Soft and fluffy dinner rolls baked until golden then brushed with garlic and oregano-infused butter is a delicious, easy side dish recipe.
Is there anything more glorious than a soft, fresh dinner roll slathered in garlicky-oregano butter? I think not. And I know that baking your own bread rolls might seem like a mission to many people but honestly, these easy dinner rolls come together in no time at all and they are SO worth it.
I use my stand mixer to make the dough from scratch which comes in especially handy when you’re in a hurry but you can definitely knead the dough by hand if you wanted to.
These homemade dinner rolls are so soft and fluffy on the inside and the flavor is just perfection and they are so moreish. I challenge you to only have one. These are the perfect side dish to pretty much anything. A big bowl of warming chili, soups, stews or with a bowl of pasta with enough sauce to mop up with the pillowy bread. Yum!
How do you make soft dinner rolls?
For soft dinner rolls I use all purpose or cake flour which is a much softer flour than bread flour and will result in fluffy, soft dinner rolls. Make sure you knead the bread dough well to ensure the gluten is properly stretched and worked which will also result in a much softer bread roll.
How do you make dinner rolls from scratch?
Using a simple bread recipe makes dinner rolls a breeze to make from scratch. Start by combining all purpose/cake flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. In a separate jug, combine the luke warm water (you want the water to be warm enough to activate the yeast but not so hot that it kills it. If you put your finger in the water, it should feel almost like nothing. This is called “blood temperature”), dried yeast and sugar and allow to stand for a few minutes until the yeast becomes frothy.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with the dough hook until combined then allow to knead for 2-3 minutes until the dough is smooth. The dough will be slightly sticky but that is exactly how you want it. Form rolls by breaking off small handfuls of the dough and rolling between your hands.
Place in a baking dish lined with parchment paper then allow to rise for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF. Bake the dinner rolls until golden brown then brush with the garlic-oregano butter as soon as they come out of the oven.
Can you freeze dinner roll dough?
Yes, you can freeze bread dough. Make the dough and place in a freezer bag (Ziploc bag) then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough at room temperature. Allow to rise for 1 hour before forming and baking the dinner rolls.
What do you eat with dinner rolls?
- Easy Vegetable soup
- Chicken chili bowls
- Slow cooked beef ragu
- Mexican chicken soup with charred baby corn
- Classic bolognese sauce
- My gran’s juicy roast turkey
Easy garlic butter dinner rolls
Ingredients
- 5 cups flour (I used cake flour which gives a more delicate texture to the bread)
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 2 cups 500ml lukewarm water
- 1 x 10g sachet instant yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
for the garlic butter
- ½ cup butter
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment.
- In a jug, combine the lukewarm water, yeast and sugar and mix well.
- Pour the yeast mixture into the flour and mix on a low speed until the dough starts to come together. Add the oil and continue mixing until the dough has come away from the sides of the bowl. Continue mixing for another 2 minutes.
- If doing this by hand, follow the same directions but once the dough comes together in the bowl, turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes.
- If needed, add a little more water. The dough needs to be soft and smooth and a little sticky.
- Once the dough has been kneaded, place in a greased bowl and cover with cling film. Allow to rise for 1 hour.
- After an hour, knock back the dough and form rolls (mine were just slightly smaller than a tennis ball).
- Place the rolls in a baking dish of your choice lined with parchment paper.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Place the rolls in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Tap the top of the rolls, if they sound hollow they are done.
- In the meantime, combine all the ingredients for the garlic butter in a small saucepan and melt together.
- When the rolls come out of the oven, brush them generously with the garlic butter and serve.
Best dinner roll recipe I’ve made. So easy and the rolls are perfectly light and fluffy.
Thanks! It’s a favourite of mine too!
My husband would LOVE these Alida! On my baking list!
If Tom would like a recipe, I know I am on the right path. 😉
Love this recipe. So good and so easy!
Thanks Benita! 🙂
So the total time says 35 minutes but the “let sit for an hour” at the bottom says otherwise. Would appreciate if you used the correct times and fix this one for future readers!
Sorry for the confusion. I always use the times given as a guide to how long this recipe requires you to be busy. Because there is no space for adding resting times, I usually omit them and add them to the recipe itself. I’ll amend the recipe to reflect the resting time.
i would clearly fail your challenge because one of these would never, ever be enough. buttery perfection.
😀 Believe me, that challenge is pointless because I’ve yet to meet the person who can resist these!
Are you sure 3 cups of water is necessary? I made these last night and had to add about 2 1/2 additional cups of flour to get a dough that didn’t stick to the sides of the mixer. It was too soft to hold a shape so I had to sort of throw blobs of dough into the baking dish. The rolls rose fine in the oven but needed an additional 15 minutes of baking and even then were not fully cooked through. I assumed that I wrote the recipe down wrong but as I check it now, it really does say 3 cups of water. Not sure where I went wrong. Perhaps you could indicate the flour quantity by weight?
Hi Christina. I apologise for the incorrect measurements given. It must’ve been a typo, I was meant to write 2 cups of water. I’ve amended the recipe and also added the metric measurements. I’m so sorry for this, I pride myself in my recipes working well and feel terrible that this didn’t work out for you due to my mistake.
Thank you! I bake a LOT of breads so I thought it was odd but then all the rave reviews made me think that somehow the recipe would work out. I am definitely going to make it again and I’m sure it will be fine this time. The flavour was quite nice but the texture wasn’t right. Great easy recipe. I will definitely make dinner rolls more often if they’re this quick and easy.
Thank YOU for pointing out my mistake. I hope the next batch come out perfectly.
These look beyond dreamy!!! Congrats on all of the great work — that’s fantastic Alida!! xoxo
Thanks Rebecca! x
Oh my gosh, I can’t believe how many recipes you made this week! That’s amazing! And yes you should absolutely leave up those Christmas decorations. One less thing to do later. These rolls look like the perfect addition to my Thanksgiving table!
The life of a food stylist/photographer 😉 And yep, these rolls would be PERFECT for a Thanksgiving feast.
Dinner rolls may just be my ultimate weakness. I know I would inhale one too many of these! 🙂
Mine too! And yep, I definitely did not only have one. 😉
I LOVE a good dinner roll and yours looks fantastic. Love the addition of the garlic butter.
Thanks Andy! The garlic butter definitely make these fluffy little rolls.
Hi Alida,
These look delicious! Is there no 2nd rise between punching down/forming and baking?
Thanks Barb. No, no 2nd rise necessary. 🙂
I saw these on IG this morning and I had to come on over and check out the recipe. They looks so delicious and golden brown. Love the butter garlic topping – yum! And you go girl, 23 recipes in 7 days is impressive!
Thanks Geraldine! That garlic butter is magic. And thanks! It was hard work but I’m glad it’s all done. 🙂
A big bowl of warm soup and a few of these would be the perfect fall meal. Thanks for sharing Alida!
It’s my pleasure. 🙂
Yum! Could I sprinkle some grated cheese over the rolls before baking?
Of course! Cheddar or Parmesan would both work well.
Oh my gosh, these look sooo good. Garlic bread is one of my absolute favourites.
Thanks Jenni. Mine too! I could easily have it with every meal.