Cinnamon roll dough calculator
Cinnamon rolls on a tangzhong dough that is still soft the next day. Filling ratios included.
Total hydration counts the water inside the eggs, milk and butter.
Cinnamon rolls on King Arthur’s “Perfectly Pillowy” dough — their 2021 Recipe of the Year: a milk-only tangzhong dough that stays cloud-soft for days. Filling ratios are below.
How it works
A tangzhong milk dough
All the liquid is milk — 82% of the flour weight — with 7% of the flour cooked into a tangzhong with part of that milk. Butter runs 18%, sugar a moderate 7.7% (the sweetness lives in the filling), salt 1.9% and instant yeast 1.9% for a 60–90 minute bulk and a 30–60 minute proof.
The filling
Per the source, in baker’s terms: brown sugar at 33% of the flour weight with a generous spoon of cinnamon, a little flour to bind, and melted butter to moisten. Spread on the rolled-out dough, roll snug, and slice — 8 rolls of about 100 g each from the default batch.
Baking soft
Pack the slices with space to touch as they proof, and bake at ~190 °C for 14–18 minutes only until barely golden — pale is pillowy; brown is dry. Ice or glaze while warm if you like.
Sources & methodology
Every percentage in this calculator traces to the published sources below — nothing is invented. Where respected sources disagree, the default sits inside the documented range.
- King Arthur — Perfectly Pillowy Cinnamon Rolls — The “Perfectly Pillowy” 2021 Recipe of the Year: milk tangzhong, 82% total milk, 18% butter.
FAQ
How is this different from Cinnabon-style rolls?
The mall style (Joshua Weissman’s copycat is the usual reference) is eggier and sweeter, with a heavier brown-sugar filling. The KA dough here has no egg at all; the tangzhong does the softness work instead.
Can I proof them overnight?
Yes — shape, pan, cover and refrigerate; bake in the morning from cold with a few extra minutes. The tangzhong dough tolerates the cold proof unusually well.
Why did my rolls bake up firm?
Overbaked, almost certainly — this dough reads done while still pale. Pull them at the first hint of gold and let carryover finish the centers.
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