Garlic Herb Parker House Rolls

These moist and fluffy garlic herb parker house rolls are a perfect side dish. They’re rich and buttery, but packed with fresh flavors from all the herbs. Plus, they’re easy to make! 

I’m a big fan of rolls, and these garlic herb parker house rolls are one of my favorite recipes. To me, nothing’s better than a warm, tender roll to go with your main course. These rolls are flavorful enough to be eaten on their own, but they also work perfectly as a sponge to soak up all the flavors from your dinner plate. 

I make these fluffy rolls all year round, but they’re especially popular in the fall and winter. Something about the smell of butter cooking with fresh herbs makes me feel comfortable and cozy when it’s cold out. They’re also one of my go-to side dishes for Thanksgiving and Christmas! 

Why You’ll Love These Easy Parker House Rolls

The best thing about these garlic herb rolls is the flavor. They’re packed with lots of butter, a healthy dose of garlic, and tons of herbs. The key is that the recipe uses butter, garlic, and herbs in the dough for the parker house rolls, and also on top of them. That’s twice the flavor! 

It’s also an easy and straightforward recipe to make, and it doesn’t require many ingredients. These rolls take a while to make, just because they need time to rise, but the actual cooking time is minimal. 

Recipe Ingredients

Here’s everything you need to make garlic herb parker house rolls. Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the article for the exact quantities of each ingredient. 

For the Dough: 

• Milk – I prefer whole milk for this recipe, but you can use a low-fat version if you prefer. 
• Butter – Make sure to use unsalted butter.
• Active dry yeast
• All-purpose flour
• Sugar
• Salt
• Herbs – You can use any herbs you like. I enjoy thyme, rosemary, parsley, oregano, and sage in these rolls. 
• Garlic 

For the Topping: 

• Butter – Be sure to use unsalted butter, which should be melted. 
• Garlic
• Herbs
• Flakey salt – This is an optional ingredient, but adds both flavor and texture to the rolls. 

How to Make Garlic Herb Parker House Rolls

This is a fun and easy recipe to make. Here’s how to do it. 

• Warm the wet ingredients. Heat the milk and butter over medium heat until the butter is melted. Remove the mixture from the heat, and let it cool to 110F. 
• Add the yeast. Pour the yeast into the mixture and stir it until it’s dissolved. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes so the yeast can activate. 
• Mix the dry ingredients. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir with the dough hook attachment until the ingredients are mixed together. 
• Add the wet ingredients. Pour the milk, butter, and yeast mixture into the bowl, and add the garlic and herbs. Mix on a low speed until the dough starts to come together. 

• Finish the dough. Increase the stand mixer speed to medium, and mix the dough until it is smooth and elastic, and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. This should take 4-5 minutes. 
• Let rise. Remove the dough from the stand mixer, and lightly oil the stand mixer bowl. Place the dough back in the bowl, and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let it sit in a warm place until it doubles in size, which should take about an hour. 

• Prepare a pan. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan. 
• Portion the dough. Cut the garlic herb parker house roll dough into two equal pieces. Working on a floured surface, roll each piece into a 12-inch log, then cut each log into 12 pieces.

• Shape the dough. Roll the 24 pieces into tight balls. 
• Rise again. Put the balls in the greased baking pan and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let the parker house rolls rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. 

• Heat the oven. Set your oven to 375F. 
• Add the topping. Stir the melted butter, herbs, and garlic together in a bowl, then brush the mixture over the top of the rolls.
• Bake. Put the garlic herb rolls in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes. They should be golden brown when they’re done. Remove from the oven and eat warm. 

Tips for Success

Here are some tricks and tips for making the best possible garlic herb parker house rolls. 

• Use fresh herbs. You can use dried herbs for this recipe, but you’ll get the best flavors from fresh herbs. Dried herbs can be a little floral and bitter, while fresh herbs have a taste that’s … well … fresher! 
• Don’t over-knead. When making the dough, be careful not to over-knead it. If you leave it in the stand mixer for too long, you’ll begin to damage the gluten in the dough. This will make the parker house rolls dense instead of fluffy.
• Tent if necessary. These garlic herb rolls should be nice and golden brown when they’re done baking. However, keep an eye on them when they’re in the oven, so that they don’t brown too quickly. If you find that the rolls are golden brown but not baked all the way through, cover them with aluminum foil to keep them from burning. 

Common Questions 

Here are the answers to some commonly asked questions about these garlic herb parker house rolls. 

Why are they called parker house rolls?
Parker house rolls were invented at the Parker House Hotel in Boston. They’ve been around for about 150 years, so they’re a little bit different now than when they were first created! 

Can you use instant yeast? 
Yes, you can absolutely use instant yeast in this recipe instead of active dry yeast. For instant yeast, use the exact same recipe, except you can skip the 10 minutes of letting the yeast sit in the wet mixture. 

How many herbs should you use? 
You can use as many herbs as you like in this recipe. However, to make sure that all of the flavors stand out, I like to use just two or three different herbs. 

Serving Suggestions

My favorite way to serve garlic herb parker house rolls is next to a saucy entree. That way I have something to soak up with rolls. Here are some of my favorite foods to serve with this recipe. 

• One-pot creamy chicken and sun-dried tomato pasta
• Apple butter pork chops
• One-pan sausage and vegetables
• Salisbury steak meatballs
• Herbed maple dijon glazed pork tenderloin

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

You can store these garlic herb parker house rolls in an airtight container or bag at room temperature for up to 3 days. To reheat, cook in the microwave on high for about 20 seconds, or toast in the toaster oven on medium heat. 

These rolls can also be stored in an airtight plastic bag in the freezer for up to 4 months. To reheat, wrap the frozen rolls in aluminum foil, and cook in a 350F oven for 10 minutes. Or you can thaw the rolls, and reheat them in the microwave or toaster oven.

More Bread Recipes 

I hope you enjoyed these moist garlic herb parker house rolls. If you did, then check out some of my other favorite bread recipes.

• Kiss me if you dare extra garlicky and cheesy bread
• Honey butter rolls
• Ham and cheese pull apart bread
• Homemade bagels
• Rosemary olive oil bread