Herbed Garlic Sourdough Rolls
I’ve been sharing many of my bread bakes with our friends who live in our building here in Fort Lauderdale this winter. So when having them over there is pressure to come up with good bread to go with the meal. I’ve already posted the dessert that followed the Artichoke Chicken dish I prepared for dinner. So the bread needed to go well with the flavours of the dish. The chicken dish has rosemary in it so I decided to try doing an herbed garlic sourdough rolls recipe with rosemary and thyme as the herbs. They turned out really well and were so shreddable, soft and buttery. This used both a tangzhong and mashed potato for tenderness. Although there is butter in the dough, the herbed garlic is heated with the butter and brushed on after baking to add those flavours to the rolls. The scent of garlic and herbs was just wonderful and our friend dug into those rolls before eating the main course.
For four by six rolls in a 7.5 x 11.5” pan
egg wash: 1 yolk and 1 tbsp milk, beaten…
Cook Tangzhong mixing flour and milk constantly until it becomes a thick roux. Let cool before adding to final dough. Or add to cold milk and egg to cool it down.
Blend room temperature butter and flour (58.78 g) together and set aside to incorporate after the dough is well developed.
Whisk together dry ingredients flour salt and yeast.
To mix by hand, add the salt and yeast to the wet ingredients (milk, tangzhong and egg) to dissolve. Next add the flour (181 g) and mix with a silicone spatula until no dry flour remains. Rest 10-20 mins. Next perform French folds until the dough is well developed. Smear the blended butter/flour onto the dough and then fold to incorporate and then perform further French folds until well developed. Gradually add the mashed potato and knead to incorporate it well into the dough. Form into a tight ball and place in a bowl covered with plastic or a damp cloth @ 82°F for 2-3 hours, some rise will be visible. Alternatively, you could mix the mashed potato and butter and then add the mixture to the developed dough until well incorporated.
Butter a large baking pan or line the pan with parchment. Punch the dough down and then divide into 24 equal portions. Form each into tight boules. Place in the buttered baking pan seem side down. Cover them and allow them to fully proof about 4-6 hours, they should pass the poke test.
About 30 mins before the end of proofing time, whisk your remaining egg and milk and then brush the small boules.
About 30 mins prior to end of final proof preheat the oven to 350°F.
Immediately prior to baking brush the dough again with the egg and milk mixture.
Bake the rolls uncovered for 30-35 minutes or until the internal temperature is at least 190F. Cover if your rolls get brown early in the baking process.
In the meantime, melt 3 tbsp butter with 1 crushed clove of garlic, 1 sprig of fresh rosemary and 2 tsp of dried thyme. I use the microwave.
Remove the bread from the oven but not the pans, brush the tops with the melted herbed garlic butter while hot, and then let cool for 10 minutes before pulling the bread from the pans. You may need to slide a butter knife down the sides of the pan to loosen the bread, but I have found parchment paper to be unnecessary. Sprinkle with fleur de sel if you wish after brushing with butter.
Comments
Benny - those look and sound like bakery quality rolls - I can smell and taste the herbs. I imagine you are quite popular with the neighbors.
Tony
Thanks so much Tony, I’m glad they were enjoyed by all and that I have a few leftover for lunches.
Benny
Excellent bake. You’ve come up with another winner. Lucky neighbors and friends 👏👏
Thank you Ian, I’m glad I have people here who enjoy bread that I can share it with.
Benny
Oh man, you reminded me I have been thinking to bake some garlic/herb buttery rolls or some such... My girlfriend has mentioned a few times that she'd like some garlic-y bread :) These look so good. I was thinking more in the line like butter/garlic/herb filling with the shape of cinnamon buns. But simply brushing on top with butter with flavourings sounds like a delicious and simple alternative. Maybe even save some filling and combine both by also brushing it on in the end? So many possibilities!
Yes they turned out well with just enough herby garlicky flavour brushed on top. You could of course boost the herb flavour by adding a bit to the dough, that might be what I would do a second time around. Milk bread dough is so flexible for various savory and sweet styles of breads. You have to make something for your gf then Ilya to keep her happy!
Benny
Indeed, I will keep you posted!