Pani Popo
Last night I was driving my daughter home from kids clubs at church and saw my husband walking up and down the street. It seemed weird that he would be choosing to take a walk in the dark in freezing cold weather… until I got home and remembered the Samoan Coconut Rolls I had made earlier that were sitting on the counter. My guy loves these things! He was taking a very brisk walk so he could justify eating one. Haha! It’s really a good idea actually.
Samoan Coconut Rolls is how we refer to these amazingly delicious sweet rolls. Their actual name is Pani Popo. They’re just to die for!
Making Samoan Coconut Rolls
I make these delicious sweet treats very rarely because we can polish off a whole pan in no time. But when I make them we really enjoy it!
I start with frozen dinner roll dough. These little balls of dough come in bags in the frozen section of the grocery store and I always keep them on hand.
I let the dough thaw and rise:
Once the dough is risen, I combine one can of coconut milk and some sugar.
The coconut milk mixture is poured all over the dough balls and they bake in the sweet liquid.
OH MY GOODNESS! If you’ve never had them… seriously… soooo good!
My girl loves them too!
Samoan Coconut Rolls – Pani Popo
Ingredients
12 frozen dinner roll dough balls
1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk
1/2 cup sugar
Non-stick cooking spray (or coconut oil)
Instructions
1. Coat a 9×13 glass baking dish with cooking spray then arrange the frozen dough balls in the dish.
2. Spray a piece of plastic wrap with cooking spray and gently cover the dough balls. Set them aside in a warm place to thaw and rise (see the dough package instructions).
3. Once the dough balls have thawed and risen according to package instructions, in a small bowl mix together the coconut milk and sugar.
4. Pour the coconut milk over the risen rolls, coating them thoroughly.
5. Bake the rolls at 350 for 30 minutes until golden brown.
6. All the rolls to cool before serving.
wow, another recipe for the files, this looks amazing. All of my fav things in one recipe
Never heard of these! They look easy and cheap. Both of which are right up my alley. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
That looks delicious!
Oh to know how to make these now….can't wait to try!
Yummy, these look fantastically simple and sweet! Thanks for sharing with Small Victories Sunday Linkup and hope you join us again this weekend! Pinning to our linkup board.
What brand of frozen dinner rolls do you use? I’ve seen this recipe before but I can never find the frozen dinner rolls that look like these.
I use Rhodes frozen dinner rolls.
I tried these last night. They were delicious! They tasted to me like fried dough — without the frying. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. It will become one if my go to recipes!
Are you by any chance Polynesian?. I know its random but when I came across this I was stunned. Lol. In a good way.
I’m not, I just like yummy food! 🙂
Should all of the coconut mix be absorbed when cooking the rolls?
No, it doesn’t have to be all soaked into the bread you want a custard like soup left on the bottom of the pan and just soak it up with the bread. Delicious!
Was making a few batches – think I used too much coconut mix over them. Should all of the coconut mix absorb when cooking??
So I’m making my menu for Easter and saw these beautiful rolls!!! I have a question. They look very moist from the coconut milk. Do these rolls have to be eaten right away? Or can they be made and held for a day.
You know, when I make these rolls we tend to gobble them up as soon as they’re cool enough to eat! 🙂
I do think they’re best when fresh, but the next day would be just fine.
It says sweetened coconut milk but the picture is unsweetened? Can you clarify please? Making these for Easter!
I’m seeing you added sugar. Whoopsy! Haha
Do you have to use a glass dish? I only have a metal pan
Made these for a family bbq, everybody loved them. A cross between dinner roll and desert custard roll. Had a few left over (lucky me), the next day they were just as good. I dream of these little gems.
Hi just wondering if I make these at night.. can I leave it out overnight for the next day? Or should I refrigerate?
I have made these a few times and they are wonderful. Thanks for sharing this yummy recipe.
Are they to be eaten as a dessert or eaten with a meal ? I can’t tell since the sweetened coconut milk was added ?????? They look absolutely amazing though !!!!!!!
Both! 🙂 Well, actually I’ve sure it’s meant to be eaten as a side dish. But it’s sweet, so it tastes like dessert!
I’m wondering if another type of milk can be substituted for the coconut milk? Perhaps vitamin D milk or half and half? My son is allergic to coconut and tree nuts, so I’m looking for a substitution so he can have some too. Thank you!