Coco Bread – a popular staple bread in Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean made primarily with flour and coconut milk, then slightly sweetened just to tickle your tastebuds. Buttery, slightly sweet with a spot on firmness on the outside and softness on the inside. Great for breakfast, lunch, snacking or even as dinner!
Whoever invented these Jamaican Coco Bread must have been a serious sandwich lover! It’s firm enough to hold any filling you could possibly think of while still giving you that notable softness on the inside that we all love in a bread. And did I mention that it is shaped to form like a folded bread so you can easily fill it?
Hats off to the brains behind this bread. You’re truly a food genius! You’ve just earned a new big fan!
What is Coco Bread?
If the Americans have these Easy Dinner Rolls, well the Jamaicans have their Coco Bread. Although it’s not pointed out straight on why it was named as such, it could probably because it’s primarily made with flour and coconut milk just like this popular Samoan Coconut Bread Rolls a.k.a Pani Popo. Perhaps we all could agree on how coconut milk makes an incredible basketful of buns and rolls.
What Does Coco Bread Taste Like?
Think of Hawaiian Sweet Rolls, but a little bit denser. Coco bread is buttery and slightly sweetened with a note of coconut milk. But if you’re on the sweeter side of the spectrum, feel free to adjust the sugar.
Coco Bread Ingredients
You don’t have to worry. In fact, you’d probably have all the ingredients waiting to be taken out of your pantry. All you need are just 8 SIMPLE INGREDIENTS and you’re off to make a big batch of this for weekend sandwiches or lunches.
Here’s an overview of what you’ll be needing:
- coconut milk
- unsalted butter
- sugar
- egg
- salt
- rapid rise yeast
- unsalted butter
Can You Make It Ahead of Time?
Absolutely! In fact, I have some already frozen in my freezer. I’m just going to reheat a few of them on Saturday morning and BAM, hearty Jamaican breakfast on my table!
What I do to make it ahead, is to bake them as directed below. Then leave them to cool down completely and line in a single layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan and flash freeze for an hour or until hard enough to touch. When already frozen, transfer them in a freezer-safe container bag, label and freeze for up to 2 months.
How To Reheat Coco Bread?
When ready to serve again, reheat your frozen coco bread by placing them snuggly in a baking dish or in a baking sheet pan, brush with melted butter and bake until warm enough for about 7-10 minutes in a 350°F oven.
What To Serve with Coco Bread?
You may enjoy these easy homemade coco bread as it is, like I do, or pair with any of the following:
….and a whole lot more. Feel free to enjoy it just the way you’d like to enjoy your sandwich. I’m pretty sure you could come up with a whole bunch of lists. 😉
More Jamaican Recipes to Explore
- Jamaican Beef Patties
- Brown Stew Chicken
- Ackee and Saltfish
- Jamaican Easter Spice Bun
- Callaloo
- Jamaican Jerk Chicken
Other Bread Recipes that You’ll Love
How To Make Coco Bread
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with baking spray. Set aside. In a medium bowl combine Coconut milk, sugar, salt, and butter. Heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds or more, until butter melts. Do not let it boil or overheat. Pour into a large mixing bowl, add yeast, mix. Then add the egg.
Stir in flour to form a soft dough, err on the side of less flour. Soft dough results in tender coco bread. Turn dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 3-4 minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover loosely with a clean cloth and let it rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours or until doubled. 
Punch the dough down. Transfer dough to a lightly floured board or surface. Cut the dough into about 10 equal pieces and roll each dough into a ball.
Roll each piece with a rolling pin to about 6-7 inch diameter and about ⅛-¼ inch thick. Brush the surface of the dough with melted butter, then fold the dough in half and brush again. Place onto dough on prepared pan and repeat with remaining pieces, until done. Let it rest for about 10-15 minutes.
Bake in a 350 F preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until nicely browned on top. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Brush again with butter, if desired. Serve warm or allow to cool. You may freeze when cool and reheat in the oven.
Watch How To Make It
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Coco Bread
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Ingredients
- 1 cup (240ml) coconut milk
- 2-3 tablespoons (25g-37.5g) sugar
- 4 tablespoons (56g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon (5g) salt
- 1 envelope (or packet) or 2 ¼ teaspoons rapid rise yeast
- 1 large egg
- 3 ½ - 4 cups (437.5g-500g) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons (42g) or more unsalted butter , melted
Instructions
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with baking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine coconut milk, sugar, salt and butter. Heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds or more, until butter melts. Do not let it boil or overheat.
- Pour into large mixing bowl, add yeast, mix. Then add the egg.
- Stir in flour to form a soft dough, err on the side of less flour. Soft dough results in tender coco bread.
