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Bread

French Rolls

A simple yeast bread roll made with flour, water, yeast, and salt.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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French Rolls

Ingredients

Directions

The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.

Make the dough

  1. In a large bowl, mix flour, water, yeast, and salt to form a dough.

  2. Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth.

  3. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Shape and bake

  1. Shape the dough into small rolls.

  2. Place the rolls on a baking sheet and let them rise again.

  3. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

  4. Bake the rolls for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Flour
Forms the gluten network that gives the rolls their structure.
Water
Hydrates the flour so the gluten can develop and the dough can stretch.
Yeast
Produces gas that makes the dough rise and gives the rolls an airy crumb.
Salt
Controls yeast activity and strengthens the gluten for better flavor and texture.

The step that matters

Let the dough rise until doubled. Yeast needs time and warmth to produce enough gas for the dough to expand. Rising too little leaves dense rolls, while rising too long can weaken the gluten so the rolls collapse.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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