Jul 28, 2020

Kimmelweck Rolls

Name: Kimmelweck Rolls
Cuisine: New York State
Ingredients: 2 1/2 teaspoons active dry or instant yeast; 1 cup warm water (95 to 110 degrees F); 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1 tablespoon sugar; 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1 teaspoon barley malt syrup or honey; 2 large egg whites; 13 1/2 ounces (3 cups) bread or high gluten flour; 1 tablespoon water; Course sea salt or kosher salt and caraway seeds

Kimmelweck Rolls are a staple in western New York state, particularly in the Buffalo and Rochester areas. they are used to make a regional sandwich that is filled with thinly sliced juicy roast beef, topped with horseradish sauce, and dipped in a delicious au jus.

I'm not sure what the magic is, but these rolls have an amazing flavor. They also fill your house with a wonderful aroma when they are baking.

As mentioned, kimmelweck rolls (sometimes also called kummelweck rolls) are served primarily in Western New York State and are used for making these beef on weck sandwiches.

The rolls can be compared to kaiser rolls, but they are topped with kosher salt and caraway seeds.

Ingredients you will need to make kimmelweck rolls:

Unbleached bread or high gluten white flour is best for making these rolls. If you only have all purpose flour, you can try adding a tablespoon or so of vital wheat gluten.

The recipe also calls for a small amount of barley malt syrup or honey. I made these with barley malt syrup, (affiliate link) which I keep in the refrigerator for baking bread, especially kaiser rolls, bagels, and pretzels.

You will need two egg whites, one for the dough and one for brushing the tops of the rolls. I saved the egg yolks and used them in this delicious brown bread ice cream.

You'll also need kosher salt or coarse sea salt and well as caraway seeds for topping the rolls after brushing them with egg whites.

How to make kimmelweck rolls:

First, you "bloom" the yeast in some of the water.

Next, in your stand mixer (you can also knead this dough by hand), you add more water, oil, a bit of sugar, salt, the barley malt syrup, and one egg white.

After that, you add some of the flour and the yeast mixture and mix with a spoon or dough whisk. Next, you add the rest of the flour and stir it in.

The next step is to knead the dough for several minutes until is is smooth and tacky. If it's too sticky, you can add more flour by the tablespoon. The bulk rise should last about 90 minutes.

Finally, divide the dough, shape them into balls and flatten them and let them rise again before topping with the salt and seeds and baking them.

Rather than setting up your oven for steam, you can mist these rolls with water before loading them into the oven, and then mist them one more time in the oven after 5 minutes of baking.

This recipe was given to me by a bread baking friend who lives in the Buffalo area. While he made his own adjustments, he cited the original source as the 1997 book The Neighborhood Bake Shop: Recipes and Reminiscences of America's Favorite Bakery Treats by Jill Van Cleave.

Update: This post was originally published in 2013, and has been edited with new information and a recipe card.