No stand mixer, no knead, no special equipment required. These No Knead Dinner Rolls are perfectly soft and fluffy and are astonishingly effortless to make. Just combine the ingredients in a bowl and mix with a wooden spoon – that’s it! It’s the easiest recipe for bread rolls in the whole world!
This recipe for bread rolls will blow your mind!
These dinner rolls are:
made without kneading;
without a stand mixer or any other electric appliance;
take 2 minutes of active effort to mix the dough;
have golden tops and are soft and fluffy on the inside.
Every single time I make these, I am in utter awe of how effortless they are, and how amazing they taste. They are in every way just as good as classic dinner rolls, made by kneading the dough by hand (tired arms, tired arms!) or using a stand mixer.
I truly believe to my very core that only those with a refined palette and/or baking experts can tell the difference between these No Knead Dinner Rolls and traditional kneaded-tired-arms dinner rolls!
See how soft and fluffy they are??
Kneaded vs No Knead Dinner Rolls
In the interest of being completely open and honest, here are the differences that I notice between kneaded dinner rolls and these No Knead Dinner Rolls:
The kneaded rolls stay a wee bit more moist for longer. ie. they are slightly better the next day compared to the No Knead ones. But actually, homemade bread, muffins etc, being preservative free that they are, are always best consumed fresh so I don’t see this as a major disadvantage. Neither the kneaded nor No Knead rolls are great the next day. They lose their moisture and both need to be warmed up before serving to make them moist again. It is just that with the kneaded ones you could possibly get away with not warming up (but they aren’t great), whereas the No Knead ones definitely need warming up;
Kneaded rolls rise a wee bit more. Not noticeable for normal people, and you’d never say the No Knead ones aren’t soft and fluffy. They are, they really are. It’s just that the kneaded ones rise a touch more with the same amount of yeast.
I’m so convinced of the merits of no-knead breads however, that I have since posted No-knead Artisan Bread and Focaccia – both spectacular loaves in their own right that don’t require single minute of kneading!
Dump-and-mix NO KNEAD Dough
In terms of the prep, the batter is literally a dump-and-mix job. There is a major difference in rise time compared to kneaded dough which can rise in 30 – 45 minutes for the 1st rise, then around the same for the 2nd rise after forming the rolls. For these No Knead Dinner Rolls, the dough is much wetter than kneaded dough, so it takes longer to rise. 1.5 – 2 hours, depending on how warm it is where you are. If you use my ridiculous-but-effective tip of rising the dough in your (empty! warm!) dryer, it takes 1.5 hours. 🙂 (See recipes notes for details)
You can see in these photos how different the dough is compared to traditional bread dough. It’s not knead-able, it’s way too sticky. It’s almost more like a muffin batter!
Quick little tip: To get a beautiful golden surface, the dough needs to be rolled tightly and smoothly into balls. With sticky dough, this is tough to do. So here’s my work around: Press the dough down lightly, then bundle it up like a money-bag (mmm…Thai Money Bags…). Flip it over and you have a nice smooth surface with the dough stretched tightly = smooth golden surface. I demo this in the recipe video too (below recipe).
Make-ahead and bake on demand
Another big bonus for these rolls: you can roll the dough into rolls then refrigerate overnight (uncooked) and bake them fresh when you’re ready to serve! It’s quite amazing actually, I wasn’t sure it would work but it does.
Easter is coming up! That’s why I decided to squeeze these in so soon after sharing Hot Cross Buns (which you can make using this No Knead technique, the recipe is in that post). I know some people think baking with yeast is daunting. But I swear to you, watch the video. See how soft and irresistible these rolls come out. And be prepared to be blown away by how easy these are to make!
Carb Monsters unite! – Nagi xx
More No Knead Breads & Flavour variation options!
Cheese and Bacon Rolls (use this no knead dough for that recipe)
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
No Knead Dinner Rolls recipe video! No laughing at the Baby Hands – you’ll cop a serious eyeful in this video!
