Gluten Free Dairy Free Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe
Updated Mar 30, 2026, Published Nov 18, 2011
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Soft, Fluffy, and Finally Worth the Effort
Let’s be honest, finding truly soft gluten-free dinner rolls can feel like chasing a unicorn. Too often, they’re dense, crumbly, or just not quite satisfying. That’s exactly why this recipe is such a game-changer.
These rolls are everything you’ve been missing: light, tender, slightly sweet, and perfectly fluffy—even without gluten or dairy. And yes, they actually taste like the classic dinner rolls you remember.
Table of Contents
- Soft, Fluffy, and Finally Worth the Effort
- Why These Gluten-Free Rolls Actually Work
- A Balanced, Tried-and-Tested Approach
- Why You’ll Love These Dinner Rolls
- What You’ll Need
- The Secret to Soft Gluten-Free Bread
- Tips for Perfect Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls
- Make-Ahead Friendly (A Holiday Lifesaver)
- When to Serve These Rolls
- The Last Bite
- Gluten Free Dairy Free Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe
Why These Gluten-Free Rolls Actually Work
The Texture Everyone Misses
Traditional rolls rely on gluten to create structure and softness. Without it, things can fall apart, literally. That’s why gluten-free baking requires a thoughtful combination of flours, starches, and binders to recreate that same soft, cohesive texture.
This recipe does exactly that, resulting in rolls that are:
- Soft and pillowy inside
- Lightly golden on the outside
- Sturdy enough to hold together beautifully
A Balanced, Tried-and-Tested Approach
Instead of relying on just one flour, this recipe uses a blend of rice flours and starches to mimic the structure gluten would normally provide. Combined with eggs for stability and yeast for lift, the result is a dough that behaves much more like traditional bread.
If you do not want to mix flours, you can substitute the flours and starches for THIS GLUTEN FREE FLOUR
Why You’ll Love These Dinner Rolls
Soft, Yeasty, and Comforting
These rolls bring back that classic “warm bread basket” experience, something many people miss when going gluten-free.
Dairy-Free Without Compromise
Even without butter or milk, these rolls are incredibly tender and flavorful. In fact, many testers found the dairy-free version actually let the natural sweetness shine through more clearly.
Perfect for Holidays or Everyday Meals
While they’re especially popular for holiday tables (hello, Thanksgiving!), they’re just as perfect alongside soups, salads, or weeknight dinners.
What You’ll Need
To make these soft gluten-free dinner rolls, you’ll need:
Active dry yeast
Sugar
Warm dairy-free milk (such as rice milk)
Gluten-free flours (white rice flour and sweet rice flour)
Potato starch and tapioca starch
Xanthan gum
Salt
Baking powder
Eggs
Dairy-free butter substitute
Honey
Apple cider vinegar
These ingredients work together to create the perfect balance of structure, softness, and flavor.
The Secret to Soft Gluten-Free Bread
Structure Without Gluten
Since gluten acts like a “glue” in traditional baking, gluten-free recipes rely on starches and gums to hold everything together.
Eggs for Stability and Lift
Eggs play a key role in giving these rolls structure and helping them rise properly, preventing that dense or gummy texture that can happen in gluten-free baking.
Yeast for That Classic Flavor
There’s nothing quite like the aroma of yeast baking in the oven. It gives these rolls that nostalgic, bakery-style flavor and airy texture.
Tips for Perfect Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls
Use Finely Milled Rice Flour
A smoother flour helps avoid the gritty texture sometimes associated with gluten-free baking.
Let the Yeast Fully Activate
If your yeast doesn’t foam during proofing, it won’t give you the rise you need, so don’t skip this step.
Bake in Muffin Tins for Best Shape
Gluten-free dough benefits from extra support while rising and baking, which helps create taller, more uniform rolls.
Make-Ahead Friendly (A Holiday Lifesaver)
One of the best things about this recipe? You can make the rolls ahead of time.
They can be:
- Baked in advance
- Stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days
- Reheated just before serving
And they still taste just as soft and delicious, maybe even better the next day.
When to Serve These Rolls
These soft gluten-free dinner rolls are perfect for:
- Holiday meals like Thanksgiving or Christmas
- Sunday dinners
- Pairing with soups and stews
- Making leftover sandwiches
They’re versatile, comforting, and always a welcome addition to the table.
The Last Bite
These Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Soft Dinner Rolls prove that you don’t have to settle when it comes to gluten-free baking. With the right combination of ingredients and a little know-how, you can recreate that soft, fluffy texture that makes dinner rolls so irresistible.
