If I haven’t convinced you yet to try no-knead bread, perhaps this post will. These easy little Focaccia Rolls are so good that I’ve had to stash them in my freezer just so that I won’t eat them all up. Sure, they’re just 30 seconds in the microwave away from being warm and delicious again, but at least the freezer has slowed me down a little ;)
Also check out our classic no knead focaccia bread recipe!
No-Knead Focaccia Rolls
Trade Effort for Time
These Focaccia Rolls are really easy, but they do need to take their sweet time. You’ll need to start them the day before, so plan ahead. Actual hands-on time is probably less than 30 minutes, most of which is dedicated to shaping the dough into the rolls. All of the “work” is done by the yeast as the dough ferments overnight.
Flavor Your Focaccia Rolls
I brushed each roll with olive oil and then sprinkled Italian seasoning on top. I love the texture that the olive oil gave the rolls, but you could certainly make them without if you want. Also, you could mix dry herbs right into the dough (with the other dry ingredients in the beginning) and have an herb-infused roll. There are so many possibilities. Run with it!
Freeze for Later
As I mentioned above, I love freezing these Focaccia Rolls! Just make sure to cool the rolls completely at room temperature to prevent condensation, then place them in a gallon-sized freezer bag, and pop them in the freezer. Then you can just take a couple out at a time to thaw as needed. They thaw quickly at room temperature, or if you want to rewarm them, just wrap them in foil and pop them in a hot oven for a few minutes. Done!
No-Knead Focaccia Rolls
Servings 12Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour ($0.59)
- 1/2 Tbsp salt ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp instant yeast ($0.02)
- 2 cups water ($0.00)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.24)
- 2 Tbsp Italian seasoning ($0.30)
Instructions
- The day before (about 18 hours ahead of time) combine the flour, salt, and yeast in a large bowl. Stir until well mixed. Add the water, starting with 1.5 cups, and add a little more at a time until the flour forms a cohesive, wet ball. There should not be any dry flour left on the bottom of the bowl. The total amount of water you’ll need will vary, but should be between 1.5 to 2 cups. See the photos below for more info.
- Loosely cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for 16-18 hours to ferment.
- After 16-18 hours, the dough will look like a large, bubbly mass. Sprinkle with enough flour to be able to scrape it out of the bowl without it sticking to your hands. Place the dough on a well floured surface. Cut the dough into 12 pieces. Shape each piece into a small ball. The dough will be quite wet, floppy, and sticky, so sprinkle liberally with flour as you work.
- Place the rolls on a baking sheet covered in foil and lightly sprayed with non-stick spray (I used two baking sheets). Brush the top of each lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle the Italian seasoning over top. Let rise for 30 minutes to one hour or until doubled in size.
- While the rolls are still rising, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Once it is fully preheated, place the rolls in the oven and bake until the surface is a light golden brown (about 25 minutes). Serve warm!
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Nutrition
Video
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Focaccia Rolls – Step By Step Photos
Begin a day ahead of time by stirring together the flour, salt, and yeast.
Starting with 1.5 cups of water, add just enough to form a wet, sticky ball of dough. There should be no dry flour left on the bottom of the bowl or on the surface of the dough. It is better for the dough to be slightly too wet than too dry at this point.
Loosely cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for 16-18 hours to ferment. After that time, it will have expanded into this big, frothy mass.
Sprinkle the dough liberally with flour so that you can scrape it out of the bowl without it sticking to your hands. Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface. The dough will be very loose, soft, and sticky.
Cut the dough into four equal parts and then cut each quarter into three pieces to yield 12 pieces total.
Shape each piece into a ball, sprinkling with flour as you go (the dough will still be quite sticky). Place the balls on a baking sheet covered with foil and lightly coated with non-stick spray.
Lightly brush each roll with olive oil and then sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Let rise for about one hour or, if your kitchen is warm and you’re impatient like me, let rise for 30 minutes.
Towards the end of the rise time, begin to preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Once it is fully preheated, place the rolls in the oven and bake until they are light golden brown on the surface (about 25 minutes). Serve hot!
Could you make this (or any of your other bread recipes) with sourdough starter instead of yeast?
We haven’t tried this recipe with a sourdough starter yet to know for sure. But I have a starter going and may give this a go to see. Until then this is a good outline here to show you how you can swap it https://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2015/10/29/adding-sourdough-recipe
I can’t find instant yeast anywhere! I have something called fast rise yeast(works in bread machines). Will this work? How much should I use? Does the process change? Thanks!
