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Also called the Vienna roll or hard roll, the Kaiser roll is generally a crusty, circular bread from Austria with the top surface divided into a flower or star pattern.
It is a traditional Austrian food, often served with butter and jam, that can at first glance seem intimidating. However, through this article, you will learn just how to make this delicious confectionery yourself!
Contents
1 Types of Kaiser Rolls
2 Traditional Kaiser Roll Recipe
2.1 Ingredients
2.2 Instructions
3 What Pairs Well With Kaiser Rolls?
Types of Kaiser Rolls
A traditional kaiser roll has no toppings, but that does not make it law! Some delicious additions include poppy seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin kernels, linseed, or even sunflower seeds.
There is also the variety known as Kimmelweck, which is topped with kosher salt and caraway seeds and is the bun of choice for the popular “beef on weck” sandwich!
If you’re not familiar, that’s a popular upstate New York lunch food composed of roast beef and our very own kaiser rolls.
Altogether, you can get a taste of Austria and the East Coast in one!
Traditional Kaiser Roll Recipe
Now that you know what a kaiser roll is and what kinds exist, it is time to learn to make your own!
Ingredients
6 cups of bread flour.
1 tablespoon of coarse salt.
1 ¾ cups of lukewarm water.
1 tablespoon of honey.
1 quarter-ounce envelope of active dry yeast.
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, room temperature, plus extra for the bowl.
3 large eggs, room temperature.
2 teaspoons poppy seeds.
Once you have all these together, it is time to begin baking!
Instructions
In an electric mixer, whisk together the salt and flour until the two are fully incorporated into each other.
Attach the bread hook attachment to the mixer. If you lack this, a simple mixing blade will do, but you may need to run the mixer at a higher speed. Be careful of how strong your motor is – burning it out is never a good idea!
In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the water, yeast, and honey before allowing it to sit for at least five minutes – or until foamy. This is a key part of the recipe, as not allowing the proper amount of time to pass will result in rolls that are flat or overly crunchy. Yeast, when it comes to bread, is never to be trifled with!
Add two eggs to the wet ingredients and combine, before adding the wet to the dry.
Mix and knead until the dough forms into a soft, stretchy consistency. You may need to add more water, one tablespoon at a time, until it reaches this desired texture. At this stage, it’s important to pay close attention to your mixer. If it’s designed to handle typical bread doughs, you should have no issues. However, if you’re trying your hand with a lesser stand mixer, taking multiple breaks is advised, so the motor has time to ease through the process.
Begin to add butter, one tablespoon at a time until fully incorporated.
Once this is finished, transfer to a buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until it doubles in size (about one hour).
Punch the dough down (not literally; just compact it as much as you can!) and take it out of the bowl.
On a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into a 14 x 12-inch rectangle.
Fold the dough into thirds, rotate, then repeat the process.
Return the dough to a bowl and let rise until it has doubled again (about one more hour).
Divide the dough into twelve equal pieces and cover with plastic wrap.
On a lightly floured surface, shape one piece of dough at a time into 5 x 3-inch rectangles.
Seal the seam on the pieces of dough. Then roll it into a 12-inch rope.
Tie the rope into a simple knot, then pull one end into the other and tuck it into itself. At this stage, should you not wish to cook the dough immediately, you can store it in the freezer for up to three weeks. Otherwise…
Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Brush the tops of the rolls with egg wash and sprinkle them with poppy seeds.
Bake the rolls for 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.
Let cool on a wire rack, and enjoy!
Here’s a video showing more details on how to make kaiser rolls.
What Pairs Well With Kaiser Rolls?
When eaten as standalone treats, these rolls are generally used as a breakfast food, served with butter and jam.
With that said, they also fit well with most sandwiches and can be used in the aforementioned “beef on weck” sandwiches or even incorporated into your typical BLTs.
The recipe above described poppy seeds, but that’s just one example. Feel free to get creative!
While traditionally plain, Kaiser-style rolls are today found topped with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax, or sunflower seeds. The Kaiser roll is a main part of a typical Austrian breakfast, usually served with butter and jam.
All it takes is a small amount of dough enhancer per loaf to create a much lighter and fluffier result. Using a dough enhancer like Vital Wheat Gluten works to improve the texture and elasticity of the dough and elongate the strands of gluten. Doing so allows more room for the gas in the dough to develop and rise.
There are a few things that make these rolls different from other rolls. The first is the Kaiser roll's characteristic seeded topping. Before the rolls go in the oven, bakers will sprinkle the tops with an even layer of either poppy seeds or white sesame seeds.
Kaiser rolls are ideal for sopping up a variety of fillings, paired with a soft texture that's easy to bite into. This makes them a great vessel for meat-based sandwiches such as Baltimore's Pit Beef and Buffalo's Beef on Weck.
Adding sugar weakens the gluten structure, absorbs water, and eventually makes the bread lighter and softer. As a result, sugar improves the bread's taste, structure and texture. Yeast also eats up sugar to produce carbon dioxide, which raises the dough and makes bread fluffy.
Too much extra flour worked into the dough while folding and/or shaping can cause dense bread. Over mixing can cause a dense loaf by the weakening and breakdown of the gluten (not likely to happen if you fold dough or hand knead). The flour you used is a whole grain with coarse bits of bran and grain in it.
For baking light and fluffy bread, it is necessary to choose flour that has high levels of protein. If you choose to use flour with lower protein levels, you'll be left with the bread being dense. The reason for this is the fact that flour varieties with low protein aren't able to form a strong gluten network.
The bulk and fluffy interior of this classic bun, good versions of which can be found in most supermarkets, make it an excellent vehicle for big, juicy backyard burgers.
In northern and western Germany, that would be "Kanten," or "Knust," to name just the most common terms. Bavarians and Austrians might call the crusty dry end of a loaf of bread "Scherzl"; elsewhere in southern Germany it's a "Rand." Jokingly, the heel is also known as "Hintern" (behind).
A large round roll with a crisp crust used for making sandwiches or served as a breakfast roll. Signature star-shaped ridges stamped into the top of the roll approx. 4.25in x 2.4in.
Split kaiser rolls and spread cut sides and outside tops and bottoms with mayonnaise. Working in batches, place cut-sides down on a rimmed baking sheet and broil until golden brown and toasted, 30 seconds–1 minute (watch closely). Flip buns and toast, cut-side up until golden, 30 seconds–1 minute.
The exterior is crisp and tan colored, with a soft white inside. The flavor has a nutty grain taste and pleasant hints of yeast. Kaiser rolls can be served room temperature or hot.
What exactly is a “potato roll”? A potato roll is a Pennsylvania Dutch tradition that replaces a portion of wheat flour with potato flour, which gives it a soft and sweeter taste and texture than normal white rolls. Potato flour is made from potatoes that are dehydrated and milled into granules or flakes.
Some of the words for a small round loaf of bread are Germanic in origin – "batch," which is also used more generally to describe a group of small objects, may come from "bachen," or "bake", says Robinson. "Roll" comes from French and would have arrived with Norman invaders later.
If you don't have a Kaiser stamp, use kitchen shears and snip a 1/4-inch-deep “x” on the top of each rolls. Sprinkle the parchment-lined baking sheet liberally with your choice of either poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or cornmeal. As each roll is shaped and stamped, place it stamped side down on the sheet.
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