Tender and soft, these fluffy whole wheat dinner rolls contain extra dietary fiber and nutrients but they don’t skimp on texture or taste!
Whole wheat dinner rolls are a brilliant accompaniment to the main meal. These freshly baked, fluffy rolls are such a treat. They are soft on the inside with a golden tender crust.

Pull-Apart Wholemeal Bread Rolls
These flavorful whole wheat rolls are made in a pull-apart style, like these pumpkin dinner rolls. Small dough balls are left to rise in a baking tray, so they fit snugly and touch together. After baking, they can be pulled apart from each other. This keeps the sides of the rolls softer without creating a crust around the entire bread roll.
Once you've made these homemade rolls, here's a sourdough dinner roll recipe you might like too!
Ingredients
Find the actual recipe amounts in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. For this whole wheat roll recipe, you will need -
- Flour - A mixture of whole wheat and all-purpose to bring texture, strength, and softness
- Yeast - Active dry yeast or instant dry yeast. The yeast used in this recipe can be instant yeast or active dried yeast. Instant yeast will rise faster than active dried yeast. Whichever one you use, it needs to be viable. Usually, the instant yeast sachets are pretty full-proof, but sometimes active dried yeast can lose viability.
- Milk, Egg & Butter- enrich the dough with fats and protein
- Brown Sugar - a touch of sweetness. This can be substituted with granulated sugar, honey, or maple syrup.
- Salt - Provides structure and flavor.
Equipment
Stand mixer - This dough can be made by hand, but a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook makes things a lot easier.
A 9x13 inch baking pan - Or similar sized pan.
The Flour
To make soft whole wheat bread rolls, the flour used in this recipe is a mixture of whole wheat and all-purpose flour. The whole wheat flour provides whole grain nutrition to the bread as it is made from the whole wheat grain, which includes the nutritious bran and endosperm. This brings texture and flavor to the bread.
When making rolls using entirely whole wheat flour, these can be quite dense. To keep the rolls light and fluffy, all-purpose white flour or bread flour is added too. If using all-purpose, choose one with a protein level of at least 11%.
All-purpose flour protein levels can vary between brands, and the name of the flour itself can vary between countries. It’s best to check protein levels rather than just the name of the flour. A bread flour with more protein can also be used but this will result in a chewier bread roll.
Method
Here is a rundown of the wheat bread rolls recipe steps.
Warm the milk until it reaches around 95-104°F / 35-40°C.
In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment or a large mixing bowl add the warm milk and stir in the yeast and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar.
Leave it to sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
To the yeast mixture, add the whole wheat flour, the all-purpose flour, the remaining sugar, egg, and salt.
Turn the mixer on low speed and combine it into a shaggy dough.
Add in the cubed butter, a few cubes at a time, and mix it on medium speed until the butter has been incorporated. At this point, the dough will be very sticky.
If mixing by hand, slap and fold the bread dough on a floured surface to create structure.
The dough texture
Keep the mixer on medium speed and keep mixing for around 6 minutes, or knead by hand for 8-10 minutes until a soft dough forms and it gathers strength, and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
The dough will be soft and still a little sticky but it should be strong and hang off the dough hook in one cohesive mound.
First rise
Lightly grease a clean large bowl and place dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place until the dough has about doubled in size, for about 1- 1 ½ hours depending on room temperature.
Shaping
Gently deflate the dough by punching it down, then remove it from the bowl and place it on a lightly floured bench. Roll the dough into a 15-inch length and cut it into 15 equal pieces (around 1 inch each) Shape each piece into a tight, smooth ball.
Grease or line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper. Place the dough balls into the prepared baking tray.
Second rise
Cover the tray with a clean tea towel and let it stand in a warm spot until the dough balls have just doubled in size, around 40-60 minutes depending on room temperature.
While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C. Brush the tops of the dough balls with milk.
Baking
Bake the rolls in the preheated oven for approximately 25 minutes until deep golden brown. If the top of the rolls is browning too fast, cover them loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil.
