These whole wheat rolls are fluffy, stay soft for days, and make excellent sandwiches! A must-have for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. With a dairy-free option. Check out the reviews if you need convincing!
Continuing on with healthier Easter recipes, I give you the gift of fluffy whole wheat dinner rolls! For me, no holiday meal is complete without dinner rolls.
I have to admit that I really love the frozen ones you can bake in the oven, but homemade and whole wheat is always better, right?
If you’re like me and don’t like your whole wheat recipes to actually taste of whole wheat, then try my whole wheat chocolate cupcakes! They’re every bit as delicious as cupcakes made with all-purpose flour.
The same is true of this whole wheat healthy carrot cake. And this whole wheat banana bread!
Your whole wheat roll search is over!
But back to today’s recipe. These whole wheat rolls could also be called Miracles of Fluff. Because they are. :D I’m so happy I found this recipe on An Oregon Cottage!
I can’t tell you how many 100% whole wheat roll recipes I tried before finding a good one. I even tried 50% whole wheat and couldn’t find a really amazing recipe. But these?! 100% and so ridiculously fluffy and tasty!
One of the best parts about this recipe is that the rolls stay soft for longer than just a few hours after baking. The rolls that other recipes I tried yield rolls that are good out of the oven, but later that night, they’re crumbly and not that appetizing. Or they’re just plain bad.
What to serve them with
Whenever I make brisket or pulled pork, I make these. I don’t know what it is about this recipe, but these always stay soft for days after making them! These rolls would also be great alongside this Paleo Pot Roast from Noshtastic! And if you’ve got an Instant Pot, try this Instant Pot chuck roast. These pork chops with apples also look wonderful.
My favorite way of enjoying these whole wheat rolls is with honey. Just a little is enough. These rolls are already slightly sweetened with honey, but they’re not that sweet. Totally acceptable for sandwiches!
Got leftover turkey? Put it in here and rejoice. :D Turkey leftovers won’t be that boring anymore!
I’ve also made these into cinnamon buns. That recipe is hopefully coming soon! They’re pretty naughty. But at least they’re still whole grain!
I’ve halved the recipe before but I always regret it. Since these wheat rolls stay good for so long, there’s no need to halve the recipe. And you can always pop them in the fridge and reheat in the microwave if needed.
You could also freeze half of the dough and make them into cinnamon buns later, which I highly recommend doing. They’ll no doubt be the fluffiest 100% whole grain cinnamon rolls you ever have.
And just like the dinner rolls, I’ve tried loads of whole wheat cinnamon bun recipes. This is the base you want to use!
I’m also excited to try the leftover rolls in these pizza sliders for a fun treat.
Other flours?
I’ve tried these with whole spelt flour and that didn’t work out. If you adjusted the liquid, it’d work, but none of the formulas for converting whole to spelt recipes have worked for me. Not yet, anyway.
I’m quite confident using a gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour wouldn’t work for this recipe. So for a gluten-free version, try these gluten-free dinner rolls.
Dairy-free whole wheat rolls
For a dairy-free version, use coconut oil instead of butter and homemade buttermilk. Use any dairy-free milk (except canned coconut milk) and 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice.
Pour the vinegar into a 1 cup measuring cup. Fill with milk. Give it a few stirs. Let sit for 5 minutes while preparing the dry ingredients. There you have dairy-free buttermilk!
If you give these rolls a try, let me know how they come out. I love feedback. :)
Photos updated 3/2020. Here’s an old one.
Whole Wheat Rolls - Soft and Fluffy Dinner Rolls!
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 24 rolls
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) warm water
- 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter or coconut oil1, softened + additional butter for brushing on top, if desired
- 1/4 cup (80 grams) honey
- 3 large eggs (50 gram each, out of shell), room temperature
- 1 cup (240 milliliters) room temperature or slightly warm buttermilk or homemade dairy-free buttermilk2
- 1 tablespoon vital wheat gluten (optional)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 4 1/2 to 5 cups (563-625 grams) whole wheat flour
Directions
- In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup of warm water. Set this aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and honey until well combined.
- Add the eggs, buttermilk, and yeasty water and beat until well combined.
- Add in the vital wheat gluten and the salt and switch to the dough hook.
- Add in 2 cups of the flour and mix.
- Then add in enough of the remaining flour so that the dough just comes together. Depending on the day, you may need quite a bit.
- Knead for only 2 minutes.
- Once the dough is no longer tacky, cover the top of the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place for 1 hour. I like to turn the oven to the lowest setting for 1 minute, then turn it off and let the dough rise in there.
- Turn the dough out onto a slightly floured surface and knead it a few times, then let the dough rest for 3 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 24 balls and place these in a buttered 13" x 9" baking pan (the pieces will touch).
- Let the rolls rise for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Bake the rolls for 13 – 25 minutes or until golden brown. It's very important not to overbake the rolls!
- Remove from the oven, rub some butter over the top of the rolls, and serve immediately or let cool completely and then cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days. Anything past that, I'd stick them in the fridge (to prevent mold).
