The moment when a fresh basket of bread hits the table is easily the best part of a dinner out. If you’ve ever been to the chain restaurant Olive Garden, you know what I mean. Each meal comes with unlimited soup or salad and breadsticks. I’ve always wanted to recreate those fan-favorite breadsticks, and it just so happens that you only need 7 ingredients to make a homemade version. There’s nothing like homemade. These aren’t your authentically Italian crispy breadsticks; rather, they are basically elongated soft dinner rolls topped with salted garlicky butter.
These Homemade Breadsticks Are:
Soft and fluffy on the inside, with a slightly chewy exterior Extra flavorful from melted butter and garlic both in the dough and brushed on after baking Delicious on their own, or dipped in a sauce Easy to make, perfect for bread-making beginners new to working with yeast
I adapted this recipe from reader-favorite pizza dough, with a few key changes. Since we’re not adding pizza toppings here, I wanted to amp up the flavor in the dough. I added a little more salt and sugar, and used melted butter instead of olive oil. Melted butter makes for a richer dough, which helps create a soft and fluffy bread, more like a dinner roll—as opposed to a lean dough that turns out a chewy pizza crust. If you’d like even more flavor, you can add 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder to the dough. (I usually do.) In recipe testing, another version of this dough produced chewier breadsticks, with a texture more like soft pretzels. That dough was also harder to work with and shape than the one I’m sharing with you today. If you’re new to working with yeast, be sure to check out my Baking With Yeast Guide.
Here Are the 7 Ingredients You Need & Why:
Water: Warm water activates the yeast. It should be about 100–110°F (38–43°C). If the water is too hot, it will kill the yeast. And your dough will be doomed. Yeast: You need 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (which is 1 standard packet) of instant or active dry yeast to make this dough rise. Sugar: Sugar increases the yeast activity and tenderizes the dough, especially paired with melted butter. Melted Butter: Using butter instead of oil provides delicious flavor, and makes for a rich, soft dough. We’re using melted butter in both the dough and for brushing on top after baking. Salt: For flavor both in the dough and the buttery topping. Bread Flour: Bread flour gives these breadsticks a chewier texture, but if you only have all-purpose flour, you can use that instead. Garlic Powder: We’re mixing garlic powder into the melted butter topping, and if you want extra garlicky flavor, you can include some in the dough as well.
For cheese-topped breadsticks (that you don’t need to individually shape!), see these cheesy breadsticks.
Kneading the Dough Is Key
Pictured on the left below is the dough after mixing the ingredients together. And on the right is the dough after kneading. It’s smooth and stretchy, and ready to rise.
Why Do I Knead Dough? Kneading the dough serves a couple purposes. First, it incorporates air into the dough, which helps keep the thin breadsticks nice and soft. It also encourages the proteins in the flour and moisture in the dough to link together, forming a strong gluten network, which is essential for retaining the gas produced by the yeast. Gluten is what makes bread deliciously chewy.
What’s a Windowpane Test? Tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading.
The breadstick dough requires 1 long rise time—about 1.5–2 hours—and then a shorter rise after shaping the breadsticks, about 20 minutes. Here is the dough after the 1st rise:
Shaping the Homemade Breadsticks
Punch down the risen dough, then cut it in half. You’ll have nearly 2 pounds of dough, total. Cut each half into 7 pieces, so 14 sticks total. (While not a necessary tool, I find a bench/dough scraper tool is handy for cutting dough.) Each piece of dough will weigh roughly 2 ounces, or 55 grams, but don’t worry about being exact.
Garlic Butter Topping
After buttering, you can sprinkle a little dried parsley or basil on top, too. These breadsticks taste best while they’re still warm, so serve right away (or reheat as needed). *Success Tip: The dough should feel a little tacky—not so sticky that it’s sticking to your hands and counter, but you do want it to get a little grip on the counter as you roll it into a log shape. If the dough is a little tacky, it will be easier to roll with your hands than if it’s too floury. Roll each piece into an 8-inch log, sort of like you do when making homemade soft pretzels and garlic knots. This amount of dough makes 14 breadsticks, but you don’t have to use all of it. Shape as many breadsticks as you’d like, then use the remaining dough to make garlic knots or roll out to make a pizza. Yum! The topping is made from just 3 ingredients, all of which you’re already using in the dough. While the breadsticks are in the oven, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter and stir in 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and garlic powder. If you want to add a little Italian seasoning like we do in the garlic butter topping for these pizza pull-apart rolls, or parsley like we do for cheddar biscuits, go for it. As soon as they’re out of the oven, brush the garlic butter on top of the warm breadsticks. (A pastry brush is such a handy kitchen tool… always use it for pie crust!)
What to Serve Them With
You’ll love these alongside dishes like minestrone soup, alphabet vegetable soup, bruschetta chicken, chicken meatballs, and slow cooker turkey meatballs. They’re also a perfect accompaniment for your favorite pasta meal, or serve them as an appetizer with a dipping sauce such as marinara, spicy cheese sauce, beer cheese dip, or homemade pesto. The only downside to this recipe? You might have to make a second batch, because everyone lucky enough to dine at your table is definitely going to ask for unlimited refills of these breadsticks.
