(Update 11/10): I originally posted these rolls nearly three years ago and had been making them a couple of years prior to posting them, which basically means they are one of my longest standing roll recipes, which is saying a lot because I swear I try a new roll recipe out at least monthly. These rolls are exactly what their name implies – a little nugget of french bread goodness in roll-form. Really, they are scrumptious. They continue to be one of the easiest, no-fail roll recipes around. Not only that, but I use them in every recipe I own that needs a roll perfect for sandwiching delicious ingredients in the depth of the rolls, like these meatball subs, this Italian beef recipe, sloppy joes, BBQ pulled pork, and the list goes on and on.
Can you tell I love them? Oh yes I do, and I know you will, too!
As with all yeast doughs, I never use the flour amount called for in the recipe as a hard fast rule (unless a weight measure is given and then I pull out my kitchen scale). Because humidity, temperature, altitude and a multitude of other factors can impact how much flour you need in your yeast doughs, I always judge when to quit adding flour by the texture and look and feel of the dough rather than how much flour I’ve added compared to the recipe. This tutorial on yeast may help identify how a perfectly floured dough should be. Also, here's a short video on how to shape the rolls.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 3/4 tablespoon instant yeast (or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast)
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 cups all-purpose flour, give or take a few tablespoons
Directions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl by hand, combine the warm water, yeast, sugar, oil, salt and 2 cups of the flour (if you are using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, let the yeast proof in the warm water and sugar for about 3-5 minutes until it is foamy and bubbly before adding the oil, salt and flour). Begin mixing and continue to add the rest of the flour gradually until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Judge the dough not by the amount of flour called for in the recipe but in how the dough feels (see a tutorial on working with yeast here). The dough should be soft and smooth but still slightly tacky to the touch.
- Knead the dough in the stand mixer or by hand until it is very smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes in a stand mixer or 8-10 minutes by hand. Lightly spray a large bowl with cooking spray and place the dough in the bowl. Cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until it has doubled (this usually takes about an hour).
- Lightly punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly greased countertop. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and form the dough into round balls. Place the rolls on a lightly greased or silpat-lined baking sheet about an inch or two apart. Cover the rolls with lightly greased plastic wrap taking care not to pin the plastic wrap under the baking sheet or else the rolls will flatten while rising. Let the plastic wrap gently hang over the sides of the pan to fully cover the rolls but not press them down. Let the rolls rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 12-14 minutes until lightly browned and cooked through.
Notes
*Freezable Option: I almost always make a double or triple batch of these rolls. Once they are baked and cooled, I place them in a zipper-lock freezer bag and put them in the freezer. I either take them out a few hours before I need them or I take them out frozen and microwave them for about 2-3 minutes on 70% power.
Recipe Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Jillian – these are great rolls for allergy concerns since there are no milk and eggs. Glad they turned out so well!
Hi Mel,
I hope you are doing well! I just wanted to let you know that I still love this recipe so much and use it all the time. I didn’t realize until the other day when I had to write down the measurements again just how much I’ve changed the way I make them from the original – I just wanted to let you know and share the link to my post about them.
Holly
http://phemomenon.blogspot.com/2009/09/1-bowl-1-hour-perfect-dinner-rolls.html
I make these for any funeral or occasion when I don’t know for sure if there are allergies. They go like hotcakes! yum-O. It’s the first roll reciepe I have ever gotten to come out light and fluffy. Thanks!
Hi Jess – if the bottoms of the rolls were browning too much, you may try baking them less time (or reducing the oven temperature by 25 degrees). I’m glad you still liked them though. Thanks for letting me know!
I made these yesterday and they were delicious! Thank you! They did turn out a bit flatter than I thought they’d be. The bottoms also started burning with about 5 minutes to go on the baking time. Maybe my oven is hotter than it should be?
hey! i ike your recipes- and i love bread, however, i do not have an oven and therefore can’t bake any
i have a toaster oven though! any recipes for those?! 
Sunshine – what a good mom you are!! I hope they love the french bread rolls. Thanks for your comment – I’m glad you’ve enjoyed some of the recipes. (Let me know if you find those club crackers for the Caramel Crunch Bars!)
Kids first day back at school and I am going to surprise everyone with these yummy sounding fresh rolls…I love this blog and have always had great success with your recipes- Thank You!
I made these a few days ago, and although yours look even lighter and fluffier; they’re already gone! Thanks for the recipe.
