Recipe: Hawaiian Roll Party Sliders

updated Jan 13, 2020
Post Image
Credit: Joe Lingeman

These Hawaiian roll party sliders are like French onion soup meets slider.

Makes12

Prep10 minutes

Cook1 hour

Jump to Recipe
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Post Image
(Image credit: Joe Lingeman)

If you serve up a tray of sliders at your holiday party (or truly, any get-together), it’s a pretty sure bet they’ll be devoured almost instantly. This season, we’re upping the ante by skipping the classic beef patties and opting for an appetizer that’s best described as French onion soup meets slider. They’re piled high with sweet and savory caramelized onions that melt in your mouth, tender slices of roast beef, and a blanket of gooey melted Gruyère, all sandwiched together on pillowy sweet Hawaiian rolls.

(Image credit: Joe Lingeman)

A Pack of Hawaiian Rolls Makes for the Easiest-Ever Sliders

If you’ve never made Hawaiian roll sliders, you’ll quickly fall in love with the easy (and fun!) technique. You’ll slice the entire pack of rolls in half horizontally (keeping each half intact and connected), pile the onions, roast beef, and cheese onto the bottom half, and then sandwich the top layer of rolls over top. Transfer to the oven and bake until the rolls are toasty and the cheese is melted.

The only time-consuming step of this recipe is caramelizing the onions, which needs to be done low and slow. The good news is the onions can be made in advance, and if you want a more hands-off approach, you can always use your slow cooker. Once the onions are ready, it’s a breeze to pull these crowd-pleasing sliders together, thanks to pre-sliced roast beef from the deli.

A note about the cheese: As you’re assembling the sliders it might feel like you’re adding too much cheese, but I promise you it’s just right once melted. And speaking of melting, be sure to let the sliders rest for a few minutes when they come out of the oven, which guarantees the cheese at the center has time to melt completely before you let everyone dig in.

Hawaiian Roll Sliders

These Hawaiian roll party sliders are like French onion soup meets slider.

Prep time 10 minutes

Cook time 1 hour

Makes 12

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons

    unsalted butter, divided

  • 2

    large sweet onions (such as Vidalia), thinly sliced

  • 1/2 teaspoon

    kosher salt

  • 2 teaspoons

    Worcestershire sauce

  • 1 (12-ounce) package

    Hawaiian sweet dinner rolls, such as King’s

  • 12

    thin slices deli roast beef (about 12 ounces)

  • 8 ounces

    Gruyère cheese, grated

  • 1/2 teaspoon

    garlic powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon

    onion powder

  • 1 tablespoon

    finely chopped fresh parsley leaves, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Show Images
  1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium until melted. Add the onions and salt and cook, stirring every 5 to 10 minutes and scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until soft and deeply browned, about 40 minutes total. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, again scraping the bottom of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat. Meanwhile, arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 350°F.

  2. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter; set aside.

  3. Cut the entire pack of rolls in half horizontally, keeping each half intact and connected. Place the bottom half of the rolls on a baking sheet. Top with the roast beef (about 1 slice per roll). Spread the onions in an even layer over top, then sprinkle evenly with the cheese. Place the top layer of rolls over the cheese. Brush the top of the rolls with the melted butter. Sprinkle with the garlic powder and onion powder.

  4. Cover the baking sheet with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese is melted and the rolls are lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes more. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with the parsley, if desired.

Recipe Notes

Make ahead: The onions can be made 1 day in advance and refrigerated in an airtight container.