Vietnamese Steamed Banana Cake (Banh Chuoi Hap)

Steamed Vietnamese banana cake (Banh Chuoi Hap)

3.86 from 7 votes

Vietnamese Steamed Banana Cake (Banh Chuoi Hap)

Vietnamese Steamed Banana Cake (Banh Chuoi Hap) is delicious with a wonderful fragrance and sweetness from ripe bananas. The soft-chewy texture makes this cake seriously addictive. It is gluten-free and vegan.

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Marinating time20

Total Time1

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Servings: people

Calories: 319kcal

Author: Sophie Pham

Ingredients

For the Banana Cake

5-6 peeled pisang awak bananas, about 10.5 oz or 300 grams
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2.5 oz tapioca starch (also called tapioca flour)
1.5 oz rice flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons water

To serve

1 1/4 cup canned coconut milk
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon water, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
toasted sesame seeds

US Customary - Grams

Instructions

Making the Steamed Banana Cake

Slice bananas thinly and add the banana slices to a mixing bowl. Add brown sugar and gently toss to coat the banana slices with sugar. Set aside to marinate for 10-20 minutes.
In another mixing bowl, combine tapioca starch, rice flour, salt and cinnamon powder. Then add 1/4 cup water and 3 tablespoons of water, mix well to create a smooth batter.
Reserve about 12-15 banana slices to decorate the top of the cake later, add the remaining banana slices to the batter. Gently fold the banana slices into the batter.
Pour the batter into a mold or pan which will fit inside your steamer (I use a loaf pan). Ideally, use a 4''x8'' loaf pan so that the cake will have a height of slightly over 1 inch. Place the reserved banana slices on top for decoration.
Set up a steamer and wrap a clean towel around the lid to prevent water condensation to drop on the cake (or wipe the lid clean every 10 minutes). Steam the cake over medium to medium-high heat until cooked through (about 25 minutes). The batter will turn translucent and the edges will start to pull away from the mold slightly. If you insert a toothpick, there should be no wet batter on the toothpick.
Remove the mold/pan from the steamer and let it cool down enough to handle. Take the cake out of the mold/pan. Cut into slices and serve warm with coconut sauce and toasted sesame seeds.

Making the Coconut Sauce

While steaming the cake, place a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add coconut milk and 1/4 cup of water and heat gently. Stir in salt and sugar.
Combine cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Once you see a lot of steam from the coconut milk mixture and small bubbles around the edge, slowly add the cornstarch slurry while whisking to thicken the coconut sauce. Do not let the sauce boil. Add just enough cornstarch slurry to achieve desired thickness. Transfer the sauce to a clean bowl.

Notes

This cake can serve 4-6 people. You can store both the leftover cake and coconut sauce in the refrigerator and then reheat both in your microwave when you want to eat it.

Please use a scale to weigh the flour. Do not rely on measuring cups which can be highly inaccurate. Also make sure you use Asian rice flour and tapioca flour (I use Vietnamese Vinh Thuan brands). Some comments say the amount of water is not enough for the batter, but I never have that issue. I'm guessing they are not using the correct types of flour.

I use pisang awak, which is a type of Vietnamese dwarf banana called "chuối sứ" or "chuối xiêm". It is firmer than regular Western bananas, so I had to slice mine very thin. If you use regular cavendish bananas, it may not turn out the same.

I can still steam the cake with regular cavendish bananas but the bananas will be much softer with less taste. If you really want to try the recipe with regular bananas, don't slice them too thin (slice them thicker than the pisang awak banana slices in my photos). Otherwise, I suspect they will get mushy and release a lot of moisture into the batter mixture. Anyway, I strongly recommend using pisang awak.

I use light brown sugar instead of regular granulated sugar since brown sugar gives the cake a nice color naturally without having to use food coloring. The addition of cinnamon powder is also my own creation, which enhances the aroma as well as adds a warm note to the cake.

The cake should ideally have a height of 1 inch or slightly more.

Nutrition