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Home » Recipes » Breads and muffins

Published: Feb 23, 2023 by Cynthia Christensen · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

No Knead Crusty Rolls

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These No Knead Crusty Rolls are crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. They are perfect with butter, jam, meat and cheese, or dipped in soups and stews!

baked crusty rolls with a knife and butter.

These No Knead Crusty Rolls remind me of the rolls I used to get at the grocery store when my kids were little. They came in a bag and you had to brown them in the oven. We would tear into them as soon as they came out of the oven (so hot!), schmear them with butter, and dip them into whatever soup or stew was on the menu that day.

It never even occurred to me to recreate them until I posted an Instagram Reel of my No Knead Bread. Not only did that reel get tens of thousands of views, dozens of people messaged me asking if I could make rolls with them. Yeah I can!

Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • Substitutions
  • Variations
  • Instructions
  • Expert tip: getting a crispy crust
  • Recipe FAQ's
  • More yeast bread recipes
  • No Knead Crusty Rolls

Ingredients

Nothing special here. Just flour, kosher salt, yeast, and water. Easy peasy.

Ingredients for no-knead bread.

See recipe card for quantities.

Substitutions

With so few ingredients, there aren't many ways to substitute, but here are a few.

  • Bread flour - You can substitute with an equal amount of all-purpose flour. It won't have the same chewiness as bread flour, but most people don't really notice the difference.
  • Instant yeast - If you only have, or prefer to use, active dry yeast, you can use an equal amount in this recipe. It does need to be proofed first, so place your yeast in the warm water and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes. If it foams up, it's good to go. Add the yeasty water to your dry ingredients and carry on.
  • Kosher salt - Whenever I call for salt, I always mean kosher salt. Specifically, I mean Diamond crystal kosher salt. If you want to use sea salt, or another brand of kosher salt, I would recommend using 1 ½ teaspoons, instead of the 2 teaspoons the recipe calls for. If using table salt, use half the amount, or 1 teaspoon.

Variations

Like my no-knead bread, you can play around with the flavors of your bread a little bit. Here are a few I've tried.

  • Seeded rye - add ¾ cup (90 grams) dark rye flour to 2 ¼  cups (270 grams) of bread flour. Add 2 tablespoons each of sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds, and 1 tablespoon of caraway seeds. You can use any other blend of seeds and nuts, not to exceed ½ cup total. Rise, shape rolls, and bake as directed in the recipe card.
  • Sesame - add one tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds and one tablespoon of sesame oil to the dough. Before baking, brush the top of the rolls with just enough water to help a quick sprinkle of untoasted sesame seeds to adhere. Rise, shape rolls, and bake as directed in the recipe card.

Instructions

Just 5 minutes the night before and about 15 minutes to shape the rolls before baking? Doesn't get much easier than that!

adding water to dry no knead bread ingredients.

1. Add warm water to flour, kosher salt, and yeast.

mixing no knead dough.

2. Use spatula, wooden spoon, or danish dough whisk to mix into a shaggy, sticky dough. Cover with plastic and let sit in a warm spot in your kitchen for 12 to 18 hours.

scraping dough onto counyertop.

3. Flour your counter lightly and turn the dough out of the bowl.

folding edges of dough over themselves to form a large dough ball.

4. Flour the top of the dough lightly. Using your floured hands, or a bench scraper, bring each of the edges over the center to form a ball. Turn seam side down on the counter.

using a bench scraper to cut dough into six pieces.

5. Cut dough into 6 to 8 pieces, depending on how many rolls you want. I usually go for 6 larger rolls.

weighing a doughball on a scale.

6. I prefer to weigh my dough and then divide into equal pieces, to ensure even baking, but you can eyeball it too.

pulling up sides of a piece of dough to form a ball.

7. Flatten a dough piece on your counter and bring all the outside edges together like a drawstring purse. Turn seam side down on the counter.

rolling dough in my cupped hand to form a round dough ball.

8. Using your cupped hand, apply gentle downward pressure, and a circular motion, on the counter to shape your dough piece into a ball. This works best if that area of the counter is free of flour.

using a bread lame to slash a dough ball before baking.

9. If desired, use a sharp knife, or a bread lame or razor, to slash each dough ball on top. This helps to direct the roll where to expand when baking. Dust the top of the balls lightly with flour and cover with plastic wrap. Preheat oven to 500°F while the dough rests for about 45 minutes.

placing slashed dough balls on a piece of parchment paper placed on the back of a sheet pan.

10. Place balls on a piece of parchment paper that has been placed on the back (bottom) of a large sheet pan. Place in oven and turn temperature down to 450°F. bake for 16 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

crusty rolls on a wire rack with one cut open and buttered.

Allow to cool for a bit and then schmear with a little butter, or whatever you like, and enjoy!

Expert tip: getting a crispy crust

Professional bakeries use something called a steam injected oven to give their artisan loaves a crispy crust. When we bake my No-Knead Bread, we use a preheated dutch oven with a lid. This allows the pot to hold in steam, which helps to develop the crispiness that we're looking for.

