The 24th of September is known as Heritage Day in South Africa, this is a day where all South African families and friends come together to spend good quality time together. And the only way South Africans know how to do this is too stand around a fire and cook mountains of steak and ‘wors’ on said fire; also known as a ‘braai’. Braai-ing is so ingrained in South African culture that Heritage Day is also known as National Braai Day. So on the 24th of September this year my family and I had a delicious braai. My dad supplied the meat, as he is the braai master of this house, and my mom and I were in charge of the sides. And what is a braai without delicious home baked bread that can be slathered with butter? We therefore decided to bake fluffy white ‘dinner rolls’ as one of the sides for our braai feast.
This particular recipe is extremely versatile and is a roaring success every time. The rolls have a lovely crunchy top and a delightful fluffy inside that melts in your mouth. Everyone always enjoys them, so much so that there are hardly any left after lunch/dinner.
Fluffy tear-and-share white rolls
You will need:
- 475g (4 ½ cups) white bread flour
- 15ml (2 tablespoons) butter (at room temperature)
- 5ml (1 teaspoon) salt
- 5ml (1 teaspoon) caster sugar
- 7,5ml (1 ½ teaspoons) dry fast-action yeast
- 250ml – 275ml (1 cup+) warm water
- 1 egg yolk (for glazing)
- seeds of your choosing for decorating
- In a large bowl work the butter into the flour by rubbing it together until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Mix in the yeast, sugar and salt, and mix in enough warm water until a soft dough has formed.
- Knead the dough well for 5 minutes by hand or with the hook attachment in a mixer until the dough is soft and elastic. If kneading by hand do so on a wooden surface and use some extra flour for dusting.
- Put the dough back into a well-oiled bowl and cover loosely with cling film. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for an hour or until doubled in size.
- While the dough is rising grease a 25-30cm deep round tin.
- Punch the dough down in the bowl and tip it onto a dusted wooden surface. Knead well for a minute to knock back the rise. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces and roll them out into 16 little rolls.
- Arrange the rolls in the greased tin, with 10 rolls on the outside, 5 on the inside, and then the last roll in the middle. Cover the tin loosely with cling film or a large enough plastic bag. Allow the rolls to rise for 30 minutes in a warm enough place. Pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
- Mix the yolk with a tablespoon of water and lightly brush the rolls. Then sprinkle your desired seeds onto the rolls. Bake your rolls for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and sounding hollow when tapped.
- Loosen the edges of the rolls from the tin with a thin knife and tip the rolls onto a wire rack or plate. Allow to cool slightly and enjoy!
I hope that these fluffy rolls will accompany many delicious dishes on the dinner table and make everyone’s tummy sing of enjoyment.
Until next time
Keep it real!
eat and exhale 