You know that feeling when you're hungry at a restaurant, and the server brings out a basket of freshly baked bread with butter? Well, these incredibly easy homemade garlic knots will multiply that feeling with 10! They are so soft and fluffy they practically melt in your mouth, and they need only 30 minutes of active work. They need to be a part of your Eid or Easter menus, as appetizers don't get much better than them, truly!
You guys loved my Tandoori Chicken Naan Buns SO much, that I wanted to give you guys a simpler version of that recipe. These garlic knots use a dough quite similar to that of the naan buns, and are equally as soft and fluffy. The chicken filling is replaced by a simple brushing of garlic butter, making them quite a bit easier. Yay!
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INGREDIENTS REQUIRED
Simple is the name of the game! Here's what you will need (make sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the exact quantities):
- Warm milk: Microwave for 20-30 seconds. You want the milk to be around 110F to activate the yeast (but not hot, as then it can actually kill the yeast)
- Active dry yeast: I always buy my yeast in bulk from Amazon, it keeps fresh in the fridge for several months!
- All purpose flour: You can also use bread flour, but do not use self-raising or whole wheat
- Granulated sugar
- Salt
- Unsalted butter: I use unsalted, but if you're using salted, omit the salt (in both the dough and the garlic butter)
- Egg: If you don't eat egg, substitute with ¼ cup full fat yogurt
- Minced garlic or garlic powder: Use whichever is easier for you. If you are using minced garlic, I recommend sauteing in butter for 1-2 minutes until fragrant (unless you like raw garlic.. I don't!)
- Freshly chopped parsley, cilantro or chives: Use any herb you like the flavor of!
- Honey: This is optional, but I like to mix a little honey in the garlic butter for the final brushing after baking. I find it balances the garlic and salt really well, making the flavor well rounded
HOW TO MAKE EASY HOMEMADE GARLIC KNOTS
Now let's walk through the process of making these garlic knots - spoiler: it's easy!
Check out this video to see the knots in action:
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1. Make the dough
Start by activating the yeast in the warm milk. Once it starts foaming up, add all the other dough ingredients to the bowl, and knead for 7-8 minutes in a stand mixer until really smooth and stretchy.
If you don't have a stand mixer, you can also knead this dough by hand! Use a scraper on a lightly floured, clean surface, and knead using the push / pull motion for a good 10 minutes. The dough will be quite sticky at first, but it will become smooth with time, so don't be tempted to add more flour.
2. Proof the dough
Once done, transfer the dough to a clean bowl sprayed with oil, cover with cling wrap, and place in a warm spot until it doubles in size (60 to 90 minutes).
You will know the dough is done proofing, if you poke it gently and it springs back partly (not all the way).
3. Shape the knots!
Once risen, give the dough a punch to knock out any big air bubbles. Prepare a 9x9" baking pan with parchment paper. Then divide the dough into 9 balls (around ~70g each).
Now comes the fun of shaping! Using your palms, roll the ball on the counter to shape it into a long, thin strip, about 12" long. The dough will be quite elastic, and will shrink in size when you stop rolling it. You want it to still be quite long after it shrinks.
Then, you want to make a knot with it! So make a loop with the strip, then take one end (or tail), and pull it through the loop to make a knot.
Then take the other end, and tuck it into the loop in the other direction (you don't need to actually pass it through, just tuck it in). This will create the knot shape.
Tip: It can take some practice to get this right, so don't be discouraged! Just keep trying with 1 piece until you figure out what works best for you.
Place the shaped knots in the baking pan, and place it in a warm spot for another 30-45 minutes until the knots are slightly puffed up.
4. Prepare the garlic butter
Melt the butter, and add garlic powder and a pinch of salt.
Tip: If you are using minced or chopped garlic, I recommend melting the butter in a pan and sauteing the garlic for 1-2 minutes until it is fragrant, so you're not brushing raw garlic on the knots!
5. Coat and bake the knots
In the last 20 minutes of the second rise, preheat your oven for 350F (conventional, bottom rod).
Brush the knots generously with the garlic butter. You want to use up about half of the garlic butter. Make sure you're digging the pastry brush into the bottom of the bowl to lift off any pieces of garlic as you do this.
Bake the knots for 20-22 minutes until they're lightly golden. You can poke one bun to feel if it is cooked through, too.
Tip: As these knots are brushed with butter, they will not have the beautiful golden, shiny crust on them that you saw in my naan buns. If you want to have that shiny, golden look, instead of garlic butter, brush the knots with egg wash before baking, and then garlic butter once they are baked. This will reduce the amount of garlic butter you put on them, though, so it depends on your preference (I personally prefer egg wash!).
6. Serve!
Add chopped parsley and a little honey to the remaining garlic butter, and brush onto the rolls when they're still hot.
And that's it! You're ready to enjoy these easy, soft, fluffy homemade garlic knots. Yay!
