Poppy Seed Rolls make for the perfect breakfast, snack or dessert. This recipe is amazing because it requires NO rising time.
Poppy Seed Rolls in a flash? That’s right. Without having to wait for the rising time, you can have bakery fresh pastries on the table in under an hour!
Poppy Seed Rolls are stuffed with a sweet and crunchy filling that is seriously to-die-for. While poppy seeds are no stranger to American baking, they are IMMENSELY popular in Polish and Ukrainian baking.
Some of the best memories I have as a child include gobbling up these delicious rolls. Now that I am an adult, I like to pair them with a nice cup of coffee or mug of tea. I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback in the comments below!
How to Make Poppy Seed Rolls
- Use fresh yeast. A common mistake I see bakers make is using yeast that has been sitting around for too long. It’s important to keep tabs on the expiration dates on your yeast to prevent your rolls from turning out dense and flat.
- Make sure your milk is at perfect temperature. To make sure all the sugar dissolves and you set the stage for a nice, custardy texture, get your milk to the right temp before dissolving in your sugar.
- Add your flour slowly. Add your flour in small portions for easier mixing. Depending on the brand you use, you may need more or less. The dough should be sticky, yet elastic and easy to to work with!
- Get your “knead” on. Knead the dough long enough to achieve the desired texture. When using a standing mixer, like a KitchenAid, this takes about 10 minutes.
- Give the rolls space! When placing your rolls on the baking sheet, make sure to leave some space in between. They will double in size and you don’t want them sticking together.
- Make it golden. Brush the tops of your rolls with egg to give them a nice and shiny, bakery-worthy top!
Poppy Seed Filling
A great poppy seed filling really makes or breaks this recipe. In my opinion, the more filling the better! You will find, however, that some bakers like a thin layer. Whatever suits your taste buds is the route you should follow!
If you have never tried poppy seed filling before, you are probably wondering what the heck it is! Simply put, it’s a custard like filling made with, you guessed it, poppy seeds! It also contains sugar, eggs, butter and a pinch of salt. The end result is delectably sweet and earthy filling. Be prepared to get some poppy seeds stuck in your teeth! But, trust me, it’s worth it…
Depending on the energy and time you want to spend, you have TWO options for making your way to a great filling. Try your hand at making my poppy seed filling recipe or head to the nearest Eastern European grocery store. You can also purchase some filling online.
Storing Poppy Seed Rolls
Room Temperature
After you bake your poppy seed rolls, let them cool down completely. Store them in an airtight container or Ziploc bag to keep them fresh for longer. Leave ‘em right on the counter and they will stay fresh for up to five days.
Hot Tip: If your rolls become stale faster, reheat them in the microwave or oven to soften them up again!
Freezing Piroshki
After forming your poppy seed rolls, freeze them raw on a baking sheet. Once they are completely hard and frozen, remove them from the baking sheet and store them in a Ziploc bag or airtight container. When you are ready to bake, allow the rolls to completely thaw in the fridge overnight. Then, bake according to directions!
Other Russian Piroshki to Try:
- Fruit Piroshki Recipe – a childhood classic filled with jam or any other fruit filling!
- Savory Piroshy – These fried Piroshki are amazing, filled with ground meat and onions.
- Vatrushka Buns– They are to die for, filled with farmers cheese and raisins.
Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
- Combine lukewarm milk with yeast and sugar. Let yeast dissolve for 5 minutes. Add salt, melted margarine and oil. Using a dough hook, mix in flour in small portion.
- Knead the dough for about 15 minutes, until it’s elastic and not sticky.
- Dust your counter with flour and roll out the dough with a rolling pin to very thin rectangle. Brush it with whisked egg, this makes poppy seed stick to the dough. Spread even thin layer of poppy seeds.
- Roll up the shorter side, making it into a long string. Flour knife and cut them into 2 inch pieces.
- Place them on baking sheet covered with parchment paper, leaving about an inch of space in between each one. Repeat until you run out of dough.
- Preheat the oven to 300 °F. Brush tops of piroshky with wisked eggs. Bake for 30-45 minutes, until golden brown.
Hi, love your recipes. I’m making this today but was wondering how much dough to pinch off for each roll? Do you get 4,5,6, or 7 loaves before you cut them in individual rolls? In other words, how many long rolls does one full recipe make? I’m just going to make loaves, not cut them and want to be sure I’m not using too little or too much dough for each roll. Hope that makes sense. Thank you!
Hey Lucy, so my guess is that it would be about 4 rolls but I haven't tested this. I recommend rolling one out and seeing how it does, make sure that it rises well. If it doesn't do well, my tip is to stick with the smaller rolls for best results. I wouldn't want the dough on big loaves to crack or the final results to be too dense. Hope this helps!
Hello, love your recipes! I’d like to make loaves rather than individual ones. How many loaves do I divide the dough for them? I think I’ll like this dough better than my normal dough due to a lesser rise. My recipe uses less flour (4.5 cups) and it makes 4. Sometimes my poppyseed rolls come out to ‘bready’. That’s why I think I’ll prefer your dough recipe. Thank you.
