Bika Ambon (Medan Honeycomb Coconut Cake)
A golden, chewy cake from Medan riddled with tiny honeycomb holes, made by fermenting coconut milk and tapioca batter before baking under fierce top heat. Fragrant with pandan and gently sweet, it's one of Indonesia's most famous regional treats.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Activate the yeast
Stir the yeast and 1 tbsp sugar into the warm water and leave it in a warm spot. This stands in for the palm toddy traditionally used in Medan to start the fermentation.
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 60 ml warm water
✅ Done when: the surface is foamy and smells faintly yeasty
Warm the coconut milk with pandan
In a saucepan, warm the coconut milk with the knotted leaves and salt over low heat just until steaming and fragrant — do not let it boil, or the coconut fat can split and the batter will ferment unevenly. Let it cool to room temperature, then remove and discard the leaves.
- 500 ml coconut milk
- 4 leaves
- 1/2 tsp salt
✅ Done when: the coconut milk is fragrant, smooth and fully cooled
Whisk eggs and sugar
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Build the batter and ferment
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Preheat and prepare the pan
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Bake with top heat first
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Finish baking and cool
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Activate the yeast
Stir the yeast and 1 tbsp sugar into the warm water and leave it in a warm spot. This stands in for the palm toddy traditionally used in Medan to start the fermentation.
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 60 ml warm water
✅ Done when: the surface is foamy and smells faintly yeasty
Warm the coconut milk with pandan
In a saucepan, warm the coconut milk with the knotted leaves and salt over low heat just until steaming and fragrant — do not let it boil, or the coconut fat can split and the batter will ferment unevenly. Let it cool to room temperature, then remove and discard the leaves.
- 500 ml coconut milk
- 4 leaves
- 1/2 tsp salt
✅ Done when: the coconut milk is fragrant, smooth and fully cooled
Whisk eggs and sugar
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Build the batter and ferment
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Preheat and prepare the pan
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Bake with top heat first
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Finish baking and cool
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The Story Behind the Dish
Despite its name, Bika Ambon has no real connection to the island of Ambon — most accounts trace it to Medan, where it was likely first sold on or near a street with that name, made by Peranakan Chinese-Indonesian bakers blending local coconut and tapioca cakes with their own baking know-how.
It became famous through small family bakeries along Jalan Mojopahit in Medan, which are still associated with the cake today. Fermenting the coconut milk and tapioca batter, traditionally with palm toddy, and baking it under intense top heat gave the cake its unmistakable springy, golden honeycomb interior.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Its unmistakable chewy texture, riddled with golden honeycomb holes, and its warm pandan-coconut fragrance make it one of Indonesia's most recognisable regional cakes, often bought as a souvenir from Medan.
💡 Fun Fact
The honeycomb holes are not from baking powder at all — they come entirely from fermentation gas, originally produced using tuak (fermented palm toddy), which is why home bakers today lean on yeast to get the same effect.
Medan, North Sumatra
3.60°N, 98.67°E
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