Gluten Free Dairy Free Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe
Updated Nov 16, 2020, Published Nov 18, 2011
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For the last week and a half I have been working on a gluten free recipe for dinner rolls. And not just gluten free dinner rolls but SOFT gluten free dinner rolls.
You see for several years now I have prepared and served completely gluten-free Thanksgivings. Not a pie crust, cracker or bread product with a speck of gluten has graced my feasting table. My family, friends and I have been very happy – no complaints. My gluten free cornbread stuffing is fabulous (she says modestly), I’ve mastered gluten free pie crusts, and gravy and creamed spinach is wonderful gluten free and a breeze to make. But the one thing missing was dinner rolls. The bread basket was not empty, I have served cornbread and biscuits; all fine but not the yeasty, warm, SOFT dinner rolls I remember from way back when. I missed them. I know they are in no way the star of the show, in fact they are barely a supporting character but still, I missed them. But it was my own fault; I never took the time to figure it out – to get them right.
For the most part cooking gluten free is no more complicated than regular cooking but gluten free baking poses challenges. I find that when I take the time to understand a subject it is easier for me to conquer the challenges. And of course I like to pass along what I have learned along the way.
Gluten is sticky, it holds things together (remember mixing flour and water together as a kid and getting paste? That’s the gluten.) So we need to add sticky stuff to our flours to make up for the lack of “glue.” The sticky stuff comes in the form of starches (such as tapioca, corn or potato starch) and gums (xanthan and guar). I wanted traditional, soft dinner rolls so I stuck with rice flours instead of the heartier ones like Millet and Sorghum. All rice flours are not created equally; the gritty texture people associate with gluten free baked goods made with rice flour is due to the way it is milled. Whenever I use rice flours, I use Superfine or Asian rice flour. But don’t use Asian potato starch as it is usually made with sweet potatoes and that’s not what you want. I also made these with my own ALL PURPOSE, Pastry Quality Flour blend and they were fabulous. (If I do say so myself!)
Gluten is a protein molecule; it adds structure to baked goods – helps them stay put. When you add yeast to flours that don’t have protein this is especially a problem. Imagine that you tried to pump air into one of those big bouncy houses and there weren’t enough sides or walls in the bouncy house – it would fall down right? So we need to add protein to our dough to act as the structure. Eggs provide the perfect solution.
Just as with flours, not all eggs are created equally. I tested this recipe using generic supermarket eggs and eggs from Nature’s Yoke – egg producers who use only pastured eggs from small, local farms where the chickens are all free roaming – no horror house cages-and-eggs factories. All their hens are free of drugs and hormones and are fed vegetarian diets. Studies have shown that eggs from free-roaming chickens are higher in nutrition than eggs from caged hens. I think that anyone, including chickens, will produce better, higher quality products if they have happier lives! And since we are adding eggs to the this recipe, they should add flavor as well – the rolls made with eggs from Nature’s Yolk were not only better tasting, they had a better texture and a more beautiful brown color.
To make soft, yeasty, risen rolls we need, of course, to add yeast. Yeast must be “active” to work. If the yeast doesn’t foam up while “proofing” it isn’t active – get new stuff!
This roll recipe is dairy-free. I don’t personally have to be dairy-free but others in my family do. However, since I was testing I made a few batches with dairy products and guess what? It was unanimously agreed upon that the dairy free rolls tasted better. There wasn’t a huge difference and if you want to make your’s with dairy, go ahead. But I will tell you this – the rolls made with rice milk and Earth Balance were more tender and the flavor of the honey shone through better without the dairy masking the flavor.
As I explained with my gluten free French bread recipe, gluten free baked goods need a little extra help with structure. They should be risen, baked and cooled in muffin tins to get them that little extra help. I also made a few batches in cake pans – I scooped the batter into the cake pans with an ice cream scoop and let them rise, bake and cool in those. These were very soft and made “pull apart” rolls. I personally like the aesthetics of the individual rolls better but it is just an option. There was no difference in rising and cooking times.
If you, like me, don’t relish the idea of making your rolls while trying to cook an entire Thanksgiving meal I have good news! I made several batches ahead, I let them cool in the muffin pans, covered the pans with plastic wrap and then refrigerated for up to 2 days, reheated for a few minutes and they were just as fantastic! In fact they are even good cold so if you have left-overs, save them for gluten free turkey sandwiches the next day!
Click here to see my cooking demonstration of this recipe on Daytime TV!
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.
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Hi Carol,
Thanks for such an informative website! We are just starting gluten free/dairy free diet at my house and it is so tough, so it was really great to find your website! My son is 8 and tested very high as being allergic to gluten and dairy. He also cannot have eggs or cheese. :( One of his favorite things to eat! When making the rolls, can I use an egg substitute? Thanks!