Hey Lucy, I haven't made this recipe in bigger loaves but I think you could get about 4 "loaves" from this recipe. Divide the dough into 4 pieces, roll out one piece and make the "loaf" and go from there. You can adjust based on that if you want smaller or bigger loaves. I'm not sure how the bigger loaves will rise and if the texture will be the same since I haven't tested this, but you are welcome to give it a shot and let us know how it goes. Enjoy!
Can you make these in loaves
Hey Jeff, That would totally work!
Can I substitute margarine for butter?
Hi. I'm from Voivodina, where this is something we just can't do without. So, to answer your question - yes, you certainly can use unsalted butter, and you can even use the clean, white pork lard (just use about 10-20 percent smaller amount than butter/margarine). This dough is traditionally made with lard - namely, butter was always more "dear" than lard, which was something every household had and regularly used. If using lard, you can - but don't have to - add some grated lemon zest or vanilla aroma to the dough.
Hi Sofia, I find that the result is the best with margarine, but you can definitely use unsalted butter instead if that is what you prefer. Thank you for reaching out.
Thank you Natalya, I also wanted to know if I can make 1/2 of the batch? I made them yesterday and they are wonderful!!!! Thank you for the recipe, but it too much for me. Thanks for this wonderful recipe 👍👍👍
Hi Sofia, you can absolutely make half the batch. I am so glad to hear that you love this recipe! Thank you for sharing your feedback!
Tried the Poppy Seed Rolls, and they are amazing! I have never tried making them before, because the recipes always looked so complicated. Your recipe, instructions, and video made it very easy. Thank you so much!
Hi Colleen, I am so honored that you tried my recipe. Thank you for giving it a chance. I am thrilled it was a success!! Enjoy!
Delicious! Hypothetically, could I do two rises on this dough (one after mixing, second after shaping and filling) to just make the flavor of the dough more complex?
Thank you!
Leon, You can and I do think they will be more fluffy but its a very forgiving recipe, you can go either way. Hope you love them. I am obsessed with everything poppyseeds and this one is so good. Enjoy
Just made these today. The dough is delicious and very easy to work with. The filling did spill out when I baked them, so next time I’ll leave it as a whole rolled loaf. I didn’t have enough poppyseed filling so I made one roll with orange fig spread. And it’s fabulous! Definitely a keeper!
Hi Judy, I am so delighted to hear that the recipe was a success! Thank you so much for sharing! I also love the added orange fig spread idea! Enjoy!
The dough doesn’t have to sit out for the yeast to work?
Hey, Jesse! Not with this recipe. I hope you get a chance to make it!
Can I use butter instead of margarine? Salted or unsalted?
I find the best results with margarine, but yes, you can use unsalted butter. Thank you for reaching out. Good luck and happy holidays!
This poppy seed recipe is garbage. Im an avid baker and even after 3 eggs nothing came together. Clearly the ratios are way off
You can make the filling without eggs: just poppy seed and sugar, scalded with milk (added little by little, until you have a thick but spreadable mass. Start with less sugar, because you can add it if needed. Also, you can partly substitute sugar with a spoonful (or two) of plum/apricot jam, you can add a handful of raisins and/or orange zest... How you like it, you do it 🙂
I had to crank up the heat to high while vigorously whisking (after adding all the egg) and it worked out! It probably would have taken an hour to thicken without doing so
Hi Anna I am sorry to hear this recipe didnt work out for you. I have been using this recipe for years. Where did you find you had trouble?
Hi Natalya, I'm going to make this recipe for the first time for Thanksgiving. When you say oil, are your referring to simple vegetable oil? Thank you!
Hi Christina, I like to use avocado oil, But you are welcome to use the oil of your choosing. Good luck and enjoy!
Great recipe, including the fillling. I tempered the eggs, which helped to avoid the curdling. The filling came out amazing.
The dough is so easy to work with. The only thing is my rolls puffed up a lot and fell on their sides. So I placed them rolled side up and they came out great. Thank you - this recipe is a keeper!!
Hi Vusala- Thank you for the feedback, I'm thrilled you enjoyed them!
Easy recipe. Loved the taste. Poppyseed spilled out. Next time I will bake the whole roll and slice after it cools own. I used two cans of poppyseed and still had dough left over.
Hi Donna- I'm glad you found this recipe and enjoyed it. You totally can bake it as an entire roll instead next time. Enjoy!
Unsalted or salted margarine
Hi there- it's unsalted. Enjoy!
I loved reading this. My favorite dessert of all! My Mom taught me to sprinkle softened raisins over the filling before rolling up the Poppy Seed Rolls.
Hi Babs- raisins are a wonderful addition! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
What kind of yeast active or non
Hi Michele- you can use either Active Dry Yeast or Instant Yeast. Hope this helps! Enjoy!
