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Have You Tried A New Dinner Roll Recipe?

How many times have you tried a new dinner roll recipe only to get the same results?  Have you experienced hard, thick, non-raising rolls?  When I say thick, I mean thick and heavy like a brick and not very tasty!  How about making dinner rolls that taste like yeast?  No one likes that taste!  How hard can it be to actually make delicious dinner rolls?

Have You Tried Everything Too?

I have done it all when it comes to making dinner rolls.  I started out with new ingredients, flour, yeast, the whole shebang! Did I get different results?  No!  I always thought that everyone wasn’t sharing that one secret ingredient that would make or break your dinner roll recipe until I took a class.

A Class on Making Bread or Dinner Rolls

I took a class with a bunch of women at a bakery on how to make bread.  The owner quickly explained that we needed to start with fresh ingredients and that was helpful, but what was more helpful than that was the order and way the bread was mixed.

She explained that there’s actually a scientific process going on that makes the yeast activate.  She also explained that there was a certain method that baker’s used that created more heat for the yeast to rise and therefore turned out better bread.

Okay, at this point, I was all ears, because let’s face it… I had tried about everything to make a decent loaf of bread.  It took forever to raise and when I cooked the bread or rolls, they were hard, heavy and not very tasty.  I thought for sure there was no hope for me to make a decent bread loaf or dinner rolls, until that night.

The Process That Changed Everything

So this new process of mixing the ingredients in a certain order was the key to my success!  Did you know that salt inhibits the yeast growth?  Did you know that you also HAVE to have the salt in the bread or it tastes pretty gross?

With my new-found knowledge, I had to go home and try it!

My Results!

This class changed my life for the better!  I couldn’t believe that I could make delicious dinner rolls every single time.  (Unless I overcooked them!)

My family loves my dinner rolls and it’s really not a hard process!  I don’t even take the temperature of my water before putting it in my mixer!  (What!!???)

Yes!  This method has changed so much for me and didn’t make it so hard that I never wanted to do it again.  It actually made it easier to try!  You can find me making a LOT of rolls now, and it definitely takes time, but it’s NOT hard!

Plan About 3 Hours Ahead

Give yourself about 3 uninterrupted hours to make bread or dinner rolls.  Make sure you have fresh ingredients if you haven’t tried this in a while.

Often while my bread is rising, I clean the kitchen again or get laundry going, whatever I can to stay somewhat close and keep myself busy.

What Is This Magic Method?

It’s called the Sponge Method.  The idea is to take ALL your ingredients, EXCEPT SALT,  and HALF YOUR FLOUR, and mix it all in a mixer.  My choice is a Bosch Mixer which I absolutely LOVE because it has a lid and it really helps to get it “cooking” when it starts to create its own heat.

You mix that up and let it “cook” in the mixer for 20 minutes.  This is the sponging part.  It creates its own heat and starts activating the yeast and actually growing and rising.  When it’s ready you can tell why they call this the “sponge” method.

After 20 Minutes

After 20 minutes, take the lid off and mix in your salt and the other half of your flour.  Then you add the last of the flour and let the mixer knead it for at least 5 solid minutes on medium to high power.

When that mixer is done after 5 minutes, let the dough rest and rise until double in size.  (If you have a Bosch Mixer, put the lid on again, but don’t lock the bottom ring.)

After It’s Done Rising

When the dough is done rising, I dump it out onto a greased counter and let it rest for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, I begin shaping my dinner rolls or bread rolls or bread loaves.  (I use the same recipe for bread and dinner rolls.)

Shaping Your Dough

If your dough has just enough flour in it, the dough won’t be too sticky.  When the dough is a little sticky, I just take a little shortening and rub it between my hands so I can handle it easier.

Shortening is also what I use to grease the counter.  (You would have to decide what would work for you based on your surface to make sure you don’t ruin it.)

Let It Rise Again

When you are done shaping your dinner rolls (or bread loaves/roll), then you cover it gently with a flour sack towel.  This will keep the dough from getting crusty.

Let it rise again until double.  The length of time it takes may depend on a lot of factors within your own environment and location.

I Bake it Slow

I don’t cook my rolls and bread as hot as most recipes call for.  When I bake, I cook at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 18 minutes.  It would be beneficial for you to follow your recipe that is adjusted for your altitude and area that you live in.

Let’s say you are not happy with your baking results, try adjusting the temperature and bake it a little differently next time.

If your rising looks good and your rolls look really good before baking but you are unhappy with the results, it could become better with a little adjusting on your part.  Some stoves cook a little hotter or a little cooler, so adjust according to your needs and the results you got.  (Perhaps adding an oven thermometer will help you to know what the “actual” temperature in your oven is.)

Take Notes

Keep a notebook of your thoughts and successes or failures.  Write down what you might try next time so that when you do, you can adjust.

Keeping notes on my recipe helps me remember each time.

The Success Is In The Trying

Not quitting is the success in my book!  We all want to make delicious dinner rolls, so keep trying!  I adjusted HOW I put my ingredients together and it made ALL the difference for me!  I also adjusted the time and temperature.

Perhaps you may be using an old bag of yeast and purchasing new will make a difference for you.  Or perhaps cooking at a lower or higher temperature will help.

The key to success is to not defeat yourself but to create a plan to succeed.

Adjust.  Learn.  Change.  Grow.  Become.

We have to adjust and try again.  (And in my case, again and again, and again and again……!)

Some Tips

There are a few things I have learned along the way that has helped me:

• Keeping my yeast in the freezer in a glass quart jar has been very successful for me.  A friend taught me this trick and I have used the same yeast in the freezer for over a year without any trouble at all.  I buy a big bag of the yeast and after opening it, I keep it in the freezer in a glass jar.  (And no, the yeast doesn’t get frozen, it looks the same as when you open the bag.)
• My Bosch Mixer with lid has helped a lot with the sponge method.  (It might also be helpful that it’s not a metal bowl.)
• If you use a different type of mixer, try putting plastic wrap over it for the sponging part.
• Do NOT let your dough rise in a “warm oven”.  I used this method when I first tried to make bread and found out that it “cooked” the yeast taste into my bread.  It also didn’t work nearly as well as the sponge method.
• After mixing up the dough, if you need to leave and put it in the fridge to slow down the rising process… IT STILL RISES!!!! AND SOMETIMES RISES ENOUGH TO SPILL ALL OVER YOUR FRIDGE!!!! 😉  (Yes, I’m speaking from experience!)
•  My pizza dough is made from the same recipe as my bread dough or dinner rolls.  I don’t do the second rising.  It works really well and it is a softer thicker pizza dough, but my kids LOVE IT!  (I also use spaghetti sauce for the pizza sauce because it’s cheaper and I always have it on hand.)
• Get all your ingredients out first and put them away as you use them, so you don’t forget something.  (salt gets put away just before the flour.)

Relax and Enjoy The Process!

This took me a long time to learn, but if I know that I’m going to make dinner rolls, I plan my day accordingly and relax!  It actually relieves so much stress when you plan ahead knowing that it will take 3 hours or more, but that’s okay!

The process of kneading the dough to shape the rolls is my favorite part!  My little girls usually get in on the action and I give them their “own dough” to roll out play with which helps keep their busy little hands out of my dough!! 🙂

Happy Dinner Roll Making!

Hopefully, this technique and these tips will help you in your quest to make dinner rolls!  Hopefully, I will have a tutorial soon on exactly how I make my dinner rolls with pictures of the process!

Happy Dinner Roll Making!

Amy