Poppy seed buns are so soft and filled with an abundance of delicious filling. An Eastern European classic, these are just to die for.

Poppy seed buns, aka poppy seed “piroshki”, are so addicting. At our old house, we had a Russian bakery just a few minutes away. Each and every time I drove by that place, I was extremely tempted to stop by and grab a dozen. Let’s just say nine times out of ten, I would give in.
Now that we have moved, I had to learn to make them all by myself! I have seen my mother and grandma do it for years, but never tried my hand at it. After practicing the family recipe several times, I am confident enough to share it with you!
You’re well on your way to a lifelong love affair with poppy seed buns — sorry in advance to the dieters out there! Let’s get started…
Dough for The Poppy Seed Buns
We have been using this perfect yeast dough recipe for years. It comes out perfectly each and every single time. You can use it for so many different recipes, including as the base for your poppy seed buns!
Filling for the Poppy Seed Buns
Chances are, you have probably had poppy seed muffins a time or two before. But, it’s also likely that you have never experienced the glory that is poppy seed filling. It’s earthy, sweet and perfectly crunchy. I use it for so many different family desserts. You can also find me sneaking a spoonful from time to time.
Simply put, poppy seed filling is a lot like a custard. It’s made with a ton of poppy seeds, butter, sugar, milk and eggs. Make your own poppy seed filling or hop over to your local European market and find a jarred version.




Making the Perfect Poppy Seed Bun
- Prepare your perfect yeast dough. Divide the dough evenly and roll out the dough into long, flat and oblong pieces. Place the poppy seed filling in the center of each piece.
- Fold the dough over and pinch the edges and seal the end, forming a tube-like shape. Roll the dough into a spiral shape. Repeat until you use all your dough up.
- Place buns next to each other on a baking sheet. Let the buns rise for an hour.
- Brush with butter and bake in the oven at 350 ℉ for 30 minutes until golden brown.
Making Poppy Seed Buns in Advance
Here is everything you need to know about preparing your buns ahead of time:
- Refrigerating: Prepare your poppy seed buns all the way up until you let them rise. Store them in the fridge overnight and bake them right before you plan to serve them.
- Freezing: If you want to save your buns for later, allow them to rise. Then, place the baking sheet in the freezer and allow the buns to freeze. Once they completely harden, remove them from the baking sheet and place them in a freezer-safe bag. When you are ready to bake them, allow them to thaw overnight. Bake according to instructions.

