Hey guys! Today I have a recipe for some quick, weeknight dinner rolls. They are the perfect addition to many meals, and the best part is that you don’t have to plan them hours and hours ahead.
Who doesn’t love a warm, fresh dinner roll straight from the oven? I know we do, so I tried a few 30-minute dinner roll recipes (they all take me 45 minutes, hence the name of this recipe), and I came up with this. I ended up adapting the recipe from the Kitchen Meets Girl post for 30-Minute Dinner Rolls. You can make these as a side for a hearty meal, or shape them into hamburger buns for burgers, pulled pork, or other sandwiches. Try them with my Roasted Red Pepper Soup, or to make a sandwich from the Grilled Teriyaki Chicken or the Pesto & Goat Cheese Chicken.
This recipe is pretty straightforward and should be easy to tackle, even for the bread-making novices out there. You start like you do with many bread recipes – with water, oil, sugar, and yeast in a bowl. The difference here is that you let the yeast rest in the water mixture for 15 minutes (long enough for it to get very very foamy).
↑ BEFORE – Yeast/Water Mixture ↑
↑ AFTER – Yeast/Water Mixture (15 minutes later) ↑
Then you just mix the bread, either by hand or with a large stand mixer. Shape, let rest 10 minutes and then bake 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the roll you’ve made. Oh and a note on the size of the rolls – if you are shaping the rolls into dinner rolls, make no less than a dozen or you will end up with massive rolls. If you are shaping them into hamburger buns, I have found that a dozen rolls is perfect for a decent-sized pulled pork sandwich or a quarter pound burger. If you make burgers that are a third pound or bigger, then 8 rolls might be more appropriate. The ones in these photos are the size they’ll be if you make 8 rolls (just a little too big for most things). Happy eating!
Print45-Minute Dinner Rolls
SODIUM COUNT: 6.7 mg per serving; 79.8 mg in the entire recipe
Mix these quick weeknight dinner rolls by hand or using your stand mixer.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 2 Tbsp warm water ((110°F to 115°F))
- ⅓ cup oil
- 2 Tbsp active dry yeast
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 large egg
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour ((bread flour will work too))
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a medium bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer if you are using one), combine the water, oil, yeast, and sugar. Let rest for 15 minutes or until very foamy.
- Stir in the egg and 2 cups of the flour by hand. If you are using a stand mixer, put the bowl into the stand mixer after you’ve mixed these in by hand and begin using the dough hook.
- Add the remaining flour, ½ cup at a time, until all the flour is incorporated and a dough has formed.
- Shape the dough into 12 equal rolls (flatten slightly for hamburger buns), and place on a sheet pan. Let the rolls rest for 10 minutes.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes in the preheated oven until they are golden brown.
Notes
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION – Yield: 12 servings
Sodium: 6.7 mg, Calories: 207.1, Total Fat: 6.9 g, Saturated Fat: 0.6 g, Cholesterol: 15.5 mg, Carbohydrates: 31.7 g, Fiber: 1.3 g, Sugar: 3.1 g, Protein: 4.3 g.
We just made the dinner rolls. This was so easy and they turned out delicious.
We are so excited to have buns for burgers and sandwiches with low sodium :)))
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I am so glad that these worked for you! It is so nice to have a quick option for a burger/sandwich bun.
I am still jumping up and down . Those rolls were fabulous. My husband is on a sodium restricted diet, I’ve bought cookbooks , tried their roll and sandwich bun recipes, but THESE ARE THE CREME DE LA CREME!!! Absolutely wonderful. Thank you so much.
I am so glad to hear that you liked them! I think the fact that they are quick makes them even better. 🙂
I am on a weight loss program. Do you think the recipes turn out the same if I replace the sugar with splenda, or use half sugar/half splenda?-Thanks!
That is a great question. I haven’t tested it with Splenda, so I am not sure how it would work. The sugar reacts with the yeast to help it act faster than it would without sugar, so if you were to eliminate or reduce the sugar in these rolls, they would probably take a bit longer than 45 minutes. If I were aiming to reduce the sugar, I would probably start by cutting the sugar in half (and NOT replacing it with Splenda). I think they will taste fine without the extra sweetness, and you’d still get a little reaction from the sugar. Good luck!
I’m not a professional but the best I know the yeast eats the sugar and converts it to energy… so the sugar is turned into carbon dioxide and really isn’t the same as adding sugar into a recipe. the fermentation is due to the yeast/sugar combo… Plus, carbs are more likely coming from the flour in this recipe anyway. you could always mill whole wheat kernels and add in some ground flax to make it more diet friendly.
Thank you so soooooo much for this quick and easy roll recipe. I just made them last night and they were quick, easy and delish! I will be using them for much more than a dinner roll as I am on a super low sodium diet for my heart and am gathering all the help I can get.
