Soft Dinner Rolls

Soft and delicious, these dinner rolls are the perfect complement to any meal. Golden on top and baked to perfection, they’re amazing slathered in butter and jam. My kids even like to snack on them plain! 

This recipe is very similar to my sandwich bread recipe and you can definitely just use my bread dough recipe and turn it into rolls. I used melted butter instead of oil for these rolls to give it a little more flavor and also a little more yeast to help make rising time faster and the rolls nice and fluffy.

I’ve made rolls with eggs and milk and I just felt like they were too rich and I missed the simple goodness these rolls deliver. These are our favorite! 

You don’t need any fancy equipment to make bread and dinner rolls. You can use a mixer if you have one or you can mix and knead the dough by hand. There is something very satisfying in kneading dough by hand! All you need is a bowl and a spoon and then a pan to bake the rolls in. 

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR SOFT DINNER ROLLS:

(scroll down for recipe with complete ingredients) 

• lukewarm water
• sugar (you can substitute honey if desired) 
• salt
• instant yeast (active dry yeast works great too) 
• melted butter
• bread flour 

SIMPLE STEPS TO MAKE THESE SIMPLE ROLLS:

(scroll down for recipe with complete ingredients and instructions)

• Mix up the dough. Biggest thing here is don’t add too much flour where the dough is dry and dense. Add just enough to make a soft and smooth dough. 
• Cover and let rise till doubled in size. I cover it with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap. 
• Punch down dough and divide into 24 equal pieces. I just eyeball it and sometimes they’re all different sizes but that adds to the homemade rustic look, am I right? 
• Shape each piece of dough into a smooth roll. I grab it, pulling the top down and pinching the bottom shut and then roll it in circular motions on the counter to make a nice smooth ball. 
• Place rolls in oiled pan. Cover and let rise again. 
• Bake in preheated oven until golden on top, about 30 minutes. 
• Brush tops with melted butter while still hot. 
• Enjoy! 

I hope you enjoy this recipe at your dinner tables on Sunday or Thanksgiving and Christmas and Easter or anytime all year long! It’s great fun to let the kids help shape the rolls. They might not be as smooth on top but they’ll be perfect and the kids will gobble them up. 

Happy Baking,
~Rachel Ballinger 💕🍞

“A lot of living happens in the kitchen.”  ~Rachel 

Rachel Ballinger

Soft Dinner Rolls

Soft and delicious, these dinner rolls are the perfect complement to any meal. Golden on top and baked to perfection, they're amazing slathered in butter and jam.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Servings: 24 Dinner Rolls

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups lukewarm water
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp instant yeast
• 2 tbsp butter melted
• 4-5 cups bread flour
• 1 tbsp melted butter for brushing tops of baked rolls

Method

 

1. In the bowl of a mixer, put the water, sugar, salt, and sprinkle the yeast on top. Add the melted butter and gradually add the flour as you mix and knead the dough. Add flour gradually until you have a nice smooth dough. Knead for about 5 minutes.
2. Turn the dough over and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size, about an hour.
3. Punch down dough and divide into 24 pieces with a dough cutter. Shape each piece into a smooth roll and place in oiled 9”x13” baking pan. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
4. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 30 minutes or until tops are lightly browned.
5. Remove from oven and brush tops of hot rolls with 1 tbsp melted butter.

Notes

The dinner rolls freeze well. As soon as they’re baked and completely cooled off, put them in plastic freezer bags and freeze. Pull out the night before wanting to use them and let them thaw overnight.