Soft No Knead Dinner Rolls

Jump to Recipe

It is hard to beat homemade rolls. These soft no knead dinner rolls are amazing! This is my go-to recipe whenever I am in the mood for some yummy rolls.

What makes a good dinner roll? Well, for me, they have to be soft, light, and fluffy, almost like a pillow. This recipe has all of those characteristics in spades. Seriously, if you like homemade rolls you are going to love these.

They are perfect for a holiday dinner, Thanksgiving, or Christmas, or anytime really. Also, there is absolutely no kneading required! And they are super easy to make, if I can do it, you can do it. Let’s get baking!

Step 1: Gather the ingredients and tools

In order to make these incredibly soft no knead dinner rolls you will need the following ingredients and tools:

• Yeast – I normally use active dry yeast but rapid-rise/instant yeast can be used as well.
• Water – if your tap water tastes bad, use filtered water. I always used filtered water in my baked goods.
• Milk – While the milk isn’t necessary I usually like to add it to my rolls to help with the softness of the texture of the rolls. With that said, I have made them with only water, and they still turn out fantastic! I typically use whole milk as well, but other milk can be used.
• Flour – Bread four is amazing with these homemade dinner rolls. But, I have made them plenty of time with all-purpose flour and they turn out great as well.
• Sugar – The white granulated sugar will add food for the yeast and aid in the rising process. The sugar will help make the dough soft and tender as well as provide caramelization which produces that nice golden brown texture in the dough when baked. Try it this way first, then adjust the sugar later if you like.
• Salt – The salt will enhance the flavor of the dinner rolls. It will also help to develop the structure of the dough.
• Butter – I generally used unsalted butter, but if you are using butter with salt, reduce the amount of table salt that is added. The butter will add flavor to the dough.
• Eggs – Not all bread dough or rolls have eggs. This recipe does. The eggs help in the rising of the dough as well as help to make the crumb of the rolls more tender.
• Softened Butter – We need to brush the tops of the rolls with butter. Why? Because we can.

Tools

• Bowls
• Wooden spoon
• Whisk
• Parchment paper
• 9×13 pan
• Cloth
• Plastic wrap
• Dough cutter/scraper (optional)
• Basting brush

Step 2: How to make soft no knead dinner rolls

First, get the yeast started. It is always a good idea to proof the yeast. The last thing you want to do is go through the effort and use the ingredients and have the dough not rise.

Combine the milk and water and heat it in a bowl in the microwave or in a pot on the stovetop. Heat the liquid to 100 to 110 degrees F (40 to 43 C). Next, add in about a tsp. of the sugar as well as the yeast.

Use a fork or whisk and mix in the yeast. Then set the mixture aside for 5 to 10 minutes. The yeast will get nice and foamy/frothy. If after 10 minutes the yeast hasn’t done anything, start again with a different yeast. Either the liquid was too hot or not hot enough, or the yeast is old/bad.

Step 3: No knead dinner rolls dry ingredients

In a medium bowl combine the sugar and the salt with the flour using a whisk.

Step 4: Eggsellent Butter

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, then pour them into the bowl with the yeast. Next, melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave, or in a pot on the stovetop. Just until melted, it is important the butter isn’t too hot, otherwise, it will kill the yeast and start cooking the eggs.

Add the barely melted butter to the yeast mixture. Combine everything with a whisk.

Step 5: Adding the flour to complete the no-knead dinner rolls

Add in half of the flour mixture with the yeast mixture. Use a wooden spoon and still until well combined. Then add in the rest of the flour mixture and stir. Keep stirring until all the flour is combined and you are left with a nice tacky dough.

Cover the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for 2 to 2.5 hours. Since the dough is no being kneaded it needs more time to rise. Wait until the dough about triples in size.

Step 6: Cutting up the soft dough and forming the rolls

Now after the dinner rolls dough has risen it is time to shape the rolls. Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a floured surface like a table or counter. Shape the dough into a long loaf of sorts and then using a knife or dough scraper/cutter cut it into about 20 pieces.

If you would like to make hamburger buns with this dough then form it into about 12 round balls. Take the dough pieces in your hand and shape them into balls.

You can do this by flattening the dough in your palm then folding it in on itself creating a nice smooth ball.

Place the balls of dough in a parchment paper-lined 13×9 baking pan or larger. You may also use a sheet pan too if you like.

Once you are done placing all of the rolls, lightly spray the tops with kitchen spray, then cover the pan and dough with plastic wrap. Allow the no knead dinner roll dough to rise another time for 45 minutes to an hour.

Step 7: Bake and Baste those yummy no-knead dinner rolls

After the dough has risen, remove the plastic wrap and preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C). Bake the rolls for 15 to 20 minutes until the tops get nice and golden brown.

After they come out of the oven baste the tops of those amazing dinner rolls with butter. Allow them to cool then serve! Enjoy!

Can you freeze the homemade dinner rolls dough?

Yes, you can freeze the dough. After forming them into the dough balls place them in a few large ziplock freezer bags lying flat in your freezer. Make sure to give them a little bit of space between each other.

Then when you want to bake them, remove them from the freezer and allow them to thaw and rise for the second time before baking them.

Can I make hot dog buns or hamburger buns with this soft no-knead dinner rolls dough?

Yes! You can form them into long little loaves and bake them, then slit them for hot dog buns. Or you can form them into larger balls and place on a sheet pan or cooking sheet spread apart and bake them for hamburger buns.

Do you like the recipe? Please give it a rating and comment down below, I really appreciate it. If you make it tag me on Instagram @inthekitchenwithmatt. Also, sign up for the newsletter so you won’t miss out on any of my new posts and recipes.

Here are a few other recipes you make like:

Easy Homemade Pound Cake

No Knead Cinnamon Rolls

Homemade Croissants