Parker House Rolls are incredibly buttery and rich while being perfectly fluffy, these yeast rolls will be a stand-out at your next family dinner!
Pair these warm, fresh rolls with a Spiral Ham dinner or Herb Roasted Turkey Breast and you won’t be disappointed!
This Parker House Rolls Recipe uses a unique folding technique when making the dough into rolls that make pulling them apart effortless! Don’t worry, the technique is super easy and I laid out step-by-step instructions on how to successfully do it!
Why I Love This Parker House Roll Recipe!
- Simple Ingredients! Create bakery level rolls using ingredients you likely have on hand! No fancy ingredients here!
- Makes A Lot! This recipe provides two dozen rolls, a large amount! Perfect for Easter Dinner, big family meals, or bringing to potlucks!
- Crowd Pleaser! After just one bite into these airy rolls, they quickly become everyone’s favorite with their rich buttery flavor!
- Homemade! Homemade may scare you but they are SO worth it and SO easy to make! Maybe even easier than running to the store to pick some up!
Popular Yeast Recipes: Homemade White Bread | Pecan Sticky Buns
Ingredient Notes
There are only seven simple ingredients needed to whip up a batch of Parker House Rolls! For this recipe you’ll need:
- All-Purpose Flour – Its higher gluten level helps the yeast maintain the roll’s form.
- Instant Yeast – This is the leavening agent used in the recipe which causes the dough to rise.
- Salt – To help balance out the final flavor!
- Eggs – Provides the light, fluffy dimension to these rolls!
- Whole Milk – Once warmed, this will activate the yeast.
- Unsalted Butter – Using unsalted butter allows you better control of the taste of these rolls!
- Sugar – When the granulated sugar combines with the yeast it produces carbon dioxide, causing the dough to rise.
How To Make Parker House Rolls
- Mix together the flour, yeast, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
- Cook the milk, butter, and sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat until the temperature of the mixture reads between 125 and 130 degrees F.
- Add the milk mixture slowly to the dry ingredients in the mixer bowl followed by the eggs. Knead the dough together until it becomes smooth, elastic, and mostly pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
- Knead the dough by hand on a floured surface and then form it into a tight ball.
- Proof the dough ball in a large bowl sprayed with nonstick spray, cover, and let rise.
- Divide the dough in half on a lightly floured surface, stretching each half out, and using a rolling pin to flatten it. Brush with melted butter.
- Fold a third of the dough down toward you and then fold the bottom third of the dough over to meet the edge. Roll the dough a couple of times to seal and then form it into a log.
- Cut the log into twelve equal pieces.
- Place the rolls seam side down in a prepared pan and bake until the rolls are browned.
Proofing Tips!
The idea of proofing dough can be intimidating and even tricky, but really all you need is a warm draft-free area to place the dough. Proofing is a necessary step that allows the yeast to do its job, creating perfectly airy Parker House rolls that we all love! Here are some tips and tricks to be sure your dough properly proofs!
- The most common method is placing the dough in a greased bowl that’s been coated with nonstick cooking spray and cover it with a damp cloth.
- Some ovens have a “proof” setting so if yours does you can simply use that!
- You can create a dough-rising atmosphere by starting with a cold oven and placing the bowl of dough that’s covered with plastic wrap on the top shelf of your oven. Then place a bowl of boiling water on the bottom shelf, this will help warm the oven and allow the dough to rise!
- Another option is preheating your oven to the lowest temperature for five minutes and then shut it off. Then with the dough in an oven-safe bowl place it into the oven until it doubles in size.
- Use your crockpot! Fill it halfway with water on low heat and turn the lid upside down. Place a dishtowel on top of the lid and then place the bowl of dough onto it.
How To Store Parker House Rolls
These rolls are best served within 24 hours of baking. You can freeze them by wrapping them in plastic wrap, placing them in a freezer bag before freezing for up to 3 months.
To unthaw them, unwrap them from the plastic wrap and thaw them at room temperature. You can unthaw them quicker by preheating the oven to 200 degrees F, unwrapping the rolls, and placing them on a baking sheet to bake for about 15 minutes.
Can I Use Dry Active Yeast Instead?