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SOFT NO KNEAD Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
Buns:
- 1 tbsp dry yeast (Note 1)
- 1/4 cup caster/superfine sugar , or sub with normal white sugar
- 1/2 cup warm water (Note 2)
- 4 cups bread flour + extra for dusting (Note 3)
- 1 1/2 tsp salt , cooking/kosher salt
- 1 cup milk, lukewarm, whole or low fat, (Note 2)
- 50g / 3 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter , melted and cooled
- 2 eggs , at room temperature, beaten with fork
Brushing:
- 1 tbsp butter , melted
Instructions
- Place the yeast and 2 teaspoons of the sugar in a medium bowl, then pour in water. Leave for 5 minutes until it froths.
- Place flour, remaining sugar and salt in a bowl. Mix to combine.
- Make a well in the centre. Add milk, butter, eggs and pour in the yeast liquid, including all froth.
- Mix until combined with wooden spoon – it will be like a thick muffin batter. Not pourable, but thick and sticky.
Rise #1:
- Leave dough in the bowl, cover with a wet (clean) tea towel and place in a warm place (25C/77F+) to rise for around 1 1/2 – 2 hours or until almost tripled in volume. See Note 4 for how I do this (you will laugh – but it works every time!). Dough surface should be bubbly (see video or photos in post).
Forming Balls (watch video, it’s helpful):
- Line a 31.5 x 23.5 cm / 9 x 13″ tray with baking paper with overhang.
- Remove tea towel and punch dough to deflate, then mix briefly in the bowl to get rid of the bubbles in the dough.
- Dust work surface with flour, scrape dough on work surface. Dust top of dough then shape into a log. Cut log into 4 pieces, then cut each piece into 3 pieces (12 in total).
- Take one piece and press down with palm, then use your fingers to gather into a ball, flip (so smooth side is up) then roll the dough briefly to form a ball. This stretches the dough on one side and that’s how I get a nice smooth surface on my roll. (For this step, use as much flour as needed to handle dough and avoid piercing inside into the wet dough)
- Place the ball with the smooth side up on the tray. Repeat with remaining dough. Line them up 3 x 4.
Rise # 2:
- Spray surface of rolls (or cling wrap) with oil (any), then place cling wrap over the tray.
- Return tray to warm place and leave for 30 – 45 min, until the dough has risen by about 75% (less than double in size).
- Partway through Rise #2, preheat oven to 200C/390F (standard) or 180C/350F (fan/convection).
- Bake for 15 – 18 minutes, or until the surface is a golden brown and the roll in the centre sounds hollow when tapped. The surface colour is the best test for this recipe.
- Remove rolls from oven. Brush with melted butter.
- Use overhang to lift rolls onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool to warm before serving.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
When he got sent to the naughty corner and he was wondering whether he was allowed back in….
My family loves these buns! For dinner rolls I make them smaller and get 18-20. We like them better than Brioche buns so we also use this recipe for burgers. Once I made only six to make Philly Cheese Steak/sub buns. A batch is rising as we speak. We are having fish sandwiches tonight.
I tried it today. May be Im the only one who failed this recipe? My roll turned out very dry, the top also not as tall and round. Can I send you the photos and get some help?
Any chance exceeding the 18 mins make it dry?
Hey Nagi! Do you think this recipe would work as a loaf bread on a 9×5 loaf pan? I really love how easy this recipe is and the flavor is incredible! Thanks.
I’ve made these numerous times, but a few days ago I made them for a potluck dinner. One of the guests was a chef, who RAVED about these!! She even took a few home for her husband. High praise indeed! Thank you, Nagi, for your awesome recipes!
So easy! Made these today and they turned out perfectly.
I ran out of butter and put 40g instead of 50g in… and had to do the brush with ghee. Still worked out great though!
When does the book come out?!
I’m really gutted. I followed your recipe to a tee, and they came out perfect. But they smell like nail polish remover inside! Will that smell go away once warm? What did I do wrong??😔
Thats user error Carolyn.
