Lately, we can’t get enough of these sourdough Parker House dinner rolls. Honestly, they are the best; super soft, airy, melt-in-your-mouth dinner rolls. They are sourdough, so fermented dough is another plus for the health checklist. Not bad, given that lately somewhat heavier meals are in the plan due to all the festivities. It seems that every time I make these, there is never enough; they are just that good.
About Your Sourdough Starter
The essential ingredient for the sourdough Parker House dinner rolls is the sourdough starter. It has to be vibrant enough to reach the mature state at standard ambient temperature in the shortest time possible.
The recipe calls for a mature sourdough starter, which means that you should use it right before it reaches the peak and starts to collapse. The best time to use it is while still concave on top. It should have a creamy note and not be acidic at all when you smell it.
In this recipe, a 100% hydration starter is used, which means that you should feed the starter with equal amounts of water and flour.
Making the Sourdough Parker House Dinner Rolls
This recipe spans over two days to provide enough time for proper fermentation. However, you can make the rolls the same day and bake for dinner, given that you start in the morning. In this case, please adjust the timings for the bulk fermentation.
Also, place the dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour before rolling it out. As the dough cools, it is much easier to work with.
The main steps of the method are:
- Making the dough by slow and overnight fermentation
- Shaping the rolls
- Proofing and baking the rolls
How to Shape the Rolls
During the cold overnight fermentation, the dough should have risen further. However, it is cold and relatively compact, making it significantly easier to roll out and shape.
You will need a rolling pin, some flour, a knife, and a kitchen ruler for the following steps.
Lightly flour the working surface and dump the dough onto it. You should see many tiny air pockets, and the dough should be very airy.
Using your hands, shape the dough into a square or a rectangle. Roll out the dough to about 12in/30cm wide and 18in/45cm long, trying to retain the rectangle shape.
Using the kitchen ruler, mark the dough at 2in/5cm intervals along the length and 4in/10cm intervals along the width.
Using the knife, cut along the marked lines. You should have 27 rectangles. Brush each rectangle with melted and cooled butter. Shape the rolls by flipping the rectangle in half so that the side with the brushed butter is covered.
Arrange the rolls in rows such that one roll covers about 1/3 of the previous roll. They puff up significantly, so you want to give them ample space.
Next, cover with the plastic wrap and place the rolls somewhere warm to rise. At an ambient temperature of 79ºF/26ºC, they should be ready in about 2.5 hours.
When ready to bake, brush the rolls with melted butter and bake for 15 minutes at 400ºF/200ºC.
Storing the rolls
You can store the rolls in an airtight container for several days. If you wish, you can reheat the rolls in the oven at 200ºC/400ºF for several minutes or in the microwave.
Another option is to transform them into a delicious breakfast of mini french toast. Slice the rolls in half and proceed as you would if making the classic french toast. So tasty!
Other Sourdough Recipes
If you are a sourdough aficionado, check out our sourdough page for more inspiration and recipes.
Sourdough Parker House Dinner Rolls
Equipment & Tools
- Rolling Pin
- Kitchen ruller (optional)
- Stand mixer with dough hook attachment
- Baking pan
- Large mixing bowl
INGREDIENTS
SOUROUDGH STARTER
- 15 g sourdough starter
- 100 g water (non-chlorinated)
- 100 g T00 flour (bread flour; Mulino Marino)
DOUGH
- 500 g T00 flour (bread flour; Mulino Marino)
- 286 g whole milk, scalded and cooled (room temperature)
- 200 g sourdough starter (mature and bubbly)
- 1 egg (~57g, room temperature)
- 40 g honey
- 9 g salt
- 43 g butter (unsalted, room temperature)
OTHER
- 30 g butter (unsalted, melted and cooled)
- flaky salt (Maldon)
INSTRUCTIONS
- Gather all the ingredients.
PREPARE THE SOURODUGH STARTER
- Mix all the ingredients in a clean glass jar. Cover and place somewhere warm at about 24ºC/75ºF.The starter should be ready somewhere between 6-8 hours, depending on your kitchen temperature – Note 1.
INITIAL DOUGH MIX
- In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the whole milk, sourdough starter, an egg, and honey. Using a dough whisk or a spatula, mix everything until the batter is uniform in structure.
- Sift in the T00 flour. With the setting on the lowest speed, mix the dough until no dry bits of flour are visible, about 2 minutes. Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Add the salt and mix on 4th speed for about 6 minutes. Lower the speed for 1 notch and add butter incrementaly; 1 tablespoon at a time. Mix for another 3 minutes. The dough should be smooth, soft and shiny.
- Transfer to a clean bowl and do a coil fold to form a ball. (DDT: 24ºC/75ºF, AT:21ºC/70ºF)Cover and set side to rest for one hour in a warm area; e.g. oven with the light on.
BULK FERMENTATION
- First coil fold: Perform a coil fold once, turn the bowl for 90º and do another coil fold. Cover and rest for 1 hour. (DDT: 25ºC/77ºF, AT:26ºC/79ºF)
- Second coil fold: Perform a coil fold once, turn the bowl for 90º and do another coil fold. Cover and rest for 1 hour. (DDT: 25ºC/77ºF, AT:26ºC/79ºF)
- Place in the fridge overnight.
SHAPE (next day)
- Very lightly dust the working surface. Take the dough out from the fridge and dump it on the dusted worksurface.
- Using your hand, gently shape into a rectangle. Roll the dough so that it is approximately 45cm/18in by 30cm/12in, still rectangle shape.
- Cut the rectangle into strips so that the width is about 5cm/2in and length about 10cm/4in
- Brush the rectangles with the melted butter.
- Take one of the cut rectangles and starting from the top fold it over. Repeat with the remaining ones. Place them in the baking pan so that one covers ⅓ of the previous one.
- Cover and prove at about 26ºC/79ºF for 2.5 hours or until the rolls are soft to touch and feel very light.
BAKE (next day)
- Preheat the oven to 250ºC/480ºF .
- Brush the tops of the rolls with the remaining melted butter and place in the oven. Immediately lower the temperature to 200ºC/400ºF.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until the rolls start to take on golden color. Take them out of the oven, brush with melted butter and sprinkle the flaky salt.
- Place on a cooling rack to cool to room temperature.
NOTES
- Sourdough starter: The recipe calls for a mature sourdough starter, which means that you should use it right before it reaches the peak and starts to collapse. The best time to use it is while still concave on top. It should have a creamy note and not be acidic at all when you smell it. You can speed up the process by increasing the amount of starter and decreasing the amount of water and flour. Keep the total weight the same!