I made these rolls today. My house smelled wonderful through the whole process– there’s something so special about baking bread.
When they came out of the oven, they were oddly sweet. I’m not sure why this was.
Next time I’d follow the instructions to make them a little more crisp.
Over all, for my first attempt at making bread, I think they turned out pretty good.
I’ve made these rolls a couple times too, and they taste great, but I also am having a hard time getting the shape/look right. I am good to the point of the dough having risen the first time and them punching it down. But what is the best way to shape the rolls? Do you just roll them in your hands, or kind of pull and tuck under. I know this sounds kind of dumb, but I really want mine to be pretty like yours!
Okay, I made these for Easter Dinner and although I doubled the recipe people were still looking for more. They were amazingly good! But they were ugly. I’m not capable of making rolls look like in your picture. Can you do a post showing the size of balled dough and how close together you put them and what they look like in the pan before you put them in the oven? Help a girl out please?
I love that every time I want to bug you for a recipe- I can usually find it on here. Those rolls were delicious, especially for ham sandwiches the next day. Thanks! Do you still have ham left over? We are going to put ours on homemade pizza this weekend.
Sook – I hope these turned out ok for you! It’s fun to check your blog, too. Your recipes all look so wonderful!
Hi Evelyn – thanks for your comment. Deflating the dough means to press it down gently after it has risen to press the air out of it and get it ready to shape into rolls. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
I would love to try these for Thanksgiving- but also, since I don’t have the Lion House rolls recipe- could you post it? Those are so good!
just made these tonight and am eating it now and they are divine!
thanks so much for an awesome recipe.
Matt in Overlook – thanks for letting me know you tried these rolls and liked them! I’m glad to hear it.
I made these tonight and they were divine! Easy, quick and delicious. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for this recipe! I’m having it for dinner tonight! You have such amazing recipes that I’ve come to love! Thanks for sharing!
mmmmmm… these look delicious. Once again, your pictures make them mouthwatering and I want to go whip them up even though it is 1 am in the morning!
Brittany – I don’t know if I’ll get a chance to post the Lion House rolls this week but if you email me at mykitchencafe {at} gmail {dot} com then I’ll email you the recipe I have.
Yeah I have to say that I am definitely a roll snob myself. So far I ONLY make Lion House Rolls because like you said…they are the only kind to make. But Im excited to try this recipe because frankly I like baking any kind of bread….hey if you have a good recipe for yummy fluffy bisquits I would REALLY appreciate it!
Arundathi – thanks for commenting, especially because now I can peruse your blog of Indian cuisine – yum! I’m glad you liked these rolls, they are definitely a family favorite at my house.
I made a double batch of these for our Easter dinner and they were a big hit…I will def. make these again!
I made these and have blogged about them. Thanks for posting this super easy and doable recipe!
I really really liked these rolls. I ran out of white flour and ended up using about 3/4 cup of amaranth flour but they were very tasty. I will be making this recipe again.
Norah – glad you tried the rolls and liked them. I make them all the time because they are easy and delicious. I’m glad you commented so now I can check out your recipe blog, too!
Bharti – thanks for letting me know you tried these! I’m on my way to check out your post…
Anonymous – awesome job on your first attempt at bread. I’m glad you liked these! I’m not sure why they were so sweet – mine aren’t any sweeter than a normal roll when I make them. Thanks for letting me know how it went!
Thanks, Evelyn! I hope the rolls and lasagna turned out great for you. Don’t hesitate to let me know either way!
Hi! I can’t wait to make these rolls…but what does it mean to ‘deflate the dough’? I’m new to the whole bread making thing! Thanks!!
I made these last night! YUMMO! They were sooooo easy and quick for yeast rolls and they were really good. Ian thought they were the best rolls I ever made
Plus, there is no butter or eggs which means less points for my weight watchers! Yay!
Another roll snob here. These remind of the rolls they serve at Little America. I will be trying these soon too!
Thanks, Melanie! I actually made the dough before I was able to read your reply. When it was ready to deflate, I gently pushed on it and it, well, it deflated! I felt a little silly! Now they are all rolled and raising again! I’ve also got your Mom’s Lasagna going! I’m hungry just thinking about it!! Thanks again…you really have a great blog here!
Amy and Pamela – I’m wondering if you both made these the same day since your comments came on the same day!
I’m glad you both liked the recipe.
