Make-Way-Ahead Dinner Rolls
By Andrea GearyPublished on October 3, 2022
Time
2 hours, plus 3 to 3¼ hours rising, cooling, and freezing
Yield
Makes 16 rolls
Ingredients
Flour Paste
½ cup water 3 tablespoons bread flourDough
¾ cup milk, chilled2⅔ cups (14⅔ ounces/416 grams) bread flour 1 large egg 2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast 2 tablespoons sugar 1¼ teaspoons table salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened Vegetable oil sprayBefore You Begin
We strongly recommend weighing the flour for this recipe. If you prefer, portion the dough by weight in step 5 (1¾ ounces per roll). The parbaked rolls are delicate, so don’t handle them until they’re fully frozen. To prevent the rolls from touching as they expand in the oven, use a baking sheet that is at least 18 by 13 inches. This recipe can be easily doubled, but you’ll need enough freezer space for two baking sheets. For the second bake, a toaster oven works well if you’re serving fewer than six rolls.
Instructions
- Whisk ½ cup water and 3 tablespoons bread flour in small bowl until no lumps remain. Microwave, whisking every 20 seconds, until mixture thickens to stiff, pasty consistency, 40 to 80 seconds.
- In bowl of stand mixer, whisk flour paste and ¾ cup chilled milk until smooth. Add 14⅔ ounces bread flour, 1 large egg, and 2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast. Fit mixer with dough hook and mix on low speed until all flour is moistened, 1 to 2 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes.
- Add 2 tablespoons sugar and 1¼ teaspoons table salt and mix on medium-low speed for 5 minutes. With mixer running, add 2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue to mix on medium-low speed until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes longer.
- Transfer dough to lightly floured counter. Knead briefly to form ball and transfer, seam side down, to lightly greased bowl; coat surface of dough lightly with oil spray and cover. Let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
- Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Press dough to expel air, then transfer dough to counter. Pat into 8-inch square of even thickness.
- Using bench scraper or chef’s knife, cut dough into 16 equal pieces (4 rows by 4 rows). Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, form dough into smooth, taut balls. (To round, set piece of dough on unfloured counter. Loosely cup your lightly floured hand around dough and, without applying pressure to dough, move your hand in small circular motions. Tackiness of dough against counter and circular motion should work dough into smooth ball.)
- Arrange dough balls seam side down on prepared sheet, placing 5 balls down each long side and 6 down center. Cover and let rise until almost doubled in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour. When rolls are almost doubled in size, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees.
- Bake until rolls are risen and register 170 to 175 degrees, 14 to 16 minutes (rolls will have little to no color). Transfer sheet to wire rack and let cool completely, 30 to 45 minutes (rolls will wrinkle slightly).
- Transfer sheet to freezer and freeze rolls until solid, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer rolls to zipperlock bag and freeze for up to 6 weeks.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange desired number of frozen rolls on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until deep golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer rolls to wire rack and let cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.
for the flour paste
for the dough
to serve
Time
2 hours, plus 3 to 3¼ hours rising, cooling, and freezingYield
Makes 16 rollsIngredients
Flour Paste
Dough
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Flour Paste
Dough
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Flour Paste
Dough
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Warm dinner rolls make even the simplest meal special, but baking fresh bread on demand isn’t practical. Brown-and-serve rolls—parbaked buns that can go from the freezer to the oven to the plate in less than 15 minutes—are the solution. Ours are an improvement over traditional recipes because we included a cooked flour paste commonly called by its Chinese name (though it originated in Japan), tangzhong, which added extra moisture to the dough, making the rolls especially moist and light. We baked the rolls at 300 degrees until they rose and set but had no color at all. Because they were very delicate in their freshly parbaked state, we cooled them and then froze them still on their baking sheet. Once they were firm, they went into a zipper-lock bag to be frozen for up to six weeks. To serve, we simply placed the desired number of frozen rolls on a baking sheet and baked them in a very hot oven (or a toaster oven), where the insides of the rolls thawed and softened while the outsides browned, providing all the flavor, texture, and aroma of freshly baked bread.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
We strongly recommend weighing the flour for this recipe. If you prefer, portion the dough by weight in step 5 (1¾ ounces per roll). The parbaked rolls are delicate, so don’t handle them until they’re fully frozen. To prevent the rolls from touching as they expand in the oven, use a baking sheet that is at least 18 by 13 inches. This recipe can be easily doubled, but you’ll need enough freezer space for two baking sheets. For the second bake, a toaster oven works well if you’re serving fewer than six rolls.
Instructions
- Whisk ½ cup water and 3 tablespoons bread flour in small bowl until no lumps remain. Microwave, whisking every 20 seconds, until mixture thickens to stiff, pasty consistency, 40 to 80 seconds.
- In bowl of stand mixer, whisk flour paste and ¾ cup chilled milk until smooth. Add 14⅔ ounces bread flour, 1 large egg, and 2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast. Fit mixer with dough hook and mix on low speed until all flour is moistened, 1 to 2 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes.
- Add 2 tablespoons sugar and 1¼ teaspoons table salt and mix on medium-low speed for 5 minutes. With mixer running, add 2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue to mix on medium-low speed until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes longer.
- Transfer dough to lightly floured counter. Knead briefly to form ball and transfer, seam side down, to lightly greased bowl; coat surface of dough lightly with oil spray and cover. Let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
- Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Press dough to expel air, then transfer dough to counter. Pat into 8-inch square of even thickness.
- Using bench scraper or chef’s knife, cut dough into 16 equal pieces (4 rows by 4 rows). Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, form dough into smooth, taut balls. (To round, set piece of dough on unfloured counter. Loosely cup your lightly floured hand around dough and, without applying pressure to dough, move your hand in small circular motions. Tackiness of dough against counter and circular motion should work dough into smooth ball.)
- Arrange dough balls seam side down on prepared sheet, placing 5 balls down each long side and 6 down center. Cover and let rise until almost doubled in size, 45 minutes to 1 hour. When rolls are almost doubled in size, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees.
- Bake until rolls are risen and register 170 to 175 degrees, 14 to 16 minutes (rolls will have little to no color). Transfer sheet to wire rack and let cool completely, 30 to 45 minutes (rolls will wrinkle slightly).
- Transfer sheet to freezer and freeze rolls until solid, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer rolls to zipperlock bag and freeze for up to 6 weeks.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange desired number of frozen rolls on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until deep golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer rolls to wire rack and let cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.
for the flour paste
for the dough
to serve
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