A Few More Piroshki Recipes
- Fruit Piroshki Recipe – Stuffed with your favorite jam, these buns are perfect for a grab-and-go breakfast.
- Savory Fried Piroshki – Stuffed with ground pork or beef and sauteed onions, these fried piroshki are perfectly paired with a side salad for dinner or eaten all on their lonesome.
- Overnight Piroshki Recipe – These piroshki are stuffed with the Eastern European dream team — ground chicken, onion, carrots and cabbage. SO GOOD.
- Vatrushka Buns – Made with a filling of cream cheese, farmer’s cheese and raisins, these pair perfectly with a hot cup of coffee.
Recipe
Instructions
- Roll out the dough into a long, flat piece. Place the prepared poppy seeds into the center of the piece.
- Seal both ends of the dough, keeping the poppy seeds on the inside. Roll the dough into a spiral shape. Place buns next to each other on a lined baking sheet.
- Let buns rise for about an hour. Using a small bowl, whisk eggs with sugar. Glaze each bun using an egg mixture.
- Bake in a preheated oven, at 350 °F, for about 30 minutes or until golden brown.
what all can you make with this recipe as for the poppy seed buns can you use other fillings
Hi Judith, You can make Fruit Piroshki with this recipe, you can make sweet baked good and savory baked good with this recipe. The sky is the limit. You can use other fillings in the recipe as well. Thank you for reaching out. Enjoy!!
Thank you for posting this recipe. I make 8 of the long poppy seed rolls every christmas and pass them out. I love the idea of making small individual ones. I'm also anxious to try your dough.
Hi Melissa- Yum, what a great Christmas treat! Please let me know how you like this recipe. Happy Baking!
For literally decades I've been searching for THIS recipe. My aunt used to make oblong poppy seed filled buns every Christmas. I always ate more than my share. When I grew up I was afraid to ask her and have been kicking myself ever since. I know this is the recipe because of how this particular bun begins with filling the oblong shape. That's what she did but she didn't then twist it. Thank you so much -- I can hardly wait to make these.
Hello I am not Ukrainian, or Russian , but I am married to a a 2nd generation Russian Doukabour ( this is an old religion they were persecuted , so they had to move around a lot ) , I taught myself to make all these foods through authentic cook books , I did master the poppyseed rolls and perogies borscht etc , they are not that difficult.
Thank you for sharing, Karen!
I am so glad you have found the recipe, let me know what you think when you make it!
Love these buns! Mine always end up huge as they rise like mad. Must try to make them smaller….I’m going to try freezing some of the finished product ..
I'm so glad you loved this recipe, thank you for taking the time to share your feedback!
Hey, made this recipe twice already, I really like it. I have tried soo many different recipes for buns before, this is the simplest one I’ve ever tried.
I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe. Yes, it's such a simple recipe, perfect for any day.
Do you divide up the dough in 24 pieces?
Hey Vanessa, yes, 24 pieces is a good amount but you really can adjust the size to your liking.
Hi there . I have been trying to perfect these! When you are going to refrigerate the uncooked buns you say make them right up until you let them rise. Does this mean they finish rising after they are removed from the refrigerator? Thanks Georgina
Hey Georgina, you can form them and refrigerate right away but they may still rise a little. And yes, bring them to room temperature before baking them the next morning.
These are the best!! Seriously, the dough is amazing!! Thank you for this recipe. ❤
Hey Natalya, this made me smile. Thank you so much for sharing your comment. 🙂
This is so delicious!! We're obsessed! Thanks so much for sharing!
Hey Chelsea, thank you for sharing! I am so glad you loved them!
These are seriously delicious and look SO BEAUTIFUL!! Who needs a bakery with homemade treats like that!
Hey Julia, I am so happy you loved them. 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
What a delicious dough!!! These paired great with our spaghetti dinner tonight; delish!
Hey Sara, Spaghetti dinners sounds amazing! 🙂 Thanks for your feedback!
Love the dough!!!! I made with my own poppy seed filling, my Bylochki turns out so good, thank you for the recipe:)
Lana, thank you so much for sharing! I am so glad you loved it!
Where is the recipe?
Link is in recipe description! Right before instructions
This is my favorite recipe for pastry dough
That's awesome, so glad you love this recipe!
Hello Natasha! I usually forget to comment on recipes but with this one it's a MUST!!! Just ate a whole bun?.. So I made your dough recipe which btw is awesome!! I didn't have Canadian flour because I was always intimidated by the size of the bag. My mom always uses it & She convinced me today to finally go out n buy it. For this time I used all purpose Un-bleached flour & had to add a cup n a half more. I used your tip on oiling my hands to help with the stickiness. For the poppyseed filling I actually made Natasha's kitchen recipe & used that one, because I loved how simple it was to make.. These buns are the BEST!! Thank you so much for your hard work & this yummy recipe? God Bless you & your family!
i live in minnesota i been trying to find canadian flour every where here would u kno what store they can possibly sell at? not even the russian store has them
costco sometimes has it
Great to know.
I am not sure what stores would sell it in your state. We have It at winco here in WA but indont think you have that store.
Try searching online if you can find it.
Natasha they turn out so good. My first time baking bulochki and they turn out delish that made me so happy. Thank you
Irina, if they turned out amazing with your first try that is pretty awesome. I remember the first time bread turned out, I wanted the whole world to know that I baked some bread 🙂 lol
Thank you for the wonderful recipe! I been trying to find a good recipe of sweet piroshki for the longest time. I'm glad I finally found the perfect recipe! God bless you and your family!
Hi Natasha, I think you will love them. Its one of my favorites. But, keep me posted how it goes 🙂
I made them today with farmers cheese and cinnamon filling they turned out so good! I tried so many recipes before none of them turned so good as yours! Thank you! ( I used better for bread flour and I used 1 1/5cups more flour.
Thank you 🙂 I like this recipe the most out all also. 😉 Wow, what a difference in flour measurement. I use Canadian flour 99% of the time.
hi i have a question ive got dry poppyseed what do i add in them before i put them on the dough?
Here is the link to poppyseed recipe. They are sweet and not dry, perfect for filling http://momsdish.com/r307
They are awesome! Though I hardly make them, I love poppy seed filling in sweet pastries.
Thank you Paula.
These turned out sooooooooo good! I've been looking for something like the ones they make at the Russian stores. I literally one time spend two days behind a computer trying to find something. My prayers have been answered haha. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes with us. It really means a lot.
Thank you so much for such a sweet feedback 🙂 They are dangerously good. 🙂
Natasha, im not good with baking, so i have a few questions. Do you use Canadian flour? also, where do you buy poppyseeds? because a small herbs bottle at Fred Meyer costs like $8, and I would need like 10 of them...
Yes, I always use Canadian flour at home. Poppy seeds are sold in Winco bulk section.
Natasha, they turned out delish but it looked like they over rised so, my question is: was i supposed to leave the dough to rise for an hour (like the vatrushka buns dough) and then roll/shape them with poppyseeds and then let them rise for another hour? or make the dough then roll/shape the buns then let them rise for an hour and bake?
Let it rise after kneading. Form them into the shape and rise again. I am glad you liked them 🙂
Wow. Beautiful! I will make these this winter. Too hot in Philly for these right now.
Oh I totally get you, breaking a sweat in the kitchen is not fun 🙂
They look lovely 🙂
Thank you 🙂
you have an error on step 3. you wrote "Let buns rice for about an hour" you mean rise not rice.
Lol 🙂 midnight typing lol