These Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls are the ultimate comfort food, blending rich, nutty brown butter with earthy sage for a flavor that’s both cozy and sophisticated. Each roll boasts a golden, buttery crust that gives way to a soft, pillowy interior, making them irresistible straight from the oven. Perfect for holidays or weeknight dinners, they elevate any meal with their aromatic warmth and melt-in-your-mouth texture.
With just under four hours from start to finish, including two rises, these rolls are surprisingly approachable for homemade bread. The scent of toasted sage and caramelized butter fills your kitchen, creating an inviting atmosphere that’s as rewarding as the first bite. Serve them warm, and watch them disappear in minutes—they’re that good.
Ingredients for Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk or buttermilk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast (1 standard packet)
- 3 Tablespoons (64g) honey, divided
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons fresh chopped sage leaves, plus an extra pinch for topping
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 3 cups (390g) bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
- Optional: flaky sea salt, for finishing
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Brown the butter: Place butter in a light-colored skillet over medium heat. Melt and stir constantly until it foams, turns golden-brown, and develops a nutty aroma (5–7 minutes). Pour into a heatproof bowl, including browned bits, and cool for 10 minutes.
- Prepare the dough: In a stand mixer bowl, whisk warm milk, yeast, and 1 Tbsp honey. Cover and let sit for 5–10 minutes until foamy. Add remaining honey, egg, 6 Tbsp cooled brown butter, salt, sage, thyme, and 1 cup flour. Mix on low for 30 seconds, scrape bowl, then add remaining flour. Mix on medium until dough pulls away from sides (2 minutes). Add more flour if needed for a soft, slightly sticky dough.
- Knead the dough: Use a dough hook or knead by hand for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Perform the “windowpane test” to check readiness: stretch a small piece of dough until thin. If light passes through without tearing, it’s ready. If not, knead longer.
- 1st Rise: Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 1.5–2 hours, or until doubled in size.
- Shape the rolls: Punch down dough and divide into 14–16 equal pieces. Shape into smooth balls and arrange in a greased 9×13-inch pan or baking sheet.
- 2nd Rise: Cover rolls and let rise until puffy, about 45–60 minutes.
- Preheat oven: Adjust rack to a lower position and preheat to 350°F (177°C).
- Bake the rolls: Bake for 23–27 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until golden brown. Tent with foil if tops brown too quickly.
- Finish the rolls: Heat remaining brown butter and mix with a pinch of sage. Brush over warm rolls and sprinkle with flaky sea salt if desired. Cool slightly before serving.
- Store leftovers: Keep tightly covered at room temperature for 2–3 days or refrigerate for up to 1 week.
Perfect Pairings: Serving Suggestions
These Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls are a versatile side that pairs beautifully with a variety of dishes. Serve them alongside a cozy bowl of butternut squash soup or a hearty roast chicken dinner. For a holiday feast, they’re the perfect complement to turkey and gravy or mashed potatoes. Don’t forget to slather them with extra butter or dip them into a warm bowl of cheese fondue for an indulgent treat!
Storage and Reheating Tips
Store leftover rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for 2–3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. To reheat, wrap them in foil and warm in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 5–10 minutes, or microwave for 10–15 seconds. For a crispy exterior, brush with a little melted butter before reheating. You can also freeze the rolls for up to 3 months—just thaw at room temperature and reheat as needed.
Recipe Variations to Try
Switch up the flavors by swapping the sage and thyme for rosemary or parsley. For a cheesy twist, fold in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan or cheddar cheese into the dough. If you’re feeling adventurous, add a sprinkle of garlic powder or crushed red pepper flakes for a savory kick. Sweet lovers can replace the herbs with cinnamon and nutmeg for a dessert-inspired roll.
Time-Saving Tips for Busy Bakers
To cut down on prep time, brown the butter a day ahead and store it in the fridge—just warm it slightly before using. You can also prepare the dough the night before and let it rise in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, shape the rolls and let them come to room temperature before the second rise. For a quicker bake, divide the dough into smaller portions to reduce baking time.
Essential Equipment Guidance
A stand mixer with a dough hook makes kneading a breeze, but you can also knead by hand if needed. Use a light-colored skillet to brown the butter—it helps you monitor the color change more easily. A bench scraper is handy for dividing the dough evenly, and a pastry brush ensures the browned butter topping is evenly distributed. If you don’t have a 9×13-inch pan, a cast iron skillet or baking sheet works just as well.
Brown Butter Sage Dinner Rolls Recipe
Ingredients
bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
- 3/4 cup whole milk or buttermilk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast* (1 standard packet)
- 3 Tablespoons honey, divided
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons fresh chopped sage leaves, plus an extra pinch for topping
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 3 cups bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
- optional: flaky sea salt, for finishing
Instructions
- Brown the butter: Set out a medium heatproof bowl because you’ll need it at the end of this step. Place the sliced butter in a light-colored skillet or saucepan. A light-colored interior is crucial for determining when the butter begins to brown. Melt the butter over medium heat and stir or whisk constantly. Once melted, the butter will begin to foam. Continue stirring/whisking, keeping a close eye on it. After about 5–7 minutes, the butter will begin browning and you’ll notice lightly browned specks forming at the bottom of the pan. The butter will have a nutty aroma. The color will gradually deepen, from yellow to golden to golden-brown; once it’s a light caramel-brown color, remove from heat immediately and pour into the bowl, including any brown solids that have formed on the bottom of the pan. Cool for 10 minutes.
- Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm milk, yeast, and 1 Tablespoon honey together in the bowl of your stand mixer. Or, if you do not own a stand mixer, a regular large mixing bowl. Loosely cover and allow to sit for 5–10 minutes until foamy and frothy on top.
- Add the remaining honey, the egg, 6 Tablespoons (90ml) of the slightly cooled brown butter (reserve the rest for brushing on top of rolls in step 11), the salt, sage, thyme, and 1 cup bread flour. With a dough hook or paddle attachment, mix/beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, then add the remaining bread flour. Beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If the dough seems too wet to a point where kneading (next step) would be impossible, beat in more flour 1 Tablespoon at a time until you have a workable dough. Dough should be soft and a little sticky, but still manageable to knead with lightly floured hands.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer (and switch to the dough hook if you used the paddle) and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- 1st Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1.5–2 hours or until double in size. (I always let it rise on the counter. Takes about 2 hours. For a tiny reduction in rise time, see my answer to Where Should Dough Rise? in my Baking with Yeast Guide.)
- Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan or two 9-inch square or round baking pans. You can also bake the rolls in a cast iron skillet or on a lined or greased baking sheet. (See recipe Note.)
- Shape the rolls: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Divide the dough into 14–16 equal pieces. (Just eyeball it—doesn’t need to be perfect!) A bench scraper is always helpful for cutting dough. Shape each piece into a smooth ball. Arrange in prepared baking pan or a couple inches apart on a lined baking sheet.
- 2nd Rise: Cover shaped rolls with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until puffy, about 45–60 minutes.
- Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). (It’s best to bake the rolls towards the bottom of the oven so the tops don’t burn.)
- Bake the rolls: Bake for 23–27 minutes or until golden brown on top, rotating the pan halfway through. If you notice the tops browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil.
- Remove rolls from the oven. Heat remaining browned butter to melt it since it has likely solidified (you can do this in the microwave for 10–20 seconds) and mix with a pinch of fresh chopped sage. Brush mixture all over warm rolls. If desired, sprinkle tops with coarse sea salt. Cool for a few minutes before serving.
- Cover leftover rolls tightly and store at room temperature for 2–3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.