In the steel bowl of your stand mixer , mix together 3 cups white whole wheat flour, salt, and instant yeast. Set aside.

In a pan warm together water and honey.

Let the mixture cool down a bit for 6-7 minutes or till it reaches around 120-125 F degrees.

Add the cooled water-honey mixture now to the flour mixture and mix.

Add the whisked egg, oil and mix.

Start adding the remaining flour little by little, 1/4 cup at a time. Stop adding the flour, when the dough just starts coming together from the sides. You may nor may not need all the flour. Do not add more flour than required. The dough will be little sticky and shaggy. That is okay.

Knead on medium-low speed for around 10 minutes using the dough hook attachment of your stand mixer.

The dough will be smooth and little sticky but after you have kneaded it well, it will spring back back if you poke it.

Transfer this dough to a oiled bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and keep at a warm place for 1-2 hours or until double in size. If it's really cold when you are making these buns, preheat oven to 200 F degrees and then switch if off. Place the dough inside the oven (with the oven being off) and let it rise there

After the dough has risen, punch it down to release the air.

Divide it into 8 equal portions. You can use a kitchen scale to make sure all dough balls are equal. Roll each dough portion into a ball and place on baking sheet , around 3 inches apart.

Cover with a kitchen towel and let them rise for an hour or till almost doubled in size. Meanwhile preheat oven to 400 F degrees.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and tablespoon water for the topping. Once the dough balls have risen, brush each with egg wash mixture, then sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

Bake at 400 F degrees for 10-12 minutes, rotating once in the middle. The tops of the buns will appear golden brown when done.

Remove from oven, brush them immediately with melted butter. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.