Amish Dinner Rolls
Amish Dinner Rolls
Amish Dinner Rolls

Amish Potato Rolls

Updated on October 26, 2026
4.7 out of 5 stars 644 Reviews
PJ Hamel
Recipe by
PJ Hamel
Employee-owner from 1990-2019*

Inspired by a potato roll recipe in a small handwritten Amish cookbook, these soft rolls are dense yet still tender, moist but not at all heavy. Mashed potato gives them both their soft texture and staying power: They'll remain moist and fresh-tasting at room temperature for several days, meaning they're a good candidate for make-ahead.

Test Kitchen notes:
  • Use leftover mashed potatoes, if you have any — ideally, they're unseasoned. Measure by weight or pack them lightly into the cup when measuring.
  • If you need to make fresh mashed potatoes, 1 medium-to-large potato will yield the necessary 1 cup (227g) you need for this recipe.
  • For rolls that stay fresh the longest, save the water from boiling the potato and use it when mixing the dough. (Potato water has lots of starch that helps retain moisture.)
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Instructions

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  1. Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. To make the dough, mix and knead all of the ingredients together — by hand, mixer, or bread machine set on the dough cycle — to make a smooth, soft dough.

  2. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise until it's doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. If you're using a bread machine, allow the machine to complete its cycle, then leave the dough in the machine until it's doubled in bulk, perhaps an additional 30 minutes or so.

  3. Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 16 large balls, or 24 smaller balls. Round each ball into a smooth roll.

  4. Place the rolls in a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan. Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap, and let them rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until they're quite puffy. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the center.

  5. Bake the rolls for 20 to 25 minutes, until they're golden brown and feel set. Remove them from the oven, and turn them out of the pan onto a rack. Brush the tops of the rolls with melted butter, if desired.

  6. Serve the Amish Potato Rolls warm or at room temperature. Store rolls, well wrapped in plastic, for several days at room temperature; freeze for longer storage.

Tips from our Bakers

  • These rolls have the characteristic golden brown, rounded, smooth top of a classic dinner roll; we like to bake them rather tightly spaced, in a 9" x 13" pan, so that they crowd each other and become pull-apart rolls, with unbrowned sides, as they're baking. For round rolls that are browned all over, place them in a larger pan, farther apart, so that they won't touch one another while they're baking.

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