Simple sourdough hot cross buns (easy recipe)

This post contains affiliate links. I make a small commission on items purchased through these links at no additional cost to you.

If you haven’t made your own hot cross buns before then you need to give this fluffy sourdough hot cross bun recipe a go! We absolutely LOVE hot cross buns… So much so that we actually avoid buying them, otherwise they are gone within a day! However, this year I thought I’d have a go at making a slightly healthier sourdough version that is made with real ingredients and much less sugar than is traditionally found in store-bought hot cross buns.

This recipe came together after playing around with varying amounts of sugar and sourdough starter to achieve that perfect level of sweetness and sourdough tang. Most of the sweetness actually comes from the sultanas, and when paired with a nice chunk of salted butter, perfectly balances out the flavour. These hot cross buns are so soft and prefect fresh from the oven or cut in half and toasted. I think we’ve found a new Easter tradition!

What are sourdough hot cross buns?

Sourdough hot cross buns are very similar to traditional hot cross buns, but are made using sourdough starter as the leavening (rising) agent rather than commercial yeast. This means that the hot cross buns are fermented, as with other sourdough recipes. Fermented bread products are known to be more easily digestible and the nutrients are more readily absorbed by the body compared to non-fermented products.

What is sourdough starter?

Sourdough starter, or levain, is a complex, living culture of microbes used to leaven breads and other baked goods in place of yeast. It contains good bacteria (Lactobacilli) and wild, natural yeast.

Sourdough starter is made from two ingredients, flour and water, which contain living organisms that ferment this mixture, creating air bubbles. Like many ferments, starters have been around for thousands of years and have been used by cultures all over the world for rising bread products. The culture, thanks to the fermentation process, creates a distinct sour flavour and light, chewy texture in baked goods.

If you’d like to learn how to make your own sourdough starter, check out my recipe here.

How are hot cross buns usually made?

I don’t know whether you’ve ever checked (or maybe you’d prefer not to know), but most store-bought hot cross buns contain some pretty interesting ingredients. Many of which aren’t recognisable as real food. To achieve that super soft texture and long shelf life, there are often a lot of additives used to make conventional hot cross buns. Whether this bothers you or not, I hope this recipe inspires you to try making your own hot cross buns with whole ingredients and a whole lot of love!

Can you use conventional yeast instead of sourdough starter?

There are many recipes out there that use commercial yeast, and these are a great option for those who don’t have access to a sourdough starter. However, I prefer to make our hot cross buns with sourdough starter as I love the benefits of fermented bread and pastry products. 

What equipment do you need?

• Medium mixing bowl
• Small mixing bowl or large jug
• Saucepan (for heating milk)
• Spatula or wooden spoon
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons
• Baking dish (approximately 20cm x 30cm x 5cm)
• Pastry brush

What ingredients do you need?

• White baker’s flour or all purpose flour
• Raw sugar
• Fine sea salt
• Nutmeg
• Cinnamon
• Sultanas
• Egg
• Milk (dairy or non-dairy)
• Butter (or coconut oil)
• Active sourdough starter
• Vanilla essence
• Boiling water (for soaking sultanas)
• Flour and water (for cross mixture)
• Optional: Apricot jam (for glaze)

How to make sourdough hot cross buns

Preheat oven

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius and line a 20cm x 30cm x 5cm baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly flour the parchment paper.

Combine dry ingredients

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, spices and salt. Stir to combine and set aside.

Prepare sultanas

Add sultanas to a bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside while you prepare the rest of your ingredients.

Prepare wet ingredients

In a small saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat until just warm.

In a large jug or small bowl, melt the butter. Add the warm milk to the butter, along with the egg, active starter and vanilla essence. Stir well using a whisk to combine.

Combine wet and dry ingredients

Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix together until just combined to form a shaggy dough.

Drain the sultanas and add to the dough, fold in gently.

Allow dough to rest

Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel, beeswax wrap or plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Stretch and fold

Perform stretch and folds by lifting one side of the dough whilst in the bowl, stretching it up and folding it over onto itself. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and perform another stretch and fold. Repeat this on all side. This is one set of stretch and folds. Place the covered bowl at room temperature.

Perform 3 more sets of stretch and folds every 20 minutes (total of 4 sets of stretch and folds).

Bulk fermentation

Cover bowl and leave to sit at room temperature until doubled in size, I normally leave mine for 8-10 hours or overnight. You should see some nice air bubbles forming on the top of the dough. This may take more or less time depending on the temperature of the room.

If it is particularly cold, you can pop your dough in a warm place like a sunny window or near a wood fire to speed up the bulk fermentation. If it is very hot and you are allowing your dough to bulk ferment overnight, it’s a good idea to pop it in a slightly cool place to prevent it over-fermenting.

Divide dough and roll into buns

Turn the risen dough out onto the bench and stretch out into a large, flat rectangle. Shape into a rough ball by folding in the sides of the dough (like a letter), then roll into a ball. This helps create more layers and air bubbles for a light, airy dough.

Cut the hot cross bun dough into 12 equal sized pieces. You can weigh them or just eye ball to get roughly equal pieces.

Create balls by folding the edges into the middle all the way around the piece of dough. Then flip over and pull the dough towards you on the bench surface, until you have a smooth ball. This creates surface tension and a smooth finish on the dough. Repeat with all the pieces of dough. If your dough is a little sticky, you can do this on a lightly floured work surface.

Place in baking dish

Place the dough balls into the baking dish in 3 rows of 4. They may not touch at this stage but they will expand as they rise.

Add crosses

Combine flour and water in a small bowl and mix to form a smooth, thick paste.

Spoon into a small zip-lock bag and close the bag, removing most of the air.

With a pair of scissors, snip off the corner of the zip lock bag to create a small hole, then squeeze the flour paste out like a piping bag. Create crosses on the buns by piping all the buns in one direction, then all the buns in the other direction.

Second rise

Set the baking dish of buns aside for approximately 1 hour at room temperature or in a warm place, the buns should rise slightly.

Bake

Place the buns in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. You can place a baking tray on the top rack above the buns if they start to brown too early.

Brush with egg wash

In a small bowl, crack one egg and whisk until smooth to create an egg wash. Remove the buns from the oven and brush each bun with the egg wash using a pastry brush. Try and work quickly so that you can get the buns back in the oven.

Bake

Return the buns to the oven and bake for a further 15 minutes until golden brown on top.

Optional apricot glaze

You can add a tasty glaze to your buns while they are still warm. Simply add 2 of tablespoons boiling water to 2 tablespoons of apricot jam and stir to combine. Using a pastry brush, brush on the glaze mixture.

Enjoy

Allow the buns to cool slightly before removing them from the baking dish. Enjoy warm hot cross buns straight from the oven, or allow to cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container.

If eating the following day, I suggest heating them up or toasting them and adding some salted butter for a delicious Easter treat!

Let me know if you give these a go, I’d love to hear how they turn out! 🙂