These homemade dinner rolls are wickedly soft and fluffy. What’s better? They require no special equipment or kneading to make.
This dinner rolls recipe is your new go-to when you need bread in a pinch. It requires no kneading (yay to saving your forearms!), dough hook, or stand mixer, yet the rolls come out perfectly soft and golden brown each time. If you’re a first-time baker and want to try your hand at making your own bread, this recipe has your name all over it…
But there’s more to love. From prep to finish, the bread takes just shy of an hour to make. That means you can tend to the main course and sides while your bread proofs and bakes. By the time dinner is on the table, fresh rolls will be coming out of the oven! What’s not to love about synchronicity?
How to Make No-Knead Dinner Rolls
Making no-knead dinner rolls only requires a few ingredients you likely have hanging around in your kitchen and a couple simple steps. Below, find a quick hitter overview of the recipe before you dive in.
- Make the Dough: Combine the water with sugar and yeast and let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes. Whisk eggs, salt, and butter into the yeast mixture. Add flour into the mixture in small portions, stirring until a dough ball forms.
- Divide the Dough: Divide the dough into 20 pieces and roll them up into balls. Place the dough balls into a well-greased baking dish.
- Proof the Rolls: Cover the rolls with a towel. Allow them to rise for at least 30 minutes.
- Bake the Rolls: Bake at 375°F in a preheated oven for about 35 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!
Tips for Making the Best Dinner Rolls
Below, find a collection of tips and tricks to help you make the best no-knead dinner rolls on the planet.
- Allow the bread to proof for at least 30 minutes. This will result in the fluffiest, softest dinner rolls. If you have the time, you can allow it to proof overnight for even better results.
- Use high-quality all-purpose flour. Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Flour is a wonderful option.
- Separate the dough using a dough slicer. A dough slicer is a bread baker’s best friend. This tool makes divvying up bread dough so simple.
- Serve the rolls fresh out of the oven. There’s nothing better than a fresh dinner roll! Try to time your meal around when they will come out of the oven.
Serving No-Knead Dinner Rolls
No-knead dinner rolls are the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, or other holiday spread. However, since they are so simple to make, you can easily whip them up on a weeknight. Pair them with a homemade caesar salad, minestrone soup, or a classic ribeye steak dinner. p.s. or apricot jam is the perfect dessert!
Storing No-Knead Dinner Rolls
- Room Temperature: Store dinner rolls at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
- Refrigerator: To keep the rolls fresher longer, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
- Freezer: To freeze baked dinner rolls, allow them to cool completely. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and pop the entire baking sheet into the freezer. Once frozen, transfer the rolls to a freezer-safe plastic bag. They will keep for up to three months. To freeze raw dinner roll dough, follow the exact same process.
Reheating Tip: Reheat dinner rolls by simply placing them in the oven until soft and warmed through. You can also pop them into the microwave for 30 seconds.
FAQ
What is a dinner roll?
Dinner rolls are small, round pieces of bread typically served as a side dish for dinner. They are extremely popular around the holidays but can be eaten all year round.
Can I use whole wheat flour instead?
You can use whole wheat flour, but the rolls will turn out denser. If you can, do 2/3 white flour and 1/3 of wheat to strike the perfect balance.
What does “proofing” the dough mean?
Proofing the dough refers to the last fermentation stage before baking where you allow the yeast to activate. In this recipe, you only need to proof the dough for 30 minutes.
More Easy Bread Recipes
- No-Knead Bread – Classic white bread round
- No-Knead Baguette – Classic baguette
- Ukrainian Garlic Bread (Pampushky) – Garlic and sunflower oil bread
- No-Knead Cinnamon Rolls – No-fuss homemade cinnamon rolls
Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups water lukewarm
- 2 tsp dry yeast
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp salt
- 6 cups all-purpose flour
Egg Wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
- Combine the water with sugar and yeast. Let the mixture sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes.
- Add eggs, salt, and butter to the yeast mixture. Whisk to combine.
- In small portions, add flour into the wet mixture.
- Stir to combine everything together until a dough ball forms.
- Divide the dough into 20 equal pieces. Roll them up into round shapes and place them next to each other in a shallow baking dish.
- Cover the rolls with a towel and let them rise for about 30 minutes. Brush the top with egg wash. Bake at 375°F in a preheated oven for about 35 minutes or until the tops turn golden brown.
- Serve fresh out of the oven and warm!
I am a novice in baking anything with yeast, but I decided to make these rolls coz the recipe didn't seem daunting. Followed the recipe as is, except for the flour where I substituted half of the all-purpose flour with whole-wheat bread flour. They came out so good it was just awesome! Had them warm with a fish stew, and I loved dunking them into the broth. Many thanks for the easy recipe.
P/S I forgot the egg wash but who would have guessed, they were just as golden brown on top.
Mercy, thank you for sharing your feedback. So glad they came out great for you, even with the flour adjustments. This tip will be helpful for others as well. Thanks for sharing!
Would I be able to use bread flour instead of all purpose?
Hi Kathleen, Thank you for the question, All flour is different so it may take a few adjustments to make the desired consistency. Good luck!
What type of yeast
Hey Carmen, it can be instant or active dry yeast. Enjoy it!
