You only need 7 ingredients to make these dinner rolls. Flaky, soft, and buttery, these fresh dinner rolls outshine any main dish. If you’re a bread beginner, read this blog post to learn more about the yeast rolls recipe, including how to prep the rolls ahead of time. You can also reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
This recipe is brought to you in partnership with Red Star Yeast.
- Do you long to bake homemade bread but are too intimidated to start?
- Does yeast dough send you running for the hills?
- Do bread recipes seem overly complicated and confusing?
I’m teaching you how to make homemade dinner rolls. These are the best homemade dinner rolls I’ve ever had and it all starts with a straightforward 7-ingredient dough. I make these rolls whenever I get the chance and even brought a pan to our friends who just welcomed a baby. They’re pillow-soft with the most delicious flaky and buttery texture. Everyone will demand you bake them on repeat.
And with this recipe, I guarantee you will finally feel confident baking bread. 🙂
This recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Video Tutorial: Dinner Rolls
Let’s start with a video tutorial.
Overview: How to Make Homemade Dinner Rolls
- Make the dough. Continue below to learn more about this dough recipe.
- Knead the dough. Reference my How to Knead Dough video tutorial if you need extra help with this step.
- Cover the dough and let it rise. The dough rises in about 1-2 hours in a relatively warm environment.
- Punch down the dough to release the air and shape into rolls.
- Let the rolls rise for about 1 hour.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. If desired, brush the warm rolls with a little honey and melted butter for extra flavor.
As shown in the video tutorial, the dough comes together with a mixer. You can use a paddle attachment or a dough hook. You can also make the dough by hand, but it requires a bit of arm muscle. After the dough comes together in the mixing bowl, it’s time to knead. You can simply continue beating the dough with the mixer for this step or you can knead the dough by hand. I chose to knead the dough by hand so you can see me doing it in the video above.
If you’re new to bread making, my How to Knead Dough post and video can help even more with this step. And my Baking with Yeast Guide is a wonderful resource for all bread beginners!
Soft Dinner Rolls Require a Rich Dough
The crustier and chewier the bread, the less fat in the dough. This is known as a lean dough. The softer and richer the bread, the more fat in the dough. This is known as a rich dough. Unlike chewy homemade bagels, focaccia, ciabatta, and my artisan bread, soft dinner rolls require a rich dough. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean that the dough is swimming in cash. Rather, “rich” correlates with the amount of fat. For example, this dough has milk, butter, and egg.
You need 7 ingredients total. They’re the same ingredients in my easy cinnamon rolls and homemade brioche, which are also rich doughs. (Though I use more sugar for sweeter cinnamon rolls, of course.)
- Milk: Liquid activates the yeast. For the softest dinner rolls, use whole milk. Nondairy or low fat milks work too, but whole milk produces phenomenal flavor and texture.
- Yeast: You can use active dry yeast or instant yeast. If using active dry yeast, the rise times will be a little longer. I recommend Platinum Yeast from Red Star, which is an instant yeast blended with natural dough improvers.
- Sugar: Sugar feeds the yeast, increases its activity, and tenderizes the dough.
- Egg: 1 egg provides structure and flavor.
- Butter: Butter promises a flavorful and soft dinner roll. Make sure it’s room temperature.
- Salt: You can’t make flavorful bread without salt!
- Flour: You can use all-purpose flour or bread flour in this recipe. All-purpose flour is convenient for most, but bread flour produces chewier dinner rolls. There are no other changes to the recipe if you use bread flour.
Once you make the dough, let it rise:
After that, punch down the risen dough. Shape into balls and arrange in a baking pan. Don’t worry if they’re not all uniform in size.
Let the shaped rolls rise before baking. Look how puffy they get after 1 hour of rising:
How to Shape Dinner Rolls
You can shape this dough many different ways including twisted rolls, knotted rolls (how I shape garlic knots), cloverleaf rolls, or even hot dog buns. Let’s stick with the basic round shape. Divide the dough into 14-16 pieces. Take a piece and stretch the top of the dough while pinching and sealing the bottom. Make sure the rolls are smooth on top and sealed on the bottom. I shape hot cross buns the same exact way.
