Sourdough Hot Cross Buns

Ingredients

Sweet Levain

Build this 8–10 hours before mixing. The sugar feeds your starter quickly and produces a milder, less acidic levain — which means hot cross buns that taste spiced and sweet, not sour.

• 25g (2 tbsp) active sourdough starter (100% hydration)
• 50g (¼ cup + 2 tbsp) bread flour
• 50g (3½ tbsp) whole milk, lukewarm
• 5g (1 tsp) granulated sugar

Tangzhong (Water Roux)

Make this while the levain builds. Cool completely before using.

• 25g (3 tbsp) bread flour
• 125g (½ cup) whole milk

Fruit Soak

• 120g (¾ cup) dried currants (or raisins)
• 60g (¼ cup) candied orange peel, finely chopped
• 200g (¾ cup) hot black tea or fresh orange juice

The Dough

• 450g (3½ cups + 2 tbsp) bread flour
• 130g (½ cup + 1 tbsp) whole milk, lukewarm
• 60g (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
• 100g (2 large) large eggs, room temperature
• 55g (4½ tbsp) granulated sugar
• 8g (1½ tsp) fine sea salt
• 4g (1½ tsp) ground cinnamon
• 2g (¾ tsp) ground allspice
• 1g (¼ tsp) ground nutmeg
• 1g (¼ tsp) ground cardamom
• 6g (1 orange) orange zest
• all (all) sweet levain (all of it)
• all (all) tangzhong (all of it)

Flour Paste Cross

Traditional method — piped before baking.

• 75g (⅔ cup) bread flour
• 75g (5 tbsp) water
• 5g (1 tsp) granulated sugar

Egg Wash

• 50g (1 large) large egg, beaten
• 15g (1 tbsp) whole milk

Apricot-Orange Glaze

• 80g (¼ cup) apricot jam or orange marmalade
• 30g (2 tbsp) water

Total flour: 525g

Hydration: 62%

Pro tip: Keep the cinnamon at this amount. More cinnamon = slower fermentation. Cinnamaldehyde, the compound that gives cinnamon its flavor, inhibits yeast activity. In a sourdough dough with fat, sugar, and eggs already slowing things down, too much cinnamon can stall the bulk fermentation completely.

Equipment

Method

Build the Sweet Levain

A levain built with milk and a touch of sugar instead of plain water. The milk and sugar create a milder fermentation environment — less acetic acid, more lactic. The result is a levain that leavens well without making your buns taste sour.

1. Mix the levain. In a clean jar, combine the active starter, bread flour, lukewarm milk, and sugar. Stir until well combined — the mixture will be stiff. Close the lid loosely and leave at room temperature (75–78°F / 24–26°C).
2. Watch for peak. The levain is ready when it has doubled or more in size, is domed on top, and has visible bubbles throughout. This takes 8–10 hours at 75–78°F. A levain built with milk moves a little slower than one built with water — that's normal.

Wait: PT9H

Soak Fruit and Make Tangzhong

Do both of these while the levain is building. Both need to be cool before they hit the dough.

1. Soak the fruit. Combine currants and candied orange peel in a bowl. Pour the hot tea or orange juice over them. Cover and let soak at least 30 minutes. Drain well before using.
2. Make the tangzhong. Whisk 25g bread flour and 125g whole milk in a small saucepan until smooth. Heat over medium-low, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens to a paste and reaches 65°C (149°F) — about 3–4 minutes. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface and cool completely.

Mix the Dough

Build the dough once the levain is at peak — doubled, domed, and bubbly. Same method as the yeasted version: dry ingredients first, wet ingredients in, butter last, fruit after the gluten is built.

1. Combine dry ingredients. In your stand mixer bowl, whisk together the bread flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cardamom, and orange zest.
2. Add wet ingredients and levain. Add the lukewarm milk, eggs, cooled tangzhong, and all of the sweet levain. Mix on low with the dough hook for 2–3 minutes until a shaggy dough forms.
3. Add butter. Add softened butter in small pieces with the mixer running on low. Once incorporated, increase to medium-low and knead for 8–10 minutes until smooth and elastic. By hand: 12–14 minutes.
4. Add the fruit. Add the drained soaked fruit and mix on low for 2 minutes until evenly distributed. Don't overwork.

Tip: This dough will feel stickier than a lean sourdough. That's the enrichment doing its job. Resist the flour. Let the mixer work.

Overnight Bulk Fermentation

The enriched dough ferments slowly overnight. Butter, eggs, and sugar all slow the yeast — which is actually an advantage here. Slow fermentation = better flavor, no over-fermentation risk.

1. Cover and ferment. Shape the dough into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Ferment at room temperature (75–78°F / 24–26°C) overnight, about 8–12 hours, until the dough has approximately doubled.
2. Check in the morning. The dough is ready when it's noticeably puffed, slightly jiggly when you shake the bowl, and a floured finger pressed in springs back slowly. If it springs back immediately, give it more time. If the indent stays, move on — it's at or past peak.

Wait: PT10H

Tip: If your kitchen is warmer than 78°F, the bulk will go faster. Check at 6–7 hours. If your kitchen is cooler than 72°F, it may take up to 14 hours. The dough tells you when it's ready — watch the dough, not the clock.

