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….
Turned out beautifully. Great easy to follow recipe
Thanks Val! N x
I only used 4 cups if bread flour and the dough was so dence. More like bread dough not muffin mix!
I wanted to make these tomorrow but I only have fat free milk. Will they turn out the same using FF milk?
Best and easiest rolls ever made and tasted. I live in England so I warmed oven on 50° before making dough, switched oven off, made dough and proved the dough in the oven. Took about an hour to triple in size. I used fat free milk and they were amazing
Thank you. I will.make them next time. I decided to go with the Artisan bread if saw on the same page.
Let me know how it turns out.
Hi can one use whole wheat flour in the recipe? Thanks
Wow, these were fantastic! Light and fluffy inside and so simple to make. Thanks so much for the great recipe.
So easy and so good! This was the first bread I ever made and I made it twice now. I cut the recipe in half both times since my oven was occupied so I made them in my toaster oven and they turned out great! I am excited to try your other recipes too! Thank you for sharing!
i would like to halve the recipe too. what’s your advice for the baking time?
I think it would depend on your toaster oven/oven but for me, it took 15 mins at 390F in my toaster oven. Hope yours turns/tunrned out great too!
I realized I forgot to add the rating! 5 stars for sure!
Hi I love this recipe I’ve used it three times this week however my buns don’t get that golden top they are amazingly soft though love it what else can I do
Hi Arifa, you can cook slightly more to get that golden top – or put them under a grill for a brief moment to get more colour – N x
Really good, only thing not so good defrosted but I refreshed in oven. Xx
HI Nagi!! I was looking for an easy dinner roll recipe and this did not disappoint!! Your instructions (fun and to the point) were awesome. The video was so helpful. Now, help me to stop eating them all at once!!!!
No one can help you there Pamela 😂 I’m so glad you love them though! N x
In the oven….15 minutes takes FOREVER. Can’t wait to eat it
😂 But they are SO worth it! N x
I made the no knead rolls last night – probably the first rolls I’ve ever attempted and the were fantastic!!! Your hints were great and everything very well explained. Thanx!!
Hi Nagi… you are a magician! This recipe is so fool-proof that even a never-before bread maker like me couldn’t mess it up! Only made half the recipe this time but won’t make that mistake again… my kids were fighting over the crumbs! Have already forwarded your website to a dozen friends/family… thanks for your genius work!
I am allergic to eggs can I do it without eggs
I’ve always been a baker but never very successful with bread. These rolls are lovely.
Trying your hot cross buns next. Thank you. Love your recipes x
Thank you for taking to time to share your recipe. Am wondering if the sugar can be left out.
Hi Danni, you can reduce the sugar a little, but the purpose of the sugar in this recipe is to feed the yeast – it’s what helps them get so light and fluffy 🙂 N x
Hi I have done this recipe it’s so soft I was wondering if I can use same ingredients for bread and shape into bread tin I’m from Australia from Melbourne thank you for your recipe
Hi Carmen, I haven’t tried to be honest but I’ve heard it does work 🙂 N x
These are SO good and SO easy. I halved the recipe and used spelt flour and they turned out perfect! They almost melt in your mouth they are so soft and delicious, but perfectly crispy on the outside. Thank you!!
That’s so great to know Cassidy!! N x
Can they be frozen at any point in the process cooked or uncooked? As a single lady who wants her own fresh bread but cant eat a whole tray its a very important question.
Hi Cindy, you can freeze them after baking or you can freeze after the first rise. Thaw the dough and roll out for the second rise and bake as per the recipe 🙂 N x
I made these recently and they turned out WOW! Totally fantastic. Your recipes are so clear and easy to understand. Will try your other recipes too. oh I follow you on insta too. 🙌👌👌
That’s great to hear Cal! Thanks so much! N x
This is legit the best and easiest bread ever. (And I’ve made many)
I halved the recipe cause there’s only two of us, and it worked perfectly. The only difference I noticed was that my dough was a lot more ‘solid’. (Not sure why, I meticulously halved the ingredients ) and the buns reeeeally rose. I ended up with more of a pull-apart bread but it was indeed perfect! Perfect taste, perfect texture and I ate the last one the day after and it was still great. Hands down my go-to recipe from now on. The results will be on insta soon 🙂
Wahoo, that’s great to hear Louisa!! N x
Hello! Can i make these without eggs?
Hi Nicole, you need the eggs in this recipe unfortunately – N x