These homemade Garlic Knots are made completely from scratch in just over an hour! My recipe is easy (no mixer needed) and makes perfectly chewy, buttery, and garlicky knots. Includes a how-to video!
Quick & Easy Garlic Knots
So many recipes for garlic knots start with pre-made dough, and while I totally understand being in a rush, nothing stacks up to the taste of a completely from-scratch recipe. Maybe I’m biased, but homemade is always better! Especially with a recipe as easy as this one.
Just like my homemade breadsticks, this homemade garlic knots recipe starts with my simple, from-scratch pizza dough. It’s a very easy yeast dough that’s great for beginners, so don’t be intimidated if you don’t often bake with yeast (like I was for the longest time). If you can stir and you can tie a knot, you can make this recipe!
Once your knots are tied and baked, you will generously brush them with garlic butter before serving. The butter (and that garlicky flavor) will absorb into the bread for a burst of lip-smacking goodness. The final result is equally as tasty on its own as it is when dipped in sauce from baked ziti, beef ragu, or chicken pasta. You are just going to love these!
What You Need
Look at that, only 10 ingredients! I told you this recipe was easy 😉 Here’s what you need:
- Flour. Either bread flour or all-purpose flour will work, but you will get slightly different results from each. Bread flour is my preference, as it gives the knots a slightly more crisp exterior and a chewier interior. All-purpose flour will make them softer and fluffier. While I like my cakes to be soft and fluffy, I prefer my garlic knots to be a bit chewier.
- Yeast. This recipe uses instant/rapid rise yeast for quick and easy results. If you’d like to use active dry yeast, you can. I talk a bit more about this below!
- Garlic. We are adding a bit of garlic powder (just half a teaspoon) into our dough, but most of the garlic flavor is going to come from our buttery, garlic-infused topping.
- Fresh basil. Fresh parsley would alternatively work!
- Parmesan cheese. Optional, but highly recommended for restaurant-style knots.
SAM’S TIP: As with many of my yeast recipes, the amount of flour you will ultimately need will vary depending on the conditions of your kitchen. Do NOT dump it all in at once; just add it gradually until your dough reaches the right consistency. Watch the video below if you would like a visual of what this looks like!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Garlic Knots
- Dry ingredients – Combine 1 cup of flour with the remaining dry ingredients, then stir in the oil and warm water.
- Gradually add more flour as needed until the dough becomes elastic and cohesive.
- Let rise – Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Deflate and divide – Gently deflate the dough and form it into a 15″ log before cutting into 9 even pieces.
- Tie into knots – Roll each piece into an 8″ rope, tie in a knot, and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake – Brush each garlic knot with olive oil (optional) and let sit for 5 minutes. Bake for 13 minutes at 400F.
- Brush with garlic butter after baking and sprinkle with grated parmesan just before serving.
SAM’S TIP: This is optional, but I like to brush my knots with olive oil before baking to encourage them to turn a beautiful golden brown in the oven. It’s a quick and simple extra step!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! You can prepare the dough as indicated and place in an airtight container in the fridge overnight. When ready to bake, brush your knots with olive oil and bake as directed.
If you’d like to freeze your homemade garlic knots before baking, make sure to do so in an airtight container as well. Frozen knots can be baked straight from the freezer (don’t forget to brush with olive oil before baking!), but they will need to a minute or two longer in the oven.
Active dry yeast will work, but your rise times will be longer than indicated here. I suggest you proof the yeast with the warm water and a pinch of the sugar before adding it to the dry ingredients.
Just like you would tie a regular knot! Once you have your dough in a rope shape, bring the two ends together, then cross one end over, under, and through the other. I demonstrate this in my video below, if you’d like a visual.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! We make these frequently and pair them with everything from my meatballs to beef stew! If you’re serving them as an appetizer instead of a side, I highly suggest making a batch of my homemade marinara for dipping.
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Garlic Knots
Ingredients
- 2-2 ⅓ cups (250-295 g) bread flour* divided
- 1 packet instant yeast 2 ¼ teaspoons
- 1 ½ teaspoons sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil + additional
- ¾ cup (180 ml) warm water 105-115F [40-46C]
Garlic Butter:
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter
- 3 cloves minced garlic about 1 ½ Tablespoons
- 1 Tablespoon minced fresh basil
- Grated parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F (205C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine 1 cup (125g) of flour, instant yeast, sugar, salt, and garlic powder and stir well.2-2 ⅓ cups (250-295 g) bread flour*, 1 packet instant yeast, 1 ½ teaspoons sugar, ¾ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Add olive oil and warm water and use a wooden spoon to stir until all ingredients are well-combined.2 Tablespoons olive oil + additional, ¾ cup (180 ml) warm water
- Gradually add another 1 cup (125g) of flour. Add any additional flour as needed (I've found that sometimes I need as much as an additional ⅓ cup), stirring until the dough forms a cohesive, elastic ball and is beginning to pull away from the sides of the bowl (see video below recipe for visual). The dough will still be tacky but still should be manageable with your hands.