For making savory piroshki can I sub flour for sugar in the dough recipe?
When pressed for time I've bought the frozen dough, but this dough is so easy to handle I'd like to try it!
I've made, and love, the poppyseed roll! Just like my grandmother's recipe, but simpler!
Thanks!
Hi Niki - I'm glad you love the poppyseed roll recipe and it reminds you of your grandma's! That's really cool. For savory piroshky, I would actually use this recipe instead: https://momsdish.com/recipe/4….
Hope this helps! Let us know if you have any questions.
This was my first time baking anything with yeast and the rolls came out so delicious. Thank you Nataliya for an easy and delicious recipe. 😋
Hi Tanya- so glad you enjoyed this recipe, thank you for commenting!
I made these today and they were ABSOLUTELY delicious!! Everyone went on about them. Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
You're welcome, Vita! Thanks for commenting.
Is there a typo in this recipe? 7 1/2 cups of flour seems like way too much and my dough was absolutely awful.
Hi Cassandra- I'm sorry the dough didn't come out. Correct, 7.5 cups is what the recipe calls for although depending on the brand of flour you may need less- just until the dough is not sticky anymore. Hope this helps!
This did not work out for me. It's edible but not something I would serve. Not sure if the milk was too warm, the oven temp too low or that I left them in the oven for too long. Is the oven temp really supposed to be 300 degrees?
Hi Roxanne- I'm sorry to hear they didn't come out. That is correct, oven temperature should be 300°. Can you please tell me what went wrong exactly? Perhaps I can help troubleshoot.
hello. Is the egg essential in the dough? What could I use as a substitute or omit completely? Hubby is vegan.
Hi Karen- I haven't tried omitting or substituting the egg before. I don't think the recipe would be the same without it. I have heard of using flax seed in place of eggs but without having tried it in this recipe, I cannot guarantee any results. Please let us know what you decide to do and how it turns out if you end up omitting or substituting the egg somehow!
Darn…I used regular yeast
Hi Stephanie- by regular yeast do you mean active dry? If so, that's totally fine! Both active dry or instant yeast will work for this recipe. Enjoy!
I made these for Christmas. They were delicious! I was wondering if I could use this recipe to make cinnamon rolls?
Hi, Glyn! So glad you enjoyed my poppy seed roll recipe. For best results with cinnamon rolls, I would actually recommend using my no-knead cinnamon rolls recipe! If you search for "cinnamon rolls" on my site, you'll see the recipe come right up. Enjoy!
I did try the poppy seed dough with the cinnamon sugar recipe from your cinnamon roll recipe. They were delicious but needed more cinnamon. I love this dough but will try your cinnamon roll dough next time!
Hi Glyn, I'm so glad it worked out! Happy cooking!
I have extra dough and not enough filling. Any other options for filling or how to use it up?
Hello, Oksana! You can use jam or preserves for the rest of the dough if you'd like! Apricot, raspberry, strawberry would all be delicious!
I'm looking forward to trying these. I have my mom's recipe which came from my grandmother, for Vanushka or Babovka or simply kolache dough rolled into a loaf. It's much more complicated and rests in the fridge overnight. I have a special mixture for poppyseed filling I'll try with these. Thanks for sharing!
Awesome, Larry! Let me know how it turns out. Poppy seed filling is such a must and so tasty. Hope you love these rolls!
Can I use instant yeast? How much should I use? Thank you.
You can! The recipe calls for 1 tablespoon. Thanks, Mila!
How many grams of fresh yeast shall I use instead of dry yeast to make poppy seed rolls?
Hi Dorothy - Thanks for reaching out! You'll need roughly 3X more fresh yeast than dry yeast. So if you need 1 tbsp of dry yeast for the recipe, you'll need 3 tbsp of fresh yeast. Hope this helps!
Do you have any suggestions for an almond glaze for these? My husband is obsessed with almond and poppyseed together and these look perfect as long as I can add some almond in somewhere.
Hi Erica - I wish! That sounds super good, but I've never tried it. I would maybe do something simple with powdered sugar and almond extract? Let me know what you try and how it turns out.
Almond...I add almond flavoring to the poppyseed as my mother did. And I use organic raisins...that's just the way I learned it! Love the almond flavor!
Yummmmmm! That sounds AMAZING. Thanks for sharing.
I made these today and they are delicious. My problem was that I could not slice the roll without smashing it. My rolls are unattractive but yummy. Any suggestions?
Use dental floss. Slide under the roll, place in position wher you want to cut/divide and pull the two ends together.
Hi Gail - What a smart suggestion! I would have never thought of that. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Gail, They are should fluff up as they bake even if you smash them. But if you use a very sharp knife, it should work just fine. Hope this helps. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback.
Yes...strange as it sounds, dental floss works really well! I hame a sticky bun from croissant dough and use dental floss to cut them! Good luck!
Hey! Whatever works, right? I love hearing about people's special kitchen tricks.