Pumpkin Hamburger Buns Recipe

Delicious, super soft, and very colorful, these Pumpkin Hamburger Buns will upgrade any hamburger! They're versatile and can be made into pumpkin dinner rolls too! Plus, they are a fantastic way to make kids eat pumpkin 😉

One of these days my husband said he wanted to make pumpkin bread. I couldn't wait to try it so I immediately bought some pumpkin and let him do the job 😉

By the time the pumpkin had arrived home, he had already changed his mind about the bread recipe. Instead of a bread, he wanted to make pumpkin buns.

Fine by me, I said!

Jump to:

• 😋 A way to make kids eat pumpkin
• 📋 Ingredients
• 🍔 How to make pumpkin hamburger buns
• 🍲 Soft and fluffy pumpkin dinner rolls
• 🧺 How to store hamburger buns
• ❄️ How to freeze pumpkin buns
• ♨️ How to reheat this bread
• 💭 Other ideas
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

😋 A way to make kids eat pumpkin

So, for the base of the pumpkin bun recipe he used our hamburger buns, which are our daughter's favorite.

Funny thing is that when she found out there was pumpkin in them (one of the few things she doesn't didn't like) she refused to eat. Kids!

So we decided to give some buns to our neighbors and froze the rest. The next day, our neighbors' children, who are also Isabella's friends, told her they loved those big buns and suddenly she wanted to give our pumpkin buns a try.

And it turned out she loved them! We had to say there were no more in the freezer or she would had wanted them all 😂

Has this ever happened to you?

📋 Ingredients

To make these pumpkin buns recipe you'll need:

• pumpkin puree, homemade or canned
• milk
• egg
• unsalted butter
• sugar
• salt
• all-purpose flour
• yeast

We used Japanese pumpkin (kabocha squash) in this recipe, but as long as you use a flavorful, not stringy and firm (not watery) pumpkin, you'll do fine.

🍔 How to make pumpkin hamburger buns

Making by hand

1. Start by adding milk and yeast to the bowl and mix well to dissolve the yeast.
2. Then add other ingredients and mix well.
3. Knead dough for about five minutes.
4. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and continue to knead dough until firm, a little tacky, but not sticky. If the dough is too sticky, add a little bit more flour (1 tablespoon at a time).
5. Transfer dough back to bowl, cover with a dish towel and let the dough rise for around 1 hour, or until doubled in volume.
6. Then transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and open it with a rolling pin to about 1/2 inch thick.
7. Cut with a cookie cutter and transfer buns to a baking pan lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper.
8. Gather leftover dough into a ball, roll out again and cut, repeating the process until all dough has been used.
9. Place baking pan in a draft free place, cover with a clean dish towel and let the buns rise until doubled in size.
10. Preheat oven to 350F/180C and bake hamburger buns for around 12 to 15 minutes.
11. Remove from oven, transfer buns to a wire rack and let them cool.

Using a bread maker

If you are using a bread machine just add all ingredients according to the manufacturer's instructions and turn on the kneading cycle.

When it's done, proceed from step 6 from instructions above - making by hand.

Using a stand mixer

If you make this Japanese pumpkin recipe for homemade hamburger buns with the help of a stand mixer, use the dough hook and follow the instructions for making by hand, but knead on low the first 5 minutes, and then increase the speed to medium for 3 more minutes.

Follow remaining instructions.

🍲 Soft and fluffy pumpkin dinner rolls

Yes, you've read that right. It's very easy to turn these into dinner rolls! Instead of rolling out the dough, roll it into a log shape, cut in 16 pieces and shape each one in a small ball.

Place dough balls side by side in a buttered baking pan and follow the recipe just like they were shaped as hamburger buns!

Then when you remove them from the oven, brush some melted butter over them and serve warm. I am drooling here! 🤤

See! One, or two, new pumpkin recipes to add to your collection!

🧺 How to store hamburger buns

The best way to store these buns is to first let them cool and then place them in a plastic bag and close very well. Avoiding any contact with outside air will prevent bread from drying out.

You can keep bread stored this way for a couple of days. If you intend to have them later on the week, for example, freeze them.

❄️ How to freeze pumpkin buns

Let them cool and then place buns in a freezable plastic bag. Close very well and place them in the freezer. They will be good for up to 3 months, but they will taste better if eaten within one month from freezing.

We always write the date with permanent marker on the bag, so we don't end up having old bread!

♨️ How to reheat this bread

The quickest way to reheat these pumpkin buns is to put them in the microwave for about 15 seconds (each) if they are at room temperature. Frozen they will take between 30 and 45 seconds to defrost and reheat.

You can also place them in a preheated oven (medium heat) for about 5 minutes or use a toaster!

💭 Other ideas

These are great for a hamburger or as dinner rolls, but they are also fenomenal right out of the oven with some butter!

We've used them for various sandwiches - hot and cold - and even with jam!

📖 Recipe

I think you might also enjoy these Carrot Rolls. They're made with raw carrots and are delicious and pretty, as the carrot shows as streaks through the whole rolls.