How to Make Yeast Rolls Ahead of Time
The rolls require around 3 hours of rising. Not everyone has 3 hours to spare, so let’s discuss another option! Prepare the dough, let it rise, and shape the rolls. Cover the shaped rolls tightly and refrigerate for up to about 16 hours. At least 3 hours before you need them the next day, remove the rolls from the refrigerator and allow to rise on the counter for about 1-2 hours before baking.
And here’s how to freeze dinner rolls: Follow the make-ahead instructions and instead of refrigerating overnight, freeze the rolls in a baking pan. Once frozen, they won’t stick together anymore and you can place them in a freezer bag. Let them thaw and rise for about 4-5 hours, then bake. You can also freeze the baked dinner rolls. Therefore, if you want a smaller batch, you can make the entire recipe and bake only a few fresh rolls at a time.
These make-ahead options are especially helpful if you want fresh-baked rolls for Easter brunch, Thanksgiving dinner, or on Christmas.
Dinner Roll Flavors
How about some pizazz? Mix in these ingredients when you add the flour.
- Rosemary Dinner Rolls – 2 Tablespoons fresh or dried chopped rosemary.
- Cheddar Dinner Rolls – 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Other cheese varieties work, but avoid super soft cheeses.
- Garlic & Herb Dinner Rolls – 2 teaspoons each: dried rosemary, dried basil, & dried parsley, along with 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
- Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls
- Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls
- Honey Butter Rolls
- Sweet Potato Dinner Rolls
- Oatmeal Molasses Dinner Rolls
- Multigrain Rolls – Here is my Multigrain Bread recipe that you can turn into rolls.
They’re also fantastic with a simple swipe of homemade honey butter or homemade cinnamon butter.
This dough is not ideal for a big loaf of bread. Instead, I recommend using a leaner dough, such as my sandwich bread or whole wheat bread recipes. If you need an egg free dough, try homemade breadsticks instead. And if you love pizza, try these pizza pull apart rolls next!
3 Success Tips
- Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide, which answers many common yeast FAQs.
- Make sure your yeast isn’t expired. Expiration date is on the package.
- Directly from the pros at Red StarYeast: Measuring flour correctly is key to avoiding a dense dough, which leads to heavy (not soft!) rolls. Spoon and level your flour, do not scoop it out of the package.
My final piece of advice? Don’t limit these rolls to suppertime. They’re welcome anywhere, with any meal, any time of day. Use for sliders, breakfast sandwiches, soaking up your favorite tomato sauce with slow cooker turkey meatballs, alongside salad, or dunking into a bowl of creamy chicken noodle soup. Above all, don’t doubt yourself because you, too, can become a bread baking pro.
Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe
- Prep Time: 3 hours, 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 45 minutes
- Yield: 14-16 rolls
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
You only need 7 ingredients to make these dinner rolls. Flaky, soft, and buttery, these fresh dinner rolls outshine any main dish. See recipe notes for freezing and overnight instructions. You can also reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs. This recipe is also in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240ml) whole milk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast (1 standard packet)
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature and cut into 4 pieces
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups (390g) all-purpose flour or bread flour* (spooned & leveled)
- optional topping: 2 Tablespoons (28g) melted unsalted butter mixed with 1 Tablespoon honey
Instructions
- Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm milk, yeast, and 1 Tablespoon of sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes. *If you do not own a stand mixer, you can do this in a large mixing bowl and in the next step, mix the dough together with a large wooden spoon/silicone spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle. A hand mixer works, but the sticky dough repeatedly gets stuck in the beaters. Mixing by hand with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula is a better choice.*
- Add the remaining sugar, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour. With a dough hook or paddle attachment, mix/beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, then add the remaining flour. Beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If the dough seems too wet to a point where kneading (next step) would be impossible, beat in more flour 1 Tablespoon at a time until you have a workable dough, similar to the photos above. Dough should be soft and a little sticky, but still manageable to knead with lightly floured hands.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- 1st Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size. (I always let it rise on the counter. Takes about 2 hours. For a tiny reduction in rise time, see my answer to Where Should Dough Rise? in my Baking with Yeast Guide.)
- Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan or two 9-inch square or round baking pans. You can also bake the rolls in a cast iron skillet or on a lined baking sheet.*
- Shape the rolls: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Divide the dough into 14-16 equal pieces. (Just eyeball it– doesn’t need to be perfect!) A bench scraper is always helpful for cutting dough. Shape each piece into a smooth ball. Arrange in prepared baking pan.
- 2nd Rise: Cover shaped rolls with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until puffy, about 1 hour.
- Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). (It’s best to bake the rolls towards the bottom of the oven so the tops don’t burn.)
- Bake the rolls: Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top, rotating the pan halfway through. If you notice the tops browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. Remove from the oven, brush with optional honey butter topping, and allow rolls to cool for a few minutes before serving.
- Cover leftover rolls tightly and store at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Prepare recipe through step 6. Place shaped rolls in a greased baking pan, cover tightly, and freeze for up to 3 months. Once frozen, the dough balls won’t stick together anymore and you can place them in a freezer bag if needed. On the day you serve them, arrange the dough balls in a greased baking pan, cover tightly, then let them thaw and rise at room temperature for about 4-5 hours. Bake as directed. You can also freeze the baked dinner rolls. Allow them to cool completely, then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature, then reheat as desired. If reheating the whole pan, lightly cover and reheat in a 300°F (149°C) oven for about 10 minutes or until warm.
- Overnight Instructions: Prepare the recipe through step 6. Cover the shaped rolls tightly and refrigerate for up to about 15 hours. At least 3 hours before you need them the next day, remove the rolls from the refrigerator, keep covered, and allow to rise on the counter for about 1-2 hours before baking. Alternatively, you can let the dough have its 1st rise in the refrigerator overnight. Cover the dough tightly and place in the refrigerator for up to about 15 hours. Remove from the refrigerator and allow the dough to fully rise for 2 more hours. Continue with step 5.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Stand Mixer or Glass Mixing Bowl and Wooden Spoon / Spatula | 9×13-inch Glass Baking Pan | Bench Scraper | Pastry Brush
- Baking Pan: I prefer baking the rolls in a glass 9×13 inch baking pan because I find they brown a little too quickly in metal. As long as you bake the rolls on a lower oven rack and keep your eye on them, any pan is great.
- Yeast: Platinum Yeast from Red Star is an instant yeast. You can use Red Star Yeast active dry yeast instead. Rise times will be slightly longer using active dry yeast. Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Flour: You can use all-purpose flour or bread flour. All-purpose flour is convenient for most, but bread flour produces chewier dinner rolls. The rolls are still soft and fluffy no matter which you use. Either flour is fine and there are no other changes to the recipe if you use one or the other.
Adapted from Homemade Bread Bowls and Honey Butter Rolls
Reader Comments and Reviews
I don’t know where I went wrong as I followed the recipe exactly. Rolls turned out hard, not fluffy at all.
Hi Barbara! Did the rolls rise properly? How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
Like many others, loved them!!
But, I came up with another use for those recipe – Kolaches!!! Soooo good!!
Follow all the steps & separate into 14 dough balls. Flatten and make it square. Lay a slice of Cheddar Cheese down & a Eckrich Smok-Y Breakfast Sausage, then roll up & pinch closed. Place in a 9×13 pan (2 rows of 7). Then allow to rise, brush with beaten egg and bake. Best Kolaches ever!! Friends and family always request I make these.
Thank you SO MUCH for this dinner roll recipe! I made a practice batch today in preparation for Thanksgiving. I love to bake (mostly your recipes), but I have never been able to successfully make yeasted dough… until now! My son is allergic to dairy, so I subbed an olive oil-based plant butter and oat milk, and they turned out perfect!
