Gelatin Free Soft and Buttery Dinner Rolls
Pillowy, golden, and brushed with melted butter straight out of the oven — these dinner rolls are the kind of thing that disappears from the table before anything else does. Every ingredient here is straightforward and kitchen-staple simple: flour, milk, egg, butter, yeast, sugar, and salt. That matters more than it might seem, because a lot of packaged rolls and store-bought baked goods sneak in additives and stabilizers that can be a real problem for anyone avoiding animal-derived setting agents. Here, there's nothing hidden and nothing unnecessary. The enriched dough gets its soft, tender crumb from warm whole milk and softened butter worked in gradually during kneading — no shortcuts, just good technique. A double rise gives the rolls their light, pull-apart texture, and that final butter brush adds a glossy, slightly salty finish that makes them genuinely hard to resist. Serve them warm alongside a roast, a soup, or honestly just on their own.
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Learn more →Ingredients
12 servings
For the dough
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar, divided
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 tsp fine salt
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces
For brushing
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Warm the milk in a small saucepan over low heat until it reaches 105–110°F (40–43°C) on a kitchen thermometer — warm to the touch but not hot. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer, sprinkle in the yeast and 1 tbsp of the sugar, and stir briefly. Let stand for 5–10 minutes, until the surface is foamy and the mixture smells yeasty.
- 2
Add the remaining 2 tbsp sugar, the salt, and the egg to the yeast mixture. Add the flour all at once. Fit the stand mixer with the dough hook and mix on low speed until a shaggy dough forms and no dry flour remains, about 2 minutes.
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