What is Lumpang Cake?
Lumpang cake or kue lumpang is a dessert originally from Palembang, the capital city of the Indonesian province South Sumatra. Lumpang in Indonesian means mortar. Lumpang cakes have a distinctive indentation which is reminiscent of a mortar. The cake is slightly sweet, has a bouncy texture, and is topped with grated coconut. Two types of flour are usually used to make this cake; tapioca and rice flour. The most common flavors of lumpang cake you can find in a traditional street market are the pandan and palm sugar flavors. This recipe makes two lumpang cake flavors: the classic pandan and sweet purple potato flavor.
Substitution
Pandan juice: If you are not able to find pandan leaves in your local Asian store, you can substitute it with this pandan flavoring extract from Amazon. This is the most commonly used pandan extract in Indonesia.
Fresh coconut: Lumpang cake will taste better when you use fresh, grated coconut but if you can’t find it, you can buy frozen, grated coconut from your Asian store. Just make sure to thaw it!
Wheat starch: You can omit wheat starch if you can’t find it. I personally like to add wheat starch because the cake will remain chewy the next day.
Lumpang mold: I could not find lumpang molds in the USA, you can use a cupcake or muffin cup as a substitute.
Tips
- If using fresh coconut, make sure to peel the brown coconut skin and dice it into 1-inch cubes before putting it in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, you can cut the coconut into bigger pieces and grate it.
- Preserving and enhancing the taste of freshly grated coconut: make sure to steam your grated coconut and add 1/2 tsp of salt. This will make keep the coconut fresh longer. The salt will help to balance the sweetness of the lumpang cake.
- Lumpang cake made with pandan leaves will result in more pale green cakes. If you can find Suji leaves, you can blend the leaves together with pandan leaves for a brighter green. You can also use green food coloring if you’d like.
Kue Lumpang
Course: DessertsCuisine: IndonesianDifficulty: Easy4
servings35
minutes40
minutes636
kcalSweet and bouncy dessert topped with slightly salty coconut topping. This recipe yields 20 lumpang cakes.
Ingredients
- Pandan Flavor
1 cup of tapioca flour
5 tbsp of rice flour
1 1/2 tsp of wheat starch
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp of sugar
1/2 cup of coconut milk (~150 ml)
1 cup of water (~200 ml)
7 pandan leaves
- Sweet Purple Potato Flavor
1 cup of mashed sweet purple potato
1 cup of tapioca flour
5 tbsp of rice flour
1 1/2 tsp of wheat starch
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp of sugar
1 cup of water
1/2 cup of coconut milk
Directions
- Coconut topping
- If using fresh coconut, crack the coconut open and extract the meat.
- Peel the brown coconut skin with a peeler.
- If you have a food processor, cut the coconut meat into cubes, and pulverize with a food processor. Otherwise grate the coconut by hand.
- To preserve your coconut for later, mix the grated coconut with salt and stir. Steam the grated coconut for 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Pandan Flavor Lumpang Cake
- Pour water into a steamer and heat until boiling. Grease the lumpang mold / cupcake cups with oil or butter. Place the greased molds into the steamer and let them heat up for at least 3 – 5 minutes. This step will prevent the flour from separating when steaming the cake.
- Cut the pandan leaves into 1-inch squares. Add the cut leaves, coconut milk, and water into a blender and blend for up to 1 minute until no big chunks remain. Using a cheesecloth or a fine sieve, sieve the pulp mixture. Set the pandan juice aside.
- Add all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well.
- Stir your batter well before pouring into the preheated cups. The flour in the batter tends to sink if left for some time. Do not overfill your cups, fill up to 3/4.
- Steam for 15 – 20 minutes. Let the lumpang cool down for about 10 minutes before removing from the mold. Top with grated coconut topping and serve immediately.
- Purple Sweet Potato Lumpang Cake
- In a medium pot, boil the peeled purple sweet potato for 20 minutes. Mash the potatoes and set aside.
- Pour water into a steamer and heat until boiling. Grease the lumpang mold / cupcake cups with oil or butter. Place the greased molds into the steamer and let them heat up for at least 3 – 5 minutes. This step will prevent the flour from separating when steaming the cake.
- Add all ingredients to a large bowl and stir well.
- Since sweet potato is starchy, sieve the batter.
- Stir your sieved batter well and pour into the preheated cups. The flour in the batter tends to sink if left for some time. Do not overfill your cups, fill up to 3/4.
- Steam for 15 – 20 minutes. Let it cool down for about 10 minutes before removing from the mold. Top with grated coconut topping and serve immediately.
