These are wonderful dinner rolls with beer in the dough. They have a soft crumb and fantastic crust, and they taste delicious! Use them to accompany hearty dishes like stews and chilies or for sandwiches. They freeze well.
Leftover beer rolls
This is a different dinner roll recipe that uses beer as the liquid, making them unique but simple enough to accompany everyday meals.
With a marvelous white, creamy crumb, they can be made ahead and frozen, so you can warm them up when the need arises.
They're a close relative of one of my favorite sandwich and dinner breads, the semolina rolls.
They're our go-to rolls for our hearty lentil stew or when we cook rosemary steak with garlic, to sop up those juices.
Ingredient Notes
Quantities are listed on the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
- Bread flour: it has more gluten and can be easily purchased online.
- Semolina flour: is very finely milled durum wheat flour and adds color and texture.
- Beer: use a regular, blonde supermarket one.
- Yeast: I use active dry yeast, which needs to be hydrated before (foamed). You can use instant yeast (¾ of the amount given for active dry) and add it directly to the flour, then add the liquid; no need to foam it first. If using fresh yeast (the ratio is 3:1 to dry), and is used in the same way as the active-dry, you need to hydrate it first and let it foam.
What kind of beer works best for these rolls?
A light or medium-bodied beer with mild bitterness and a touch of sweetness works well. Pilsners, lagers and amber ales are the most recommended. I generally use Heineken.
How to Make Sure Yeast Works
- Check expiration date: Replace if expired.
- Visual check: Should be beige to light brown and granular/powdery. Avoid if grayish, clumpy, or discolored.
- Smell test: Should have a mild, slightly sweet smell. Strong or unpleasant odors indicate it's bad.
Proofing test: Mix ½ teaspoon sugar in ¼ cup warm water (comfortable to touch). Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of dry yeast on top and stir gently. Wait 5-10 minutes until you start to see some activity. Fresh yeast will foam and bubble more while instant yeast bubbles less than active dry yeast.
Golden Rule: When in doubt, buy new! It's better to be safe than to have your baked goods fall flat and be inedible. You'll have to throw it out and start again.
Steps to make beer rolls
What type of beer works best? A light or medium-bodied beer with mild bitterness and a touch of sweetness works well. Pilsners, lagers and amber ales are the most recommended. I generally use Heineken.
- Ingredients are stirred together in a large bowl.
Stand mixer: if using it, and it's highly recommended if you don't knead by hand, mix the ingredients directly in the mixer's bowl.
- At first, it's a shaggy mass that feels like it will never turn into a smooth dough, but it will.
- The dough will be coarse after kneading it for a few minutes. Keep on kneading some more until the dough is firm and quite smooth and forms a ball.
Transfer it to a clean large bowl where it can rise comfortably upwards.
- Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel or loose plastic wrap and let rise until doubled. This is called proofing the dough.
- The formed rolls are placed in the baking tray and need a second rise.
- They will puff and bump into each other, and that is the signal that they're ready to be baked.
Uses and variations
- It can be adapted to any shape, be it rolls, loaf, baguette, breadsticks or even pizza; use water or beer, use all bread flour or half semolina like I did.
- Add chopped herbs (basil and oregano are great), onions, or grated cheese to the dough, and have savory little rolls to soak up that sauce from your plate. I told you it's very adaptable to personal taste.
- I love these to make meat sandwiches. The crumb is the right texture for those meat juices, and it works with cold meats well too.
Kitchen Notes
Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, utensils and equipment needed, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend keeping track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Storage
Room temperature: transfer the cooled rolls to an airtight container, resealable plastic bag or cover with plastic wrap to avoid dryness. Be careful not to squish them. They keep for 2-3 days.
Refrigeration and freezing: either works for longer storage. Wrap or cover as explained above. They keep in the fridge for a week and in the freezer for a month.
Related recipes you might like:
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Dinner Rolls with Beer (yeasted)
Ingredients
- ¾ ounce active-dry yeast, same amount of instant yeast or 1 ounce (28g) fresh yeast
- 2 tablespoons honey or sugar
- 2 ⅔ cups tepid beer, regular blond beer from the supermarket like Heineken or similar
- 4 ½ to 5 cups bread flour
- 2 cups fine semolina flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
- extra flour and semolina, for dusting
Instructions
- Dissolve ¾ ounce active-dry yeast in a bowl with 1 cup tepid beer and 2 tablespoons honey or sugar. Leave a few minutes until foaming. If using instant yeast, add it directly to the sugar below with the flour, no need to make let it foam.
- Mix 4 ½ to 5 cups bread flour, 2 cups fine semolina flour and 2 teaspoons salt in a stand mixer (or a large bowl if made by hand).
- Make a hole in the middle and add the yeast mixture and the remaining 2 ⅔ cups beer. With a wooden spoon, mix until you have a shaggy mass.
