The Best Low Sodium Dinner Rolls
We all remember those silver dollar rolls of fluffy white bread that mom heated up and served in a cloth napkin wrapped bowl. They were fluffy and lighter than air. The butter would soak right in. There might be a scuffle if you or your sibling reached for the last roll. That was the roll I wanted to capture a recipe for. The problem with these rolls, is that in the store, they are loaded with salt as a preservative. So today I want to share with you the recipe for the best low sodium dinner rolls.
Finding The Best Roll
In a pinch, we already know that we can use the wonderful tasting King’s Hawaiian Rolls for Hamburgers, Sandwiches, and Thanksgiving Stuffing. They do taste wonderful, but, they also do have a LOT of sugar. Something we all need to start watching.
In looking over dinner rolls, I wanted a low sodium recipe, so I started with those recipes online. They were fine, but they didn’t have the fluffiness I was looking for. They were also really bland. Good rolls, but really no flavor. Since we are cooking these rolls from scratch, I wanted a universal roll. This recipe should be able to make a roll that can work as a hamburger or sandwich roll, or made smaller to be a bread-stick or dinner roll.
Simple Is Often The Best When Baking
Many recipes are loaded with several ingredients that according to my professional baker friends, are simply not necessary. This recipe has only four ingredients; flour, yeast, oil, and water. I found King Arthur All-Purpose flour worked best, and had the best taste of the flours tried. Both Potato flour and Rice flour worked for those who are gluten-free. I did not try spelt flour.
Once you get the dough all worked together and rolled out, you want to place the dough covered, in a warm spot to proof. I like to use my oven for this. The secret is to preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Then shut off the oven. Allow the dough to proof in that warm oven until it has doubled in size.
Adding Flavor To Your Rolls
The flour, yeast, and oil provide a great flavor base for these rolls. A great way to add flavor is to give these rolls an egg wash prior to baking. Besides adding flavor and a beautiful shine to your rolls, it will serve as the “glue” if you want to add some toasted poppy or sesame seeds. To toast the seeds, add a tiny bit of olive oil to a skillet and your seeds. toast over medium high heat for just over a minute, or until the sesame seeds are fragrant and just turning golden. The seeds will go from golden to burnt quickly, so avoid that.
A favorite steakhouse of ours makes killer Garlic dinner rolls. They add garlic powder to the dough and minced garlic to the egg washed surface to be baked. Those are simply delicious. I add a tbsp of garlic powder to this recipe to make these garlic rolls. You could just as easily do onion rolls with onion powder and finely diced grilled onions to the top of the rolls. However you wish to make these rolls, they will be the perfect roll for sandwiches or on the Thanksgiving table.
The Recipe For The Best Low Sodium Dinner Rolls
The Best Low Sodium Dinner Rolls
Ingredients
- 4 cups All Purpose Flour sodium free
- 2 1/4 tsp Dry Instant Yeast
- 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
- 1 1/2 cup Water Must be warm to activate the yeast
- 1 large Egg for glazing
- 2 tbsp Sesame Seeds, Poppy Seeds, or Herbs for garnish & flavor
Instructions
- Add 3 3/4 cups flour into a mixing bowl, add the yeast and mix well to incorporate the yeast. Add the oil and warm water and mix to make the batter.
- the batter will form a thick dough. Place your dough on a clean lightly-floured surface and begin to knead. You should spread out a little bit of flour flour to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands, rolling pin, or the work surface. Knead dough until it becomes smooth and stretchy.
- Lightly oil a mixing bowl. Place your dough in it, and cover with a moist but not soaked towel. Place the bowl with dough in a warm spot (like a preheated oven with the heat turned off) and allow to rise until dough has doubled in size. It should take about 1 hour.
- Once dough has risen, bring your dough back to your lightly-floured surface. Knead until smooth and pliable, then cut dough into 12 equal portions. Form each portion into a round roll. Arrange rolls on a oiled baking sheet and cover again with a moist towel. Place back in your oven that is warm but not on. Let the rolls rise again, until they are double in size. It should take about 30 minutes.
- Once rolls have risen, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Take off the towel from the baking sheet. Break an egg into a bowl and whisk with a fork to create a wash. Lightly brush surface of the rolls with the egg-wash, then sprinkle seeds of choice or herbs over top if desired. Place pan on middle rack in oven and bake 15 minutes for a soft golden brown color or 20 minutes for a deeper brown.
- Remove pan from oven and place rolls on a wire rack to cool. Serve heated with unsalted butter.
Nutrition
Thanks so much for all of your low sodium posts. I now make better choices when eating out and staying in. I am looking forward to more of your healthier advice on lower my salt intake.
Thank you! Glad I can help!
You make it look so easy!!! Can’t wait to try these! Wishing you and your family a nice holiday!!
It’s easy if you are patient enough to wait on the proofing/raising of the dough. Sometimes I’m not so good at that. Plus, somehow, I get flour everywhere! 😉
Can you make and bake these the day before thanksgiving? and Just warm them up during thanksgiving day? Oven is so busy that day, trying to make the day a bit easier.
Yes, but because there is no sodium as a preservative, you need to refrigerate them to prohibit mold growth, and them going stale. You can then reheat them prior to serving.
Can these be frozen? Before or after baking? Thank you.
Yes, reheat in an over if already baked and frozen.