for these homemade buns and most if not all are pantry items you probably already have on hand! Here is what you need:

• Warm water: Aim for 107-110° F to activate the yeast.
• Quick rise active dry yeast: Ensures a fast first rise.
• Honey or sugar: Feeds the yeast to allow it to rise.
• Butter: Melted and cooled, it adds richness.
• Milk: Use whole milk for a tender crumb.
• Eggs: Provides structure for the buns.
• Salt: Balances the flavors.
• All-purpose flour: The base of the bread dough. Bread flour works well here too!
• Sesame seeds: For that classic slider bun look.

Variations

• Whole Wheat Flour: Substitute half the all-purpose flour for a healthier option.
• Poppy Seeds: Swap out sesame seeds for a different topping.

How to Make Slider Buns

These homemade slider buns can also be used as mini hamburger buns! Fill them with your favorite fillings and enjoy! Perfect for parties! For full recipe details, including ingredient measurements, see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here are step by step instructions for making slider buns:

1. Activate Yeast

In a large mixing bowl, preferably the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, stir yeast and honey into warm water. Let sit for 5-10 minutes or until bubbles form and mixture starts to foam. This tells you that the yeast is alive and kicking.

Pro Tip: Use an instant-read thermometer to ensure you have the right temperature range (107-110° F).

2. Melt Butter + Cool

Place butter into microwave safe bowl and cook on high until completely melted. Remove and set aside to cool.

Pro Tip: Make sure to let the melted butter cool before adding to the yeast. Hot butter will kill your yeast and you’ll have to start over. Whomp, whomp.

3. Mix Ingredients

Pour milk, 1 egg and cooled melted butter into the stand mixer bowl with the yeast mixture and stir together to incorporate. 

Next, add salt and 2 cups of flour and knead until flour has been incorporated. With mixer on low, add in remaining flour bit by bit to get the consistency you want: slightly tacky, but when you touch it, it doesn’t stick to your hands.

4. Knead Dough

Once you reach this stage, knead on low (or by hand on a clean, lightly floured work surface) for 5-6 minutes. The dough should be smooth and easy to work with and the sides of the bowl should be mostly clean! 

Pro Tip: If you have a bread machine you can use it to knead your dough instead of using a stand mixer or kneading by hand.

5. First Rise

Grease the dough ball and bowl; cover with plastic wrap or clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size. 

6. Shape Buns

Punch down dough, pinch off and form into 18 small dough balls the size of golf balls. 

Pro Tip: If you want equal pieces of dough, consider using a kitchen scale, or just eyeball it and get as close as you can.

7. Second Rise

Place dough balls on a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let dough rise another 30-60 minutes.

8. Brush Egg Wash over Buns + Bake

In a small bowl, beat remaining egg with 2 tablespoons of water. Brush tops of the buns and sprinkle with sesame seeds. 

Bake at 350° F for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Use and serve as desired.

Serving Ideas For Slider Buns

• Root Beer Pulled Pork Sliders
• Bacon Cheeseburger Sliders (these are the BEST!)
• Sweet & Spicy White Cheddar Sloppy Joes
• Tuna Lemon Pepper Sliders
• Smoked Pulled Pork Sliders
• Shredded Mexican Pork Sliders
• Crockpot BBQ Chicken Sliders
• Crockpot Honey Mustard Chicken Sliders
• Bleu Cheese Burger Sliders

Storage + Make Ahead Directions for Slider Buns

Store buns in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

To Freeze Baked Slider Buns– Wrap them in aluminum foil and store in a freezer bag for up to 2 months.

To Make Ahead– Prepare the dough and let it rise overnight in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before baking.

Love Making Bread? Try These Bread Recipes!

• Homemade Dinner Rolls Recipe
• Homemade Bagel Recipe
• English Muffin Recipe
• Easy Homemade Bread Recipe
• Whole Wheat Bread Recipe

These slider buns are a great way to bring a homemade touch to your meals. From mini burgers to pork sandwiches, these buns are versatile and delicious. The printable recipe card is below. Happy baking, friends!

If you make this recipe, I would really appreciate it if you would give it a star rating and leave your review in the comments! If you have a picture of your finished dish, post it on Instagram using the hashtag #laurenslatest and tagging me @laurens_latest.