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. 🙂
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, 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, which is also a rich dough. (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
- 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.
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, 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.
See Your Dinner Rolls!
Many readers have made this recipe! Feel free to email or share your recipe photos on social media. 🙂
PrintSoft 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.
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 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
I’m about to try this recipe! Is it possible to substitute the sugar for honey or would that mess it all up? Thanks!
Hi Hannah, we’d recommend following our honey butter rolls instead. Hope you enjoy them!
Hi Sally, all your recipes are amazing. I have made this multiple times and followed the recipe exactly and it’s been delicious and left everyone craving more each time. I would like to try and make this without egg for someone in my family with an egg allergy. Is it possible to avoid the egg? How much would that impact the taste and text?
Hi Shaheen, we’re so glad these rolls are a favorite! 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).
Thank you so much for your quick response. Will these turn out the same with bread flour as well?
Yes, you can use bread flour.
I have made these rolls 4 times now and they have all turned out delicious. The first time I coated them with olive oil, garlic and rosemary and they were great. I tried again with honey butter and that was good too. My family loves them, but did recommend making them smaller (I was making about 10-12 with the recipe).
I loved how these turned out. So soft and fluffy. I also added the honey butter to the tops after baking which adds just a hint of sweetness making them perfect!! This will be my go to homemade dinner roll recipe from now on!!
People, people. These are church potluck rolls. Sop up the gravy Thanksgiving rolls. Eat with prime rib au jus rolls. These are not hard French or crusty rolls. Soft, pillowy white bread rolls so stop with the “tasteless” or mushy comments. They are perfect for what they are. I add an egg wash before baking or the butter honey after – but not both because the egg wash adds crust, but the butter takes it away. And yes, if you use the wash, you can sprinkle the top with seeds of your choice. Making the rolls and freezing before baking works great. Just remove and let rise then bake. Versatile little recipe. And you can roll out flat after 1st rise, and turn them into crescent rolls.
i have made these a lot over past couple of years and printed it back when I first used it, I just pulled the recipe and it did not indicate whole milk, it just said milk. So I have made these with low fat milk, as I never have whole milk in my fridge and they turned out great. And today I am making the sea salt & herb rolls which other than the added spices is the exact same recipe.
Having never knowing how to use yeast, now that I am retired I enjoy making bread, mostly rolls. I just love the way you explain the way to go about making these rolls. It is so easy to understand and I tried it out. . They were delicious.
Thanks Heila!
Tried this recipe just now. Nice soft and fluffy! Thank you for sharing your recipe
I am trying this for the first time! A change up from my normal way of making rolls. I can say it could be time consuming however I have a proofing oven so I can cut it in half for the first and second rise. Thank you taking the time to share!
We’ve made these twice over the weekend. Absolutely best recipe ever! Taste and texture is sheer perfection! So glad I found this one after trying so many others.
So glad to read this! Thank you Laura.
Can we add raisins or cranberries to this recipe? if yes, please suggest quantity and/or any changes to the original recipe. Thanks.
Hi Lenny, You can add 1 cup (140g) of raisins and/or dried cranberries. Add them in step two when it says “add the remaining flour.” No other changes to the recipe are needed. Enjoy!
Hi! If I bake these the night before will they still be tender the next day? Some rolls I’ve made ahead of time aren’t very good next day lol
Hi Lori, yes, these reheat nicely the next day. Enjoy!
Made these again for the 20th + time, perfection every single time. Follow directions, use a scale for flour. These are melt in your mouth delish
These are awful. The flavor is like eating Styrofoam. Does not even come close to tasting like homemade rolls. I’ve made countless recipes of white rolls and this one is the absolute worst. DO NOT RECOMMEND!
Womp womp
Maybe it’s not the ingredients (normal) but the baker
These turned out great and tasted better than store bought! Very fluffy and light! I threw all ingredients into the bread machine on the dough setting. After the first rise, I shaped and baked as directed. VERY easy that way!
Hi! I love this recipe and have used it many times! My question is could I make the bread in any other shape, such as garlic knots or twists?
Hi Sarah, this is a very versatile dough and if you flour your hands and the surface very well while shaping, you can really shape the dough into anything.
hello, I have a small family and I would like to make a half batch. All the ingredients can be halved except for the egg, can i just use the whole egg and get a similar result or would it be best to divide the egg?
Hi Jess, you could certainly halve the recipe and bake the rolls in an 8×8 pan. It would be best to divide the egg – to halve an egg, simply crack it, whisk, and then use half. Let us know how they turn out!
This recipe is great! I didn’t follow the rise instructions (short on time) so they definitely didn’t rise as much as they would have, but they were STILL fluffy and delicious. I can’t want to make these again and follow the instructions. <3
I followed this recipe today and rolls turned out soft and fluffy. However, the honey in the butter glaze was overpowering for my family’s tastes. Wouldn’t include that next time.
I tried this recipe today. I hope it will turn out great. I regret not reading the comments first and totally forgot i have raisins and almonds♀️
Well, i can definitely make a new batch again. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi, quick question. I would like to make 2-3 batch at once. Should I double or triple the ingredients? Will it be the same? Thank you
Hi Huma, 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!
Definitely my favourite dinner roll recipe. I make it often, and then want to eat them all.
Could I add raising and walnuts? My dad loves this savory bread that had those ingredients but our bakery no longer makes it. Would this be a good recipe to add those ingredients or is there another one that might work better? Thanks in advance!
Hi Mai, yes, you can add 1 cup (140g) combination of raisins and walnuts. Add them in step two when it says “add the remaining flour.” Enjoy!
I absolutely love this recipe and have made it many times! I would like to use it for hot dog buns as store-bought buns are awful. How many grams of dough should I use for each hot dog bun and what is the best way to shape them? Do I roll them like a short fat snake or fold under and just pull them into shape? I don’t have hot dog pans. Any suggestions would be most helpful :o) Love all of your recipes! Thanks!
Hi Jan, these will make very light and fluffy hamburger or hot dog buns and we fear they wouldn’t support the meat very well. Though you can still certainly try it. You may want to try our bread bowls dough instead. We’re unsure exactly how many either recipe would make, so let us know if you try it!
this was such a good recipe. It only made 10 buns but they were such a good size.
This is my go to recipe for dinner rolls. Have made them many times for extended family at events like Thanksgiving and they are always a hit! Love having a reliable recipe for a dinner staple!
Do you have a recipe for hamburger buns? Could I use this and just make 8 larger rolls?
Hi Carolyn, yes, many readers have used this recipe to successfully make hamburger buns. Let us know if you try it!
My oh my!!! I was a little intimidated at first but I thought what the heck and went ahead and tried. These rolls turned out amazing! Soft and fluffy and delicious .
Thanks for a great recipe. Will be my go to from now on
I absolutely love this recipe, my rolls came out great! Thank you!
This was amazing, I ate two fresh out of the oven and my family demolished the lot! Now my go to recipe for bread rolls. Really versatile too as you can use it as the base for cinnamon buns or currant buns etc. Thank you!