Notes
- For the dairy-free version, use coconut oil. It should about as firm as softened butter and not melted! If you don't want any coconut taste, use refined coconut oil instead of unrefined.
- Use any dairy-free milk (except canned coconut milk) and 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. Pour the vinegar into a 1 cup measuring cup. Fill with milk. Stir and ket sit for 5 minutes.
Adapted from Soft 100% Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls from An Oregon Cottage
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274 comments on “Whole Wheat Rolls (soft and ultra fluffy!)” — Add one!
31 comments are awaiting moderation!
Hi. I see your bread so fluffy and soft. I have make whole wheat bread but it looks so different because it is very very heavy an has literaly the whole grain. The flour that you use has the bran??? Or is it unprocesed flour but without the bran???
I use literally the whole grain. I even mill it myself sometimes and it’s never a problem in this recipe! This recipe really just is special. Other whole grain dinner rolls I’ve tried have been very heavy and dense like you mentioned. I think you should try these. :)
Hi again. It is realy great! Thank you for shering… I love love love this bread!
Woohoo! I’m so happy to hear that. Thanks for letting me know how it went!
I made these rolls and after putting them in the oven, they collapsed. I used whole milk and I didn’t use vital wheat. Can you tell me what went wrong and what brand name wheat flour do you use. And I also used Rapid Rise Yeast.
I use Bob’s Red Mill but all the brands I’ve tried in these have worked. I’ve had bread collapse, too and know how frustrating that is! Did you shorten the rising time according to the Rapid Rise Yeast packet instructions? If dough rises too long, it collapses. So if you used that yeast without shortening the rising time, then that explains why it collapsed. There are some other ideas in this thread. I hope your next try will go better. :)
I’m just about to make these. So glad I read the string about reducing rise time.
I am soooooo happy that you shared this recipe! I make breads frequently, and this recipe is now my favorite for honey wheat rolls! I would love to try your favorite roll recipe for honey white rolls, if you have one. Thank you so much for sharing!
I’m thrilled that you enjoyed them so much! I don’t have a favorite recipe for honey white rolls but here’s my favorite dinner roll recipe. They’re so perfectly fluffy. :) Thanks for your feedback!
Just wanted to thank you for the recipe…we made these and loved them! I didn’t even have vital wheat gluten and ran out of milk (oops!), so I had to use 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup water…they still turned out great! Kids and adults thought they were awesome! :)
Haha. I love that they worked with half milk and half water and without vital wheat gluten! I’m so happy that everyone enjoyed them. Thanks a ton for your feedback! :)
These were amazing! I just wanted to say that for anyone reading this blog. Seriously, make them. You won’t be disappointed.
Thanks for the nice feedback. :) I’m really happy that you liked them so much!
Hi, I’ve never made rolls before but would like to try this recipe. I’ve heard a lot in the media about gluten and its getting a pretty bad rep. Can you make these rolls without the wheat gluten? Is this the same gluten that the media is trying to steer everyone away from? Just curious. Thanks Teresa
Hi, Teresa! You can leave out the vital wheat gluten but it’d be a little pointless since there’s gluten in all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, and most other types of grains. People who have gluten sensitivities definitely shouldn’t ever eat gluten, but for those of us who don’t have any issues with gluten, there’s no need to avoid it (see this article and this one – be sure to read both pages of the second one!) If you want to leave out the vital wheat gluten just because you don’t have it, the rolls will still work. :)
Could I make the dough using my bread machine?
I haven’t tried but I’m pretty sure that’d work!
Sorry i post my question again as i just seen ur reply after putting another post.. sorry once again…. Got ur reply and i will try with water and butter milk.. Thanks..
No problem! I’ll just delete it. I hope you’ll enjoy the rolls! :)
Hi, Can I use milk instead of water or butter milk?
The yeast is proofed in the water and I’m not so sure about letting yeast proof in milk. I’d recommend sticking with water, just to be safe. And if you don’t have buttermilk, add a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to a 1-cup measuring cup, fill it up with milk, let it sit for 5 minutes and then you have buttermilk. I hope that’ll work for you!
hello, do you think I could freeze these rolls?
Hi! Yes, I think that’d be fine but I’m not positive as I haven’t tried it. Hope you’ll like them!
Thanks for providing a 100% whole wheat flour recipe!
This might be helpful info for people who having trouble getting the rolls to turn out fluffy.
I live at high elevation (about 4,500 ft above sea level) and making high elevation baking adjustments always improves my bread.
The King Arthur flour website has a great guide to high elevation baking adjustments:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipe/high-altitude-baking.html
Basically, decrease yeast amount, decrease honey/sweetener amount, increase liquid amount, and increase flour amount. The rising time will also be shorter.
You could also increase the oven temperature, but I hesitate to do that with recipes that contain honey, because honey tends to deteriorate/burn at higher temperatures.
