Fried Fish Sandwich on a Salt-crusted Sourdough Bun

When I posted about my Fried Catfish a few days ago, I wasn’t completely truthful. I said “we ate every single piece” but in fact, I hide two large pieces so I could have a fish sandwich for lunch the next day! Yes, there are times I have to hide food from Mr. Tastebuds otherwise he eats everything! If it’s in the refrigerator or cabinet, it’s fair game. I’ve found the best hiding places are the basement refrigerator or the laundry room! Both these areas are mine…all mine!

I served my fish sandwich on a freshly baked, toasted homemade bun. I also made a simple tartar sauce with about 2 TBL of mayonnaise, 1/2 tsp of Dijon Mustard, splash of lemon juice and about 1 TBL of sweet relish. The sandwich was so good and when I was down to the last bite, I wished I had hidden two more pieces of fish so I could have another sandwich! I did reheat the catfish by popping it in the oven for about 5-6 minutes, just enough to take the chill off. Since the catfish came out nice and crispy when I reheated it, I’m thinking about maybe making Fish Sandwiches for our Superbowl Party and just frying the fish the night before.

I needed a small bread recipe for Hamburger Buns and most recipes were just too darn big even if I halved it. I did have to fuss with my recipe several times before I perfected it. But this recipe makes exactly 8 medium-large hamburger buns which is just perfect for us. And it’s a gorgeous dough that is super easy to work with and you will have no problems forming the buns.

Salt-crusted Sourdough Hamburger Buns
Recipe developed by BigBlackDog

3 c. flour (I use unbleached flour)
1 1/2 c. water, warm
1/2 pkg yeast (I used 1 oz fresh yeast)
1 TBL honey
1 tsp salt
2 tsp oil (I used Olive Oil)
1 egg, whipped with a dash of water

Option: 1/2 c sourdough starter

Topping: Kosher Salt and Sesame Seeds

Makes exactly 8 Hamburger Buns

1. In your KA mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in 1/2 c. warm water, sourdough starter and honey.
2. When yeast is totally dissolved, with a KA mixer fitted with a dough hook, gradually add 2 c flour alternating with 1 c warm water.
3. Add 1 tsp salt and gradually add remaining flour. When dough pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl, shut off mixer. If you have not used all of the remaining flour, that’s okay. The dough should just be slightly sticky. If the dough is too wet, just flour a TBL at a time until the dough pulls completely away from the sides of the mixer. **See NOTE
4. Place 2 tsp oil in the bottom of a large bowl. Dip a paper towel into the oil and swish it around the sides.
5. Form dough into a smooth ball and place it in the oiled bowl. Carefully remove dough and flip it over so that all sides are covered with oil.
6. Either cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap. Let dough rise until at least doubled in size.
7. On a floured pastry cloth, with your hands roll out dough into about a 14″ log. Take a bench knife, cut the dough into approximately 8 equal pieces. If you want smaller buns, cut 9-10 equal sized pieces.
8. Forming the hamburger buns is an easy process but difficult to put into text. Please view the below video.

9. Place each bun on a parchment lined baking sheet, cover with a light kitchen towel and let rise for about an hour.
10. Right before popping the buns in the oven, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse salt and sesame seeds.
11. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown on the top and bottom.

**NOTE: Different brands of flour absorb water at different rates, so using exact measurements is difficult. When the dough is thoroughly mixed, it should be slightly sticky and competely pull away from the sides of the bowl and wrap around the dough hook.

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Tagged as: Bun, Catfish, Hamburger Bun