Parker House Rolls

You need just 7 ingredients to make these Soft, light, and pillowy Parker House rolls. See notes for freezing and make-ahead instructions ad reference to my mastering rich dough for answers to common rich dough FAQs

Course rolls, Yeast Bread

Cuisine American

Keyword best parker house rolls recipe, parker house rolls, recipe for parker house rolls

Prep Time 1 30

Cook Time 20

Rise Time 1 30

Total Time 3 20

Servings 15 Rolls

Calories 191.53kcal

Author Hafedh Garfa

Ingredients

227 grams (1 cup) whole milk, cold
1 large egg, cold
8 grams (1.5 teaspoons) sea salt
7 grams (2 and ¼ teaspoons) instant yeast
50 grams (¼ cup) granulated sugar
420 grams (2 and ¼ cups) bread flour, plus more as needed
75 grams (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened and cubed
Brush & Wash: 50 grams (3.5 tablespoons) melted unsalted butter

Instructions

Make the dough: Add whole milk, egg, salt, yeast, sugar, and bread flour to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Beat on low speed for a full 4 minutes until the dough comes together and gathers around the dough hook. The dough should be moist and tacky at the end of this step. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are incorporated. If the dough is too sticky and clinging to the sides of the bottom of the bowl, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides while remaining tacky. If too dry/crumbly, add 1 teaspoon milk at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer bowl, increase the speed to medium, and continue beating for an additional 5 full minutes. (New to baking rich doughs? My mastering rich dough article provides helpful guidance.) Midway through the 5 minutes, stop the mixer and briefly remove the dough from the hook twice to ensure homogeneous dough. If the dough becomes too sticky and starts clinging to the bottom or sides of the bowl again, add 1 teaspoon of flour at a time. Do not add much more flour, as the dough should remain supple, not dry. The dough must feel smooth, uniform, and elastic. To check if your dough is properly kneaded, you can do the windowpane test: take a small piece of dough and stretch it gently. If you can stretch it thin enough to see light through it without tearing, it's ready. If it tears, continue kneading for 1-minute intervals until it passes the test. At the end of the kneading process, listen for the dough to slightly slap the sides of the bowl—this indicates proper development.
Incorporate the butter: With the mixer running on low speed, add the cold butter two pieces at a time, waiting until each addition is fully incorporated before adding the next two cubes. Use a spatula as needed to ensure all butter is picked up by the dough. This incorporation process should take 2 to 3 minutes total. You may notice that half of the dough adheres to the bottom of the bowl and the other half clings to the dough hook—that's perfectly fine. Once all butter has been added, continue mixing on low speed for another 3 minutes until the dough becomes very soft, shiny, and elastic. The dough should gather around the dough hook and lightly slap the sides of the bowl again.
Refrigerate the dough: Grease a large bowl with butter. Use a bowl scraper (it's very helpful when working with rich dough) to remove the dough from the mixer. Shape the dough into a smooth ball. Place the dough into the bowl and turn it to coat all the sides with butter. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour, or up to 24 hours.
Grease a metal 9×13-inch baking pan with butter or line it with parchment paper.
Shape the rolls: Remove the dough from the refrigerator and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Shape the dough into a large log, then use a bench scraper (it's always helpful for cutting dough) to divide it into 15 equal pieces. Each piece should weigh about 2 ounces (54 grams). Roll each piece into a smooth, uniform ball and arrange on the work surface. Take one dough ball at a time and work on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Roll it out into an oval shape measuring approximately 2.5x4 inches (6x10cm) and about 1/4 inch thick. Brush the top surface with melted butter, then fold it in half lengthwise. Place on the prepared baking pan. Repeat the process with the 14 remaining balls.
Rise: Cover the shaped rolls tightly and allow to rise until doubled in size and puffy, about 1.5 to 2 hours. If it is very cold, place the shaped rolls in a relatively warm environment until they double in size.
Adjust the oven rack to a lower position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
Bake the rolls: When the Parker House rolls are ready, brush the top with melted butter. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top, turning the pan halfway through. If you notice the top browning too quickly, loosely tent a piece of aluminum foil or parchment paper over the top of the pan to prevent the tops from browning too quickly and baking unevenly. Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack. Immediately, brush the rolls with the remaining melted butter. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.
Cover leftover rolls tightly with plastic or place the bread box. Store at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Notes

The temperature when I made this recipe: 73 Fahrenheit (23 Celsius).

Overnight Instructions: See step 4. The dough must rest in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.

Freezing Instructions: It's best to freeze the Parker Rolls dough through step 4. You can also prepare the recipe through step 7. Place shaped rolls in the prepared buttered baking pan, cover tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. On the day you need the rolls, remove them from the freezer and let them thaw for at least 4 hours. Bake as directed above.

Flour: Although all-purpose flour is suitable for most people, I recommend using bread flour in this recipe. If you can't pick up bread flour, you can use all-purpose flour in a pinch.

Rise Time: Rise time will vary greatly when working with rich dough, as it is highly dependent on the ambient temperature of your kitchen. For reference, my bread typically takes about two hours to proof properly under the conditions mentioned above. Be especially careful during the last half hour, as fermentation often accelerates quickly during this final phase.

Can I shape this dough into round rolls? Parker House rolls are most traditionally shaped like a half moon or a small purse (as detailed in the rolling steps), but you can absolutely shape them into regular round rolls if that is more comfortable or suitable for you.