Since I want steam for these rolls, but can't fit all of them in my dutch oven, I produce my own steam by pouring water into a large pan set on the bottom rack of my oven. I let the water preheat along with the oven. When you put in your rolls, that pan will produce the steam you need to get the best crusty rolls ever!

pouring hot water into pan in the oven.

Recipe FAQ's

Can I freeze these rolls?

Yes, you can freeze them both before and after baking.

To freeze before baking, place shaped rolls on a sheet pan in the freezer until firm and then transfer to a zip top bag and freeze for up to a month. To bake, place desired number of rolls in the refrigerator to thaw at least 8 hours. Allow to come to room temperature while you preheat the oven for at least 30 minutes. Bake as directed.

To freeze after baking, place on a sheet pan in the oven until firm and then transfer to a zip top bag and freeze for up to a month. Allow to thaw on the counter and crisp up in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes.

How should I store leftover rolls?

In the unlikely scenario that you have leftover bread (?) wrap the rolls in a clean kitchen towel and place in a plastic bag that you leave open. If you close it tightly the bread will retain too much moisture, making the crust too soft to crisp up when reheating.

How should I reheat rolls?

Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the rolls directly on the oven rack for about 10 minutes, or until the crust feels crispy again.

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Did you try this recipe? Tell me all about it!
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baked crusty rolls with a knife and butter.

No Knead Crusty Rolls

These No Knead Crusty Rolls are crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. They are perfect with butter, jam, meat and cheese, or dipped in soups and stews!
5 from 9 votes
Author: Cynthia
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Rising time 18 hours hrs
Total Time 18 hours hrs 40 minutes mins
Course Bread
Cuisine American
Servings 8 rolls
Calories 174 kcal

Equipment

  • Danish dough whisk
  • 13X9 pan
  • Bench scraper
  • Parchment paper
  • Large sheet pan

Ingredients
 

  • 3 cups (360 g) bread flour
  • 1 teaspoon instant yeast
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 ¼ cup (300 g) warm water about 105° to 110°F

Instructions

Mixing the dough

  • Place flour in a large bowl. Add yeast and salt and whisk together. Make a well in the center and stir in water using a large sturdy spoon or a danish dough whisk, Mix together until all the flour is incorporated. The dough will be very sticky and wet. This is normal. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm spot in your kitchen for 12-18 hours.

Prep your oven

  • Place one rack at the lowest level of your oven and the other a few levels above that. Place a large pan (a 13X9 pan is ideal) on the lowest rack and fill halfway with water.

Shape your rolls

  • Flour your counter lightly and turn the dough out of the bowl. Flouring your hands, or a bench scraper, lift one edge of the dough and gently fold it over to its opposite side (Gently, so you don’t press all the air out). Repeat so that all four sides of the dough have been folded over. Turn seam side down on the counter.
  • Using your bench scraper, divide the dough into 6 or 8 pieces, depending on how many rolls you want. I usually opt for 6, because I like big bread.
  • Flatten a dough piece on your counter and pinch all the edges together like a drawstring purse. Place back on the counter, seam side down. Roll the dough in your cupped hand, using a circular motion, pressing down lightly, until it forms a neat ball. Set aside on your floured counter and repeat with the rest of the dough.
  • If desired, use a very sharp knife, or a bread lame or razor, to make score marks across the top of each dough ball about ¼ deep. Dust the top of your dough balls lightly with flour and cover with plastic. Preheat your oven to 500°F and allow your dough balls to rest for about 45 minutes.

Bake your rolls

  • Place the dough balls on a piece of parchment paper that has been laid on the back of a large sheet pan. Place in the oven and immediately turn the oven down to 450°F. Bake for 16 to 20 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown.
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit before tearing one open and schmearing it with butter.

Notes

  • All-purpose flour is a good substitute if you don’t have bread flour.
  • If you don’t have instant yeast you can use active dry yeast. Just make sure to proof the yeast in your warm water for 5 to 10 minutes first. If it foams up, your yeast is good and ready to use. Add the yeast liquid to your dry ingredients and continue as written.
  • Allow the pan of water to cool completely before carefully removing and discarding the water.


Nutrition

Calories: 174kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 585mg | Potassium: 61mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 0.1g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 0.5mg

The nutritional and caloric information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It does not assert or suggest that readers should or should not count calories, and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s or doctor’s counseling.

Tried this recipe?Mention @butfirst_webrunch or tag #butfirstwebrunch!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Diane says

    March 23, 2023 at 1:33 pm

    You don't say how large your Dutch oven is. Would you be able to fit these in a 6.5 qt Dutch oven. Thank you

    Reply
    • Cynthia says

      March 23, 2023 at 1:56 pm

      I don’t tell you what size Dutch oven because the recipe does not call for using a Dutch oven. I recommend placing the dough balls on a piece of parchment paper and baking them on the back of a large sheet pan. I suppose you could cook them in a Dutch oven, but the sides of the rolls will be touching and they will be soft around the edges because of that.

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Cynthia! In our house, we get up with the sun and most of us don't stop working until late in the night, so breakfast and brunch are our family meals. So join me at the kitchen counter, where I cook up delicious food for my busy family, starting first thing in the morning!

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