This homemade Hawaiian rolls recipe gets its signature sweetness from pineapple juice. The dough turns out soft, fluffy, and just sweet enough, baked golden and brushed with butter. You can shape the dough and refrigerate it overnight if you want fresh rolls with less morning work. It’s about 2 hours 35 minutes start to finish, most of it hands-off rise time.
Don’t Add More Flour Than This Recipe Calls For.
Most people know Hawaiian rolls as the ones in the plastic bag at the grocery store, and there’s nothing wrong with those. But homemade versions get their sweetness from real pineapple juice instead of a long ingredient list, and the dough itself is meant to stay soft and a little sticky. That’s the part that trips people up. If the dough looks too wet and you start working in extra flour to make it easier to handle, you’ll end up with rolls that bake up dense or gummy instead of soft.
This dough is supposed to feel looser than a standard bread dough, and resisting the urge to add more flour is what keeps these light. Readers have rated this one 4.66 out of 5 across 20 votes, so the sticky dough is doing exactly what it’s supposed to.
If Your Rolls Aren’t Turning Out Right
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If the tops are browning nicely but the centers still feel doughy when you pull the rolls out, the oven is likely running a little hot, or the rolls are baking a touch too fast on the outside before the inside catches up. Try dropping the temperature by 25 degrees and giving them a few extra minutes, checking that the centers are fully set before you take them out.
If the rolls come out dry or fall apart when you pull them apart, that usually points to too much flour getting worked in during shaping, or a few extra minutes in the oven past done. This dough should stay soft and a little tacky right up until it goes in the pan, so if you found yourself adding flour throughout shaping to make it more manageable, that’s the more likely cause.
These Are the Rolls My Girls Ask For
There’s something about the smell of these baking. My girls ask for this recipe every time they come home to visit. A friend from California once told me they reminded him of the bakery-style Hawaiian bread he used to get out west, and I’ll take that as a win. If you’ve only had the grocery store version, homemade is a real step up, fresher, softer, and with a flavor that doesn’t fade the way it does after a few days in the bag.
Why Canned Pineapple Juice Makes This Dough Work
I’ve always made these with canned pineapple juice, never fresh. Canned juice is more consistent in sugar and acidity than fresh, which keeps the dough behaving the same way every time. That sugar also matters beyond flavor, it gives the yeast more to feed on, which is part of why this dough rises higher and lighter than a plain milk or water based dough would. The sweetness you taste in the finished roll is really a side effect of what’s making the texture work in the first place.
Featured reader review
“These turned out amazing! I was a little intimidated by the prep time. But i cheated and used my bread machine. I put the flour and salt into the bread machine then mixed the wet ingredients in a medium bowl and wisked them together with the acception that i still mixed the water and yeast as stated in the recipe before incorporating it into the wet mixture. Then poured the wet ingredients into the bread machine and ran it on the dough cycle which did the work for the first hour and a half. Then followed the recipe from punching air out of the dough and dividing. Very pleased with the results! “
Krystal
Getting a Good Rise Every Time
- If your kitchen runs cool, steam up a bowl of water in the microwave, then slide the covered dough in next to it for a warm, humid spot to rise.
- No good spot in the kitchen? Heat your oven to 200°F, turn it off, and let the dough rise inside with the residual heat.
- Bake until the tops are a deep golden brown, not just pale gold, before pulling them out.
- Using a 9×13 pan instead of pie pans? You’ll need a second pan since a 9×13 only holds 12 of the 16 rolls this recipe makes.
- I always reach for King Arthur or Bob’s Red Mill flour for this one, consistency matters more here than in a lot of other baked goods.
These are too delicious to save just for the holidays, try serving them with a weeknight chicken in white wine or with baked bbq pork ribs.
Make them smaller and you have an awesome roll for sliders to use for your bourbon BBQ hamburger sliders with pickled jalapeños or slow cooker carnitas.
Everything That Goes Into This Dough.
You’ll find the full list of ingredients and instructions in the recipe card, but here are a few of the MVPs:
Simple Steps to the Best Dinner Rolls
Step 1: Make the dough
Dissolve the yeast in warm water until it’s foamy. Add eggs, pineapple juice, sugar, vanilla, milk, and melted butter and combine. Add flour and knead with a dough hook of a stand mixer for about 10 minutes.
Step 2: Let it rise
At this point you can refrigerate overnight or let them rise one more time.
Step 3: Time to bake
Bake until golden brown and then brush with butter.
One Last Thing…
If you’re using a big can of pineapple juice and wondering what to do with the rest, I’ve got you covered. Try making Hawaiian cinnamon rolls or even a batch of slow cooker ribs with a tropical twist. Or just freeze the leftover juice for next time.
These rolls take a little patience for the rises, but between the pineapple juice and the sticky, soft dough, what comes out of the oven is worth the wait every time.
If you loved this recipe, give it a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating! Also, snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #butterandbaggage and tagging me @butterandbaggage.
Homemade Hawaiian Rolls Recipe with Pineapple Juice
Ingredients
- 1 package active dry yeast 2 ¼ teaspoon
- ¼ cup warm water
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup pineapple juice
- ¼ cup milk
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ cup butter melted
- 4 cups flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl dissolve yeast in ¼ cup warm water with a pinch of sugar. Let sit until slightly foamy.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the yeast mixture, eggs, pineapple juice, ¼ cup milk, sugar, vanilla and melted butter. When combined stir salt and flour into dough until a stiff batter is formed. Kneed for 10 minutes using a dough hook.
