Salted Honey Parker House Rolls
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Updated Apr 23, 2026, Published Nov 06, 2024
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These Salted Honey Parker House Rolls are iconic, light and fluffy. They’re baked up until perfectly puffy and brushed with honey butter and topped with flakey sea salt. Serve them with Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Cranberry Sauce and Butterscotch Pumpkin Pie.
Ingredients for Salted Honey Parker House Rolls
- Instant Yeast – I love using instant yeast for this recipe because it allows us to skip a step. No blooming of yeast!
- All-purpose flour – This is the perfect flour that gives us a good bread-y texture.
- Honey – The honey adds a delicious sweetness on top of the rolls.
- Eggs – They provide a richness to the dough that we just love.
- Milk – I love using whole cow’s milk for this recipe. It will work with almond milk but the fat and body is what makes these rolls delicious.
For the rest of the ingredients, please refer to the recipe index card below!
How to Make Salted Honey Parker House Rolls
- You’re going to start by buttering your 9×13-inch baking pan. This butter is gonna add a bit of extra flavor to the rolls. (Note: You can also use another baking dish size or multiple baking dishes –whatever can fit!)
- In a stand-up mixer with the hook attachment, mix together the dry ingredients. OR in a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients together. We have all-purpose flour, instant yeast and salt.
- Melt the butter and pour in milk and honey. Whisk it until it’s smooth. This should be no hotter than 120F or else it will kill the yeast. Pour it into the center of the dry ingredients, along with the beaten eggs.
- Mix it all together. And knead it for a few minutes in the bowl. And then add it to a floured surface and knead it a few more times.
- Pour it to a greased bowl. And allow the dough to rise for about 30 to 40 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 15 equal pieces. If you are the type to use a food scale when baking, I weighed them out to 72 grams each. Shape them and put them in the pan and allow them to rise for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Brush them with egg wash and bake ‘em! When they come out of the oven, brush them with the honey butter and top them with flakey sea salt! YUM!
Recipe FAQs
Do these need to be made with instant yeast? Can they be made with active dry yeast?
You can make these with active dry yeast by activating the dry yeast in the lukewarm milk. To do so, warm the milk and honey over medium low-heat (don’t add the butter yet – fat can prohibit yeast from working). Add it to a small bowl. Pour and mix in the active dry yeast and let it stand for 5-8 minutes. It will foam up and be very alive. Pour in the melted butter and proceed with the recipe.
***Note: If you’re using active yeast vs. instant, it may take a bit longer to get the rolls to double in size. Just go by the size versus the time. When I use instant it takes less time.
Can these be made ahead?
These are best the day of. But you can make them the day ahead. Refer below to some alternatives on how to make them ahead. We have options!
Can I make these without honey?
These have been tested with honey and the best results will be with honey. But you could replace it with two tablespoons of granulated sugar.
How do I reheat these rolls?
To rewarm them, wrap them in foil in a 200 degrees F oven for 10 minutes. You can serve them with softened butter.
What if I don’t have flakey sea salt for the topping?
You can simply use kosher salt or your favorite salt. Just use a pinch after you apply the honey butter.
Can I stuff them with something or add a different topping?
These French Onion Rolls are filled with gruyere and caramelized onions. These Garlic Twist Rolls have garlic, herbs and butter in them.
How to Make these Rolls Ahead
- Make the dough the day ahead – Make the dough, store the unassembled dough in the fridge sealed with plastic wrap or a lid. Assemble the day of.
- Make the dough and assemble the rolls – Make the dough, let it rise, assemble the rolls and then transfer the unbaked rolls to the fridge. Be sure to brush the top with a bit of oil so they don’t dry out and cover with plastic wrap. Bake the day of.
- Make the dough, assemble and bake off – This is my least favorite option because I like these freshly baked. But you can do this the day ahead. Store the cooled rolls in a sealable plastic bag and store them at room temperature. Warm them up just before serving.
Tips and Tricks
- Store these rolls – You can store these rolls in a sealable plastic bag and stored at room temperature.
- Jarred Yeast – If you’re not using the package of instant yeast and instead have a jar, you’ll be using 14 grams total of instant yeast. (Each envelope weighs 7 grams.)
