Dinner Rolls: the homemade recipe for making soft yeast rolls

These homemade dinner rolls make for an easy bread recipe—serve it as a warm side with any main dish, or enjoy it as a light brunch with your favorite spread. The small round loaves are also great for individual servings, or to pack in as lunch.

We believe butter makes everything better, and with these soft dinner rolls, it’s no different. The crust is buttery and slightly flaky, and each bite is soft, pillowy, and just a bit of sweetness.

It’s easy to make these yeast rolls ahead of time, which means it's great for entertaining! Serve these with dinner, or enjoy them with a coffee for a light lunch. They’re so delicious, you can eat them as is, or add a bit of butter, jam, and cheese.

Homemade Dinner Roll Ingredients

Milk – using full-fat milk as a liquid creates a soft dinner roll.

Yeast – make sure that the yeast used hasn’t expired. To ensure that the yeast works best, you can warm up the milk. The ideal temperature is 100-110°F. Don’t make it too hot, otherwise you will kill the yeast.

Sugar – sugar acts as ‘food’ for the yeast and also adds a slight bit of sweetness to the dough.

Egg – egg not only adds structure to the dough but also adds a rich flavor.

Flour – for this recipe it’s best to use all-purpose flour or bread flour.

Oil – use any neutral oil to grease the bowl.

How To Make Dinner Rolls

Making And Kneading The Dough

Add the milk, yeast, and sugar to a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Cover with cling film and let it rest for 5 minutes or until the mixture becomes foamy.

Once the yeast mixture is foamy, add a spoonful of sugar, egg, butter, salt, flour, and mix until the dough starts to come together. Adding butter and egg to the dough creates a higher fat content, which means the dough is rich and smooth. If it had a lower fat content, the curst would be crustier and chewier.

Knead the dough with your hands until smooth. Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, cover it with cling film, and allow to rise for 90 minutes, or until doubles in volume.

Shaping The Dough

Once the dough has doubled in volume, punch it down. Divide the dough into 15 pieces using a knife or dough scraper. Use your hands to roll the dough into smooth balls. Transfer the balls to the baking tray, cover them with cling film, and let them rise for 1 more hour.

Baking Dinner Rolls

Brush the rolls with melted butter, transfer to the oven, and bake at 180°C/360°F for 25 minutes until golden.

Can You Make Yeast Rolls Ahead of Time?

These rolls are great for making ahead of time. If you’re making them ahead of time, you can continue with the recipe up to the point where you place the dough balls in the baking dish. Cover the rolls with plastic wrap and place them in the fridge. When you’re ready to serve them, take them out and allow them to rise for 1 hour before baking.

Tips For Making Soft Dinner Rolls

Don’t take shortcuts with the rising steps. It will create a soft, fluffy roll.

Make sure to grease the bowl properly, to prevent the dough from sticking to the dough.

You can serve the rolls plain, or add a spread like cheese spread or fruit preserves. You can even enjoy it as a sweet snack with a bit of Nutella!

Dinner Roll Variations

The yeast is necessary for the dough to rise and also gives it more flavor. Unlike quick bread which is made with baking powder, you can’t leave out the yeast!

If you prefer, you can add herbs or cheese to the rolls. Use fresh herbs like chopped basil, thyme, or parsley. If you want to include cheese, wrap the dough balls around a small cube of cheese like cheddar, feta, or mozzarella. You can even include a bit of garlic.

If you like more cheese, you can grate parmesan over the before it goes in the oven. Just check that it doesn’t burn quickly (if this happens, you can cover the rolls loosely with aluminum foil.

How To Store Homemade Dinner Rolls

Stored the baked rolls at room temperature (in an airtight container) for up to 3 days.

How To Reheat Dinner Rolls

Reheat the rolls in the oven (on low heat) to prevent them from drying out.

Can You Freeze Yeast Rolls?

They can also be frozen; wrap them tightly with plastic wrap and freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw the rolls in the fridge and heat up in a low oven for about 10-15 minutes.

Instructions

In a bowl add the milk, yeast, and one spoon of sugar and mix until sugar and yeast dissolve. Cover with cling film and let it rest for 5 minutes. Add the spoon of sugar, egg, butter, salt, and flour, and mix until the dough starts to come together.

Knead the dough with your hands until smooth.

Transfer the dough to a greased bowl and cover it with cling film. Let it rise for 90 minutes, or until doubles in volume.

Once the dough has doubled in volume, punch it down and then divide it into 15 pieces. Transfer them to the baking tray (20x30cm baking tray size).

Cover them with cling film, and let them rise for 1 more hour. Brush the rolls with melted butter, transfer to the oven, and bake at 180°C/360°F for 25 minutes.

Remove them from the oven when they are golden brown and let it cool for a few minutes.

Remove from the tray, serve and enjoy!