Name: No Knead Dinner Rolls with or without Caramelized Onions
Prep time: 80 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 110 min
Ingredients: 5 large shallots (thinly sliced); 1 teaspoon olive oil; 1 tablespoon butter; ½ teaspoon sugar; ¼ teaspoon salt; ⅛ teaspoon pepper; 1 cup whole milk (warmed); 1 cup water (warmed); 1 tablespoon yeast; 2 eggs (room temp); ¼ cup sugar; ½ cup butter (melted and divided); 1 tablespoon salt; 6 ¼ cups bread flour (750 grams); 8 ounces comte/gruyere cheese (2 cups, grated)

Looking for a quicker yeast roll? You’ll love these unique caramelized onion, No Knead Dinner Rolls. NO kneading required and just 1 ½ hours of rising. Caramelized shallots make them a great addition to any meal. They are even delicious without the onions!

A basket of onion rolls with a linen napkin and a bowl of butter.

I think my favorite food will always be bread. I love it in any form and while I don’t eat it for every meal, I generally serve some type of homemade bread for meals with friends or family and there is generally a bowl of Dutch oven bread dough in my fridge just waiting to be baked. Seriously, when Mike’s away, I’m perfectly happy with toasted bread and butter for dinner.

However, my rule is that if I’m going to eat bread, it needs to be great!, I’m not wasting my carbs on bread that is just so-so. Caramelized shallots and gruyere make these easy no knead dinner rolls a great choice when you want something other than a traditional yeast roll.

In addition, they freeze well, so you can keep a batch in the freezer to have on hand when you’re having a bowl of sweet potato chili. You can make them ahead of your meal and keep them warm or reheat your dinner rolls in a slow cooker.

Since this recipe does not require kneading, it’s great for when you don’t have a stand mixer available.

Caramelized onion rolls on a cooling rack.

Simple Ingredients You’ll Need

Ingredients for dinner rolls with onions. — Gather the ingredients.

Ingredients for Caramelized Onions

Shallots on a cutting board with a knife. — Chop the shallots very small.

Shallots – there’s no rule on which onions caramelize better, I liked these delicate onions which don’t overpower the roll. You want the onions small for dinner rolls, so if using a regular onion, make sure you chop it extra small. If you’re new to caramelizing onions, I’ve written a whole post with tips and tricks for caramelizing onions.
Olive oil, butter, sugar, salt and pepper

Ingredients for Rolls

Whole milk – don’t skimp on fat in the milk for your recipe.
Gruyere cheese – gruyere goes great because it’s flavorful but not overpowering. You can leave the cheese out, it you’re not a cheese lover.
Yeast – if you purchase packets of yeast, you’ll need a little more than 1, there are 21/4 teaspoons in a packet of yeast and you need a tablespoon. You can use either instant yeast or active dry yeast. If using active yeast, the rise might be a little longer.
Eggs – let them come to room temperature before adding so you don’t lower the temperature of the dough. If you forget to take your eggs out, place them in a bowl of hot water. They’ll warm up in just a minute or two.
Bread flour – it has a higher protein content so you have a more stable bread for baking. You can use all purpose flour instead.
Eggs, sugar, butter and salt

Get Started with the onions

Onions are naturally sweet and when you take the time to caramelize them with their own natural sugars, they turn into an amazing addition to so many foods! You can do these well in advance and freeze them until you need them.

Slice shallots into very thin slices and chop into small pieces.
In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallots, butter, sugar and salt and pepper.

Raw shallots in a skillet — Add shallots, butter, sugar and salt to a skillet.

Cook until they begin to start to turn brown, reduce to low and cook, stirring often until they are very soft and golden, approximately 20-30 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Golden brown shallots in a skillet. — Cook slowly until they are golden brown.

You are looking for a rich, brown color.
You can prep these 5 days ahead and seal them in a container and place in your refrigerator, or make a large batch and freeze them.

Tips for Caramelizing Onions

Toss in a pinch of salt as you cook the onions for flavor.
As you caramelize the onions, you can add a little sugar to the pan to help caramelize the onions. It’s not necessary but does help provide a depth of flavor.
Caramelizing onions takes some time, so don’t rush it. Let them cook over low heat, just stirring occasionally.
You can use your slow cooker to caramelize onions too! Here’s an article on using this tool.

Ways To Use Caramelized Onions

Soup
Appetizers
Topped on hamburgers
On pizza
Tarts and Quiches
Onion Dip
Added to potatoes

Easy Steps to Make No Knead Dinner Rolls

Are you are a little nervous about making yeast breads, if so, I’m here to tell you that you’re missing out. Even if you screw up, I promise it’s still better than anything you could buy at the grocery.

This recipe is a good one to experiment with, there’s no kneading required and it only has 2 rises, one at the beginning and the second after you’ve formed the dough into rolls.

Step 1: Proof the yeast

Caramelize your onions first, preferably the day before. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine warm milk, warm water and yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5-10 minutes.

Yeast dissolved in milk in a mixing bowl. — Add yeast to warm milk and water.

Step 2: Make the dough

Whisk in eggs, sugar, ¼ cup melted butter and salt. Add flour, cheese and caramelized shallots. Mix to combine in the bowl of an electric mixer with a paddle attachment for a minute, you are just combining, not kneading. The dough will be slightly sitcky but should not stick to your hands.

Place dough in a large greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

A bowl of yeast dough with onions. — Place the dough in a bowl to rise.

Yeast dough that has risen in a bowl. — The dough should be double in size.

Dough that has been punched down before making into dinner rolls. — When you punch it down the hole should stay intact.

Step 3: Form into rolls

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead 3-4 times to get the air bubbles out. Divide into 24 equal pieces and gently shape each into a ball. Place 12 balls in each prepared pan so that they are touching each other. Cover and let rise for about 30 minutes. Or, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.

Yeast dough being formed into dinner rolls. — Form the dough into rolls.

A pan of onion dinner rolls brushed with butter. — Brush with butter and bake.

Step 4: Bake

Preheat oven to 375º. Brush rolls with butter and bake for 30 minutes. Remove form the oven when they are golden brown. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with flaky salt. You can bake these in a metal or glass pan.

Pro tip: Cover with foil ½ way through baking to prevent over-browning.

No knead dinner rolls in a glass casserole dish.

How to serve

Onion rolls are good any day of the week!
Grill up some hamburgers and use these for buns
Enjoy adding an onion roll to your Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter plate!
Hosting a party? Make a batch of Spicy Bourbon BBQ sliders with these as the buns

A white platter of bourbon hamburger sliders.

While you might be thinking that you don’t want to take the time to caramelize the shallots, think again. These add a wonderful savory flavor to the rolls. However, you can do this step well in advance, even days in advance.

Keep this recipe in your back pocket for those times when you want to impress but are short on time. These are great to serve at Thanksgiving, you can make them in advance and just thaw and warm them or make the dough the night before and bake before serving. Either way, they’ll be a sure crowd pleaser.

A dinner roll broken in half with melted butter.

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No Knead Dinner Rolls with or without Caramelized Onions