- Rewarm the Rolls – To rewarm them, wrap them in foil in a 200 degrees F oven for 10 minutes. You can serve them with softened butter.
- Instant Yeast vs. Active Dry Yeast – You can use active dry yeast by adding the active dry yeast to the warm milk and honey mixture (don’t add the butter yet). Allow it to bloom and activate and get all foamy, about 10 minutes, then mix in the melted butter.
- Rub dough with olive oil – Be sure to rub the surface of the dough with a bit of olive oil or cooking oil.
- Cover tightly – And be sure to wrap the bowl tightly with plastic wrap if letting it rise in the fridge overnight or else the dough could form a crust. These are best the day of.
What to Serve with These Rolls
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Salted Honey Parker House Rolls
These Salted Honey Parker House Rolls are so fluffy and light. They’re baked up until perfectly puffy and brushed with honey butter and topped with flakey sea salt.
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
Rolls:
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature (for the baking pan)
- 4 1/2 (572g) cups all-purpose flour
- 4 1/2 teaspoons Instant Yeast, (see Notes for using dry active yeast)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/3 cups whole milk
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons honey
- 1 large egg
- 2 large egg yolks
For Egg Wash:
- 1 large egg, (beaten, for egg wash topping)
For Honey Butter:
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoon honey
- Flakey sea salt
Instructions
To Make the Dough:
- Butter a 9×13-inch baking pan or something comparable and set aside. You can even use multiple baking pans if needed.
- *Note, this recipe uses a stand-up mixer but if you don’t have one, you can simply mix the ingredients together with a spatula and knead the dough by hand for about 10 minutes!
- In the bowl of a stand-up mixer (with the hook attachment), add the flour, yeast and salt. Mix until combined.
- In a small pot, set over medium-low heat, add the butter and when melted, pour in the the milk and honey. The mixture should be lukewarm; not too hot (no more than 120F or else it'll kill the yeast). If it does get a bit too hot, simply let it stand at room temperature until it cools down.
- In a small bowl, add the egg and egg yolks and beat until combined. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients. Next, add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and knead with machine on medium speed for about 5-7 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
- The dough will be sticky but still manageable! If it's super wet, then you can add in an additional tablespoon of flour. Rub a large bowl with about a teaspoon of oil, (I used olive oil), and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise for 30-40 minutes or doubled in size (these times can vary depending on how warm/cold your home is).Alternatively, cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and allow to rise in the fridge for up to 12 hours (after 12 hours they tend to taste yeasty).
To Assemble the Rolls:
- Divide the dough into 15 equal pieces. If you want them to be the same exact size, you can weigh them out. Each piece of dough should weigh about 72 grams. If the dough is super duper sticky, lightly dust your hands with flour.
- Roll the dough into balls, stretching the dough and pinching it under the ball of dough to make sure it has a smooth top.
- Transfer them to the buttered pan and allow them to rise for about 30 minutes OR until they have doubled in size and should be puffy and supple.*Note: if you let the dough rise in the fridge overnight, you can assemble them straight from the fridge but they may need to rise for a bit longer (since the dough will be quite cold). It may take about 1 1/2 hours for them to rise after assembled!
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush the tops of the rolls with egg wash and transfer to the oven to bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
To Make the Honey Butter:
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter and add the honey. Mix together until smooth.
- When the buns come out of the oven, immediately brush the tops with the honey butter mixture and sprinkle with flakey sea salt.
Notes
To Store and Reheat these Rolls:
- You can store these rolls in a sealable plastic bag and store them at room temperature.
- To rewarm them, wrap them in foil in a 200 degrees F oven for 10 minutes. You can serve them with softened butter.
- If you don’t have flakey sea salt, feel free to top them with a pinch of kosher salt.
- If you don’t have instant yeast, you can use active dry yeast by adding the active dry yeast to the warm milk and honey mixture (don’t add the butter yet). Allow it to bloom and activate and get all foamy, about 10 minutes, then mix in the melted butter and proceed with the recipe.
- The substitution for instant yeast to active dry yeast (for this recipe) is 1:1 (14 grams of total yeast).