These are so easy to make and they’re nice and fluffy. I bought frozen dinner rolls for Thanksgiving and just made these tonight for a bbq dinner but everyone raved about them so I think I’m gonna have to make them again on Thursday. Oops!
Hi I make this recipe often but I’m a baker at a restaurant and many people are placing roll orders from me. Could I mass bake these on an industrial sheet pan or 9×13 only?
Also some of my customers are ordering a day ahead. I know that the overnight proof is awesome as I do it often but is there anyway for me to make the dough two days in advance and still let it overnight rise in their fridges for thanksgiving? I’m sorry if this question is slightly confusing but any help or recommendations is appreciated!
Hi Maddie! We don’t have experience baking at that scale, so can’t offer much advice. The dough would rise too much in two days, you could try freezing the rolls as we detail in the recipe notes if desired.
I am a confident cook but anxious baker. I just finished my second attempt at these rolls, and while the rolls came out light and springy, I found the flavor to be bland (even after the suggested melted butter/honey brushing). It needs a slight adjustment to flavor, but how much can I tweak (sugar/salt addition?) without interfering with the rising process? I’m determined to bake these for Thanksgiving and I’m getting closer but could kindly use some help!
Hi Anne! You can certainly add more sugar/salt to your taste. Or you may enjoy our sea salt & herb skillet rolls, or brown butter sage dinner rolls instead.
What am I doing wrong? The rolls are coming out crunchy not soft. Help!
Hi Shannon! How strange. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
Can the sugar be eliminated or reduced? What does the sugar do for the rolls?
Hi Elizabeth, feel free to use just 2 teaspoons of sugar in step 1 and omit the rest. (So reduce down to 2 teaspoons total.) The sugar feeds the yeast, tenderizes the dough, and adds flavor.
If you have a pellet smoker and you are already smoking your turkey, when you take your turkey out to rest, crank your smoker up to 350 and bake these rolls in there! The added hickory or whatever is next level and you will free up space in your oven for other sides
Any thoughts on making these without the egg? My son is allergic and these look delicious.
Hi Ashley, You can leave the egg out completely, but they won’t be as soft. The texture will be closer to our sandwich bread (which doesn’t have any eggs).
This recipe is great. I’ve used it several times. Thank you so much for sharing. I do have a question though: is there any way to give the roles a bit more flavor? Mine rise and cook beautifully, but when they come out they’re just a little bland. Any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.
Hi Britt! Are you adding the honey butter topping? It adds lovely flavor. Otherwise, you may enjoy our brown butter sage dinner rolls or sea salt & herb skillet rolls.
I can’t wait to try this for Thanksgiving! Do you have any tips on adapting this to a bread maker? I only plan on using the Dough feature.
Hi Patty, you could absolutely try a bread maker for this recipe – some readers have and reported back success!
Can I make these with gluten free flour
Hi Debbie, we haven’t tested these rolls with a 1:1 gluten free flour, so we’re unsure of the results. Although some readers report using an all-purpose 1:1 gluten-free flour in many of our recipes with success, you should expect slightly different results anytime you substitute ingredients. Let us know if you give it a try.
I’m looking forward to making these for Thanksgiving this year! I want to make two batches and I’m wondering if I can bake both batches side by side in 9×13 pans at the same time on the same rack without any changes. Any suggestions for baking 2 batches? I use your recipes all the time. Thank you!
Hi Adam, that should be fine. We recommend rotating the pans once while baking to promote even browning.
Excited to see how these turn out! I was a bit confused though, the ingredients list above specifies 3 cups/390g of flour. However step 2 states “Add the remaining sugar, egg, butter, salt, and 1 cup flour.” obviously based off the state of the dough the 3 cups is needed but this was confusing for me. I thought maybe as I read on you slowly incorporate the rest of the flour but I didn’t see that listed in any other steps.
Hi Hank! See the next sentence in the recipe for details on adding the rest of the flour. With a dough hook or paddle attachment, mix/beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add the remaining flour.
These rolls are delicious and so fluffy!! The honey butter topping is excellent too:)!
Can I make this recipe vegan?