- Drizzle a separate, large, clean bowl generously with olive oil and use a pastry brush to brush up the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer your dough to prepared bowl and roll the dough through the oil until the entire surface of the dough is lightly coated with oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place on top of your oven to rise for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Once the dough has risen, use your hands to gently deflate it and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Form into a log about 15” long and cut into 9 even pieces.
- Roll each piece between your palms and slightly pull it to form a rope about 8” long (lightly dust the dough with flour if needed).
- Carefully tie each rope into a knot (see video for guidance) and place on prepared baking sheet. Lightly brush with olive oil if desired.
- Set tray on top of warm oven and let garlic knots rest/rise for 5 minutes before baking.
- Transfer to oven and bake on 400F (205C) for 13 minutes or until just beginning to turn a light golden brown. Meanwhile, prepare garlic butter.
Garlic Butter
- Combine butter and garlic in a small saucepan over medium/low heat. Cook until butter is melted and garlic is fragrant.4 Tablespoons salted butter, 3 cloves minced garlic
- Remove from heat and stir in minced basil. Once knots have finished baking, use a pastry brush to generously brush garlic butter mixture over each knot. Sprinkle with grated parmesan, if desired.1 Tablespoon minced fresh basil, Grated parmesan cheese
- Enjoy served warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
timmy
Delicious, buttery, and super simple. Definitely will be using again.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! 🙂
Hannah
Can this be made in advance? Day before or in the morning for the evening?
Sam
Hi Hannah! That will work just fine. 🙂
Ingrid
The garlic knots were absolutely perfect. They paired well with my vegetable beef soup. Thanks for the recipe. I love your website.
Sam
Thank you so much, Ingrid! I am so glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
miss nobody
Hey!
I looked through your recipe and thought of making it but the problem is that I don’t have garlic powder. Can I use something else instead? Pls let me know asap as I realllyyy wanna make there garlic knots!
Sam
You could use real minced up garlic instead. 🙂
Andres
Would the rising time be the same if i double the recipe? I’m having your stuffed shells with the Italian sausage tomato sauce from your baked ziti with these garlic knots.
Sam
Hi Andres! The rise time shouldn’t double, it may be a little bit longer but shouldn’t be quite double.
Poonam
Superb !! We loved it !
Melinda
Very awesome. The fresh garlic in the butter sauce gives them a spicy flavor. Recommend sauté the garlic in some olive first then add to the melted butter.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Melinda! 🙂
Jacqueline Rubenstein
These were easy and great! Will make them again soon! Used the bread flour, great texture, very light. Tried to post a picture but couldn’t figure out how!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Jacqueline! Unfortunately you can’t post pictures here, but if you tag me on instagram @SugarSpun_Sam or join my facebook group I would love to see them. 🙂
Jill
These are excellent! We added a sprinkle of parmesan cheese before serving. We’ll definitely be making them again.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed, Jill! Thank you for letting me know how they turned out for you! 🙂
Kurt Miller
I’ve never made anything like this except out of a can. I am exceptionally pleased with these.
I’m 56 years old and this is the first time I’ve made garlic knots from scratch. I sure wish I would have known this recipe much earlier in life.
My wife and u I love each and every one.
We only tried these because the pizza dough recipe came out perfect 3 times in a row. We love that recipe too!
Sam
I am so happy to hear this recipe (and the pizza dough!) was such a success for you, Kurt! Thank you so much for commenting, and for trying my recipes, I really appreciate it! 🙂
Kurt Miller
Thank you for sharing!
Megan
Could I substitute active dry yeast for the instant yeast? And if so, what variations would I have to make?
Sam
Hi Megan! Active dry yeast will work here. You may want to proof the yeast before adding to the dry ingredients. 🙂
Dan L
When I tried the recipe, the ball of dough turned into a really dry mix that had a lot of cracks. Is this really just 3/4 cup of warm water or is it double? The video looks a lot more than 3/4 cup and the dough was a lot wetter than mine. Not sure if it’s just because our air is too dry in the winter?
Sam
Hi Dan! The amount of flour isn’t an exact amount here because you should add flour gradually as needed as step 3 says. It sounds like you may have added too much flour at once. You only need the 3/4 cup of water. I hope they turn out better next time! 🙂
Dan L
Thanks for the quick feedback! We are determined to taste garlicky fluffy goodness this weekend!
VERONICA MARTIN DOWDY
Awesome!
VASkipper
So delicious. Thank you for making this easy. And I’m with you on the amount of garlic sauce. We used the residual to dip our bread in. Mmmmm
I only had AP flour and traditional (not rapid) yeast and both worked fine.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them so much! :0
Malak
Thank you sam now I can make the garlic knots I can preheat the oven to the middle
Malak
Hi sam I am going to try your garlic knots later. But I have one question I have my oven preheated at 180 Celsius and 220 Celsius and you said in the video to preheat the oven to 400 f means 205 Celsius so do I choose 180 Celsius or 220 Celsius
Sam
Hmmm can you set it somewhere in the middle so it’s at 205C. That’s really the ideal temperature to bake these.