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….
The buns just came out from the oven. Couldn’t resist taking one for a bite. The moment I pull a piece from the tray. I can feel it softness and fluffy texture. I do not need to go further . Great recipe and thank you for the sharing.
That’s great to hear Ai! Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback! N xx
At what point could you make ahead & freeze ? For like TG dinner rolls ??
Hi Karen! I would bake the rolls, cool then freeze. I found this works better than freezing the dough – though you can freeze it. But freezing cooked rolls is better I find, just ensure you warm them before serving!
Hi Nagi,
Thanks for the wonderful recipe. I followed the recipe closely but used my stand mixer to knead , divided the dough into 24 instead of 12. They turned out beautifully! Soft, fluffy, bouncy & tasty baseball-size dinner rolls. You are amazing!
That’s great to hear Vivian! Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback! N xx
This recipe is amazing less work its quick and easy. The rolls are so soft and delicious. For my first try i felt the salt was too much as we dont use these for dinner.so imade them again and put 1/2 teaspoon of salt and it was perfect. Every time I make them they finish so quickly my family and friends love them. Thanks again for sharing. And the tip about the dryer is excellent.
That’s terrific to hear Barbs! I’m so pleased to hear that. 🙂 N xx
Anxiious to try
Hope you do! N x
These turned out amazingly soft and tasty. I omitted the sugar completely except for the 2 tsp to proof the yeast, and less 1/2tsp of salt. Will definitely try the same recipe with half white flour and half wholewheat next time.
Thank you for your comment, I need to not use sugar when I can help it.
I’m so pleased to hear that Jane! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts on this recipe 🙂 N xx
Hi Nagi
I’m pleased to say that I made this today and every thing turned out perfectly. Thank you for sharing this recipe with others. Specially the notes which have been given on each recipe are very useful.
That’s so great to hear Indeewari! Thanks for letting me know! N xx
These are the bomb!!! I’ve always used a Martha Stewart dinner roll recipe, and although they are amazing, they are a lot more work, and a lot more clean up. My family loved these– so light and fluffy! I did use slightly less flour, only four cups, and it was great in our climate. I’m making another batch now, but making 16 instead of 12, because they were so big and thick last time, I think we can stretch out a few more buns. Thanks so much!
I’m so pleased to hear that Lisa! Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts on this recipe 🙂 N xx
Nagi, I am one that never tried anything new and was always scared to try anything with yeast. but I seen your post and watch your video and while family was gone thought I would try,,
They were a winner, make at least twice a week now thank you we love them.
That’s so wonderful to hear Brenda! Thanks for letting me know – N xx
Hi Nagi,
I tried this recipe yesterday and mine came out thick, heavy and dry. Everything looked just like your video. I don’t know if I had too much flour on the counter to roll them into balls or I over cooked rolls. In 15-20 minutes they weren’t brown on top. Maybe I should have moved them up higher in oven to brown at this point! I want to try again as I’m not satisfied until I get a recipe right! My rolls are edible but are more like homemade cornbread🙃 I used Red Star Active dry yeast. Couldn’t find what you used. Help!
I’m sorry to hear that Penney. If you were able to roll them into balls on the counter it does sound like you added too much extra flour. The technique I use to form balls is because the dough is so soft! N x
I made the buns and found them to be very heavy. I used the 4 1/2 US cups of flour, as mentioned in the recipe, but then it says 4 cups everywhere else. Should I have only used 4 cups f flour? Didn’t know there was a difference between US and Canada cups.
I also noticed that there was a very yeasty smell to the buns.
Hi Shirley! Where are you based? 🙂 N xx
Shirley, it could be the bread flour. Bread flour has added protein (which turns out gluten) , particularly if you are using US bread flour, which can make bread turn out heavier. I rarely use bread flour now because of this. Have a go with another brand, or a US All purpose flour instead.
Thanks for your comment. I am in Canada so I only use Canadian flour, which is lighter than US flour. I use the bread flour because it was suggested in the recipe. I just have to wonder if the 4 1/2 cups of flour is too much flour and that was why they were so heavy. Thanks again for your suggestions.
Hi Nagi……still waiting for a reply to my question. Thanks, Shirley
Hi Shirley – yes that’s right, you used the right cups. Did you use the right oven temp for the oven type?
These were great… I cut the sodium to 1 tsp and used quick rise yeast as I always do and they were perfect… Fast easy and wonderful as well for older people who prefer bread outside the Bread machine but unable to make anymore due to issues with arthritis etc that makes it almost impossible to knead bread anymore by hand… Its a Win Win Recipe…
That’s so great to hear Sher! Thank you for letting me know! N xx
I just had my first try of dinner rolls fresh from the oven. I followed your suggestion using the dryer to help the dough rise. It’s awesome! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe.
I’m pleased to hear you enjoyed it Iris, thanks for letting me know! N xx
These look WONDERFUL! i can’t wait to try them. And if bread n butter is on the island, I’m not staying!
Is ON or NOT on???! 😂
I’m making these tonight for the second time. My family and I loved them the first time. Best rolls ever and so easy. Thanks
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Cathy! Thank you for letting me know – N xx
Hi Rebecca, I’m sorry to hear yours didn’t turn out. Did you do the step where the yeast is mixed with warm water and did it come out frothy, like in the video?
Your recipe sounds fantastic I’ll be trying it out asap. Thank you Nagi
Hope you do try it Sue! It’s certainly a very popular recipe!! N xx
I made these tonight. The best rolls ever!
I followed your advice about using the dryer and it rose beautifully!!
My rolls were huge and super soft. Thank you!!!!
Thanks for trying my recipe Marie! So pleased you enjoyed it – N xx
I’m waiting 4 mine to bake now n i can say ill be making these alote they are awsome.
Can I fill the middle with cheese n SAUCE??
Made them last night they were very good
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Doloris! Thank you for letting me know – N xx
Hi Rebecca! I haven’t tried that but gosh I want to know! 🙂 N x
Thank you for the recipe..ive tried it…it come out perfectly…
Great to hear Nurul! So pleased you enjoyed it – N x
Hi, I’ve got my dough rising in the dryer (brilliant) but wondered if I could cook it in a cast iron skillet to make a loaf? What adjustments, if any, will I need to make?
Hi Cerise! This dough needs adjustments to make a big loaf, I am still working on that recipe 🙂 I find it a bit too crumbly for my taste in the middle. It works in a long baguette style though! N x
Hi, thanks for sharing the recipe!
I’ve made this twice now & both times they turned out great.
However, I’ve noticed a slight yeasty smell after the buns have baked. The second time I made it, I reduced the amount of yeast, but there is still a slight smell.
How can I remove the smell? (I use Lowans dried yeast & keep it in the freezer.)
Thanks!
Hi Sarah! I use the same yeast. I’m sorry you feel it has a yeasty smell. There’s no denying this uses more yeast than traditional rolls but I don’t notice a yeasty smell. All I can think is that you have a heightened sense of smell compared to most! If you are keen to try a no knead roll with far less yeast, I would suggest finding an artisan bread roll recipe which requires 24 – 36 hours of rising but uses far less yeast 🙂 N x