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I am really happy to hear that you liked these rolls! I love having a quick low sodium option for sandwiches, burgers, or just a dinner roll, so I’m super glad these worked out well for you. 🙂
Thank you so much for this! This was my first time ever making bread and it was easy, quick, and came out perfectly (I used 2 cups of whole wheat flour and organic all purpose flour for the rest). I just can’t understand why companies jumped on the gluten free train so quickly when heart disease is still the number 1 cause of death everywhere. There are just not enough organic/healthy low sodium/ sodium free items available at grocery stores, yet there’s a huge gluten free selection everywhere. Everything is excessively loaded with salt when it’s common sense that anyone can add more salt to their own food if they please, no need to sell everything containing so much sodium already.
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Btw this made 10 perfectly sized hamburger buns and tasted fantastic with a vegan Beyond Burger patty. I highly recommend for everyone to give them a try. These gmo-free burgers taste & smell just like real meat burgers, minus the cholesterol and poison of red meat (but they contain the same amount of protein & iron).
Glad that these worked for you! Ten rolls for hamburger-sized buns sounds exactly right. Thanks for the feedback and good luck in the kitchen. 🙂
I don’t want to get into politics but…
Chicken for example. If you pay $2 per pound for 10 lbs of chicken and it has been pumped with 15% sodium solution that means you are getting 8.5 lbs of chicken and 1.5 lbs of salt water. That also means you are paying $2 per lb for the salt water or in this case $3. Salt water is the cheapest thing on the face of the earth. It adds up to a major profit margin for the chicken producers. The reason so much sodium is in other food is to make people addicted to the foods. If people switch to low (normal) sodium the food tastes bland until they get used to it which they typically don’t have the patience for so they go back to the high sodium crap. But then along came Kathy to change all that. Thank goodness. I can’t wait to try ALL of her recipes.
would you recommend using splenda in place of sugar as we are type 2 diabetic also…?
I haven’t tested it with anything other than sugar, so I can’t be sure, but I don’t think Splenda would be a good option here. The sugar reacts with the yeast and helps wake it up. Since you wouldn’t get the same reaction with Splenda, I am not sure that the yeast would rise quick enough to work for 45 min dinner rolls.
Best,
Kathy
Thank you so much for sharing all of your wonderful recipes. I made these rolls yesterday and they were delicious. I also made the BBQ sauce to use with brisket. It was sooo good. Your site is a real find with great recipes, tips and info on sneaky sodium. I can’t wait to try more recipes. Again thanks for sharing .
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Thanks so much for the feedback! I am glad that you’ve enjoyed the recipes.
I’m new to low sodium cooking and I’m confused on the sodium count for this recipe. The flour I have says 3 gm of sodium in a cup. The recipe calls for 3 1/2 cups which would be 10.5mg of Sodium from the flour in this recipe. Where does the remaining sodium count come from to make this recipe 79.8mg of sodium?
Hi there. The egg has about 70 mg sodium.
Thanks!! Made these, substituted one cup of whole wheat flour for a cup of the all purpose flour. They turned out great! I made some into buns and some into dinner rolls, both were delish!
So glad you liked them! I haven’t made them with wheat flour and now I am wondering why not. That would be great.
Did you mean 2 teaspoons of yeast, instead of tablespoons? That’s a lot of yeast, considering there’s only 3 1/2 c flour, even with no salt. I’d like to try these but will hold off till your reply. Thanks!
We used your Chicken Herb Rub to roast a chicken last weekend. Delicious!
Two tablespoons is correct. It is definitely a lot of yeast for that much flour, but these always turn out well for me.
I’m so glad to hear you liked that spice rub. We always keep it on hand and sometimes I toss a little in chicken soup or even gravy.
Thanks! We’ll try it that way first.
We used the pan juices and made gravy for later meals if the roast chicken. Yum.
I like your meal-prep plan too. The meatballs and shawarma recipe are things we’d enjoy, plus the 45-minute rolls, probably for slider buns, the size we like these days.
I have NEVER made bread of any kind and these were easy, turned out GREAT and they were AMAZING!! Thank you so much for sharing!!
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Can I just say, so good and easy to make even for a bread novice like me! Love it!!
I have just started on a low sodium diet due to medical reasons, and your blog has been just a bundle of joy and blessing to my journey so far!
So glad to hear!! Thanks for the kind words.
I recently came across this recipie and tried it for my mother who is on low sodium diet. They are awesome!! It great to have a roll that isn’t loaded with sodium! They were a big hit! Thanks so much for sharing!
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So happy to hear that these worked out for you!
