Soft Bread Rolls – “Ted’s Rolls”

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Pillowy Soft Bread Rolls with pull apart edges, guaranteed soft and fluffy every time. Easy to make with step by step instructions and video !

These soft and fluffy bread rolls are perfect for sandwich fillings, your favourite burger, pulled pork or served with a warming soup.

My soft bread rolls are easy to make. You can have a batch done and dusted in just under 3 hours but given that hands on time is only about 15 minutes, you’re free to get on with something else as your dough rises and bakes.

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Making Homemade Bread is much easier than you might think. And if you’re new to bread making, this recipe is an ideal first time bread. With my easy step by step instructions and video, anyone can bake their own bread at home.
I’ve been baking bread at the Kitchen Shed for over twenty years and whether it’s these soft bread rolls, my white sandwich loaf, crusty bread rolls or Tiger bread rolls, our oven is always busy.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Soft and fluffy rolls every time from a tried and tested recipe. Originally developed by me back in 2012 after plenty of testing and a lot of tweaks. I’ve put all I’ve learnt into the recipe tips so you can make the best soft bread rolls.
• Easy to make and ideal for first time bread makers.
• Video – great for showing what the dough should look like and how to shape your rolls

Why Are They Called Ted’s Rolls ?

These extra soft bread rolls are affectionately known as “Ted’s Rolls” because the recipe was developed especially for OH’s terminally ill father, Ted.

Although Ted loved the fresh loaves I made for him, there came a time when he couldn’t manage eating crusty bread.

After a few trials and errors with oven timings and temperature I came up with my own version of soft bread rolls which became known in our family as Ted’s Rolls.

Ingredients For Soft Bread rolls

You only need 6 ingredients to make this recipe.

• Bread Flour – I like to use Marriage’s Very Strong White Bread Flour, which is 100 % Canadian flour.
• Yeast – I’ve used instant yeast in the recipe, often called fast action or quick yeast. This yeast has the advantage that you can add it directly to your flour. My favourite is Dove’s Farm Quick Yeast.
• Sugar – it’s just the right amount of food to get the yeast activated without adding too much sweetness to the soft bread rolls.
• Salt – I fine sea salt as it contains less sodium than regular salt but any fine salt will work in the recipe.
• Oil – I like to use refined rapeseed / Canola oil because it’s flavourless and gives the best results in this recipe. That said, I’ve also had good results with sunflower oil.
• Water – Lukewarm water is best, that is, you should be able to comfortably dip your finger into your water. Cold water will work but it will take longer for the bread to rise.

REMEMBER that too high a temperature will kill your yeast and just like us, yeast works best at around 37°C / 98°F . I use my Thermapen to check the temperature is between 37°C / 98°F and a maximum of 40°C / 104°F.

How To Make Soft Bread Rolls

Make your dough

• Firstly, make the dough. I use my trusty KitchenAid stand mixer – all you have to do is add the ingredients and set on a slow speed for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Check the dough by using the window pane test. Equally, the dough can be hand mixed together in a bowl and then kneaded on a counter top. You will get the same results, all you need is a bit of elbow grease.
• Cover your dough and leave to rise for about an hour in a warm place. If it’s a cold day this may take up to 2 hours.

Shape Your Bread

• Transfer your dough onto a lightly oiled work surface.
• Shape your dough into a rough log and divide into twelve equal pieces (about 95 g or 3 ½ oz if you want to weigh them)

• Shape dough portions into balls, cupping in your hands and place them on a large lined baking sheet. I like to use a silicone mat as it’s reusable, ovenproof and easily washed. I’ve used a number of different silicone sheets over the years and they are definitely not all created equal – you tend to get what pay for. For me, by far the best silicone sheet is my Vermell Flama, which uses high quality German made silicone.
• Leave no more than 2½ cm (1 inch) between each dough ball and after proving you will end up with the rolls touching each other – this will help keep them nice and soft.
• Leave the dough balls in place on the tray as you flatten them a little by gently pressing the top of each one.
• Cover with greased clingfilm / plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for approximately 30 to 45 minutes.

How To Bake

• Bake in a preheated oven at 325 °F / 180°C Fan /200°C / Gas Mark 6 for 25 minutes.
• An easy way to check your rolls are cooked and not over baked is to use a food thermometer, my favourite being Thermapen, to measure the internal temperature. The internal temperature should ideally be 90°C / 194°F but don’t worry if you go up to 95°C / 203°F. You’ll still have a soft fluffy bread roll but with a slightly crisper crust.

• Place on a baking rack to cool.
• For extra soft bread, cover with a tea towel while they cool.

Top Tips for making Soft and Fluffy Bread Rolls

• Use Very Strong Bread Flour – This flour has the advantage of being high in protein and so produces more gluten. As a result, the dough holds together well but is also very elastic and perfect for making soft and fluffy rolls.
• Enriched Dough – Rapeseed / Canola oil makes a lovely soft roll. It enriches the dough and I’ve found no need to add eggs or milk to the recipe.
• Kneading – check your bread dough is nice and elastic by using the window pane test.
• Shaping – Use oil not flour as you want your bread to be nice and soft. If you were to use flour, this would be adding flour to your dough which then absorbs moisture and will give you drier bread rolls. I don’t knock back the dough as such. Removing the dough from your bowl and then shaping your rolls will take enough air out of it. Why punch all that air out after you’ve patiently waited for it to rise ?
• Bake the rolls close together – rolls will rise and support each other as they bake giving soft and tender sides.
• Cover – for extra soft bread, cover with a tea towel as soon as they come out of the oven. I use a tea towel which has been washed with a fragrance free product to avoid my bread tasting of detergent.

How Long Will They Keep ?

Like most homemade bread – fresh is best but they will keep for a couple of days.

Can They Be Frozen ?

Yes, soft bread rolls freeze well.

Once cooled after baking, simply pop into a freezer bag or sealed container before freezing. In this way, your rolls will keep for up to three months.

To defrost, remove your rolls from the freezer a couple of hours before you need them and defrost at room temperature.

More Bread Recipes

• Crusty Farmhouse Loaf
• Dutch Oven Bread
• Wholemeal Loaf
• Multigrain Bread
• Light Rye Bread
• Portuguese Rolls
• Homemade Pitta Bread
• Homemade Pizza Dough
• Homemade Garlic Naan

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