We haven’t tested it but other bakers have reported successfully doing so.
Can you use active dry yeast in place of instant yeast?
Hi Suzanne, yes, you can use active dry yeast instead. Rise times will be slightly longer using active dry yeast.
This roll recipe is my new Thanksgiving roll recipe! I decided to try them out today to see if they were better than my usual. The recipe was really easy to throw together. They were so good, my husband, who will usually only eat one roll a day, ate three! My rolls were smaller, and I made twenty, so I baked them for eighteen minutes on a quarter sheet. They were just heavenly. They reminded us of rolls I used to buy from a restaurant years ago. Thanks Sally!
So glad you enjoyed them, Sheri!
This is easy peasy, we love it. If Hank you for sharing.
Great recipe! Just made a batch to freeze for Thanksgiving. I plan to make another batch with cheddar cheese and chopped fresh jalapeños to serve with my post Thanksgiving turkey chili. Have you tried adding peppers…concerned about the amount to add to avoid throwing off the recipe. Any suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Christie, so glad you enjoyed the rolls! 1-2 chopped jalepeño peppers should be great here, depending on their size and your spice preference. You might enjoy this jalapeño cheddar bread, too! You can make it as smaller rolls rather than a whole loaf.
Thank you! Will try that recipe as well. BTW…followed your recipe for Pumpkin Bread and just popped it in the oven. My house smells amazing.
Instead of granulated sugar would you be able to use molasses? I love the extra flavor molasses adds to bread.
Hi Mikayla, that swap should be just fine.
Quick question. I will often combine all purpose and bread flour. Would combining these affect the texture or outcome?
Hi Amber, you can use either all-purpose or bread flour for this recipe, so combining the two shouldn’t be a problem. Enjoy!
Unfortunately, I misread the directions. I made them today and planned on freezing them until Thanksgiving. After they are totally cooked, are they still ok to freeze ( I forgot to stop after Step 6).
Hi Judy, don’t worry! I actually thawed these exact rolls earlier today and warmed them up and enjoyed them with dinner! Let them cool completely, then freeze in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag. I let them thaw in the bag on the counter for a few hours, then placed them on a baking sheet and lightly covered with foil, and reheated in the oven for about 10 minutes at 300F.
Simple & Tasty! I will make these again for sure. Best result I have had with dinner rolls!
I am trying out this recipe this morning . On the first rise. Will comment again when completed. I truly enjoyed reading through all the steps and advice that was posted for this recipe.
What is the best way to make a larger batch of these rolls? is it okay to double the recipe or should I should make separate batches?
Hi Abbey, for the best results we don’t recommend doubling this recipe. For double the amount of rolls, make 2 separate batches. That said, several readers have commented that they’ve doubled the recipe and it turned out great, so if your mixer can handle the larger amount of dough, you can try it!
Thanks for asking this!
Knowing what temperature to cook them, it would be helpful!
Hi Tim, the recipe says to bake the rolls at 350°F (177°C).
We’ve made this recipe many times and love it. Just a question – can I leave it in the fridge for more than 15 hours after the first rise? like 24 hours?? .. and then take it out for the second rise?
Hi Roshni, we recommend sticking with no more than 15 hours. If the rolls rise too long they may collapse when baked.
Hi!! This recipe calls for “3 cups of flour, (390 grams)”. But 3 cups of flour = 360 grams. 3.25 cups of flour = 390 grams. (Which should be used?) Thank you!
Hi Shannon, while spooning and leveling our bread flour does get us 130 grams per cup, we always say that “A cup isn’t always a cup, but a gram or ounce is always a gram or ounce.” Basically, when in doubt go by the weight! You’ll want 390g of flour here. Hope this helps and that you enjoy the rolls!
May I sub buttermilk for the whole milk? Thank you!
Hi Lucie, yes, you can use buttermilk instead with no changes to the recipe. Enjoy!
I made this recipe over the weekend. My first time making bread. And it turned out AMAZING! Definitely a keeper! Also makes the best little sandwiches for my son!