Quick Dinner Rolls Recipe

Homemade dinner rolls in under an hour? Absolutely! If you’re short on time or feeling slightly nervous about your skills as a baker, these quick dinner rolls are exactly what you need. 

They are every bit as fluffy and tender as rolls that take all afternoon to make—so much so that I may never go back to making anything else!

How to Make Quick Dinner Rolls

To make these quick rolls, I’ve taken the usual bread-making process and condensed each step down to the shortest possible amount of time:

1. Proof the yeast: 1 minute
2. Knead the dough: 5 minutes
3. Let the dough rise: 10 minutes
4. Divide and shape the rolls: 10 minutes
5. Let the rolls rise: 15 minutes
6. Bake the rolls: 15 minutes

By using a little more yeast than is usual, we can make this schedule work! Adding some milk to the dough also helps give the dinner rolls a boost of flavor and ensures a tender texture, two things that can tend to suffer with quick-rise breads.

Need Even Faster Dinner Rolls?

If you’re truly strapped for time and need your rolls even faster, here are a few options:

• Cut the initial rise entirely and proceed straight from kneading the dough to shaping the rolls.
• Reduce the rising time for the shaped rolls down to 10 minutes.
• Bake just until you see the tops start to turn golden, 10 to 12 minutes. I prefer the flavor and texture of rolls with a slightly longer bake time, but 10 to 12 minutes should get you what you need!

The tradeoff with quicker dinner rolls is mostly flavor and texture. While working on this recipe, I found that rolls made in under 45 minutes from start to finish tended to have a somewhat bland flavor and a slightly styrofoam-like texture, even with the addition of milk and butter. But these rolls are still perfectly serviceable, especially if their primary job will be to sop up gravy from your dinner plate.

Make It Work with What You Have!

I don’t know about you, but if I’m scrambling to make a batch of rolls in an hour, then my kitchen is probably in a bit of chaos. If you find yourself out of a key ingredient, no sweat! Try these swaps:

• Swap the liquid: Use any combination of milk and water, or even all water. As long as you have 1 1/2 cups of liquid, you’re good to go. Milk makes the rolls tender and adds flavor, but rolls made with just water are still great!
• Swap the flour: Swap in bread flour if that’s what you have. Just avoid gluten-free flour mixes or cake flour.
• Skip the sugar if you’re out. Sugar helps to get the yeast going, but it’s not a deal breaker if you don’t have any to spare. You could also use honey instead.

And if, on the other hand, you find yourself with a few extra ingredients in your kitchen, try these variations!

• Herb Dinner Rolls: Chop up a few tablespoons of leftover herbs and knead them right into the dough. Alternatively, mix them into 2 tablespoons of melted butter and drizzle this over the top of the baked rolls.
• Garlic Butter Rolls: While the rolls are baking, combine a few tablespoons of butter and a few minced garlic cloves, and melt in the microwave or on the stovetop. Brush this over the rolls when they come out of the oven.
• Cheesy Rolls: Shred a few ounces of your favorite cheese and mix this into the dough. Sprinkle extra over the tops before baking! Cheddar, Parmesan, Asiago, or any other hard or semi-hard cheese would be great.

More Roll-y Poly Goodness

• Lion House Rolls
• Garlic Parmesan Pull Apart Rolls
• Parker House Rolls
• Potato Dinner Rolls
• Make Ahead Dinner Rolls

Dissolve the yeast:

Combine the milk and water in a measuring cup and warm in the microwave for 30 seconds, until lukewarm to the touch. Pour the liquids into the bowl of a stand mixer and stir in the sugar and the yeast. 

Set aside for 1 minute or until the yeast has dissolved and you see a few small bubbles starting to pop up in the liquid. There’s no need to wait until the mixture is foamy unless you’re worried that your yeast might be expired, in which case let stand for 3 to 5 minutes until foamy.

Knead the dough:

With a stiff spatula, stir 3 1/2 cups (420g) of the flour and salt into the liquids until you form a shaggy, floury dough. Using the dough hook attachment, knead on low speed for 5 minutes, until it comes together in a smooth ball or knead by hand for 10 minutes.

If after 30 seconds of kneading the dough sticks to the sides or bottom of the bowl, sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of flour and knead another 30 seconds. If it still seems sticky, repeat. Be careful of adding too much flour; it’s better for the dough to be a bit sticky than for it to be too dry.

Let the dough rise:

Lift the dough from the bowl, use your hands to gather it into a ball, then return it to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a dinner plate and let rise for 10 minutes.

If you’re pressed for time, skip this step!

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.

Set a rack in the lower-middle position. Spray a glass or metal 9x13-inch baking dish or cake pan with cooking spray or rub it with butter.

Shape the rolls:

Turn the dough out onto a clean counter. The dough should feel soft and tacky at this point; if it’s sticking to your hands, dust the surface of the dough lightly with flour. You shouldn’t need to add any flour to shape the rolls, but it’s ok to use a light dusting of flour on the counter and your hands if the dough is sticking too much.

Divide the dough into 16 even pieces. Shape each into a ball by cupping your palm over the top and rolling it in tight circles against the unfloured counter. The surface should be smooth and taut, like a water balloon.

Let the rolls rise:

Transfer the shaped rolls to the prepared pan in 4x4 rows, with the rolls spaced a little apart. Cover and let them rise for 15 minutes. The rolls may look slightly puffy at this point, but it’s ok if they don’t.

Bake the rolls:

Brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter. Transfer to the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan once halfway through so the rolls bake evenly. When done, the rolls should be puffed and deep golden-brown on top.

Cool briefly and serve:

Cool the rolls briefly in the pan, then use a spatula to lift the rolls from the pan. Transfer to a wire rack until cool enough to serve. 

Leftover rolls can be kept in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days, or frozen for up to 3 months.

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