As for the shaping issue, Amy, I pinch off a golf-ball size portion of dough and roll it on the counter while cupping the dough in the palm of my hand as I roll it – the same way you would make a ball out of play-dough. I roll it around on the counter and it forms a ball due to the palm of my hand cupping it into a round shape. I keep rolling until it is smooth. Hope that helps!
Amber – your comment made me smile. I’m sure your rolls were not ugly but next time I make these, I’ll take some pictures of how I form them and put them on the cookie sheets. Until then, the amount of dough I roll into balls is usually about golf ball size and I put three across on a standard size cookie sheet (11X17 is the size, I think). Hope that helps!
omgosh DELICIOUS< I just took these out of the oven and my daughter has already eaten 2 of them lol, I need to double it next time, YUMM
shweetpotato – so glad you liked these little beauties! Thanks for letting me know.
I made these tonight…YUMMY! Patrick ate 4 of them!
Ursala – glad these were such a hit with the fam!
I made these with your Italian Beef Sandwiches recipe and it’s a keeper! I used my bread machine and made the rolls the day before. I put the beef in the crockpot on the morning of my longest work day. I don’t get home until 8:00 p.m. so my family was able to have a hot, simple filling dinner without much fuss. Wonderful!
Molly – what a great meal for when you are working late and want dinner for your family. You are a good mom. I’m glad the rolls and Italian beef were a hit. Thanks for letting me know!
These rolls are so good my family loves them! I make them a lot and now everyone is requesting them for Thanksgiving. If I double the recipe, do I also double the yeast?
the Robinsons – I double this recipe all the time and if you are using active dry yeast, then yes, definitely double the yeast along with the other ingredients. If you are using instant yeast, you can get away with using 1 1/2 tablespoons for a doubled recipe. Hope that helps!
Layton – great tip on using a cake pan and for listing how much of the dough fits in. Thanks! I’m really glad you like this recipe.
I love these rolls! I find they work better (rise up rather than out) when I crowd them into cake pans. A half recipe fits perfectly into one 9 inch round pan. Thanks so much for your GREAT directions!
The Three Amigos – I also sub whole wheat flour for these (at least half whole wheat, half white) and it works great, so I’m very glad you like them, too!
Thank you so much for this recipe!! I make it every single time there is a get together, and everyone raves about them. I sub 1 cup of whole wheat flour for white and they turn out so amazing. Thanks! I’m making them right now for Christmas dinner. mmmmm I can’t wait!
Carlin – I make these rolls constantly so I am very, very glad you liked them. Thanks for letting me know!
These turned out absolutely delicious! This has now become my favorite recipe for rolls!
Hi, I love your blog!! I wanted to make these for a dinner, but I am wondering if you can half the recipe? I’m not super good with yeast, so I never know what matters! Thanks!
Anonymous – yes you can half the dough for this but if you are going to all the work of making them, I would suggest making the full batch and freezing some of the rolls once they are baked.
Absolutely, hands down, the best roll recipe ever! I doubled the batch yesterday and my family of five has eaten almost all of them. The fact that this recipe calls for no eggs or milk just adds to the appeal for me. Thanks so much for ALL the fabulous bread recipes you post. I know that they will be great. I hope you don’t mind but I posted this recipe and your Divine Breadsticks on my blog.
Jenn – I checked out your blog and I love how you break down the costs. I also am thrilled that you liked the rolls…some of our favorites, too!
Hi! These rolls look so delicious. I made them today, only I used wheat flour because I didn’t have enough white. My rolls didn’t rise at all, would that possibly mean that my yeast is no good?
Thanks!!
klutzymama – I’m so sorry these didn’t work out very well for you! A couple of reasons why dough sometimes doesn’t rise well is a) the dough has too much flour in it (it should be a pretty soft, tacky consistency), b) it needs to be kneaded longer (especially with whole wheat flour since it takes longer to develop the gluten during kneading) or c) the yeast didn’t proof properly in the water (i.e. water was too hot??). Yeast doesn’t “go bad” very often, in my experience, but that could also be a factor. I hope you try them again! Let me know if you have any other questions.
These look really good. Wonder if I can use instant yeast and cut down on rise times?
momstarr – I actually only ever use instant yeast, in these rolls particularly. I’ve heard that with instant yeast you can cut out the first rise. I don’t do that just because I like the flavor that comes from both rises but I’m sure it would work fine.
