These homemade Thanksgiving Rolls are perfect for your holiday dinner. They’re soft and fluffy, deliciously buttery, and they’re pretty easy to make with just a handful of ingredients. They’re the best rolls for Thanksgiving because they really go the extra mile to make the whole meal feel special.
This post may include affiliate links that earn us a small commission from your purchases at no extra cost to you.
Why We Love This Thanksgiving Rolls Recipe
It’s simply not Thanksgiving without amazing, fluffy, homemade rolls. This recipe has become a staple and here are a few reasons we love to make it:
- Simple. With just 6 ingredients, these rolls are made primarily from pantry staples.
- Tasty. These buttery, rich rolls pair perfectly with all of your Thanksgiving favorites.
- Versatile. Use them to soak up all the leftover goodness from your holiday meal, or cut them up to make leftover turkey sandwiches the day after!
Variations on Thanksgiving Dinner Rolls
You can liven up these classic rolls for Thanksgiving by mixing 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1-2 tablespoons of freshly chopped herbs, or ½ cup of freshly grated cheddar into the bread dough.
How to Store
Store leftover Thanksgiving rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Wrap the rolls in foil and place them on a baking sheet in a 350°F oven for 10-15 minutes to rewarm them or enjoy at room temperature.
How to Freeze
You can freeze these Thanksgiving dinner rolls shaped, risen, or fully baked.
- Shaped: Shape the dough into rolls and place them on a baking sheet with space between them. Freeze for 8-12 hours, then transfer to a Ziplock bag and store for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for 3-5 hours, until risen. Bake as directed.
- Risen: Let the rolls rise completely, then freeze in a Ziplock bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature until soft, about 2 hours. Bake as directed.
- Fully Baked: Freeze fully-baked dinner rolls in a Ziplock bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for about 2 hours and reheat before serving.
Serving Suggestions
Serve these delicious Thanksgiving dinner rolls with any of my favorite Thanksgiving turkey recipes. Use them to soak up leftover turkey gravy and cranberry sauce, or enjoy them with my favorite honey butter!
The average estimate is 1½ rolls per person, so make 2 just to be safe! You can always freeze the extras.
When using instant yeast, your best bet is to check the expiration date. As long as the package is sealed and within the date, the yeast should be good to go. If your bread dough doesn’t rise after the first proofing, your yeast may be old!
Dense or heavy rolls are usually caused by not kneading the dough long enough. Be sure to knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. Properly kneaded dough will spring back slowly when pressed with one finger. If it springs back too quickly, it is under-kneaded., and if it does not spring back at all, it is over-kneaded. You can use these same tops to tell if the dough is properly proofed. Too springy means under-proofed and not springy enough means over-proofed.
There are a few culprits for hard dinner rolls. First, you may have added too much flour. Be sure to measure your flour using the spoon-and-level method to avoid using too much. Second, the dough may be over-mixed. Over-mixed dough will not spring back when pressed gently with a finger. Finally, the rolls may simply be overbaked. Perfectly baked rolls should be golden brown on top and 190°F internally.
Line your bread dish with cloth and cover the rolls to keep in the heat!
More Dinner Roll Recipes We Love
- Classic Dinner Rolls
- Hawaiian Rolls
- Sweet Potato Rolls
- Parker House Rolls
- Homemade Crescent Rolls
- Make Ahead Yeast Rolls
- Garlic Pull Apart Rolls
Thanksgiving Rolls Recipe
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk 227 grams
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 25 grams
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 57 grams, divided (½ stick)
- 2¼ teaspoons instant yeast 7 grams (1 envelope)
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour 300 grams
Instructions
- Heat the milk, sugar, salt, and 2 tablespoons of butter on the stove until the mixture reaches a temperature of 110°F. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer.1 cup milk, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Add in the yeast, and stir. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes until foamy.2¼ teaspoons instant yeast
- Attach the dough hook to the stand mixer.
- Add in the flour, and mix on low for 3-4 minutes until a smooth ball of dough forms.2½ cups all-purpose flour
- Cover the bowl of dough with a kitchen towel, and let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Divide the dough into 12 equal balls (about 51 grams per ball), and place them into a greased 9×13-inch baking pan.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Cover the dough with a towel, and let it rise again for another 30 minutes.
- Remove the towel and bake for 12-15 minutes until the rolls are golden brown on top.
- Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.
- Brush the tops of the rolls with the melted butter.
Video
Becky’s Tips
- For chewier rolls, use bread flour instead of all-purpose.
- Make sure your yeast isn’t expired!
- Measure your flour using the spoon-and-level method to avoid dense, hard rolls.
- Take care not to overheat the butter/milk/sugar mixture; otherwise, you could kill the yeast.
- If the dough is too sticky, add up to an additional ⅓ cup of flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.
- To make these dinner rolls by hand, stir together all of the ingredients until well combined, then knead the dough for about 15 minutes, and continue to follow the recipe as written.
- Tent the rolls with foil if they are browning too quickly in the oven.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment!
How to Make Thanksgiving Rolls Step by Step
Make the Dough: Heat 1 cup of milk, 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar, ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, and 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a small pot on the stove until it reaches 110°F. Transfer the warm milk to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add in 2¼ teaspoons of instant yeast, stir, and let the mixture sit until foamy. Add 2½ cups of all-purpose flour to the stand mixer and mix on low for 3-4 minutes, or until a smooth ball of dough forms.
Let the Dough Rise: Cover the bowl of dough with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Shape the Dough: Divide the dough into 12 equal-sized balls (about 51 grams per ball if you’re weighing them), and place the balls into a greased 9×13-inch baking pan.
Let the Dough Rise Again: Preheat the oven to 375°F, cover the dough with a towel, and let it rise for another 30 minutes while the oven preheats.
Bake the Rolls: Remove the towel and place the rolls in the preheated oven to bake for 12-15 minutes, or until they are golden brown on top.
Brush the Rolls: While the rolls bake, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in the microwave or on the stovetop. Once the rolls are fully baked, brush the tops of the hot rolls with the melted butter.
They were PERFECTION! Have made them twice now and I will never buy store bought ones again. Thanks so much for the recipe!
My rolls did not turn out like shown. Maybe they didn’t rise enough? Also sort of dense.
Hi Shelby, if your rolls turned out dense, we recommend following this advice: Be sure to knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. Properly kneaded dough will spring back slowly when pressed with one finger. If it springs back too quickly, it is under-kneaded, and if it does not spring back at all, it is over-kneaded. You can use these same tops to tell if the dough is properly proofed. Too springy means under-proofed and not springy enough means over-proofed.
Thank you SO much for including the ingredient quantities at each step. I can’t tell you how awesome that is. And the rolls were delish!
I really wanted to make these rolls for Thanksgiving. Just a heads up, when selecting “x2” to double the recipe, the amounts shown are not correct. For example, it still says to use 1 envelope of yeast (should be 2), 8tbsp of butter in the milk (should save some for later). They otherwise look great and I’ll save for another day when I have more time and can accept more risk.
Hi Meredith, the program we use to assist in automatically doubling the recipe unfortunately does not affect the notes next to the ingredients (the italicized text), so we recommend following the amounts listed rather than the notes.
Trying this recipe for tomorrow’s thanksgiving and I love that you put the measurements again will the directions. Makes it so easy to follow
Great, SUPER EASY, RECIPE!
Can you use whole wheat flour?
Hi Amanda, we would not recommend swapping more than 25% of the flour for whole wheat, as it will negatively affect the final outcome beyond that point.