REPLACING LETTUCE BUNS WITH OUR KETO BURGER BUN RECIPE
We’ve been eating burgers on lettuce buns for years now. Sometimes we just eat burgers with a knife and fork, but we must admit, we really, really, miss a bun! They hold all our condiments together (and we put on a ton) and they add cohesiveness and needed texture to burgers, sloppy joes, barbecue, and other types of sandwiches. While lettuce buns are delicious, we find them super messy. Toppings are slipping and sliding and often land in our laps. And one of us happens to be a messy eater.
Lately it’s become our mission to create a keto hamburger bun recipe that’s gluten-free, isn’t too airy, too dry, or too dense, while keeping the carb count as low as possible. We hope you love our Keto/Low Carb Burger Buns as much as we do. In fact, we’re having them tonight with both beef hamburgers and Amy’s Chicken Herb Burgers. Each bun comes in at 5 net carbs, is loaded with calcium and protein, with enough fat to keep you full for hours. By the time we finish a chicken or beef burger with these buns, we’re utterly stuffed.
Carbs make up the biggest percentage of calories in a typical hamburger bun, and contain between 20 to 30 plus carbs. Our burger buns are somewhat dense but still moist, and able to handle the drippings from juicy burgers, tomatoes, pickles, or anything else you stack on.
INGREDIENTS:
Almond Flour – It’s simply finely ground blanched almonds without the skins. I buy almond flour in bulk at Costco, but it’s also available for purchase at Amazon, and just about any grocery store. It adds bulk and texture to the buns, and provides healthy fats and fiber with few carbs. Store in the refrigerator for a longer shelf-life
Salt – Ramps up flavors of the other ingredients in any recipe.
Baking Powder – A leavening agent containing both a base and an acid. It’s used to increase the volume and lighten the texture of baked goods by releasing carbon dioxide gas into a batter or dough, causing the batter to rise during the baking process.
Psyllium Husk Powder – Used to retain moisture and helps to keep keto or low carb baked goods from getting crumbly.
Mozzarella Cheese – We use a full 3 cups of mozzarella cheese, which eliminates that “eggy” taste that often dominates keto bread.
Full-Fat Cream Cheese – It’s low in carbs, high in fat, and improves the mouth feel of the low carb buns.
Eggs – Make sure they’re the large size and brought to room temperature before adding. They also help to balance the texture of these keto buns.
Butter – We melt a few tablespoons and brush on the tops of the keto buns before sprinkling on sesame seeds or bagel seasonings. Create your own special flavor profile using your favorite spices, herbs, or seeds.
DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING THESE LOW CARB BUNS
Preparation: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
Whisk together: flour, salt, baking powder and psyllium husk powder. Set aside.
Microwave: Into a large mixing bowl, add the shredded mozzarella and cream cheese. Microwave on high, stirring every 30 seconds, until cheeses are well-combined. This takes about 1.5 to 2 minutes.
Add the eggs: This addition takes several minutes, until eggs are fully incorporated and the cheese mixture is smooth.
Add dry ingredients: Stir until combined.
Form into balls: Place on prepared pan and brush with melted butter and sprinkle with seeds, dried herbs or spices.
Bake: 400 degrees F on middle rack of the oven until golden brown, 12-15 minutes.
Cool: Make sure the buns are completely cooled before you slice in half.
TIPS FOR MAKING PERFECT LOW CARB HAMBURGER BUNS
The finished mixture will be sticky, but never fear, we have a hack for that. Before forming the dough into eight balls, dip your hands into a bowl of ice water, which helps to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands. Place on a sheet pan that’s covered in parchment paper or a silicone mat. Whatever you do, don’t pat the balls down. They will flatten out in the baking process, while leaving a nice rise on the top.
If a plain bun is your thing, omit the addition of seeds or seasonings. Our sweet spot for baking these low carb buns is 13 minutes, when the tops become golden brown, but remember ovens vary so check on them after 12 minutes. We hope these buns keep your add-ons right where you want them – in your mouth!
HOW TO STORE
Store leftovers loosely covered in pantry for up to 3 days. Store covered in refrigerator up to a week. To store in freezer, individually wrap in plastic, then foil for up to 3 months.