SAF Instant Yeast is available on Amazon for pennies compared to the brands you find in the store.
These are delicious. The tops of mine were VERY hard at first, but they soften a bit (to perfection) after a while. I, too, turned the heat down (to 375F), because the bottoms were getting dark. Ovens vary, of course. What surprised me is HOW GOOD these are a couple of days later, and even after freezing. Mine were a bit smallish (the room was cold), but the flavor more than made up for the size. PERFECT with sliced roasted chicken thigh and a bit of mayo and mustard. Thanks, Beth!
Hi Beth,
Thanks for this recipe. I’ve made it several times, but still have the same problem. While they taste great, my rolls never seem to rise correctly. They are flatter than the ones showed above, and I can’t seem to get them to stay in a rolled ball shape. I used all purpose flour, about 2 cups of water, and Fleischmann’s Rapid Rise yeast. What am I missing?
Thanks for all the great recipes!
It’s hard to say without actually seeing your process or the texture of your dough, but I’m thinking maybe the dough is just too loose. After the dough ferments overnight, make sure to dust it liberally with flour as you scrape it out of the bowl and shape the rolls. That extra flour will absorb some of the excess moisture and help it hold its shape.
great, I’ll give it a try. Thanks Beth!
To help with the shaping, you can try balling the dough up and then press up from bottom center while spreading the top. Bring the part that you are spreading around to the bottom and pinch together. It makes a more “finished” look and pulling the edges and pinching keeps the dough from spreading as much.
Hi Beth, am not a fan of Olive Oil, but do use Grapeseed oil, what do you think?
Yes, you could do that, it will just be less flavorful as grapeseed oil is very mild. :)
Wonderful.
There is no reason not to have fresh focaccia rolls all the time! Super and easy!
Would this recipe work for bread bowls if I made fewer (but larger) rolls instead ? Thanks!
Hmm, I’m honestly not sure. It’s a bit too hard to guess how that would turn out, or if the crumb/crust would be good for a bread bowl.
Has anyone tried baking these with dry active yeast instead of instant? If so, did you proof the yeast in 1.5c warm water and then mix into flour/salt mixture?
I’m wondering the same thing. :)
hi! I made these last night/today with active dry yeast and they turned out fine! I proofed my yeast in 1 cup of warm water along with 1/4 tsp of sugar. I then added that to the flour/salt mixture and continued adding water from there. when I woke up this morning my dough had definitely doubled in size and the rolls turned out delicious :)
I have made this recipe twice now, following the recipe exactly, and both times at around the 10 minute mark, the bottoms of the rolls were completely burned. I haven’t seen any other comments about burning, so I was hoping someone would have some insight as to what I am doing wrong!
Where is the rack set in your oven? If it’s really close to the bottom, this could be the cause. Also, try switching out the foil for parchment, which reflects heat less. That could help counteract whatever is causing the bottoms to cook faster for you. :)
Thank you for the suggestions, Beth. I will try them when it gets cool enough to turn on the oven again!
Hi Beth! Great recipe. I’m wondering how you would freeze these rolls so they don’t go stale before they’re gobbled up? I’m wanting to use them in meal prep like the ones you included with your kale salad meal prep. Thanks!
I’m not sure how I missed this comment last year, but as long as you let the rolls cool completely at room temperature, you can just toss them into a freezer bag and they’ll be good. :) I don’t do anything more special than that! :)
Hi Beth question: I am baking a pot roast tomorrow, can I bake these rolls at a lower temp (like 350 degrees) I realize that it may take longer for the rolls to bake. Thanks.
The blast of high heat really helps them puff up, so I’m not sure how they’ll turn out at 350.
OMG, what? I did not know that baking delicious focaccia rolls was so easy. These came out better than store bought rolls and were extremely easy to make.
I had been to an italian rest. last week where they served almost the same roll presented in a large bowl with italian dressing in the bottom and shaker cheese sprinkled on top of them. Thank you Beth for another great recipe.
I baked these tonight. They were wonderful! The crust is crisp and the inside is chewy.
Question about your Foccacia Rolls — any idea if using part whole-wheat flour would be problematic? Maybe mix in a little wheat germ? I’m trying to minimize using plain processed flour.
You can, but it does change the texture some (more dense). Also, I find that when I do the no-knead breads with part ww flour, the color changes on the surface during the overnight ferment. It’s not a bad thing, it just might surprise you the first time. :)