So I tried these again today and they turned out fabulously. I’m thinking that my warm water was too hot the first time. Thanks so much for this recipe, these are perfect for my family!
klutzymama – so glad these worked out better the second time. Thanks for checking back in to let me know!
I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong, but mine were much flatter. I let it rise longer than it said, but it didn’t rise nearly as high as yours. Any clue what I did wrong?
Debbie,
I had that problem the first time I tried them and I think that the problem for me was that the water that I proofed the yeast in was too hot.
Debbie – sometimes if the dough is too sticky (not enough flour) the rolls flatten instead of rise tall and puffy. It’s a tricky balance between adding enough flour but not too much so the rolls are dry. Also, klutzymama’s advice can also be true – yeast won’t proof well, or at all, in water too hot. Hope that helps a little bit.
Easy, wonderful recipe…found ourselves without rolls for Mother’s Day and it was a cinch to whip these up. They were the perfect addition to our Mother’s Day meal. Many thanks!
Thanks, Christa – I’m so glad these rolls worked in a pinch for you!
I’ve made these a few times now (always for sandwiches, rather than as a dinner roll) and I use the extras out of the freezer to make garlic bread. Yum!
Janssen – thanks! I freeze my extras, too, and they are great to pull out last-minute.
Mel I use this recipe to make hamburger rolls also, and pizza crust, and sub sandwich rolls. I love this recipe. Thanks
I LOVE crusty rolls. What ratio do I use for egg white/water mixture? Do I brush the rolls all over, even the bottom? Or just brush it on the top? Do I actually spray the rolls with water or just into the air above the rolls?
Jess – I usually use one egg white to 1 tablespoon water. I brush the rolls gently on top and around the sides – basically covering the entire top but not worrying about the underside or bottom. I spray the water into the oven above the rolls. I hope that helps!
Thanks, Tiffany – I love the versatility of this recipe!
These rolls are fantastic! I always come to your site first when I need a new bread recipe, and you never disappoint! I made these into buns for burgers and they were a huge hit, and I kept eating the leftover buns plain. I’m already looking forward to making them again. Thanks so much!
Emily Marie – I’m glad you like these rolls as much as I do. I swear I make them at least weekly for some application or other!
Do you have to knead by hand or can you use the dough hook of a mixer? I’m wondering if you need the extra flour you get from kneading?
Allyson – I always use my Bosch mixer and knead with the dough hook. I add flour until a soft, tacky dough is formed.
I am going to try these rolls – they look delicious! I was just wondering if you have ever made a huge batch in the Bosch and if so, does it fit in the Bosch x 4 or x 5? Thanks so much!
Ive never made any type of bread or rolls before so i really really new to this. Can you kneed this bread by hand? i cant find my kitchen aid bread hook attachment.
paramedichick06 – yes, you can definitely knead the bread by hand. You’ll probably need to add a few minutes on to the kneading time to sufficiently develop the gluten.
Kaitlyn – the most I’ve ever made in my Bosch with these rolls is a triple batch.
Have you ever tried whole wheat for part or all of the flour? Thanks!
Kaitlyn – yes, I use at least 50% whole wheat everytime I make these now. Sometimes I’ve used all whole wheat but I have the best results when I use at least one cup of white flour.
I made these this afternoon. They were so easy and yummy! We have egg and milk allergies in our house so it was so great to find something I didn’t even have to tweak! I used the bread flour and it was great. Your blog is awesome!
Melanie – thank you for your comment! I’m glad these rolls turned out so well for you since you are working around allergies!
I used this recipe to make homemade hamburger buns as suggested in your classic grilled burgers recipe. They turned out FANTASTIC! My husband asked that we not buy store bought buns ever again
Thanks for another great recipe!
Kat – that may or may not have been my husband’s exact request. So glad you loved these!
[...] French Bread Rolls from My Kitchen Cafe [...]
[...] to free up the oven for later in the day. You can follow this link to my favorite roll recipe- French Bread Rolls. Look at the recipes you have planned and chop up ingredients before hand. Place them in [...]
I just discovered your blog and am so excited! I am in a cooking slump, bored with my recipes. Now I am inspired bc your cooking tastes are so much like mine. I made your hamburgers and hamburger buns this weekend and oh. so. good. Like Kat, my husband kept raving over the buns. Seriously, will I ever be able to eat a store-bought bun again? Keep up the good work!