- Cover and place in a warm place and let rise for 1 hour. When doubled, punch the air out of the dough and turn onto floured surface.
- Divide into 2 equal pieces and then cut each piece into 8 sections for a total of 16 rolls. Form into buns forming them so that the seam is on the bottom and place in 2 buttered pie pans.
- Cover and let rise again until doubled, about an hour.
- Preheat oven to 350º. Bake for 15-20 minutes, then remove from oven and brush the tops with melted butter.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- The dough is ready to shape when it’s roughly doubled and holds a dent when you poke it gently with a floured finger.
- Brush the rolls with melted butter right when they come out of the oven, while they’re still hot enough to soak it in.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days, or freeze baked and cooled rolls for up to 2 months.
- If your yeast doesn’t foam up within 5-10 minutes in the warm pineapple juice mixture, it’s likely dead, don’t try to bake with it, start over with a fresh packet.
Nutrition
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Sheila says
They were yummy and a hit with all the family for Mother’s Day.
Barbara Curry says
So glad you liked them. If you still have pineapple juice left you might want to try Hawaiian Cinnamon Rolls!
Krystal says
These turned out amazing! I was a little intimidated by the prep time. But i cheated and used my bread machine. I put the flour and salt into the bread machine then mixed the wet ingredients in a medium bowl and wisked them together with the acception that i still mixed the water and yeast as stated in the recipe before incorporating it into the wet mixture. Then poured the wet ingredients into the bread machine and ran it on the dough cycle which did the work for the first hour and a half. Then followed the recipe from punching air out of the dough and dividing. Very pleased with the results!
Barbara Curry says
I don’t have a bread machine, so I’m glad to hear you could adapt the recipe to work in one. Thanks for sharing!
Cynthia Knox says
Did you use all purpose flour or bread flour? I have seen recipes for both. I want to make them for my son who loves this type of roll.
Barbara Curry says
I use all purpose flour, hope he enjoys them.
Cynthia says
Thanks!!!
Susie says
I’m not sure what I did wrong here, but after my first mix, reading that I was to let the stiff batter rise for an hour, it look like everything was fine. But I bet I had to add minimum 2 cups more flour to even turn it into a malleable dough. It was a sticky mess. We’ll see how the rolls turn out, but I wish I would have only added a quarter cup pineapple juice rather than the half cup called for.
Barbara Curry says
I’m not sure what could have gone wrong, it must be the amount of flour you added, or could be you had extra large eggs. I would just add more flour until the dough is manageable. I hope they turned out ok.
Vivian says
I am just making this , but the dough is like sticking to my fingers, Is it supposed to be like that?? I add it a little more , but I did not see much difference.
Barbara Curry says
It should not be that sticky, I would try adding a bit more flour.
Lorraine says
Hi love these buns but last time I made them they came out quite hard on top and a bit doughy in the middle where did I go wrong
Barbara Curry says
It could be a couple of things. I would start with your flour, these days we are getting whatever flour we can find and that can make a difference. It could be you added too much flour, this should be a sticky dough. The humidity can contribute to the outcome also, the more humid the better. I’ve made these a million times and I either use King Arthurs flour or Bob’s Red Mill. My third choice would be White Lilly. Don’t give up on them, bread is a finicky thing, I would try a little less flour next time.
Lorraine Gill says
Thanks I’ve just made them again this morning and they are lovely I used a different brand of flour so I think it must have been the problem
Thanks
Lorraine
Barbara Curry says
So glad they worked!
Jackie says
What did I do wrong? My yeast proofed, all looked great until about 4 min into kneading the dough sort of melted into the bowl. I kept going thinking it would cme back, but it kept getting worse. Ny mixer says use setting 2 with breads, slow and steady. I read reviews, added almost another cup of flour before I could turn it onto counter and hand knead, adding even more flour! I thought yeast died, but it rose- took a little over the hour. Tecture was gummy again, too sticky to shape, knead more flour in, it was workable. Rose again, took longer , used microwave method. I used fresh pineapple juice- not canned- could that be the problem? I baked them off, they look great, but the texture and taste are just awful. Temp was 180 in center, gummy in middle soft and fell apart trying to cut apart! Never had bread fal like this before!
Barbara Curry says
That sounds awful. I have made these a million times and never seen that happen, but I always use canned pineapple juice. It sounds like you did everything right, so I think it must be the fresh pineapple juice. I’m sorry, this didn’t work for you. Thanks for sharing so that others will know not to use fresh pineapple juice.
Marina says
Is there a way to make this into two 8′ pan loaves?
Barbara Curry says
Once you roll them into balls you can place them in any type of pan. You might need to adjust the time of baking.
Barbara Doughtie says
I made this recipe to the T and I was very disappointed in the taste. They were too dry and fell apart as I took them from the pan. Sorry.
Barbara Curry says
It could be that they cooked too long. I’m sorry they didn’t turn out for you, that’s so disappointing, they’re one of my favorite rolls.
Faith says
Can you use an electric hand mixer for this?
Barbara Curry says
If your hand mixer is strong powerful enough to knead the dough. If not manually knead until the dough is smooth, you’ll get a good workout!
Faith says
How would you recommend storing the rolls after you make them to keep them soft?
Barbara Curry says
I would put them in a ziplock bag after they’ve cooled and leave them at room temperature for a few days or freeze them. If you refrigerate them, they can dry out.