# Floury Baps

By Willy Bear · 2026-10-05 · https://ricottabear.com/floury-baps


Paul Hollywood’s soft white rolls: a lightly sweet, buttery dough, weighed into twelve, rolled flat and dusted with flour.

## The story

Soft, floury bread rolls for bacon, burgers or soup. The lesson is in the shaping: weigh the dough so all twelve come out the same, roll each one under a cupped hand until it is tight and smooth, rest them, then flatten them with a rolling pin so they rise into wide, soft baps.

Paul Hollywood’s recipe, as published by SBS Food, written out here in my own words with the weights.

## Recipe: Floury Baps

Soft, lightly sweet white bread rolls, weighed into twelve, shaped tight, flattened and dusted with flour before baking.

> Status: UNTESTED. The author has not made this yet; quantities and timings may change.

- Makes: 12 baps
- Prep: 30 min
- Bake: 15 min
- Total: 3 hr 15 min

### Ingredients

- 500 g (4⅛ cups) bread flour, plus extra for dusting
- 7 g (2⅓ tsp) instant yeast
- 7 g (1⅛ tsp) table salt, fine
- 40 g (3⅜ tbsp) caster (superfine) sugar
- 40 g (2⅞ tbsp) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, softened
- 320 ml (1⅓ cups) water, cold, about
-  oil, for oiling

### Method

1. **Mix.** Put the flour in a large bowl with the yeast on one side and the salt and sugar on the other. Add the butter and about three-quarters of the water and mix with the fingers of one hand, adding more water a little at a time until all the flour is picked up. You want soft dough, not soggy; you may need a little less water or a little more.
2. **Knead.** Knead on a lightly floured surface for 5 to 10 minutes. It starts wet and turns smooth and silky.
3. **First rise.** Put it in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave until doubled, at least an hour and maybe 2 to 3.
4. **Knock back.** Tip the dough out and fold it in on itself again and again until all the air is out. This builds the structure that makes the rolls rise up instead of spreading.
5. **Divide.** Weigh the whole dough and divide the total by 12. Cut 12 pieces and check each one on the scale.
6. **Shape.** On a lightly floured surface, cup your hand over each piece and roll it in small circles, pressing lightly, until it is a tight, smooth ball. Cover with a tea towel and rest for 30 minutes.
7. **Flatten.** Line 2 baking trays. Flatten each ball with a rolling pin until it is twice as wide, and space them out on the trays.
8. **Prove.** Put each tray in a large clean plastic bag and leave for 45 to 60 minutes, until doubled. Heat the oven. Oven: 425°F / 220°C (200°C fan).
9. **Bake.** Dust the tops lightly with flour and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until risen and golden. Leave on the tray for 5 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.