Yes, you can! Just use 3 1/2 teaspoons of dry active yeast and add it to 1/3 cup of milk heated to 110 degrees F with a teaspoon of sugar and let it activate. Using dry active yeast will require up to an additional 30 minutes of proofing each time, adding about 1 1/2 hours to the total prep time.
How Can I Use This Recipe To Make Classic Dinner Rolls?
Just continue to follow the recipe as is and at the end just roll evenly portioned dough into balls, or try my classic Yeast Rolls recipe!
No matter what you’re serving for a meal there’s always a bread, roll, or biscuit to go along with it! Match another one of my bread recipes to the next dinner you plan on serving to your family!
- Perfect Yeast Rolls -Fluffy, pull-apart, dinner rolls that are incredibly buttery and tender!
- Homemade Bread – The ultimate step-by-step guide to making the best homemade white bread complete with photos and tips!
- Parmesan Garlic Bread – A quick and easy recipe that’s loaded with herbs, butter, and parmesan cheese!
- Homemade Brioche – Form this rich, delicious bread into a loaf or rolls!
- Cheddar Drop Biscuits – Savory, cheesy, biscuits that are made with cheddar and Colby jack cheese and topped with garlic butter!
Let’s Connect!
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Parker House Rolls
Ingredients
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 2¾ teaspoons instant yeast
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1¼ cups whole milk
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 3 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, mix together the flour, yeast, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, 9 tablespoons of butter, and the sugar and cook over medium-low heat until the butter melts, the sugar dissolves, and the mixture reaches a temperature between 125 and 130°F.
- With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add milk mixture to bowl followed by the eggs and mix until no dry flour remains, about 1 to 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and knead until dough is smooth, elastic, and mostly pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 6 to 8 minutes. The dough will still stick to the bottom of the bowl.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 30 seconds. Form dough into a tight ball and transfer to a large, greased bowl. Spray the top of the bread lightly with nonstick spray, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let proof in a warm place until doubled in size, 60 to 90 minutes.
- Line a 13×9-inch baking pan with two pieces of foil, overlapping foil and letting the ends hang over the long edges of the pan. Spray the foil with nonstick spray; set aside.
- Turn the ball of dough out onto a clean lightly floured counter and divide in half. Stretch each half into a 24-inch long roll and use a rolling pin to flatten it so it’s about 5 inches wide. Then brush the surface of the dough with 1 tablespoon of melted butter.
- Starting at the top long edge, fold a third of the dough down toward you. Then fold the bottom third of the dough over to meet the edge.
- Roll dough a couple of times to seal and reshape as necessary to form an even log.
- Using a sharp knife, trim 1 inch of dough off each end and discard, then cut dough into 12 equal pieces. Arrange rolls seam side down in the prepared pan in three rows of four. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough.
- Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the rolls proof in a warm place until they are about double in size, about 60 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and bake the rolls until browned and centers register 200°F, 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.
- Transfer the rolls to a wire rack using the foil for handles. Brush with the remaining tablespoon of melted butter.
Notes
- Rolls are best served within 24 hours of baking. To freeze rolls, wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, unwrap, and let thaw at room temperature. To thaw quickly, preheat the oven to 200, unwrap the rolls and place on a cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes.
- It’s VERY important that your milk mixture is between 125 and 130 degrees F because it needs to be hot enough to activate the yeast in the bowl.
- If you want, you can use an egg wash on top of the rolls for a deeper golden brown.
- You can use this dough to make classic dinner rolls by just making even portions of dough and shaping them into balls.
- Parchment paper may be used instead of foil.
- This recipe can use dry active yeast as well. You would need to use 3.5 teaspoons of dry active yeast and add it to ⅓ cup of the milk heated to 110 degrees F with a teaspoon of sugar. And let it activate for 10 to 20 minutes until foamy. The milk and sugar amounts will be reduced from the amounts in the ingredients, so you will still use the full amounts called for but they will be divided. The milk and butter mixture doesn’t need to be between 125 and 130 degrees in this case since you’re activating the yeast separately. It simply just needs to be melted and warm but not hot. Using dry active yeast will require up to an additional 30 minutes of proofing each time and will add about 1½ hours to the total prep time.
Nutrition
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