Whether you’re serving them for a holiday feast or a simple family dinner, these rolls bring back something many people miss, and they do it beautifully.
Gluten Free Dairy Free Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons dry active yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 cups rice milk or milk, (warm but not hot)
- 1½ cups superfine or Asian White Rice Flour*
- ½ cup superfine or Asian Sweet Rice Flour, (also called glutinous rice flour)*
- ¾ cup potato starch, (not potato flour)*
- ½ cup tapioca starch*
- 3 teaspoons xanthan gum
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher or fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3 large eggs, divided
- ¼ cup butter or non-dairy butter substitute (Earth Balance recommended), (plus more for brushing the pans)
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Combine the yeast, sugar and warmed milk in a small bowl and whisk to dissolve the sugar. Let sit for 6-8 minutes or until the mixture is foamy and has increased in volume.
- Combine the flours, starches (or all-purpose gluten free flour blend), xanthan gum, salt and baking powder in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix for 30 seconds on medium-low to combine and break up any lumps in the potato starch.
- Add the yeast mixture, 2 eggs, melted butter substitute (or butter), honey and vinegar. Mix on medium low until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, turn the mixer on high and mix for 3 minutes. You should have a very thick, smooth batter.
- Brush 2 standard muffin pans with melted butter (or butter substitute) or spray with gluten free, non-stick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin pans, filling about ¾ full. Alternately, you can use a small (#60) ice cream scoop and place 3 scoops in each muffin tin (like a clover leaf). Cover with a clean kitchen towel and place in a warm, draft free place to rise. Let rise for 35 minutes or until the dough has almost doubled in size.
- Beat the remaining egg with 1 teaspoon of water very well with a fork. Gently brush the tops of each roll with the beaten egg.
- Bake for 17-18 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes.
- The rolls can be made ahead – bake them, let them cool in the pans, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Warm for a few minutes in a 350 degree oven.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was delicious. Way more delicious than anticipated. Batter rose beautifully. Although I was wondering if you could help me figure out a common problem I have with gluten free batter and yeast. This happened to the rolls as well as with any bread I make in the breadmachine.
After cooking it seems to rise beautifully. Then, after a few minutes, it sort of collapses (not dramatically, but about 40%). The texture is nice and chewy but…too chewy. No amount of extra cooking time can keep the center from being wet-looking and very gummy. Is my xantham gum just too potent?
I have premium sweet rice but what is Asian white rice flour? I can use my vitamix to grind anything to superfine so if I can sub regular white rice flour..would that work? Thanks SO much! Making my first gluten free thanksgiving and don’t want anyone in the extended family to know! <3 Here's hoping!
Oh good luck! Asian white rice flour is just really finely milled white rice flour – the brand I like is Erawan. It is a lot less expensive than regular white rice flour and very fine but if your regular flour is working well for you after you grind it up more – go for it! It will be great. Happy Thanksgiving!
That would be my first thought – just cut back on the xanthan gum. I have found just a wee bit too much can do exactly what you are talking about. Try cutting back by 25%. Fingers crossed!
Without knowing what brand of flours and such you are using the first suggestion I have is to fill the muffin cups less full with the batter, make them smaller so that they have time to bake all the way through. Also light pans are better for gluten free baking than dark ones but having said that, I do have dark pans that I use. Good luck and let me know if that helps.
Hi Carol, This recipe looks awesome. Quick question for you… my flour blend (I make my own with white rice flour, tapioca starch and arrowhead starch) already contains some xanthan gum. Should I still add additional? If so, how much do you think? (for a little reference, the blend has 2 TBSP to 6 cups white rice, 3 cups tapioca and 1.5 cups arrowhead). Thanks!
Hi Kristin – yes go ahead and add the xanthan gum. Unless your xanthan gum is super strong,I would add the entire amount. Without the protein from regular flour, gluten free flour needs a little extra help when used in recipes that have yeast and need to rise. If you have had issues with your baked goods being gummy in the center before using your blend, then I would cut back by 25 percent. Hope this helps and enjoy!
I’d like to know if it’s OK to substitute almond milk for the rice milk in the gluten free, dairy free roll recipe. Also, does it matter if I use the equivalent of whole, 2%, or 1% milk when I use almond milk?
I’m dying to know if anyone tried rolling these out, cutting them in triangles and seeing if they would work like crescent rolls!!??
Hello, I made this recipe about two weeks ago and I was so, so happy with the results, awesome. We will make this one again and again, Thanks so much for a really good roll recipe.
Thanks so much Bec!