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These easy homemade hoagie rolls are soft, chewy, and sturdy enough to hold all your favorite sandwich fillings — yet simple enough for even beginner bakers. With just a handful of pantry staples and straightforward steps, you can skip the store-bought rolls and bake bakery-style hoagies right at home.
Made with just 9 simple ingredients, these easy Hoagie Rolls are the perfect base for French dip sandwiches, meatball sliders, pesto meatball sandwich and more!
Why Make Fresh Hoagie Rolls?
BECAUSE YOU WILL BE A HERO.
We make our own hoagie rolls because it goes so fast, it’s easier for me than to remember to run to the store. The only problem is, I didn’t think everyone else would want to make them too, but boy was I wrong!
We received a comment on our french dip sandwiches post saying they would like the recipe for the hoagies and I had stated I would post it, but I forgot and got busy aka side tracked with the gazillion recipes always floating around in my head. And then that recipe has gotten really popular and I not only started getting more comments, but emails too!
One night, we were eating french dip for dinner when, BAM! I remembered that I was going to photograph them. I had hardly any light left and we were literally eating them so I quickly threw the hoagies on a board, snapped a few shots and now here we are.
What’s Needed for Hoagie Rolls?
To make this hoagie bread recipe, you need 9 simple ingredients:
- Warm Water: Activates the yeast and hydrates the flour, helping the dough come together smoothly.
- Instant Yeast: Leavens the dough, allowing the rolls to rise and develop a light, airy texture.
- Granulated Sugar: Feeds the yeast to encourage rising and adds a subtle sweetness to the rolls.
- Honey: Enhances flavor, adds gentle sweetness, and helps create a softer crumb and lightly golden crust.
- Flour: Provides structure and strength while keeping the rolls soft and tender.
- Salt: Balances sweetness and enhances flavor while strengthening the dough’s structure.
- Butter: Adds richness and tenderness, creating soft, fluffy hoagie rolls.
- Egg: Used for brushing the rolls before baking to promote a shiny, golden finish.
- Milk: Combined with the egg white to thin the wash and help create an evenly browned crust.
The measurements for all the ingredients are listed in the recipe card at the end of the post.
How to Make Hoagie Buns
This sub roll recipe is incredibly easy, but it does require some patience as the dough goes through two separate rises.
- Make the Dough: Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, make the dough (**see section below for tips on making the dough).
- First Rise: Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, cover with a towel, and let rise until doubled.
- Shape the Dough: Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper and shape the dough into 4-8 hoagies.
- Second Rise: Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rise another 1 to 2 hours.
- Slash: Slash the top of each roll with a really sharp knife or blade and brush with egg and milk mixture.
- Bake: Bake until golden and sound hard when you gently tap the outside. Brush with butter.
The complete instructions are listed in the recipe card. You can also print or save the recipe there.
Tips for Finishing Hoagie Rolls
- I highly recommend brushing the hoagie bread with butter before serving it.
- If you like a little crunch and an added flavor, sprinkle some sesame seeds on the top right after brushing with butter.
- The bread is hard upon removal but quickly softens, so don’t worry that you over baked.
- Let the sub rolls cool for 15 or so minutes before cutting them.
Hoagie Roll FAQs
A hoagie roll is a type of long flat roll used to prepare hoagie sandwiches. A Hoagie is the same thing as a Sub sandwich, hero sandwich, or grinder.
There is no difference. They are the same thing, but they just are called a variety of names depending on where you are from.
In all my research, it’s a little hard to say where the word “hoagie” comes from. There’s a consensus that it comes from the Philadelphia area in the mid 1900s, but where it exactly originates is debatable.
Wrap the rolls well, or place in a zip lock bag. Hoagie rolls will keep for 5-7 days at room temperature.
Yes! To freeze hoagie rolls and buns, place them inside a freezer bag and seal tightly. Hoagie rolls will keep 3 months in the freezer.
Tips for Making the Dough
- Since posting this recipe, we have received several comments about the recipe being wrong, the dough is too wet, the ratios are off, etc. I started to wonder if somehow the recipe had been changed without my knowing it. So I made the recipe again exactly how it is written, and they came out perfectly!
- In fact, they were so good, I re-photographed them and those pictures are the ones you see now.
- The dough will seem a little wet and shaggy at first (known as slack dough which is like a blog and will not hold a shape), but you just have to keep mixing it. As you work the gluten, the dough become so smooth and silky. Patience is key and trust the process!
Homemade hoagie rolls might sound intimidating, but this easy recipe proves just how achievable they really are. Soft, chewy, and incredibly versatile, and homemade is always better. Make a batch for dinner, freeze extras for later, and enjoy fresh, bakery-quality bread whenever you need it.
More Easy Bread Recipes to Try:
- No-Knead Artisan Bread
- French Bread
- Herbed Focaccia Bread
- Classic Potato Rolls
- Homemade Naan
- 7 Up Biscuits
- All of our bread recipes!