- If using a mixer, attach the dough hook and knead for a few minutes until the dough starts to come together. Adjust liquid (add water by teaspoons if the dough is too dry and won't come together) or flour (add by tablespoons if the dough is too wet) if needed.
- Knead for 5 minutes until smooth.
- If making by hand, dump the mix onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 1 minute, adding teaspoons of water (if too dry) or tablespoons of flour (if too wet).
- Knead for 5 to 7 minutes, pushing and folding the dough over and over until smooth.
- Shape into a ball, cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap (it will rise faster), and let double in size, about 30 to 40 minutes depending on how warm the kitchen is.
- Gently punch the dough down to release all air inside, and knead for 1 minute.
- Cut into equal pieces (12 if using them for sandwiches and 20-24 for dinner rolls), shape each into a tight ball, and place in two greased round tins.
- Dust the tops with some extra flour and semolina. Cover with a clean towel and let rise until doubled again.
- While they're rising, preheat the oven to 425ºF (225ºC).
- Bake bread for about 20 minutes, until golden and dry. If you tap the bottom it should sound hollow. Remove from pan onto a wire rack and let cool.
Notes
This is an adapted recipe from Jamie Oliver's first cookbook, which I loved.
Cathleen says
Congratulations!!
I am loving these rolls that you have made, and it's almost midnight here!!
Kim Bee says
Paula these are gorgeous rolls. They look so soft and airy.
Guru Uru says
Congrats with the job my friend 😀
Awesome job!
And these rolls are so soft, so gorgeous!
Cheers
CCU
laurasmess says
These look perfect Paula. I haven't got that particular book by Jamie Oliver but I'm definitely a fan of his. Love the look of the beer bread recipe... I have a couple of bottles of lager in the fridge that are begging to be soaked up in this dough! Congratulations on the new job(s)! Wow, sounds challenging but altogether beneficial. Will be thinking of you as you adapt to the new routine. Love the new clean blog look by the way... I've been out of town for the past week (no internet, wah!) so I might be a little behind on seeing it, but it's great! You are beautiful, inside and out. Hugs xxx
Lora CakeDuchess says
I love this post, Paula. I love that you are thinking of us and not wanting us to get bored with the same post. I feel the same way when too much time passes. I did just bake a loaf with beer and love the way the bread turns out. Now I will try your gorgeous rolls-congrats on all the changes! xx
Jeannie Tay says
Beautiful rolls! I just baked some dinner rolls too last Sunday, pinning this recipe to try soon!
Deb says
Congratulations on your new endeavor! I am enjoying the Beer Rolls, they would pair perfectly with a butternut soup that is on this weeks menu!
Deedra Martinez says
Hello, I absolutely love cooking with beer, and drinking it as I cook with it, so this went into my pen account.
Stacy says
I have been in love with Jamie and his recipes since that very first book, Paula. Thanks for sharing these beautiful crusty rolls! Congratulations on the new jobs and I can't wait to hear all about them.
arthur-in-the-garden.com says
Lovely!
Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom says
Paula!
I am sooo happy for you! Congrats on the new two new jobs! You deserve it my friend! Here's to a great rest of this year and a fruitful 2014 for you! And hello?! Beer bread rolls?! love this. Totally going to bake these when Paul comes back home! He will love this!
Susan Lester says
These rolls look just perfect! And we love beer bread, so I will have to try them. I really wish you'd been with us in Seattle - it was surreal!
Congratulations on your new job!
Laura Dembowski says
I love beer bread but I've never seen it in roll form and I l have never seen it look so bakery worthy! Congrats on the new jobs!
Montse {Rhu and Sam} says
Enhorabuena por tu nuevo trabajo!!! Es una buena noticia! Seguro que en un par de semanas ajustas los horarios para poder combinar blog, trabajo y amigos 😉 Por cierto, la primera foto con los bollitos humeantes... Ahhhh que hambre me ha entrado!
The Ninja Baker says
Congratulations, Paula! Looks like Spring 2013 in Argentina is flourishing in your favor =)
Thank you for sharing this irresistible looking bread...You are inspiring me to check out more Jaime Oliver recipes.
Sue/the view from great island says
I need these in my life, they look incredible!
Jodee Weiland says
Good luck with your work endeavors, but don't forget to give yourself permission to breathe and relax as well! This recipe is great...thanks for sharing!
Liz Berg says
Congratulations on the new opportunities, Paula! Excellent news! And these rolls look spectacular...the insides look so tender and perfect.
PS...We really missed you at the IFBC, but I'm certain we will meet one day!!! xo
yummychunklet says
Congrats!
Karen Kerr says
Congrats on the new job Paula! And I'm so glad you were busy so I could see these rolls!