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–+ servings
A cast iron skillet with golden brown, homemade yeast dinner rolls.
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5 from 1 vote

Easy Homemade Yeast Dinner Rolls

Fluffy, buttery, and surprisingly easy to make - these Homemade Yeast Dinner Rolls are the perfect pairing with any meal you create!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Rising Time2 hours 45 minutes
Course: Appetizers
Cuisine: Soul Food
Servings: 12 rolls
Calories: 189kcal
Author: Shani W.

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer
  • Dough Hook Attachment
  • Mixing Bowl
  • Clean Kitchen Towel
  • Pastry Brush

Ingredients
  

  • ½ cup warm water
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast or one single-use packet
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 cup buttermilk see recipe notes for substitutions
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 4 tablespoons salted butter melted
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 count egg to make an egg wash
  • extra butter for serving
  • flaky sea salt for serving

Instructions

Blooming Your Yeast

  • Add the warm water, active dry yeast, and sugar to a medium-sized bowl. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, until fluffy.

The Yeast Rolls

  • In a large mixing bowl, add the buttermilk, salt, melted butter, all purpose flour, and the bloomed yeast mixture.
  • Using a dough hook, knead the dough for 8 minutes.
    I like to use the stand mixer for 3 minutes until the dough is pulling away from the sides of the bowl and it isn't too sticky to pick up. Then, I hand knead for another 5 minutes. You may need an extra tablespoon of flour while hand kneading to get to the perfect consistency.
    To check, poke the dough with your finger. If the dough is soft and bounces back slowly, it's ready. Or do the windowpane test - take a small piece and slowly stretch the dough, then hold it up to a window. If light can pass through the stretched dough without it tearing, it's ready!
  • Add some vegetable oil to a large bowl and place the dough ball inside. Using your hands, rotate the dough ball until it's completely covered in oil.
  • Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise for two hours until it has doubled in size.
  • Punch the dough down to release air, and then separate the dough into 12 even pieces; they don't have to be perfect!
  • Roll each piece into a sphere and place them in a buttered oiled cast-iron skillet or baking pan.
  • Cover the skillet with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough pieces rise for another 45 minutes, until very fluffy.
  • Whisk the egg with a little water until smooth. Brush the uncooked rolls with egg wash.
  • Bake the rolls on the bottom rack of the oven at 350℉ for 25-28 minutes, until golden brown. Rotate the pan halfway through your cook time.
  • Remove, brush with extra butter, and top with flaky sea salt if preferred. Enjoy!

Notes

Tips & Tricks:
  • Try to find a warm place in your kitchen for the rolls to rise - like a counter or tabletop.
  • When creating the dough balls for your second rise: If you place them in the skillet touching each other, they will create taller rolls because they have nowhere else to rise but upwards. If you place them with a little space in between each other, they will bake into wider rolls.
  • Are your rolls browning too quickly? Loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil.
 
Freezing Instructions:
If freezing the raw dough: prepare the rolls up until step 5, after you create the dough spheres. Add the spheres to a parchment-lined baking sheet and pop in the freezer for an hour until they are solid. Then, transfer to a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3months. 
If freezing the cooked rolls: Let them cool, then add to a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3 months.
 
Reheating Instructions:
For the raw dough balls: Place the frozen dough balls onto a greased skillet or baking pan, then cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let them thaw and rise at the same time; this normally takes about 5 hours. Then continue the recipe steps and bake as directed. 
 For the fully cooked rolls: Thaw the rolls on the counter at room temperature, then reheat as desired.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 189kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 13mg | Sodium: 246mg | Potassium: 67mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 151IU | Vitamin C: 0.002mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1mg