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….
I’m a baker I’m enjoying your turtorials
Keep it up 🔥👍
Thanks so much Hajar – I love hearing feedback ❤️
Fan-freaking-tasting! The tip on shaping the buns made the whole recipe. I think without the video the moistness of the batter may have defeated me. Thank you!!!
Hi Nagi
Can I make these without eggs? Or use an egg substitute?
Thanks
Suparna
Sorry, I haven’t tried with any substitutes just yet Suparna – N x
I have a 34cm by 23cm pan would they turn out ok? Also will be using gf flour.
Hi Krystal, the pan will be fine but I’ve found GF flour doesn’t rise as much resulting in being dense – N x
I’m excited to try these! Could I substitute nut milk?
Thanks!
You sure could J! Enjoy – N x
Hi
Will using whole wheat flour change anything? We’re trying to move away from white flour
They will work beautifully, enjoy!
I’m am 82 years old and it made the no need rolls and they came out great l am now on my second batch, and i found that theyou were still fresh enough to eat 8 days later.
I haven’t made these yet, but, here’s a tip: turn your oven on to 150⁰F, then turn the oven OFF. When the dough is ready to rise, place in warm oven. No need to go to the clothes dryer. : )
i need 350 rolls, how do i figure how much ingredients i need. thank you, brenda
Hi Brenda, each single recipe serving makes 12 rolls, you’d need 30 portions of this recipe to get 360 rolls – N x
Hi Nagi,
I just finished baking the rolls. And I am so excited to share with you that they are so soft and fluffy. I have tried other recipes which the outside was hard and the inside was so dense.
This no-knead bread is easy and will be my favourite.
Thank you so much !! Nagi
Wahoo, that’s great Cotton!
Amazing rolls! I paired them with a wonderful stew tonight and I’ll have more for breakfast tomorrow! Yay! Thanks Nagi!!
Perfect Nick!
I turn on the oven for one minute and it’s the perfect temperature for rising dough. I made this recipe the other day and I couldn’t believe how well it turned out. The rolls freeze well too so I keep a supply on hand. Thanks.
Great idea!
I tried to replicate your dinner rolls.and I am very happy with the result.it’s super soft and fluffy.my daughter ate 2 pcs.of dinner rolls.😊 thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad they were a hit May!
super duper easy and the result so amazing super soft and fluffy 😀 so happy cos my first time making bread roll
Wahoo! I’m so happy they worked out for you Hilda ❤️
Hello, These bread look amazing.so soft and fluffy. I haven’t tried the recipe yet. I want to know how it becomes so fluffy if it’s not kneaded.thx
Hi B, I hope you give them a go – it’s the yeast which makes them super soft and fluffy – N x
Hello, The dough is very sticky. Will it be manageable after the first rise.thx
Hi K, yes the dough is very soft – just like the recipe video ❤️
Thank you Nagi for sharing this recipe.
Have tried other recipes and rolls came out hard. With your recipe, the rolls were perfect and absolutely soft! Very easy to make as well.
I’m so glad you loved them Pamela!
Amazing!!! They were wonderful. It’s worth doubling the recipe . I will make these for all my special events now.
Wahoo Tiffany, I’m so glad you love them!
Can we use instant yeast directly mix with flour?bread flour and all purpose flour s same?
Hi Sam, yes it’s instant dried yeast that’s used in this recipe. You can use all purpose or bread flour if you like – N x
These rolls are perfect. OK I did the in dough in your bread
maker but everything else I followed your recipe. I did knead and also added to sesame seeds before baking.The best rolls forever now xxx
Sounds great Shirley, I’m so glad you loved it!