Thanks so much for the tips! Luckily, I don’t think many people have had issues with this recipe not coming out fluffy, but if someone does, I’ll be prepared with some answers. :) Thanks again!
Hi there! I am planning to make these for Thanksgiving and have a few quick questions. 1) Could I make the dough this weekend and freeze it until I’m ready to bake them on Thursday afternoon? I would basically follow the recipe until the end except freeze the dough instead of baking it correct? Also, how should I store the dough?
2) You mentioned in your recipe to initially add 2 cups of flour and then add more flour until the dough comes together. What do you mean by “comes together?” This is my first time making bread and I’m not sure I would know if I added too much flour or not enough. Is it likely that I’ll be using about 4.5 cups? Thank you so much, and please accept my apologies for so many questions! I’m EXTREMELY excited to make these rolls! You have NO idea!
I’ve never frozen dough before so I can’t say for sure if it’d work or not! This tells you how to do it (I’d choose the second option – freezing after shaping). And you should add the 2 cups of flour and if after kneading for 2 minutes, it still sticks to your finger when you touch it, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until it no longer sticks to your finger. It’ll still stick to the bowl and that’s fine! I hope that helps and good luck with the rolls. :)
Awesome! Awesome! Thank you so much. I’m going to make a small batch tonight to try out the recipe and then make a big batch on Thanksgiving Day. I much rather make it fresh and look forward to the aroma that these bad boys will bring
No problem! And I think it’s very smart to make a trial batch. The recipe definitely works but if you’ve never made bread before, it’s always a good idea to practice before Thanksgiving. :) Let me know how it comes out! Good luck. :)
Hello,can I omit the honey to make a not-sweet roll?
thank you
I wouldn’t risk it because the texture would be affected. These rolls really aren’t sweet so I think you’ll be fine with the honey! They’re great for sandwiches and savory dishes. :) If you want, I think halving the honey might work. And here’s the response to your other cornbread question: There’s no honey in the cornbread but regular sugar. I think if you omit the sugar, the texture may be affected. But I think you could only add half the sugar! That would probably work and it wouldn’t be very sweet at all.
Thank you very much!I’ ve made your carrot cake, muffins and today your whole wheat pizza.
Everything was great.
I was looking for dinner rolls made with oil but I’ll try them anyways…I’ll also try the corn bread soon…
Wow! You’ve made so much. I’m happy you’ve liked it all. :) And if you want 100% whole grain dinner rolls, definitely try these! They’re so much fluffier than all other recipes I’ve ever tried. I hope you’ll enjoy them!
I want to bake these buns for my husband because he is a sugar patient. But I didnot find find vital wheat gluten in Saudi arabia. Please tell me it’s substitute or I can omit this from the recipe.please answer me as soon as possible.
You can just omit it. Hope you’ll like them!
I can’t thank you enough for this wonderful recipe. I have tired many wheat bun recipes before but nothing can beat this.
I like it sweeter so added 50 gm honey and omitted 1 egg. Made 12 buns and the rest as a loaf… Everything was just perfect !! Thank you again!!
I’m so happy to hear that you liked them! And I’m with you… I had tried so many whole wheat dinner roll recipes before and nothing comes close to these! Added honey sounds great. :) Thanks so much for your feedback!
Where is the Cinnamon bun recipe?
I never got around to taking pictures and posting it. Sorry about that!
I made these rolls today and the taste seemed right on. The rolls did seem very dense, is this normal or did I do something wrong?
I’m happy that they tasted good but they definitely shouldn’t be dense! Did you use whole wheat flour or make any subs? This page lists a few possibilities that could have caused that problem. Check under “Bread is dense and gummy” and “Bread is solid and compact.” If you followed the recipe exactly, I’m guessing perhaps the dough didn’t rise long enough or in a warm enough place. I hope that helps!
I tried your rolls last night. I used Splenda for the sugar, almond unsweetened silk milk but left everything else and they came out great. I used my bread machine. My husband had a major heart attack so we are going vegan and plant based so I am looking for all vegan ways to keep the meals well balanced and
delicious. Thank you!
I’m happy to hear that they came out well and especially that your subs worked. :) Thanks for the feedback!
Hi Erin,
I made your rolls tonight. I must have done something wrong. When they rose the second time they were very fluffy but when I baked them and took them out of the oven, they had fallen. Any ideas? They still tasted great and I want to try them again. I love that they are whole wheat. Thanks for the great Web site!
Cindy
Hi, Cindy! Thanks for your comment. :) I think it could be that they rose too long. When you do that, bread can collapse in the oven (and here are some other causes). I used to let stuff rise longer than I was supposed to, just to make sure that it had actually risen enough, but then it collapsed in the oven. I hope that helps and the next try will go better! :)
What would be tge difference if I will use an instant dry yeast?
There wouldn’t! I often make these with instant yeast, following the instructions exactly. You don’t normally need to dissolve instant yeast before adding it in with the other ingredients, but I do it anyway. I hope you’ll enjoy them. :)