I just made these today and they turned out great…and the house smelled soooooooo good while these were baking! I always used to avoid bread recipes that called for yeast, but I’ve been gaining more and more confidence every time I use one of your recipes. Thank you!
Just wanted to say THANK YOU for the yummy bun recipe. I made them today with your sloppy joes! So yummy! My husband kept saying how amazing it was that I actually MADE the rolls… they were like gourmet to him!
Thanks a bunch!
So, so good. Made these with sloppy joes. This was the first time I made rolls completely successfully–not only did they look good, but they tasted fabulous. I’ll definitely be making these over and over again! Thanks for sharing!
I have to say that I love this recipe. After using it to make several BBQ Chicken Braids and loving the flavor and texture I utilized it as a dough for hamburger buns and I am so glad that I did. FANTASTIC to be able to make my own burger buns! My ultra picky husband was impressed and even asked that I never buy regular buns again. I think these buns have the taste and texture of a bread much richer than one containing a mere 2 tablespoons of oil like this one. Thanks again!
Hey
I already wrote how good these are, but now I’d like to know whether I can add raisins to the dough? Any suggestions how much I could add, when etc ? My friend wants to eat sweet rolls with raisins, but either I can’t search properly or there aren’t many recipes for such :/ Thanks for help!
kk – I’ve never tried adding raisins to these. My only suggestion would be to knead them in at the end but that’s just a guess. Good luck if you try it!
Made these today! I felt super fancy making my own rolls/ buns. Thanks for the great recipe and for walking me through the yeast process
I’m just getting into the whole bread making thing and I have started out with a breadmaker, but I want to make rolls so my question is: Do you use a portion of the water from the recipe to proof active yeast in or would the water you use be cancelled out by the proofing process?
I went ahead to try and make them, and I have to say that my first experience making rolls turned out amazing. I thought they would be crusty like french bread usually has been for me, but they are moist and fluffy. They turned out great because of your wonderful directions and helpful hints.
Hi Ariane – if I use instant yeast, I don’t proof the yeast in water, I just add it with the other ingredients. If you are using active dry yeast in a breadmaker then yes, you would want to proof the yeast in a bit of water and a pinch of sugar first before adding it to the breadmaker with the other ingredients.
Mel- I wanted to let you know that I (finally!) got up the courage to make your French Bread Roll recipe last night. I don’t know why I waited so long, because they were the best bread/rolls that I have ever made! And so simple! WOW…my family is blown away! I used to make home-made bread all the time when my children were young, and then I stopped for some reason (maybe the low carb thing). Of course, my children don’t remember the home-made bread. When they saw the dough rising they thought I was making pizza dough! Well, needless to say, I’m afraid that store bought rolls are a thing of the past in our house, and it is all your fault!
I love, love, love the tutorials! They really helped with the amount of flour (I didn’t use the full 4 cups) and shaping the rolls. I made 8 rolls (3 oz. each), planning to freeze them for burgers tonight. Well, let’s just say that there are only 5 left, and I had to threaten bodily harm to anyone that ate another roll!
LOL!
I will definitely double the recipe next time. I will have to see how a double recipe fits in my Kitchen Aid 6 quart mixer. I am hoping I can even triple the recipe in the future. If not, maybe I will have to trade in my trusty KA a Bosch mixer!
I am going to toast/grill the rolls tonight night for burgers…I am already thinking about how delicious dinner is going to be!
Oh- and even though my rolls turned out perfect (in my opinion!), I did have few questions- do you use table salt, kosher salt or sea salt? Since you didn’t specify what kind, I assumed that you use table salt. As a result, I used 1 1/2 tsp. of fine sea salt. The rolls were not overly salty at all, and I think I may increase the amount to 2 tsp. next time. Every type of salt is different (even kosher salts vary from brand to brand), so finding the right balance is key.
Also, I used canola oil as your recipe calls for, but I was wondering if you think a good quality extra virgin olive oil would be a nice substitute or would it be too overpowering?
Last, but not least-after reading the comments here about egg wash, I was curious if you ever brush these rolls with egg wash before baking? I didn’t, and I am curious to know if you do brush them and then sprinkle them with sesame seeds or poppy seeds? Don’t get me wrong- I personally don’t think they need anything else…they are absolutely heavenly! I was just wondering why egg wash was discussed in regards to this recipe. Thanks!