Awesome, one more question:
In the morning before baking, do I put them in a warm place and cover them to rise again for 30 minutes or until they rise? or will sitting on the counter be sufficient? Can’t wait to try these!!
The second rise is the slow one in the fridge overnight so just let them warm up for 30 minutes on the bench before baking and they should be fine. If your house is really cold then you might need a warmer spot. N x
I’m going to make these today for tomorrow’s guests. When putting them in the fridge overnight, do you cover in Saran Wrap? Also, can I use a glass deep dish with the parchment paper?
Yes Marcia see note 6a re making ahead. You cover with cling film. You could use a deep glass dish but the edges won’t colour as well. I just use a 9×13 metal pan. N x
Hi Nagi,
If I wanted to make these mini say for tea sandwiches what would be the difference in bake time / temp?
Thanks a lot!
Myriam
Hi Myriam – I haven’t tested them as mini rolls sorry! N x
Great recipe! My family loved the rolls and they were ready in no time. I rolled about 1/3 of the dough with cinnamon and brown sugar and put those in the fridge for the second rise. That way, we had dinner rolls for dinner cinnamon rolls the next day for breakfast. I made one tiny change in the basic recipe–I was really in a hurry so I skipped the sponge and followed typical directions for adding the instant yeast in with the dry ingredients–it worked perfectly!
Thanks for a great, time-saving recipe!
Could I use this recipe also to make homemade cinnamon or caramel rolls? I just found and book-marked you today! yay!!
I’ve got you covered Glenda!! Welcome! https://discountspot.info/no-knead-cinnamon-rolls/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Can you let them rise in a warm oven as well, instead of dryer?
You totally can. My oven actually has a proofing setting. The problem is when you need to preheat the oven for the actual bake at the same time. But then I just put the pan/dough close to the gas oven heat exhaust. I used to put it in my microwave with the stove light on but then I switched the bulb to an LED so it no longer generates warmth.
I did and they turned out great..My hubby likes to poke a hole in them and fill them with honey and butter.
Hi Nagi,
LOVE your recipes… If I make these in the am..after rolling into balls…to serve with dinner that night, should I take them out of the fridge and let them rise?
I love this recipe and so do my family and friends. I did make two dozen smaller rolls from your recipe and they are just the right size. I am wondering why little bubbles form after being in refrigerator over night. I usually just pop before baking but sometimes they form in oven. How do I prevent the bubbles?
Hi Debra – if you stretch the dough and tuck it under when forming the rolls as I do in the recipe then you should get a smooth surface without bubbles. I am not sure why you are getting bubbles on your ones. N x
Best dinner rolls ever! Absolutely delicious. Thank you so much for the recipe. Next time I’ll the dryer tip 😊
Hi can I use this recipe for garlic cheese bread.
Without a doubt this is THE Best dinner roll I have ever tasted… Whether it be in a restaurant or homemade! These are incredible and after 50 years and many many rolls later I will never make anything different for my dinner roll! Thank you so much
The bread rolls are absolutely delicious! Followed the recipe exactly including using the warmed dryer and they were perfect. Had to stop hubby at bread roll number 3 and that was before dinner was even on the table! Thanks for another yummy, amazing recipe Nagi!
The first time I made these, the tops were golden brown within 18 minutes of baking but the bottoms didn’t brown at all. Then the very center of the batch sunk as they cooled. I tried again on Christmas Day. I baked them in a 13×9 pan without parchment paper and used Crisco to grease it. They turned out beautiful! Browned top & bottom.
I absolutely adore these rolls! I have been making them every Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter for a couple years now and absolutely everyone loves them! Great recipe!
Yesterday I used Nagi’s recipe for the dinner rolls and definitely this is a keeper recipe. I have been looking for this recipe for long time. Today, I used the leftover dough to prepare a Ham bread (Ham, olives, raising) and it was yummy.
Thank You Nagi for your recipe.