Amazing recipe, *exactly* what I was looking for, thank you! Any idea what adjustments in liquid/flour (if any) I would need to make if adding in, say, 1/4 cup of chopped garlic/shallot/jalapeño mix for a more savory roll? I’m all for experimenting, just don’t want to screw up a batch of these delicious rolls if I can help it! 🙂
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So glad you like it! I think 1/4 cup sounds like a good place to start. I’ve not tried to add anything to these rolls, so I’d be interested to know how they turn out. Good luck!
I am too! So I actually ended up adding in a total of roughly 3/4 cup finely minced veggies, and I’m happy to say it worked just fine with no other adjustments!
I think the fact that all three veggies I used have a high water content helped offset any dryness.
Also, this was actually my fourth time making the recipe in the last week or so haha, and it’s honestly so, so great to know that I can have fresh bread in about a half hour! I also did a honey butter version (1/4 C each honey and butter) that was *de*licious!
Thanks so much for the update! I’ll have to try switching things up one of these days. 🙂
Did you remove other liquids or add more flour for the honey butter rolls? Did you melt the butter?
Thank you! These are amazing and so very easy. I was wondering if you thought it would be ok to substitute butter for the vegetable oil. I thought it might give it a bit of a different flavor. 😁
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I haven’t tested it, but I think that softened or melted butter would work fine. And you’re right – it would probably give them a bit more depth of flavor.
I tried the melted butter as a substitute. The only problem I’ve run into is that now my family won’t use any other buns. Lol You were right about it giving more depth of flavor. Thanks a ton for this recipe!
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Good thing they are so easy!!
Kathy,
I have just finished baking your ’45 Minute rolls- What a joy to make. I made them just as they are written – I had one of my kidney’s removed due to cancer 3 years ago. I have been looking for such a roll I could eat- just imagine, no salt ! I’m so excited , Thank you very much!
glassy~
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So glad to hear! Thanks for the kind words.
Kathy,
I wanted to let you know the rolls are delicious – I can’t believe that a roll would taste so good without salt.
I made different sizes – made one 6 inches long. About 6 of them are of ‘roll’ size and the rest are varied sizes.
I am 80 years old – but I feel like a kid again, I’m so happy.
I’ve told everybody about them. Thanks again.
glassy~
We have been living without rolls/ and bread because of the sodium. Thank you for posting this . They are sooo yummy and with hubby being a heart patient, sodium is a no-no. We can enjoy without feeling guilty,
Rhonda
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Hi
This recipe looks perfect with no salt, but I have a dietary restriction, would it be possible to substitute the egg with egg whites and what would be the weight of the egg white to use if it can be substituted?
Really hope to be able to try it! Thanks!
I haven’t tested it with egg whites I I can’t guarantee results, but I believe it would work just fine. Egg whites have more sodium than egg yolks, so you’ll want to figure that in since it’ll increase the sodium a bit. I believe it’ll increase the sodium by roughly 40-50 mg in the whole batch.
I’ve been making them without eggs for a few months now, just adding in 2 tablespoons more water, and they turn out great every time!
Could you substitute mixing ground flaxseed meal with a few tablespoons warm water in place of the egg? The pkg of ground flaxseed meal gives the proportions and directions (Bob’s Red Mill brand.) Hope this helps.
These sound delicious, however it will take me a week to eat 12 rolls. Do you have any suggestions on how to store leftovers for a later meal? Can I freeze them then thaw and reheat?
I haven’t tried it, but I suspect that these would not freeze very well. They tend to get dry/crumbly a bit faster than other bread, a problem which would be made worse by freezing. My recipe for “Favorite White Bread” freezes well as loaves. I believe it would freeze okay as rolls as well. If you wanted to give it a try, you’d halve that recipe to make 10-12 rolls.
I have tried the bread recipe but it comes out with a very coarse texture and dries out very quickly. Any suggestions?
I don’t have a problem with the dinner rolls.
I just make dried bread crumbs with the part that becomes too dry.
I have made these rolls and frozen them. They do fine in the freezer. You can just set one out to thaw or I it one in the microwave for 30 and it’s all thawed out. I love them.
I cut this recipe in half to make 6 rolls. Works great.
I love these are so quick to make! Can the sugar in these be cut back any? I wasn’t sure if it would interfere with the rising process. Mine came out a little dense. I used my stand mixer and I don’t know if I mixed them too much or not enough lol.
I believe that you could cut back on the sugar a bit without it affecting them too much. I’m not sure why yours would have been dense. Maybe if you try to let them rise just a bit longer on the pan it would help. Good luck!
What kind of oil do I use?
Any neutral oil is fine. I usually use vegetable oil.
These are so good. Am working my way through your recipe collection. Thank you and hubby on sodium restriction really thanks you.