- Turn dough on lightly floured surface and knead for 3-4 minutes.
- Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover loosely with a clean cloth and let it rise in a warm place for 1 to 2 hours or until doubled. Punch the dough down.
- Transfer dough to a lightly floured board or surface. Cut the dough into about 10 equal pieces and roll each dough into a ball.
- Roll each piece with a rolling pin to about 6-7 inch diameter and about ⅛-¼ inch thick.
- Brush the surface of the dough with melted butter, then fold the dough in half and brush again. Place onto dough on prepared pan and repeat with remaining pieces, until done.
- Let it rest for about 10-15 minutes.
- Bake in a 350 F preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until nicely browned on top.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Brush again with butter, if desired.
- Serve warm or allow to cool. You may freeze when cool and reheat in the oven .
Tips & Notes:
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Nutrition Information:
Hatty McCafferty says
This is a fantastic recipe – simple to follow and the breads come out like delicious clouds. Everyone loves them and I cannot wait to make them again. Thank-you!
Imma says
Yay!! Love this! Thanks for stopping by, Hatty! 🙂
Jameila Whyte says
Can I use regular milk instead of coconut milk?
Imma says
Hi Jameila. Yes, you can. Although it won’t have that distinct coconut flavor that is particular to Coco Bread.
William says
Questions about the butter: Its not super clear on what to do with the melted butter vs. the non-melted butter, can you clarify? Also “greased bowl…” with unmelted butter? Apologies, I don’t want to make an over buttered goop 🙂
Imma says
Hi William! So the first butter (non-melted one) mentioned in the recipe is be combined with the coconut milk, sugar and salt and then microwaved. The second butter mentioned (the melted one) is used to brush your shaped dough before baking and even after baking if you still have some leftover and would like a light shine to your coco bread. As for the greased bowl, only a little quantity of oil or butter is needed to make sure the dough doesn’t stick to the bowl while it is rising. Hope this helps. Happy Baking! 🙂
Rebecca says
Can you use nu-salt in place of regular salt I’m on a low sodium diet.
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you can.
Patsy says
I love this recipe. Keep using it over and over again experimenting with adding herbs, spices, nuts, dried fruits, never disappointed!
Imma says
Oh great to hear that. Thank you so much!
Kim says
Thank you for this glorious recipe! I added honey because my kids have a sweet tooth. Could I make these as rolls instead?
Imma says
You sure can! Thanks for your feedback 🙂
Steve says
Loved the recipe so easy..did half on regular and half in cinnamon sugar
Imma says
Wonderful! Thank you so much for the feedback 🙂
Vanessa D says
These turned out lovely! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I’ve made it a few times and I finally found the perfect amount of flour I should add so that their firm yet soft and not too dense. We love to stuff them with pork and even breakfast items such as eggs, bacon etc…Thanks!! This is a keeper ♥️
Imma says
Thank you, Stay tuned for more amazing recipes.
Marcelle Thomas says
i will try this recipe. Thank you.
Imma says
Awesome!!! Can’t wait to know how it turns out for you.
Jonathan says
Great recipe, thanks for sharing it with the world! I have 4 kids, so with 6 in our home, these went FAST!
Imma says
Thank you:) There’s more to come, so stay tuned
Bonita says
Thank you so much Imma for this recipe. It is so easy and delicious. I have made it several times. Love it!!
Imma says
Thanks, Bonita, Much Love:) It would be very nice if you spend a few of your minutes adding the rating to the recipe, please. It will help to authenticate the recipe.
Kevin Ryan says
How many grams should the dough balls weigh??
Imma says
That’s a hard one to answer. It all depends on how much flour and sugar you use. A rough estimate would be around 80 grams. I like to weigh the entire ball of dough, then divide the weight by 10. Hope that helps.
Jiné says
Can I use coconut flour instead ?this bread looks amazing !!
Imma says
Thanks so much for stopping by.❤️ Coconut flour soaks up a lot of moisture, so it would not be a good substitute for flour. I’ve not tried to make it gluten-free, but you should be able to replace the flour with your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour mix. Hope that helps, and please let me know how it turns out.
Liam Macintosh says
Great recipe. I wanted to make it to go with the Jamaican Jerk Pot Roast I was cooking for a dinner with friends. Simple and delicious on a work night! I had some leftover dough, so to stay exotic I made some sweet treats by sprinkling with coconut sugar, cinnamon, and allspice. I then dolloped a tablespoon of McKay’s Ginger preserve before folding.
Imma says
Thanks so much for stopping by.❤️ Coconut flour soaks up a lot of moisture, so it would not be a good substitute for flour. I’ve not tried to make it gluten-free, but you should be able to replace the flour with your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour mix. Hope that helps, and please let me know how it turns out.