Quick and Easy Keto/Low Carb Sandwich and Burger Buns
Our keto/low carb sandwich and burger buns are simply the best we've ever had! With only 5 net carbs per bun, they taste like traditional bakery buns – moist and dense – and can handle all the condiments you pile on!
- Sheet pan
- Silicone mat or parchment paper
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 2 tsp psyllium husk powder
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- Sesame seeds or Everything Bagel seasoning ((optional))
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
Place almond flour, baking powder, salt and psyllium husk powder in mixing bowl and whisk until well-blended. Set aside.
Place shredded mozzarella and cream cheese in large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, stirring every 30 seconds, until the cheeses are well-combined, about 2 minutes total.
Using a heavy wooden spoon, add eggs to the mozzarella and cream cheese mixture until smooth. This will take approximately 5 minutes.
Add dry ingredients and stir until combined. Mixture will be sticky.
Dipping your hands in cold water first, form dough into 8 balls and place on prepared sheet pan. Do not flatten. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sesame seeds, Everything Bagel Seasonings or dried herbs or spices. (optional)
Bake on center rack in a 400 degrees F oven for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool before slicing.
These were delicious. I took a pic for you but dont know how to send
Hi, Sharon, and I’m thrilled you loved the keto burger buns! I’m getting ready to make a batch for the weekend. Thanks much for visiting our site and stay well!
These look great ! I was wondering the nutrition panel above is that for 1 bun ?
The sodium seemed so high ? Just curious. Thanks
Yes, the nutritional info is for one bun, however while making these buns several times, we’ve recently decided that there’s plenty of dough to make 8 buns instead of six. After updating the number of buns per recipe, the sodium is now at 785 mg per bun. Mozzarella cheese is naturally high in sodium – 3 cups contain 2,040 mg sodium, so divided by 8, that’s 255 mg/bun. The 1 tsp salt contains 2,325 mg, divided by 8 equals 290 mg per bun. 1 tbsp of baking powder contains 1,272 mg, adding 159 mg/bun. My suggestion would be to eliminate the 1 tsp additional salt. We’ve used the added salt as it strengthens the structure of the dough, however, I believe you’ll be fine eliminating the added salt. Thanks for a great question!
I don’t have psy husk powder in the house / does that make a difference Joan ????? What does the cheese do , binds it ?????
Hi, Fran. Yes, the psyllium husk powder is essential in this recipe because it prevents the buns from becoming dry and crumbly. Yes, the cheese is a binder, and it helps with the texture and flavor. You can purchase at most grocery stores, or buy on Amazon. I was reluctant to use it when I first started baking keto, but it is a staple in so many keto recipes!
Psyllium husks made my keto buns go purple 😔 apparently it can happen but it doesn’t seem the same when it’s the wrong colour…
Hi, Ruth! Sorry your Burger Buns took on a purple hue. Hasn’t happened to me yet, but I’ve read some online reports of bread and baked goods turning purple when using certain brands. It doesn’t affect taste or texture, but I’m sure it’s somewhat off-putting! I’ve used INDUS Organics Psyllium Husk Powder for over a year without any issues. Assuming you used the powder form, not the whole husks and then grinding into powder? My advice would be to purchase another brand. Thank you for visiting us, Ruth, and I hope changing brands eliminates this issue for you.
I can’t wait to make these! I’ve been doing without a bun for 3 months! This is going to be great for sloppy joes 🙂
Merry Christmas
Hi, Jenny! I think you’ll be happy with these keto burger buns. I so missed a bun on my burgers/sloppy joes, too, and I couldn’t find a recipe that I really loved – most had undesirable textures. Hope you love them! Merry Christmas!
What is psyllium husk powder? Where can I buy it? Is there a replacement product ? Thanks
kabwells@aol.com
Hi, Karolyn and thanks for a great question. Psyllium husk powder is a fiber that helps to retain moisture and prevents baked goods from becoming dry and crumbly. This is particularly useful in keto/low carb baking. Most grocery stores carry it (frequently found in the natural foods section), but I buy mine on Amazon. One bag lasts a very long time! There are replacements, like xanthan gum, however it can be very difficult to use in baked goods. Thanks for visiting us!
What brand of psyllium husk powder do you use? Looked at brands on Amazon and some are fruit flavor and one was gray in color which caused the bread to turn a brownish color. There was a picture of these brownish looking buns somebody had made.