VARIATIONS
This recipe is quite versatile and can be used for different types of bread rolls! For example:
- Replace the garlic butter with egg wash and shape into simple balls for classic bread rolls. Serve with butter
- Add shredded parmesan cheese to the garlic butter to make garlic cheese knots
- Shape into buns filled with mozzarella cheese to get cheesy bread rolls
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
You can replace egg with ¼ cup of full fat yogurt.
There are a few reasons this can happen:
- You need to wait longer! Yeast needs warmth and humidity to rise, so if your kitchen is cold, you will need to wait longer. You can turn on the light in your oven and place the dough in there to speed this up.
- Your milk wasn't warm enough to activate the yeast. Don't worry, just wait a bit longer for it to work
- Your yeast is expired. To check, mix 1 teaspoon yeast with ¼ cup warm water. It should start foaming in 10 minutes. If it doesn't, it may be expired
This is because there is no egg wash. If you want that golden brown look, brush with egg wash before baking instead of garlic butter.
These will keep well in an air tight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. I like to place them in my toaster oven for 2-3 minutes to freshen up before eating. You can keep them in the fridge for 4-5 days, too, but will need to warm them up before serving.
Now, without further ado, let's get baking!
Print
Easy Homemade Garlic Knots
- Total Time: 2.5 hours
- Yield: 9 knots
Description
These softest and easiest homemade garlic knots are the perfect appetizer for all your dinners!
Ingredients
Dough:
- 160g warm milk (⅔ cup)
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 325g all purpose flour (2 ½ cups)
- 40g sugar (3 tbsp)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 60g unsalted butter, softened (¼ cup)
- 1 egg
Garlic butter:
- 60g unsalted butter, melted (¼ cup)
- 1 tsp minced garlic, or ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley (or cilantro / chives)
- 1 tsp honey (optional)
Instructions
- Warm up the milk for 20-30s in the microwave until it reaches about 110F (don't make it hot). Mix with yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer and stir. Let rest for 10 minutes until it starts to become foamy.
- Add the remaining dough ingredients, and knead for 7-8 minutes on medium speed until the dough is really smooth, stretchy and soft.
- Transfer to a clean bowl sprayed with oil, cover with cling wrap and place in a warm spot for 60-90 minutes until the dough doubles in size.
- Prepare a 9x9 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Once the dough is risen, punch it down and divide into 9 equal pieces (~70g each). Roll each piece into a ball.
- Working one piece at a time, shape into knots: First roll out into a 12" long strip with your palms. Then make a loop and pull one end through the loop to make a knot. Take the other end and pull it in the opposite direction, tucking into the loop. This will make a knot shape. You might need to practice a few times with one piece to get the hang of it.
- Place all knots in the baking pan, cover lightly and let rise again for 30-45 minutes
- In the meanwhile, prep the garlic butter. If using garlic powder, simply mix with melted butter and salt. If using minced garlic, sautee in butter for 1-2 minutes until fragrant and then add salt.
- In the last 20 minutes, pre-heat oven to 350F
- Once the rolls have completed their second rise, brush them generously with garlic butter. You will use up half of it in this step.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, chop up fresh parsley and mix into the garlic butter, along with 1 teaspoon of honey.
- Once the garlic knots are out of the oven, brush them with the remaining garlic butter, and serve!
Notes
If kneading the dough by hand, it will take at least 10 minutes. The dough will be quite sticky but keep working it, don't be tempted to add more flour.
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Category: Appetizers
- Cuisine: American
Looking for other easy savory recipes? Try these:
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Asmi says
These were the best ones, soft, melty and the heavenly smell of garlic butter. Can’t get better. Wow recipe. ??????
Zoha says
Aww, thank you so much! I appreciate it <3
huzaifa says
these turned out to be soo soft and tasted the best!
THANK YOU! for providing every single detail for your recipes.
Zoha says
YAY!! Thank you so much!
Tahreem says
I tried this recipe today and it was the best ever garlic bread Soft, buttery and melti mount
Zoha says
Wuhu!!! Thank you for trying the recipe! <3
Mariam Bham says
I’ve always had terrible luck with yeast items whether it was making rolls or doughnuts, anything yeast related would be a major fail until Zohas garlic knots! They turned out amazingly soft and were a huge hit at an iftaar party I took them to recently. Can’t wait to make them again tomorrow! Thank you Zoha for this wonderful recipe!
Uroosa Panjwani says
Trying them today finally let's see hope they'll come out nice?❤️
Zoha says
How were they?
Uroosa Panjwani says
They were amazing they melted in my mouth and i made eggless but still they were so soft and fluffy Amazing?? everyone loved them??
Zoha says
So happy to hear that! And the eggless tip is so helpful. Yay 🙂
Izzy says
Mmmm so yummy made this with lasagna ❤️
Zoha says
I'm hungry now 😀
Laurie Mammolite says
Make these all the time! The recipe is perfect!
Zoha says
Yay! Glad to hear that, Laurie!
Meena says
Can the dough be made the night before?
Khadija says
This is soo easy and good!! Made it for a gathering and it was a hit