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I have been on a weight loss journey for the past 2 years. A medical condition resulted in me having to change my food choices to very low sodium. I was feeling deprived of some of my favorite things. I an so grateful that I found this site. I made the dinner rolls this morning to use as hamburger buns. WOW! Game changer! Soft, moist, pretty close to the real thing. AND well within any sodium challenge.
I’m also planning to try some of your other breads too. Haven’t had time to explore more yet but I’m looking forward to seeing what else you have here.
Thanks again!!!
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So glad you liked the hamburger buns! I hope you’re able to find some other recipes you love here.
Just wanted to let you know that to prevent drying out I put the leftover rolls in the refrigerator in an airtight container. When I took them out to use I reheated them in the oven for a few minutes. I did the same with the bread for sandwiches. About 15 seconds in the microwave did the trick.
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Made a second batch of my own rye version of these today. Amazing!!!
I was just wondering if you think I could substitute pineapple juice for the water to mimic the flavor of Hawaiian Rolls? Also wondering if anyone has used this dough to make cinnamon rolls.
I’m also gonna try making these into garlic knots at some point in time.
Thanks again for the inspiration.
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Hi there. I am so glad you like this recipe! I have never used this dough for cinnamon rolls, so I can’t speak to that. It would probably work, but the texture would be different than my Cinnamon Rolls recipe. As for using pineapple juice, that is a great question. I have never tried that, but I suspect it would work. You may want to cut back on the sugar so that they aren’t overly sweet. Also, I have read that pineapple juice might inhibit the yeast a bit, so they make take a little longer to rise. I would still expect them to be much quicker than a traditional bread recipe. Best of luck!
Wow, thanks for the recipe! These are the best buns, looking like store-bought, but taste better, are waaay more healthy (I don’t miss the lack of salt). Ridiculously easy/quick to make, since discovering your awesome recipe I make a batch every other week (successfully freezing leftovers).
I love how satisfying it feels to gradually mix in the last cup of flour by hand until it’s not too sticky/not too dry. Not liking a sweet bun, I’ve successfully decreased sugar to 1 1/2 tablespoons, and use (more healthy) 100% pure avocado oil. However, when I make them later today (keep flour in the fridge, need it, and the egg, to come to room temp.), I’ll switch it up today. Maybe use melted grass-fed butter instead of oil for one batch, and experiment with a savory 2nd batch (adding 3/4 c. finely grated cheddar/tsp. garlic powder, or maybe EVOO/parmesan/Italian spices…haven’t decided), since these freeze so well.
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I have made these into rye rolls, onion rolls and the latest, cranberry pecan rolls (great for leftover turkey sandwiches).
I agree they are AWESOME! I bake them a couple of times every week.
How would you change the recipe to use Instant or Ready Rise yeast instead of active dry yeast?
FYI: These are so fast and easy you probably don’t need fast rise yeast.
Sorry, I am not sure whether quick yeast would work. Best of luck!
Hi can I use olive oil for this recipe?
I’ve only ever used olive oil, so yes! I’ve made variations of this recipe at least 40 times in the last 3 years, and I’ve successfully subbed honey for sugar, taken out the egg entirely, and added in herbs/additional spices and still come out with delicious bread!
Hi me again the other oil might be avacodo oil. Would that qork for this recipe? I’m just trying to find a healthier oil to use.
Thanks for posting this recipe, it is so easy and quick to make. I brush with egg and put Dash everything seasoning to add a little flavor
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This was an easy recipe. When paired with a low sodium “pulled pork” with really flavorful low sodium broth the family was ecstatic!
I did find them dense even without adding the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. Has anyone experimented with less flour or more water to lighten up the texture. I really don’t think I could have incorporated all of the flour despite really working the dough.
Thanks for the great site, and great recipes. They are GOOD!
This seems like such a good idea: ditch the problematic baking soda or powder and just lean into the yeast! I made my first batch “as is” (always good practice with a new recipe 🙂 for burgers and they were great – consistency is almost biscuit-like. Now I can hardly wait to tinker and spice things up!
Hubby still grumbles that my low sodium need makes some things bland, but I need to do it for my bones (yup, there are a LOT of reasons to go low sodium, aren’t there?). I miss not worrying about what bread and cheese I eat SO much, getting some of that back is a huge thank you!!
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I’ve found a way to add some flavor to these without adding sodium: Add 2-3 tablespoons of dried minced onion. It works great and no other changes are needed.
I also use instant yeast. I use the same amount and mix it up in the mixer bowl as directed, but without the 10-minute rest at the beginning. I wait a couple minutes until I see a bubble or 2, then proceed with the recipe.
Thanks for making sandwiches possible!
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Thanks for sharing these tips!