The brand I’m currently using is from a company called Indus Organics, but there are many suitable brands out there. On Amazon, look for “psyllium husk powder for baking,” and several great options pop up. Hope that helps, Patricia!
I made these today and they are so good! Even my husband, a “carboholic”, liked them. Thanks for sharing your recipes, we are looking forward to trying more of them.
Thanks so much, Staci! We just made a batch and are having Amy’s chicken herb burgers (tucked inside these low carb buns) for dinner tonight. We hope you find more recipes you love. Stay well!
Hello Joanie,
I will be making the rolls this week…I am a little confused, is one serving for a roll almost 500 calories and 40 grams of fat?
Tery
Hi, Tery. The nutritional info you have is correct if you divide the dough into 6 buns. Remember, a keto diet is high in fat which keeps you staying full longer. We made these last week for lunch and were so full we could only handle a salad for dinner. I recommend dividing the dough into 8 buns, which reduces the calories to 359 and fat to 30g each. They are still large enough to handle the Chicken Herb Burgers, or regular hamburgers. Thanks for a great question.
Hello! Can I substitute coconut flour? I have kids with tree allergies so I can’t use almond flour. Thank you!
Hi, Kim. Sorry to hear your kids struggle with allergies! Coconut flour won’t work in this particular recipe as the amount of almond flour is rather large (2 cups) and would result in a dry, crumbly bun. You can trying substituting either sunflower seed flour or pumpkin seed flour for the almond flour at the same amount. They are somewhat difficult to find, but you can make your own (much less expensive) by grinding raw sunflower or raw pumpkin seeds with a coffee grinder or a food processor. Hope that helps!
These were easier to make than I thought. They were super tasty but too salty with 1 tsp of salt. I used Himalayan salt so maybe using 1/2 tsp would be better? I did double check the teaspoon and it was teaspoon not Tablespoon. I heard Amy on Bulletproof radio and got the shout out to this website. Thank you.
Hi, Barbara, and welcome to our site! If you find them a bit too salty, then yes, reducing or eliminating the salt altogether would be fine and wouldn’t affect the integrity or texture of the buns. Thank you for your comments!
Thanks again. Do you have a recipe for a bread that can be used for say, Almond Butter and keto jam?
We have two additional bread recipes thus far – Zucchini Bread and Pumpkin Bread. I’m always adding new recipes, Barbara, so stay tuned!
Hello. I have an almond sensitivity. Can you recommend another type of flour that works just as well with this recipe?
Hello, Kris! You can try either pumpkin seed flour or sunflower seed flour as a 1:1 substitution for the almond flour. Would be happy to hear back if you do decide to use these. Buy raw pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds and grind them with a food processor or coffee grinder until they reach a very fine texture.
Amazing recipe! Wish I could post a pic. Now I can have bread for breakfast.
Hi, Christina! Thrilled to hear you love our Sandwich and Burger Buns! Thank you!
Hi Joanie,
Love the recipes I’ve tried so far. Thank you for creating these recipes. Quick question, my husband “claims” he doesn’t like cheese, however I have used cheese in other recipes. If it’s mild enough that he doesn’t taste it and he can’t see it, I can usually get away with it. So my question is, can you taste the cheese in the buns?
Hi, Elizabeth, and thanks for a great question. We used mozzarella cheese in these buns for that very reason – it’s mild flavor. We’ve tried too many keto buns that tasted either “eggy” or too cheesy. Our taste buds don’t detect the cheese, and our large extended family hasn’t either, so fingers crossed your husband won’t!
Made these for the first time tonight. Omg! They are easy and tasty another new staple in our house. Thank you.
Thank you for letting us know you loved the keto buns!
Wow!!! This was delicious. I’m a “new” type 2 diabetic. So excited that these are only 6 net carbs. Made the chicken burgers also. So good!
Hi, Shawn! So glad to hear you loved our Keto Sandwich and Burger Buns. It’s so nice to have a low carb bun to wrap around the chicken burgers! Thanks for your comments and stay well!
Oh my goodness these rolls are amazing!
Hi, Terri! Thanks for your kind comments and thrilled you enjoyed our Sandwich and Burger Buns!