Hi Nancy. I have had readers say they made these with egg substitute with good result. You should scroll through the comments to make sure but if I remeber correctly you just may need to add a tad more water. Good luck and enjoy!
We made these last night to have with our cheddar potato soup. They were for lack of a better word, DELICIOUS. I’m thinking that with less honey, these would be fantastic hamburger buns. But what would you suggest that i bake a hamburger bun in? Any ideas would be so much appreciated!! Thank you and God bless!!
Thanks fso much Beth. I have made hamburger buns by baking them in ramekins – like a 4 inch ramekin that you would cook custard in. So far it is the best solution I have come up with. Good luck!
Hi Carol,
Can I use brown rice flour and white rice flour, I have all other ingriendients but I have just sweet rice flour and brown rice flour. I do have Pamela`s Products baking mix would that work?
Thanks a bunch,
Megan
Yes, you can use the brown rice flour of white just note that if it is not superfine, you may not get the same results. I haven’t tried this with a baking mix, I am not sure if it would work or not.
Just made these tonight & they were AWESOME! My kids rolled their eyes when they heard I was making GF rolls, but boy were they surprised! I got rave reviews from my four guys, and my hubby said these were the best he’s ever had. I used King Arthur GF flour (best GF flour mix, in my opinion). Skipped the egg wash on top because I didn’t have an extra egg. They came out perfect. THANK YOU!!!
My pleasure Ronna, so happy you all liked them and I know that eye roll!!!
Gluten Free Dairy Free Soft Dinner Rolls Recipe – If I bought cup for cup gluten free flour that contains xanthan gum (Domata recipe ready flour) do I need to add the xanthan gum? I’ve never made anything gluten free, so this is my first attempt. Thanks.
Hi Barb, yes you do beacuse there is yeast in the recipe and the batter will need a little more structure from the extra xantham gum. I have made them with my flour which has xanthan gum and as described in the recipe and I don’t adjust the amount of xanthan gum. The batter is a tad bit thicker when using flour with xanthan gum already.
Is there something else that can be used instead of xanthan gum? Would cornstarch work?
You could use guar gum. I have not tried with corn starch but I don’t think that would do it. You could try pysillium husks powder, I haven’t done this recipe with the pysillium husks so I can’t say for sure. I would try with 1 tablespoon.
I was referred to this recipe by a local bakery who uses it, but makes them with butter. My son is gluten/casein free so the ones from there wouldn’t work for us. Anyway, I made them and we loved them!!! I have been cooking gluten/casein free for 12 years and have NEVER had success with any type of bread. The rolls were light, fluffy and did not have that crumbly, grainy texture.
My question is, will this convert to a loaf of bread? I currently buy bread that he likes, but I think he would like this so much better.
Hi Cassandra,
I have not tried baking this particular recipe as a loaf. You can try or you can use this recipe that I just posted for soft gf bread – https://glutenfreeandmore.com/blog/2013/04/gluten-free-soft-bread-recipe.html
If you do make the rools into a loaf, let me know how it comes out! Good luck and enjoy.
Sorry I missed your reply, I forgot to come back and check for it :). I did try it as a loaf, and it flopped. I had given up on making loaf bread and bought different muffin tins, they look more like hamburger buns and I started making it that way, but I will definitely give the recipe you posted for soft bread a try. Thanks!!
I do not usually comment on recipes, but I had to comment on this. My son has recently discovered he is gluten sensitive. He can eat some, but if he over does it he is sick. I have been experimenting with the different flours and combinations. He is a breadaholic! I’ve had success with coffee cake type bread and biscuits but we have not like the flavor of any of the yeast breads.
THESE ARE WONDERFUL! The only thing I did different was I used corn starch instead of the tapioca starch. No one would ever know they are gluten free. I love the flavors using the Asian white rice flour and glutenous rice flour. Very nice yeast roll flavor! Thank you so much.
My pleasure Carol, thanks for taking the time to comment and I am so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
I know this is an older post, but I made these today and they came out perfect!! I really, really wanted a dinner roll with a chicken peanut salad I am making for dinner tonight and I can’t tell you how excited I am that I now have some as delicious as the rolls I’ve been craving since going gluten free … thanks a bunch!
You are very welcome and now you have me craving chicken peanut salad :)
Hi- I also know this is an older post, but I made these for a family get together and they got such rave reviews I had to let you know! My sister actually said they were the best gluten free rolls she ever had (that’s a huge complement coming from her) and someone else said they were some of the best rolls they’d had, even if they weren’t gluten free! Thank you :D
Thanks Alison – so happy everyone enjopyed them!