Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls

special favorite of everyone at holiday dinner table

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls

I love Hawaiian Rolls!! I am sure you do too!! Whenever we bought Hawaiian Rolls home, only one brand shines in store i.e. King's Hawaiian Sweet Roll. In-fact, I don't know if any other brand is available. I love their rolls, Perfectly moist, sweet, and certainly commercialized.

Since loongggg... I wanted to bake same moist and sweet Hawaiian Rolls, at home. But .... somehow... something else always had higher priority. Also, these rolls have eggs and in my home, we have N number of days when we don't cook with meat or eggs! when we don't cook, we don't eat eggs either.  Unluckily, whenever I felt to make Hawaiian Rolls, it was an egg-free diet day... so no luck since long...

Last month, I made a note to choose days for baking, only when I can cook with eggs, just so I can work with Hawaiian Rolls Recipe a few times. And here you have it - my loving Hawaiian Dinner Rolls Recipe (finally!!).

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls! Great tasting dinner rolls for holiday family dinners!

These rolls are certainly a lavish category of dinner rolls. I mean, we don't like eating sugary-egg-y rolls for every-day breakfast/dinner. I am sure you don't either. or do you?? really?? How long do you spend on tread mill then?? j/k

See, once-in-a-while, a little bit luxury is okay! Especially for family dinners on weekend or when you can manage a good portion control, like one roll for breakfast with I-can't-believe-it-is-butter kind-a spread ;)

One thing I have to mention though... and I am not trying to spoil your diet by any means... these rolls are sinfully moist and additive! Just between you and me - no-one-can-eat-just-one (whisper....)

Since the name is "Hawaiian" Dinner Rolls, these rolls get it's moisture from tropical pineapple juice. However, I have a confession to make, I made these rolls with apple juice instead of pineapple. well... not tropical...but... 60% of the word pineapple is apple, you know! j/k..

Seriously speaking, these rolls are super moist due to addition of juice (and butter of-course) and this is season of apple juice, plus I don't keep a lot of juices around my house (you know why!). So, I never had pineapple juice. I bought a small jar of apple juice and every-time, I used almost all of it making these rolls. (even though that was not the real intent...).  Trust me, apple or pineapple, in baked rolls , there was no taste or aroma of apple juice anywhere.

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls! Great taste, perfectly moist and sinfully addictive!

Conclusion?? you are good to use pineapple, apple, or guava juice if you want to. Just don't tell anyone, or otherwise how will you call'em "Hawaiian" Rolls?!?! Can't say about you, but I sure going to try these rolls with fresh orange juice next time.... because I am out of apple juice now :)

These Hawaiian Rolls are more moist than King's Hawaiian Rolls. So, I refuse to call'em copycat. However, you can be the better judge of that.... bake some hawaiian rolls this weekend and let me know!! who wins? store bought King's Hawaiian Rolls or chefdehome's homemade Hawaiian Sweet Rolls?

Happy Baking and Happy Weekend!

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls! Great taste, perfectly moist and sinfully addictive!

DIY Bake-at-home Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls

Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls
Total Time: Prep Time: Cook Time: Cuisine: American () Difficulty: Intermediate
Yields: 20 rolls - Serves: 6
(inactive bread rise time - 1 hour first rise, 1 hr second rise.)

Ingredients

Hawaiian Rolls Dough
Honey Glaze

Directions

  • Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 1. Lukewarm 1/4 cup water, add a pinch of sugar and yeast packet. Let it sit until foamy. (about 10 minutes.)
    Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 2. In meantime, beat cold eggs in a small bowl, take out 1 tbsp to glaze later, add rest to a bowl with pineapple juice, sugar, lemon oil, and melted butter (butter should not be hot). Mix well. Additional Notes: Cover and refrigerate 1 tbsp remaining egg for glaze until last glazing step.
  • Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 3. Now add juice and sugar mix, yeast mix, 3 cups flour, salt, and milk powder into a wide mixing bowl. Stir with spatula or in machine bowl using a paddle attachment, bring the dough together.
    Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 4. Now, switch to dough hook and knead for 4 minutes. Or knead for 5-6 minutes with hands. Additional Notes: I added 3 cups plus 3 tbsp flour while kneading. Still, dough was very sticky. Don't get tempted to add too much flour.
  • Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 5. Cover the bowl with a cloth and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.
  • 6. After an hour, remove from the bowl, add 2-3 tbsp flour and knead with hands 10-15 times. Also, grease a parchment lined dutch oven or deep-pan with oil spray or butter. Additional Notes: This step needed two hands, so sorry, could not click a clear good picture. :(
  • Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 7. Divide the kneaded dough into small 20 equal size rolls. Place rolls spaced apart in prepared dutch oven. Greased hands really make rolling easier. Cover and leave to rise for another 1 hour. or just until empty space between rolls is substantially filled. Additional Notes: Picture shows dough rolls risen after an hour of placing in a warm place (it is still hot during day in my apartment, so I just placed dutch oven on kitchen counter.)
    Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 8. Preheat oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In bowl with 1 tbsp egg, whisk in milk and honey for glaze. Brush bun rolls with glaze.
  • Step for Recipe - Homemade Hawaiian Sweet Dinner Rolls 9. Bake for 25-32 minutes, or until tops are golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool a little. Always serve warm!! Additional Notes: My batch almost always take between 28-30 minutes in cast-iron dutch oven. Start checking after 25 minutes mark, sweet nature of these buns make'em very easy brown
Savita's Notes:

Hawaiian Seeet Rolls taste best when served warm, out of the oven.

Dinner rolls will stay good for two days.

These rolls freeze well. To reheat, warm in microwave(covered in clean kitchen towel) at one pizza warm setting or in 350 degrees F preheated oven for 5-7 minutes until moist and warm.

Disclaimer: Recipe adapted from Food.com
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Tag @SAVITACHEFDEHOME on Instagram and hashtag it #SAVITACHEFDEHOME

© Chef De Home. Post content including video and photos are copyright protected.

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11 Responses

  1. Thank you Savita. I really appreciate you taking the time to answer questions.
  2. Hi Savita, Can you tell me whether you use skim or full cream dried milk powder please?
    Hi Carol, I used low-fat milk powder. Non-fat will work fine too. I hope it helps. Happy baking!
  3. @Angel, thanks for pointing it out. It was a typo in the recipe instructions. I actually put 20 rolls in baking pan, not 12. I have corrected it. Can't wait to see how you like it!
  4. I am planning on making these rolls very soon. In the recipe you said to put 12 rolls in the baking pan after they are formed into small balls. But then in the recipe it said the dough makes 20 rolls. I'll figure it out. They look so delicious.
  5. thanks @Mira. I am glad you like the recipe. Keep me posted how you like baking Hawaiian Rolls at home!
  6. Savita, I love Hawaiian rolls, but never made them myself! Thanks for the amazing step by step pictures and recipe! Will try them soon!
  7. @Thalia, dinner rolls are my fav too. Ever since I made'em at home, I never bought from store again. Your blog and recipes look delicious! I am sure spending sometime on your site too :) happy baking!
  8. Thanks @Lyrical Soul! lemon oil is like pure oil, extracted from lemon rinds. I simply love it's aroma. You can use lemon extract or zest of a lemon will also work. I don't like vanilla essence in these rolls, so I add lemon/orange oils to neutralize the egg flavor of rolls. Happy Baking!
  9. These look delicious! I'm definitely going to make them next weekend, but please let me know what is "lemon oil"? Is it lemon extract? Can you substitute another oil?
  10. I love making my own dinner rolls and defintiely will be following your delicious recipe next.. loving that honey glaze especially!