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….
Your recipes are so easy to follow,I have tried a few since I “found” you via someone’s link!
I loved these dinner rolls & where I come from we call them “Mabhanzi”.
Thank you!
I love hearing all the different names for these rolls! I’m so pleased you are enjoying my recipes, thank you for letting me know! N xx
Awesome, been looking for a recipe like this for years. Thank you so much! Can’t eat them often because they are high in cholesterol but will work on trying to find ways to reduce or just make for the holidays using this recipe.
Hope you try and LOVE IT! ❤️
Do these rolls taste as yeasty as the kneaded ones?
Hi Anne! These don’t taste yeasty 🙂 N xx
I totally forgot to add the salt!
Would I have to start back over? It’s currently In the dyer rising…lol please help…
Don’t worry! Just add a sprinkle of salt when you brush with butter, that will help!
I forgot the salt in the recipe. .will I have to start back over? It’s in the dryer… rising of course lol…
Don’t worry! Just add a sprinkle of salt when you brush with butter, that will help!
I need ur recipe books..plz
Hi Nadia! If you are signed up to my email list there are links in every email to download them 🙂 N xx
I make a No knead pizza dough in my Cuisinart … do you know if I could do the same with the soft No Knead Dinner Rolls ?
I’m sorry I don’t know Camille. 🙂 N xx
I am going to experiment and make simple cinnamon. Rolls with this recipe is it okay to post what I did and a picture ?
That being said Only if the cinnamon rolls turn out good ? Camille
I would love to see a photo!!! I am planning a huge baking session to use this recipe for stacks of things, and cinnamon rolls is right at the top of the list! N xx
I couldn’t wait for you to try the cinnamon roll idea – so I immediately went out to the kitchen and made your whole recipe, half of them for dinner – and then rolled out the rest of the dough, slathered them with a walnut-cinnamon-butter mixture and rolled it up and cut them into rolls, baked them and iced them with a cream cheese icing……oh LORD, Nag….do them you’ll see!
Gaaah!!! Might have to do them TONIGHT! ❤️
I want to know too….been dying to try this recipe to make cinnamon rolls!! It is my FAVORITE recipe of the last year.
These look amazing! I can’t wait to try them!
And on another note, I would have on my deserted island:
1.) Any Italian wine. 🍷
2.) Dark chocolate. 🍫
3.) All the cheeses. 🧀
😊
Come be on my island! 😉 N x
How high are the sides of your pan?
Around 2cm / 4/5″ 🙂 N xx
I love to cook and bake for my family and friends one day I would like to start my own business
I have never hand made bread. These rolls turned out a treat.
Next time I will stick with the 1 tblspn yeast, as the 2 sachets made it a teeny bit yeasty.
I am really happy that I tried, and really grateful for your excelllent recipe.
So pleased you enjoyed it Sandra! Yes please do stick with 1 tbsp if you thought 2 sachets was a bit yeasty, I thought it was ok 🙂 N xx
Looks devine and easy to make…. can this be made eggless? What can I substitute the eggs with?
Hi Smita, I’m sorry but I don’t think so.
Hallo Nagi!
I made your soft rolls AGAIN today (I’ve made them atleast once or twice a week since I came across your blog!), but this time I made them with a South African twist and boy o boy! My children gobbled them up in a matter of minutes! The dish is called “Anysbolletjies” of “Mosbolletjies” in Afrikaans, and it translates to aniseed buns (and when you dry them out over night at a low oven temperature, it’s called aniseed rusks) Our favourite is to have them soft and warm out of the oven with coffee. It is more like desert than bread, so I used more sugar (150ml) and added about 10ml of aniseed. After baking I glazed them with a milk and sugar glaze (25ml sugar dissolved in ±15ml milk) It turned out absolutely perfect! Traditionally it is made with condensed milk, more sugar and lots of butter…..and you have to knead the heck out of the dough, let it rise a looooong time, knead again, rise again, make the balls and let it rise AGAIN! Very tedious! Your soft no knead rolls made them SO easy and they were sweet enough even without all the sugar and condensed milk.
They were SO GOOD! Thank you for giving me a quick and super easy way to make one of our favourite South African treats!
I LOVE hearing that Mariette! That sounds delicious, I just googled it to have a look too 🙂 Thank you for sharing how you used this recipe as a base to make your personal favourite! N xx
Thank you so much for the recipe…the buns were utterly soft…was a delight…thanks again
That’s terrific Salima! So pleased you enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know – N xx
I was wondering if you have a bread recipe that is just as easy and wonderful as these diner rolls . I couldn’t make rolls before , trust me I’ve tried as well as bread . These rolls turned out fantastic and I was amazed , now I need to make bread too , but I suck terribly at kneading lol . Please tell me you have a magic recipe for bread too 🙂
It’s coming soon Brenda! Just doing some tweaks 🙂 N xx
Hi Nagi,
Can I use this recipe to make sweet bread. Like put chocolate or cheese filling?
Do you need to make any adjustments to any of the ingredients for high altitude? I live at 7200 feet – pretty high up – over 1 mile. A lot of recipes call for adjustments for the altitude.
At what temperature do you bake them??? They look great.
Hi Peggy – please see the recipe directions 🙂
Is the temperature of 200C correct? It seems too low. I am planning to make your wonderful-looking rolls this week, and I would hate to mess up a whole batch of rolls by cooking them at the wrong temperature! (After reading some more of your recipes, I’m definitely going to be a follower of yours! Like you, I think life is too short to have cauliflower crusts on anything!)
Hi Georgia! It’s 200 celsius or 300 fahrenheit 🙂 Does that help? 200C is quite a hot oven actually. PS So glad to hear you’re a fellow anti-cauliflower crust-er…. N xx
Hi Nagi! I am so excited for this easy recipe. I do have question for you though….could I freeze the dough balls and than defrost to cook as needed. I am the only person in my household so I would probably only want to bake 4 at a time.
Yes! Please see recipe notes 🙂
Hi Nagi, before I commented I reviewed the notes. Your notes mention freezing and reheating… I am wanting to know if I can freeze the uncooked dough balls and than thaw out as needed to bake.
Hi Nag – these look super easy and super delicious…BUT!! I have a deep aversion to sweet bread!! Can they be successfully made without the sugar?
Hi June! I know what you mean, please see recipe notes for reducing sugar 🙂
Thanks so much for the super-quick reply! And … DER!! I should have read the notes first! I’ll try these with as little sugar as I can possibly get away with. Stay tuned for my report. 🙂
Can u make these with quick yeast ?
Yes! Please see the Yeast note 🙂