Divide and Shape

Same technique as the yeasted version. Twelve equal buns, shaped tight, placed touching in the pan.

1. Divide. Punch down the dough gently and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Weigh the total dough and divide by 12. Each bun should be approximately 85–90g.
2. Shape each bun. Pull the edges toward the center, rotating as you go, to build surface tension. Flip seam-side down. Cup your hand and roll in a tight circle on the surface until smooth and taut.
3. Arrange in pan. Place shaped buns in the greased 9×13 pan in a 3×4 grid with about ½ inch of space between each bun.

Final Proof and Flour Paste Cross

The final proof takes longer than the yeasted version — 2 to 3 hours is normal for a cold, enriched sourdough dough coming up to temperature. Don't rush it. Pipe the cross right before baking.

1. Final proof. Cover the pan loosely and let proof at room temperature (75–78°F) for 2–3 hours until the buns are visibly puffed, touching their neighbors, and spring back slowly when gently pressed.
2. Preheat. 20 minutes before the end of the proof, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
3. Make the flour paste cross. Whisk together the bread flour, water, and sugar until completely smooth. The paste should be thick enough to hold its shape when piped — like a stiff toothpaste. Adjust water by the teaspoon if needed.
4. Pipe the crosses. Transfer paste to a piping bag or zip-lock bag with a small corner snipped. Pipe one continuous line across each row of buns, then rotate 90 degrees and pipe across the columns. Pipe slightly thinner than you want — they spread a little in the oven.
5. Egg wash. Brush exposed dough (not the paste) with egg wash.

Wait: PT2H30M

Bake and Glaze

Same bake as the yeasted version. Hot oven, short time, glaze immediately on exit.

1. Bake. Bake at 400°F (200°C) for 20–25 minutes until deep golden brown. Internal temperature should reach 190°F (88°C).
2. Make the glaze. While the buns bake, combine the apricot jam (or orange marmalade) and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until smooth and runny.
3. Glaze immediately. Brush generously over the entire surface the moment the buns come out of the oven. Let cool in the pan for 10–15 minutes before pulling apart.

Bake

Oven: 200°C / 400°F. Internal temperature when done: 88°C / 190°F.

9×13 Pan (recommended)

Equipment: 9×13 inch baking pan, greased or lined with parchment

1. Preheat. 400°F (200°C), center rack.
2. Pipe cross. Flour paste before going in.
3. Egg wash. Brush exposed dough only.
4. Bake. 20–25 minutes until deep golden. Internal temp 190°F (88°C).
5. Glaze. Brush warm apricot-orange glaze immediately on exit.

Storage

• Room temperature: 2–3 days in an airtight container. The tangzhong keeps them softer longer than most enriched buns.
• Refrigerated: Up to 5 days. Reheat at 300°F (150°C) for 10 minutes, uncovered.
• Frozen: Up to 3 months. Freeze without glaze after cooling completely. Rewarm and reglaze.
• Refresh: Toast individual buns or warm the whole pan at 300°F (150°C) for 10 minutes. Serve with butter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will these taste sour?

Not if you manage the fermentation. The sweet levain built with milk, the 17% inoculation rate, and the enriched dough all work together to favor lactic acid over acetic. Lactic acid tastes mild and slightly tangy — not sharp or vinegary. Keep the bulk fermentation at the right temperature (75–78°F) and don't let it go past peak, and the sourness stays in the background.

My dough barely moved overnight. What do I do?

Two likely causes: either the levain wasn't at peak when you mixed (it should be doubled and domed, not just bubbly), or the dough fermented somewhere too cold. For the fermentation: move it somewhere warmer, or use a proofing box set to 78°F. If it's only 20–30% grown after 12 hours, your levain needed more time. Give the dough another 4–6 hours of warmth before judging. Enriched sourdoughs are slower than lean doughs — what looks stalled is often just moving slowly.

Can I speed up the timeline?

Yes. Increase the levain inoculation to 30% of flour weight (about 160g levain for this recipe) and ferment at 80°F. This can cut the bulk to 5–6 hours, making it possible to bake same-day if you start in the morning. You'll get slightly less flavor complexity but the buns will be just as tender.

How do I know when the bulk fermentation is done?

The dough should have approximately doubled in volume, feel noticeably lighter when you scoop a piece, and have bubbles visible through the bowl walls if you're using glass. A floured finger pressed in should spring back slowly — about halfway in 15–20 seconds. The dough should also feel slightly warm to the touch from fermentation activity.

Can I cold-proof these after shaping?

Yes. After shaping and placing in the pan, cover tightly and refrigerate for up to 15 hours. The next morning, take the pan out and let it warm at room temperature for 45–60 minutes before piping the cross and baking. The cold retard adds complexity to the flavor. The extra rest before baking is important — cold buns will blow out in the oven if they haven't relaxed.

The cross paste cracked during baking. What happened?

The buns were still actively expanding when they went into the oven — they weren't fully proofed. An under-proofed bun has a lot of oven spring left in it, and that rapid expansion cracks the paste that's already set on top. Let the final proof go until the buns feel pillowy and spring back slowly. Fully proofed buns have modest oven spring and the paste stays intact.

Nutrition

Per serving (1 bun): 295 calories, 51g carbohydrates, 9g protein, 7g fat, 2g fiber, 255mg sodium. Makes 12 servings.