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Pani Popo on a serving plate.
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4.76 from 37 votes

Pani Popo (Samoan Coconut Rolls)

Pani Popo is a Samoan sweet roll baked in a delicious coconut sauce. One of my favorite Pacific-Island dishes from my bakery days in Hawaii.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Hawaiian
Keyword: Coconut, Rolls, Side, Side Dish
Servings: 20 rolls
Calories: 168kcal
Author: Erica Walker

Ingredients

  • 20 frozen dinner rolls depending on size (see note above for homemade rolls)
  • 10 ounces coconut milk
  • 1 cup sugar

Instructions

  • Coat a 9x13 glass baking dish with cooking spray and arrange rolls evenly to thaw (if doing homemade rolls, roll dough into golf-ball size balls and arrange the same way).
    Baking dish of twenty frozen dinner rolls for Pani Popo.
  • Cover with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray (to keep dough from sticking to the plastic wrap). Allow to rise until doubled in size. This can take 4-5 hours.  If you need the rolls to thaw quicker, follow the quick-rise instructions on the frozen roll packaging.
    Rolls rising in greased baking dish covered with plastic wrap for Pani Popo.
  • Pre-heat oven to 350-degrees. In a small saucepan, combine coconut milk and sugar over medium heat and whisk until sugar is dissolved and sauce has thickened (about 5 minutes). If you want a thinner sauce, you can just whisk the sugar and coconut milk together in a bowl without heating.
    Pani Popo sauce in a sauce pan.
  • Pour about 2/3 of the coconut mixture over the rolls and bake for 20-30 minutes (or according to package/dough recipe instructions) or until golden brown and dough is baked through.
    Pouring Pani Popo sauce over unbaked risen dinner rolls.
  • Remove from oven and pour remaining coconut mixture evenly over the top of the rolls.
    Pouring coconut sauce over baked Pani Popo rolls.
  • The rolls should be sticky and gooey on the bottom (read notes above). Can be served upside down or right-side up.
    Spatula with Pani Popo held over pan of Pani Popo.

Video

Notes

Prep time listed on this recipe is listed as 10 minutes. This DOES NOT include the time it takes for the rolls to rise before baking.

Nutrition

Calories: 168kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 237mg | Potassium: 50mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 11g | Calcium: 76mg | Iron: 2mg