- If you’re not using the package of instant yeast and instead have a jar, you’ll be using 14 grams total of instant yeast. (Each envelope weighs 7 grams.)
- To make these ahead, you can make the dough the night before and let it rise in the fridge overnight. The following morning, divide and assemble the rolls, let the rolls rise until puffy (about 1 1/2 hours) and bake.
- Before you put the dough in the fridge to rise, be sure to rub the surface of the dough with a bit of olive oil or cooking oil.
- And be sure to wrap the bowl tightly with plastic wrap if letting it rise in the fridge overnight or else the dough could form a crust. These are best the day of.
Nutrition
Calories: 187kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 601mg | Potassium: 59mg | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 464IU | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this Recipe? Please Rate & comment below!
This recipe was originally posted in November of 2020. It has since been updated to help you all achieve an *even* better result.
This recipe was fantastic! The rolls taste incredible and the recipe was easy to follow. My only issue was that they came out a little dense but I think that’s because I didn’t knead the dough enough to develop the gluten. Make sure you knead well!
These were a hit at Friendsgiving! I made two batches… a stand mixer is officially on my wish list. It was a workout to mix a second batch after the first, my arms were tired! It is 10 minutes of mixing by hand for the yeast and everything to really incorporate.
Followed the instructions to a T and they came out amazing. I think next time I might add a bit more honey or reduce the yeast a bit.
Can you tell me what temp to set the oven at?
350F
What a fantastic recipe! Just did a test run for Thanksgiving, and my dad said they reminded him of school cafeteria rolls in the best way (the most elite compliment in our house). Only change I made was to cut the yeast in half (per a suggestion in the comments). I actually didn’t find that this added much rise time, but the weather has been warmer than usual lately, so that may have contributed. I did the first rise overnight and found that the cold dough was very easy to shape into rolls, so if you’re concerned about the wet dough being hard to work with, that does help, and it’s a nice do-ahead step for the holidays. That honey and butter topping with the salt absolutely takes these rolls to the next level!
I’m not sure what I did wrong, I followed every step to the T even measuring out the rolls by grams. For some reason, they were pale, dry and dense. I’m not sure if they were over kneaded or over baked but I pulled them as soon as they turned golden and kneaded them in my mixer for about 6 minutes. Any thoughts? They did have such good flavor otherwise I just want to figure out what went wrong so I can try again and I’ve never made bread/rolls from scratch so I’m not really sure where to start.
it sounds like they didn’t have the correct rises. that’s the only thing i can think of. did the dough double in size on each rise?
My sisters have made these and they are THE best rolls! I wanted to make them for a work potluck lunch but have limited time in the morning! How would the rolls fare if I portioned out the rolls in the pan after the first rise and left it in the fridge overnight for the second rise and then baked first thing in the morning? Would I still need the dough to come to room temp?
I also found the dough to be wet, unworkably wet. Although the recipe didn’t call for adding additional flour, I couldn’t work with the wet dough. I turned the bowl of dough onto my working surface that I first sprinkled with flour. I also dusted the top surface of the dough before cutting into 15 sections.
I didn’t roll them into balls because of how wet they were. I did the best I could forming a round shape in my hands. They turned out fine but next time I will go add flour to shape them, as I do for bread.
Adrianna, should more flour be added for shaping the dough balls?
Delicious! My lazy method: I used active dry yeast, put all ingredients in my bread machine on “dough” setting for ~45 minutes. Then followed directions for assembly and baking. I’ll be making these for thanksgiving!
This recipe for parker honey rolls was a disaster! The dough was so wet I had to add tons of flour to make balls.I went over the steps twice and did everything your recipe said and it was awful! Very unhappy!
Hi Celia,
The dough is definitely supposed to be wet. What step did you add more flour?
I have had this issue every time I make these rolls, the metric weight measurement is not enough flour. I added 5 additional teaspoons when letting the dough mix and had a much easier time shaping the rolls.
I think the issue is that the grams do not change when you duplicate the recipe for more than one batch. I often use grams instead of cups and ours was also basically soup.So we just kept adding flour until it made a wet dough.