Homemade Yeast Dinner Rolls

Soft, fluffy pull-apart yeast rolls are mouthwateringly delicious and easy to make with baking staples. These yeast rolls are a necessity at holiday dinners and they can even be frozen for later.

The aroma of homemade yeast rolls baking in the oven is one of the best smells this time of year. It may take a little longer to make rolls at home, but it's always worth it!

Why this recipe works

I grew up eating frozen Sister Schubert’s dinner rolls with special meals like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and they were always my favorite part of the meal.

I like to think these yeast rolls taste even better. Why?

• They are soft, ultra-fluffy, tender, and light
• They have a touch of sweetness
• Made with simple pantry staples
• Ready in just under 2 hours (most of which is inactive time)

This year I’ll be serving these homemade yeast rolls at Thanksgiving alongside the stuffing, mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese. Join me?

What you’ll need

These yeast rolls are made from enriched dough made with yeast. That means they include high-fat ingredients like milk and butter to form a soft, supple dough.

• All-purpose flour creates a soft yeast roll. Us an equal amount of bread flour if you prefer chewier rolls.
• Milk: Whole milk is my go-to for baking, but 2% or even skim works. Higher fat milk = richer dinner rolls.
• Unsalted butter: If using salted butter you will need to decrease salt to ¼ teaspoon.
• White sugar adds a touch of sweetness to the rolls and activates the yeast. Liquid sweeteners and brown sugar do not work.
• Active dry yeast: We will use 2 and ¾ teaspoons yeast, which is a little more than one packet. If you only have packets available you can use 2 and ¼ teaspoons, it won’t make too big of a difference. I have not tested this recipe with instant yeast.
• Salt is a necessary addition to balance out the other ingredients.

Just like my sweet potato dinner rolls, this recipe is egg-free. While many yeast roll recipes call for eggs, I was delighted to find that these rolls are perfect without eggs.

This means that the recipe is easy to make vegan/dairy-free as desired (see FAQ section below).

Step by step instructions

Step one: Whisk together the milk and water in a liquid measuring cup. Add slices of butter. Microwave for 1 minute, then whisk. Continue microwaving in 15 seconds intervals, until the mixture reaches 110 degrees F.

(If you don’t have a thermometer, think “bathwater warm”: hot enough to stick your hand into but nearing too hot).

Step two: In a large bowl, stir together the liquids, active dry yeast, white sugar, salt, and 1 cup of all-purpose flour until a very wet, shaggy dough forms.

Add in the remaining 1 and ½ cups of flour. Mix until a shaggy dough forms.

Step three: You can knead by hand or with a stand mixer. I like to do a combination of the two: use the stand mixer for 5-6 minutes, then turn out and knead for the remaining 1-2 minutes.

Kneading by hand: Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 8-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Kneading in a stand mixer: Use the dough hook attachment to knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.

Step four: Place the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean dishtowel. Let rise until doubled in size, about an hour (it may take longer, up to 2 hours, in a cold kitchen).

Punch down the dough. Divide the dough into 12 pieces. I use a kitchen scale for accuracy, but you can eyeball it.

Step five: To make round dough balls: Pinch the ends of each dough piece together in the center. Place seam side down. Use the palm of your hand to gently roll each dough ball until smooth and round.

Place the dough balls in a lightly oiled 8x11 baking dish. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Step six: Bake at 350 degrees on the middle oven rack for 18-20 minutes, until the tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter and a sprinkle of flaked sea salt. Enjoy!

Expert tips

• Dough rises best in a warm environment (80F). When my kitchen is cold I like to preheat the oven to the lowest temp for just 5 minutes, then turn the oven off and let the rolls rise in the oven with the oven door cracked.
• Baking dishes: Twelve rolls fit best in a 12 inch cast iron skillet or 8x11 baking dish. For pull apart rolls, I use a 9” cake pan or 8-9” round casserole dish, which only fits 10-11 rolls. This packs them in tightly and creates the pull-apart effect. You can also freestyle the rolls and just baking them on a sheet pan, but they won’t be pull-apart rolls this way.
• Flour: Avoid adding too much flour to the dough. I recommend spooning and leveling flour into a measuring cup instead of scooping the measuring cup directly into the bag of flour.
• If the dough becomes too sticky while kneading, add only a sprinkle of flour at a time. Adding too much flour will dry out the rolls.

Roll variations

• Garlic yeast rolls: Include either ½ teaspoon garlic powder or 4-5 cloves minced garlic in the dough. This is similar to my garlic drop biscuits recipe.
• Whole wheat yeast rolls can be made by substituting white flour with 100% whole wheat all purpose flour. The dough will be denser and have a heartier flavor. You might also like my whole wheat garlic knots.
• Half wheat: Use half regular all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour.
• Burger buns: Hear me out, these are great as burger buns. Make slightly large rolls and bake them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet until golden. See my sweet potato buns recipe for more tips.

Recipe FAQ

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