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Kue Nagasari is made with rice flour and coconut milk batter with slices of banana wrapped in banana leaves and then steamed. Kue nagasari are favorites among many locals.
Kue Nagasari (Indonesian Rice Flour Cake with Banana)
I can’t make Indonesian food without making this kue nagasari. It is one of my favorite snacks as a kid. My mom made these so often. One of the things I did whenever I came back from school was to open up the fridge to see what I can snack on. I often found kue nagasari there. At our house, we call it pisang kue (loosely translated as banana cake)
How to make kue nagasari
1. Peel the banana and slice about 1/2-inch thickness at an angle. Set aside. Cut out about 10 pieces of 6 x 6 inch square of banana leaves.
2. Some banana leaves are thick and rigid, you may need to boil it briefly in a hot water for 1 minute or so until it’s soft and pliable. If they are manageable without boiling, just wipe it clean with damp cloth on both sides.
3. Place all ingredients for batter in a saucepan and whisk until no lumps. Put the saucepan on the stove on medium-low heat, turn on the heat and keep whisking. It may seem like nothing happens for the first 5 minutes, but keep whisking and you will start seeing some “curds”. Keep whisking and the batter will thicken
4. Get your steamer ready by bringing water to a boil. Spread about 2 Tbsp of the batter in the middle of the leaves. Place one slice or two of bananas on top and fold the two sides up continue with folding the other two sides down, as if you are wrapping a parcel.
5. Steam the nagasari for about 10 minutes over medium heat. This cake can be served warm, at room temperature, or after being chilled in the fridge
Nagasari has that pudding-like texture or what my daughter describes as soft and “Jiggly”. Though it’s not as jiggly as jello 😉 It is soft and somewhat bouncy.
How to store kue nagasari
1. Let them cool down to cool temperature
2. Store them in air-tight container and then keep them in the fridge. They stay soft for a day or two. You can also reheat in microwave for few seconds if you prefer. You can also steam them until warm too
Did you make this nagasari recipe?
I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag to show me what you’ve made 🙂 Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!
You may also like Banana Hoon Kueh (Pisang Hoon Kueh/Hun Kwe)
The recipe was last published in 2017. The recipe has been improved and step-by-step photos are included on May 20, 2022.
Kue Nagasari (Indonesian Rice Flour Cake with Banana)
Ingredients
- 1 large very ripe banana You can use pisang raja, saba bananas, or plantains
Batter:
- 125 gr rice flour
- 40 gr tapioca flour
- 600 ml coconut milk
- 80 gr sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
For wrapping:
- Banana leaves for wrapping
Instructions
- Peel the banana and slice about 1/2-inch thickness at an angle. Set aside. Cut out about 10 pieces of 6 x 6 inch square of banana leaves.1 large very ripe banana
- Some banana leaves are thick and rigid, you may need to boil it briefly in a hot water for 1 minute or so until it's soft and pliable. It they are manageable without boiling, just wipe it clean with damp cloth on both sidesBanana leaves for wrapping
- Place all ingredients for batter in a saucepan and whisk until no lumps125 gr rice flour, 40 gr tapioca flour, 600 ml coconut milk, 80 gr sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Put the saucepan on the stove on medium-low heat, turn on the heat and keep whisking. It may seem like nothing happens for the first 5 minutes, but keep whisking and you will start seeing some "curds". Keep whisking and the batter will thicken
Wrapping:
- Get your steamer ready by bringing water to a boil. Spread about 2 Tbsp of the batter in the middle of the leaves. Place one slice or two of bananas on top and fold the two sides up continue with folding the other two sides down, as if you are wrapping a parcel
Steaming:
- Steam the nagasari for about 10 minutes over medium heat. This cake can be served warm, at room temperature, or after being chilled in the fridge
8 comments
just made this and it turned out great! one of my favourites from my childhood that I can finally make myself (and it wasn’t as difficult as I expected!), though I did have the same issue as one of the other commenters with the runny batter until I figured out that I had to continue cooking it in step 4 for it to thicken (the recipe is a little unclear as it says to remove the coconut milk/sugar mixture from the heat and stir it into the rice flour mixture but doesn’t say to put it back on the heat?) but other than that really happy with how it turned out, thank you!
I’m glad you figured it out. Once you have stirred the coconut milk mixture in the rice flour mixture, you just stir until smooth and you don’t cook it anymore. You want to make sure the coconut milk mixture comes to a gentle boil though, so enough heat to thicken the flour mixture. I will make that clear. Thanks for the input 🙂
Kue Nagasari (Indonesian Rice Flour Cake with Banana) – which type of banana to use?
Pisang raja, kepok, or plantain would be the best choice,but if you are like me, not many choices, then the cavendish banana can be used too.
I can’t get banana leaves here in germany. Can I substitute with something else like a baking paper to wrap? Will it hold properly?
Hi Nina, I’ve never tried to wrap with a baking parchment paper, but it should be able to hold it properly as it is sturdy enough. Another alternative is you can pour the batter into a square pan, arrange the banana slices as decoratively as you want and then steam. Let it cools down completely and then cut into serving pieces.
I halved the recipe and tried making but the batter is too watery to wrap. So I put it in my chwee kueh moulds and steamed it instead.
Hi Diana, did you cook the batter until it’s thick but still spreadable? It shouldn’t be watery though.