For extra soft tops, brush the warm baked rolls with melted butter. These whole wheat dinner rolls are best served warm.
Overnight dough
The dough for these dinner rolls can be made on day 1 and refrigerated overnight. The next day the rolls can be shaped and risen before baking. Giving the dough a cold rise increases the flavor of the bread. Simply mix the dough until strong, and place in an airtight container or greased bowl covered with plastic wrap.
Let the dough rise in the refrigerator. In the morning the dough will feel clammy and cold. Let the dough rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before shaping.
Storing
Leftover dinner rolls can store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. On the following days, rewarm them gently in the microwave to soften them.
The dinner rolls can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw the rolls overnight in the refrigerator and warm them up in the microwave or a low-temperature oven before serving.
Related recipes
For more bread ideas, you could look to bake this easy focaccia bread recipe or this easy homemade brioche bread!
Full Recipe
Classic Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls
Soft and fluffy, these classic whole wheat dinner rolls contain extra dietary fiber and nutrients but they don’t skimp on texture or taste!
Ingredients
- 240g (1 cup) whole milk, lukewarm (95-104°F / 35-40°C)
- 2 teaspoon active dry yeast or instant yeast
- 25g (2 Tablespoons) soft brown sugar
- 220g (1 ¾ cup*) strong all-purpose flour or bread flour
- 220g (1 ¾ cups) whole wheat flour
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 85g (6 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into cubes
- Milk for brushing
- Melted butter for brushing.
Instructions
- In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add in the warm milk and stir in the yeast and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar. Leave it to sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
- Add in the whole wheat flour, the all-purpose flour, remaining sugar, egg, and salt. Turn the mixer on low and combine it into a shaggy dough. If mixing by hand, knead the dough into a shaggy dough ball then transfer it to a workbench and knead on there.
- Add in the cubed butter, a few cubes at a time, and mix it on medium speed until the butter has been incorporated. At this point, the dough will be very sticky. If mixing by hand, slap and fold the dough on the bench to create structure.
- Keep the mixer on medium speed and keep mixing for around 6 minutes, or by hand for 8-10 minutes until the dough gathers strength and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. The dough will be soft and still be a little sticky but it should be strong and hang off the dough hook in one cohesive mound.
- Pull the dough from the mixer bowl and shape it into a ball. Lightly grease a clean large bowl and place the dough ball in the bowl. Cover with a clean tea towel or plate and let it stand in a warm spot until the dough has about doubled in size, for about 1 hour depending on room temperature.
- Gently deflate the dough by punching it down, then remove it from the bowl and place it on a lightly floured bench. Roll the dough into a 15-inch length and cut it into 15 1-inch pieces. Shape each piece into a tight ball.
- Grease or line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper. Place the dough balls into the prepared baking tray. Cover the tray with a clean tea towel and let it stand in a warm spot until the dough balls have just doubled in size, around 40-60 minutes depending on room temperature.
- While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
- Brush the tops of the dough balls with milk.
- Bake the rolls in the preheated oven for approximately 22-25 minutes until deep golden brown. If they are browning too fast, loosely place a sheet of aluminum foil over the top of the rolls.
- For extra soft tops, brush the warm baked rolls with melted butter. The bread rolls are best served warm.
- On the following days, the rolls can be reheated in the microwave for 10 seconds.
Notes
* the cup sizes given are US-sized. Note that these are smaller than metric. For best results, use grams.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 15 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 187Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 155mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 7g
S.J. Pin says
The whole wheat dinner roll is yummy.
Thank you for your recipe.
Elien says
Thanks so much for making them!
Nisha says
There is any substitute for egg ?
Elien says
You could leave it out and add in a little extra milk to bring the moisture. I haven't tested this so I can't say the amounts for sure.
Sarah says
Thanks for this recipe. For some reason I can’t see the reviews so was crossing my fingers. However it was very straight forward with my stand mixer. I used dark muscovado sugar as it was the only soft sugar I had and the family and neighbours loved them. Will definitely make again.
Elien says
So happy to read this! 🙂