Watch How Each Step of This Recipe Should Look…
Easy Hoagie Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Cups Warm Water
- 1 Tablespoon Instant Yeast
- 1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Honey
- 3 ¾ Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 Tablespoon Salt
- 3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, cubed
- 1 Egg White
- 1 Tablespoon Milk
Instructions
- In the bowl of a standing mixer, add the warm water, yeast, sugar, and honey.1 ½ Cups Warm Water, 1 Tablespoon Instant Yeast, 1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar, 1 Tablespoon Honey
- Allow to foam up for about 5 to 10 minutes.
- Add the flour and using a dough hook mix for 4 minutes on low.3 ¾ Cups All-Purpose Flour
- Increase the speed to medium and add the salt, mixing for another 3 minutes.1 Tablespoon Salt
- Finally, add the cold butter, one tablespoon at a time and mix for another minute or two after each addition. Continue to mix until no pieces of butter remain. This is going to be odd to see that butter slapping around in there, but trust me, as you mix, the dough will firm up and be silky and all butter will be incorporated.3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled (olive oil or vegetable oil is great) bowl, turning over to coat, cover with a towel and allow to rise for 1 to 2 hours.
- Place a silpat or parchment paper on a baking sheet and shape the dough into 4-8 hoagies depending on size preference. I like to flatten each piece into a rectangle, fold one end up like an envelope, turn 180 degrees and fold up the other end over the first. Repeat until you've formed a hoagie and pinch shut the seam and end seams.
- Place seam side down and repeat with remaining dough.
- Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rise another 1 to 2 hours.
- Whisk together the egg white and milk. Using a razor blade, make a slit down the top of each roll. Brush each top with the egg mixture.1 Egg White, 1 Tablespoon Milk
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF, place the hoagie rolls on the baking pan and bake for 16 to 22 minutes.
- Remove from the oven when they are lightly golden and feel hard when you tap the crust.
- Rub with a little butter if desired and allow to cool.
- The bread is hard upon removal but quickly softens, so don't worry that you over baked.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Fantastic recipe, this will be my go-to from now on.
Thanks Jennifer!!
Video is not complete. It shows adding the flour, then goes to a commercial and never goes back, moves on to sandwiches
Hey Shirley! The whole video is there. At that point in the video, two buttons pop up that say “Next” and “Stay”. You will need to click the “Stay” button. I hope this helps!
After the 2nd rise, dough flattens when cut with a razor blade, and never rises again. Rolls bake flat but this is not what I am looking for. What am I doing wrong? Tried 3 times now, 1st time with a Sharpe knife.
Hi Shirley! You can try to skip cutting the dough. So sorry for the frustration!
Love the flavor and texture, but they came out flat twice for me. I’m at 6000 ft in Colorado so I think that’s why. No issues when they proof, but they deflate when they bake. They end up being perfect for paninis! But any suggestions to keep them from deflating?
Hi Sara! It sounds like maybe they are over-proofing when the dough rises. You could try reducing the time you’re letting it rise. You could also add an extra tablespoon of flour or increase the baking temperature by 15-25 degrees. I hope this helps!
Okay I know alot of the comments talk about it being to wet. At first I thought the same ( I hand kneaded it) but I decided to just keep going and after about 10 minutes of hand kneading it randomly went from wet to super smooth. I think it’s because the butter really needs to melt into it through the kneading. Just keep mixing and it’ll turn out great!
Yes Laura!! This one takes patience but it gets there! The gluten has to activate and then it becomes smooth and silky dough!
HELLO! These are the best hoagies the best tasting and the easiest dough to make and work with LOVE IT have made twice in last two weeks Thank you for sharing this recipe bread baker for 40+ years Easy peesy ❤️❤️
YAY!! Thank you so much Janet! We appreciate the support so much!
I made these awesome Hoagie rolls and my only suggestion would be to remind people that they should pre-heat the oven for at least 30 minutes. I thought mine was to temp and after 20 minutes I looked in and the rolls were not browned at all. I turned the pan and left for an additional 10 minutes and they came out great. I also used bread flour for extra chew and then retarded overnight in the fridge. SUPER duper good! I made meatball heroes with them and will use the other 3 for French Dip later this week.
Thank you so much for the feedback Alexandra and for the tip on the oven temperature! So glad you enjoy this recipe!
Can this recipe be doubled? It is our favorite. I have made the hoagie rolls and now made loaves out of it. For my first time trying to make bread, we are in Heaven with this recipe.
Hi Olivia! As long as your stand mixer is big enough to handle a double batch, I don’t see why not! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Silky dough
Turned out amazing
I rolled mine a little bit bigger for meatballs but they all rise perfect!
Thank you so much for the feedback!!
Disaster ! I had one rise nicely and went to move it to another pan so they could bake and they completely deflated.. and it was more like a flat bread ☹️
Hi Abigail! I’m so sorry! It sounds like they were probably over-proofed. If you are able to watch the video in the post, it is very helpful to see how the dough should look at every step of the process.