No-Knead, Crusty Dinner Rolls

5 from 4 votes

These No-Knead, Crusty Dinner Rolls are everything you love about artisan European bread, a golden, crackly crust and a tenderairy interior yett they’re incredibly easy to make! Just 3 basic ingredients (4 including water!) and no kneading required. Perfect for dinners, mini sandwiches, or for gifting with homemade compound butters.

Prep Time20

Cook Time40

rising time1 30

Total Time2 30

Course: Bread, dinner rolls

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Artisan Rolls, crusty dinner rolls, european bread rolls, No-Knead Bread

Servings:

Calories: 91kcal

Author: Chris Scheuer

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour
2 ¼ teaspoons instant dry yeast
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 ¾ cups hot tap water plus more as needed

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prep the pans:

Line two sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.

Mix the dough:

Combine the flour, salt, and yeast in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the hot tap water and stir with a sturdy spatula, wooden spoon, or Danish whisk until all the flour is incorporated. This is a stiff dough, so if needed, add an additional tablespoon of water to bring it together. Make sure there is no dry flour at the bottom of the bowl.

Stretch & fold – Set 1:

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm spot for 20 minutes. Lightly wet your hand, grab a portion of the dough, stretch it up, then fold it over onto itself. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat 3 more times to complete one set of four stretch-and-folds (see video in the post).

Stretch & fold – Sets 2 & 3:

Repeat the 20-minute rest plus the stretch-and-fold process two more times. After the third set, cover the dough again and let it rise until doubled, about 30 minutes in a warm spot.

Portion the dough:

Generously flour a work surface (about ⅓ cup). Turn the dough out and use a dough scraper to turn it several times until coated. Divide into 20 portions (about 45g each) for dinner rolls or 60g each for sandwich rolls. Roll each portion lightly in flour.

Shape the rolls:

With each piece, stretch the edges toward the center and pinch to create a seam. Place the dough seam-side down on an unfloured area of the counter. Cup your hand around it and drag in tight circles to form a smooth, taut ball. (If it sticks, dust lightly with more flour.) Here is a short video from America's Test Kitchen demonstrating how to do this.

Second rise:

Arrange 10 rolls on each prepared sheet pan. Dust lightly with flour using a fine-mesh sieve. Cover with clean kitchen towels and let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes.
Prep the oven:
While the rolls are rising, place a pan filled ⅔ with water on the lowest oven rack to create steam. Position another rack in the center and preheat the oven to 450°F. (Let the oven preheat for at least 15 minutes to get the steam going.)

Slash the rolls:

When the rolls are almost doubled, use a baker’s lame, razor blade, or sharp knife to make a slash down the center of each roll, about ¼–½ inch deep. (I like to start at the center and slash towards one edge the repeat going towards the other edge.)

Bake:

Bake the first pan for 14-18 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Check at 14 minutes, then every minute until done. Repeat with the second pan, ensuring the water pan still contains water.

Cool:

Transfer the rolls to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy warm with butter!
To store:
Store in a ziplock bag or an airtight container. I like to re-warm them in the oven for 8-10 minutes at 300˚F. These rolls also freeze well - thaw then re-warm to serve.

Notes

Here's a quick video from America's Test Kitchen demonstrating an easy technique for shaping dinner rolls.

Nutrition