What would u need to do to make this
Hi Jean, if you scroll down to the recipe card, we have all the ingredients listed. Let me know if you have trouble finding it. Enjoy
All seems very tasty
Ali Chicago USA
Thank you, Ali! Hope you give them a try soon.
Hi Natalya, how big is your baking dish?
Hey Tasha, I can't remember the exact size off the top of my head but use at least a 9x13 pan for this recipe; you can probably use a slightly bigger one too. Enjoy!
Okay, my dough came out very sticky! I could barely form it into balls. I only mixed it enough to combine. Any idea what happened?
Hey Tasha- if the dough is sticky you could either try to mix it a bit more, or you may need to add some more flour until it's the right consistency! Please let us know how the rolls turned out for you.
Is it two eggs that go into the bread mixture...or just one?
Hi Sandra- it's 2 eggs for the bread mixture. Enjoy!
Made these effortlessly and they were so nice and fluffy. I sooo loved them and so did hubby. Thanks for sharing. P.S silly me forgot to prep the baking dish 🤣🤣 they still came out nicely though, didn’t stick too much 🙂
Hi Torii- glad to hear they worked out and you guys enjoyed them! 🙂 Thanks for commenting.
My 5 and 7 year old mini-chefs next door, just baked a loaf cake from scratch. I think they can handle this with minimal assistance. I sent it to the head chef to pass on. Use this recipe in my house.
Hi Stan- wow, those are some talented junior chefs! Thanks for sharing!
I’ve made this recipe 3 times and they aren’t rising properly, which makes them dense. This last time I proofed the yeast to verify it was working. I have had to add an extra half cup of flour to make them where I can roll them, otherwise they’re too sticky. Am I over mixing? Help!
Hi, Jennica. I'm sorry to hear they aren't rising as they should, even after multiple attempts. What kind of flour are you using?
If you proof overnight, do you proof in sectioned form, or all together?
Hi Christy - Thanks for reaching out! We actually haven't proofed it overnight before. We typically just do the standard 30 minutes. My guess would be to proof it all together, but I'm not entirely sure. Let us know how it turns out!
Is the butter melted?
Hi Ann, yes the butter is melted. Enjoy the recipe 🙂
WOW! These are so easy to make and delicious! Thank you.
Tammie, I am so glad you loved the recipe and found it easy, thank you for your feedback!
I'm not the best bread baker but these were just amazing! Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Hi Erin, so glad to drag you onto the bread baking train, you will love it!! Homemade bread tastes amazing and always makes the house smell incredible!
This is really easy to make and tasted super delicious! Thank you so much for sharing this amazing knead bread buns recipe! Will surely have this again, highly recommended!
Hi Allyssa, I am so glad you found the recipe easy to follow, thank you for taking the time to comment!
Hi, 20 rolls really are too many just for me. Can the unbaked dough/pre-shaped rolls be frozen and baked at a later date?
I halved the recipe successfully .. another option.
Smart move, Payme! You can also freeze the other half if you don't need it right away.
Hi Valerie, yes you absolutely can. To freeze baked dinner rolls, allow them to cool completely. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and pop the entire baking sheet into the freezer. Once frozen, transfer the rolls to a freezer-safe plastic bag. They will keep for up to three months. And you can reheat them by simply placing them in the oven until soft and warmed through. You can also pop them into the microwave for 30 seconds. You can also freeze raw dinner roll dough, follow the exact same process.
Hi I made the buns today. I loved your step by step instructions. I used SAF instant yeast. As that was all I could get. When their was a Fleischmann yeast shortage. Turned out huge.
Sarah, thank you for your feedback, I hope you loved how they turned out.
Hi, I wonder why u dun need proofing after combine everything & straight away divide the dough. I am not sure abt this part, I tried to find yr video but can’t find. It seems very easy but I just want to make sure do we need the proofing after mixing before divide the dough, thanks!
Hey Candy, Results are always best when you do proof the dough but if you are busy, you don't need to proof it. It worked well for me without proofing. Just make sure you use fresh yeast.
Hi Natalya, made the bread buns, had one for lunch while still warm,
delicious, thank you for the recipe,
couldn’t be easier, can I bake them on a cookie sheet without touching so they will crisp all around. You have a beautiful family
Hey Janna, thank you for sharing. Yes, you definitely can.
Can I just use whole wheat flour? And in this case should I decrease the total quantity of the flour?
I tried some recipes with the whole wheat flour but the dough seems to be too firm.
Olga, wheat flour makes the bread denser so that's why you had that turnout. Typically I do 2/3 white flour and 1/3 of wheat, it works great.
Made them today . First time baking bread . So easy and good. Thank you for the recipe!
Hye Yelena, this is so great to hear. Thank you so much for sharing your feedback.
I don’t see when you add the salt in the directions.
Add it with eggs, I updated the recipe. Thanks for catching that Johanne!
Hi Natalya, how much of the wheat flour did you add into this recipe ?
Usually I add 1/3 of the full portion.
What kind of yeast do you use? Active or quick?
Usually I purchase one from Costco. I think in this recipe either one would work just as good.
I made these babies today. Amazing) how easy to make!
i put 4 cups of white flour and 2 cups of wheat. My new favorite)
Thanks, Natasha)
Nice!!! So happy you did. I doubled the recipe and have frozen some as well 🙂
Hi! What kind of flour did you use?
All purpose flour and a bit of wheat.