The Best Dinner Roll Recipe

A classic family recipe handed down through the generations. This Best Dinner Roll Recipe creates soft and fluffy bread with golden highlights. It’s a tasty addition to any meal on your table. Slather them with butter and they will melt in your mouth.

Dinner Roll Recipe

Could there be anything better than a home that’s filled with the aroma of freshly baked bread? There’s no way to avoid the temptation of hot buttery rolls straight out of the oven. It has been the demise of many a person on a diet over the years. But what a way to indulge, right? Once you bite into one of these yeasty, buttery dinner rolls, you will not be able to avoid another bite, then another one, and so it goes. These crescent rolls can be made into a delicious Ham and Cheese Roll. A couple of other bread recipes that will have your mouth watering are my Banana Walnut Bread or this Old Fashioned Dill Bread. 

Ingredient List

• Sugar. It adds just a touch of sweetness to the bread. Also, a tablespoon is used to feed the yeast and activate it.
• Shortening. This helps deliver a soft texture to the rolls.
• Kosher Salt. Salt is an essential ingredient in bread making. It contributes to the structure and flavor.
• Active Dry Yeast. Not only is this what gives rise to the bread, but permeates the dough to deliver that distinctive flavor and aroma that we all love in yeast bread. 
• All-purpose Flour. You can use bread flour if you would like. Many bread recipes call for it. But I’ve made this recipe hundreds of times with all-purpose flour and it always comes out great. 
• Melted Butter. For the purpose of brushing on baked rolls.

How to Make Homemade Dinner Rolls

• Melt shortening and dissolve sugar and salt in boiling water. Add shortening, sugar, and salt to a large mixing bowl. Pour boiling water over those ingredients and stir until the shortening melts and the sugar and salt dissolve. Set aside until this mixture cools to room temperature.

• Combine sugar and yeast with warm-to-the-touch water (105-115°F). While the shortening mixture is cooling to room temperature, combine the sugar and yeast.  Add warm water and stir until the yeast is dissolved.

• Let the yeast mixture sit for about 10-15 minutes or until the foam on top doubles in size.
• Combine the shortening mixture, the yeast mixture, and the beaten eggs together. Mix in flour. Start with 5 cups of flour and use a wooden spoon to mix it into the liquids. You’ll notice the dough is still very sticky at this point. Using your hands to mix now, continued adding flour one cup at a time until it is somewhat firm but still a little sticky.

• Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes. Sprinkle one cup of flour onto a large silicone baking mat and dump the dough onto the flour. Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes.

• After kneading add the dough to a large mixing bowl to rise. Smear the bowl with butter and lay the kneaded bread dough in the bowl. Roll the dough around the bowl to smear it with butter and cover with a dishtowel.

• Let the dough rise for one hour. Place the dough in a warm place and let it rise for one hour. The dough should be doubled in size before you begin rolling it out to shape. 

• Punch down the dough. Once the dough has doubled in size, punch down the dough with your fist.

• Separate the dough into two equal balls.

• Roll out each dough ball into a circle. Roll out each ball separately to a 17-inch diameter circle. Using a pizza cutter, cut the circle like a pizza into 12 triangular wedges to give you 24 crescent rolls altogether. Roll up each wedge from the wide rounded edge into a crescent shape. Tuck the pointed side of the section under the roll.

• Let the dinner rolls rise for a second time. Place the crescent rolls onto an un-greased cookie sheet two inches apart. Cover with a dishtowel and set in a warm place. Let rise for one more hour until the rolls have doubled in size again.
• Bake in a 375°F oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown. Remove them from the oven and brush them with melted butter. 
• Let the dinner rolls cool on a wire rack.

What temperature should the water be to proof the yeast?

You want the water to be extra warm to the touch, but not hot. You may want to use an instant-read thermometer to begin with in order to get the right feel for it. The thermometer should register between 105-115°F for the perfect temperature. Any higher than that will kill the yeast. If the yeast does not rise, it’s because the water was too hot or the yeast is old. If that’s the case, you will need to start over. This is an indication that your bread will not rise either.

How to Knead the Dough by Hand

With the heels of your hands, push the dough down and flatten out the dough while pushing it away from you. Give the dough a quarter turn, fold over half of the dough and continue to push down and away. When you notice the dough becoming sticky again, sprinkle a little more flour onto the surface and continue with this process. 

How do you know if the Bread Dough has been kneaded enough?

• The Window Pane Test. Pull a small ball (about the size of a golf ball) from the dough and hold it between your thumbs and fingers. Stretch it outward into a thin and translucent sheet. If it does not break, the gluten is well-developed and the kneading process is done. If it pulls apart, it needs some more kneading time.
• The Poke Test. Give the dough a firm poke with your finger then release. If the indentation bounces back right away, you’re good to go. If the dimple from the indentation does not fill back up, it’s time for a little more kneading. 
• The Smooth and Shiny Test. When kneading is finished, your ball of dough will have a firm texture with a smooth and shiny surface. 

Can these homemade Dinner rolls be made ahead of time?

This recipe takes about 3 or 3 1/2  hours to complete. The beauty of these dinner rolls is that they can be made ahead of time. This is especially helpful if you are making them for a special occasion like Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas where your oven space is limited.

• To refrigerate. Follow the instructions through the first rise, punch down and shape the dough. Cover tightly and place them in the refrigerator overnight or for up to 16 hours. When ready to bake, pull them from the fridge, cover them with a clean dishtowel, and set them in a warm place. Because they have been in the cold it will take longer for them to rise the second time, probably 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Then bake as directed.
• To freeze. Again follow the instructions as if you would refrigerate them except place the shaped rolls in the freezer for 30-45 minutes until they are frozen. Transfer the rolls into freezer bags. They will last in the freezer for up to four weeks. When ready to serve, pull them out and place them on baking sheets and cover with a clean dish towel. Let set and rise for four to six hours or until they are doubled in size. Bake as usual. 

Variations for these Homemade Rolls

• Make into Ham and Cheese Rolls. These crescent rolls can be wrapped around black forest ham and swiss cheese for a delicious go-to sandwich. 
• Knead Roasted Garlic into the dough. 
• Add fresh herbs. Chopped rosemary and thyme would bring a wonderful flavor. Sprinkle in about two tablespoons when you’re adding the flour.
• Add Shredded Cheese. Finely shred about 11/2 cups of your favorite cheese and add it to the dough while you are kneading it. 
• Form into different shapes. I chose crescent shapes for this post, but there are so many ways to show off your bread: cloverleaf, knots, twist, butterfly, only to name a few. If you’re interested in checking out some other ideas to shape your rolls, click here for tipnut.com.

One family recipe that has been around my house for as long as I can remember is this bread dough recipe. If you’re gonna indulge, indulge with butter slathered all over them. These Homemade Dinner Rolls serve as the ultimate comfort food, a wonderful holiday table addition, and of course, sneaking a midnight snack. A bonus to top off these buttery delights is my Homemade Peach Preserves. This bread recipe is the one that I use for my Homemade Cinnamon Rolls which are a melt-in-your-mouth food luxury you must have.

More Bread Recipes

Grandma’s Old Fashioned Dill Bread

Homemade Pizza Dough by Hand

Banana Nut Bread

Homemade Sweet Moist Cornbread

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