Big Fluffy Pan Dinner Rolls

Big Fluffy Pan Dinner Rolls are easy to make with ingredients found in your pantry!

Can you just smell them coming from the oven? Big Fluffy Pan Rolls are made with simple ingredients to make a large panful of soft, irresistible rolls just waiting to be pulled apart and spread with butter. Simple ingredients, simple steps, and a heaping pan of warm love straight from your oven. 

ingredients for big fluffy pan dinner rolls

We love a good pantry-friendly recipe, and the ingredients for these rolls are probably in your kitchen right now:

• Milk
• Butter
• Sugar
• Salt
• yeast
• All-purpose flour

This straightforward recipe is perfect for teaching a beginning baker how to work with yeast dough to make soft homemade rolls from scratch. Our Big Fluffy Pan Dinner Rolls recipe is adapted from the baker’s recipe at King Arthur Flour.

Step by step instructions for making rolls

1. Mix ingredients together with just enough flour to make a “shaggy” dough.
2. Add flour a little at a time until the dough forms a smooth ball, then knead. 
3. Let the dough rise (see our best tips below for raising dough).
4. Cut in a grid pattern.
5. Shape the rolls and place them on a baking sheet. 
6. Let the rolls rise until large and rounded.
7. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown.

How do you know if your yeast is still good?

Place a small amount of yeast in water heated to 100-115 degrees. Add a pinch of sugar and wait 5-7 minutes. If the yeast begins to bubble and foam, it’s good. Store yeast in the refrigerator or freezer to keep fresh longer. 

How do you make rolls the same size?

Roll the dough into a 8×12-inch rectangle. Cut the dough into 4 long strips and then cut the strips into 6 pieces, creating a 24-piece grid. The rolls should be fairly even in size, but as you shape the rolls, go ahead and “borrow” some dough from a larger piece if needed. 

ABK’s tips for raising dough

The ideal temperature for raising bread dough is 75-82 degrees. This simple trick is great for all yeast dough recipes: Fill a bowl with 2 cups of water and microwave for 2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the microwave and place the bowl of bread dough in the microwave to rise. Heating the water creates an ideal temperature in your microwave for raising dough. 

Once the dough is formed and on a baking sheet, avoid placing the pan directly on a cold countertop. The pan can be placed in an oven with the light on, or in an oven that has been warmed by turning the oven on and then off after a few minutes, or on a dishcloth by a sunny window. 

How do you freeze rolls to bake later?

Making rolls ahead of time helps take the stress out of preparing a meal. Follow this recipe until the rolls are shaped. Let them rise for about 10 minutes, then cover tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 4 weeks. When ready to bake, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then unwrap, rise, and bake as directed. 

A quote from Si:

“These rolls remind me of the soft, delicious rolls served at the annual Thanksgiving lunch at my school– simply irresistible! I’m a bread person through and through, and I love the simplicity of this recipe. The dough is shaped in your hand, and one recipe makes enough to feed a crowd!”

We at A Bountiful Kitchen love making rolls as much as we love eating them! Here are more favorite recipes to try: Easy Homemade Maddox Ranch Rolls, Cheese and Onion Rolls, and Parker House Rolls. Thank you for reading ABK!

Originally posted November 2015, updated with new content and photos.