Bika ambon or golden cake or golden kuih bingka in Singapore, is an

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

dessert made from ingredients such as

tapioca Tapioca (; ) is a starch extracted from the tubers of the cassava plant (''Manihot esculenta,'' also known as manioc), a species native to the North Region, Brazil, North and Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast regions of Brazil, but which has ...

flour,

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

, yeast and

coconut milk Coconut milk is a plant milk extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of the milky-white liquid are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food ingred ...

. Bika ambon is generally sold in

kaffir lime ''Citrus hystrix'', called the kaffir lime, Thai lime or makrut lime, (, ) is a citrus fruit native to tropical Southeast Asia. Its fruit and leaves are used in Southeast Asian cuisine, and its essential oil is used in perfumery. Its rind and cr ...

or pandan flavor, but today it is also available in other flavors like

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

durian The durian () is the edible fruit of several tree species belonging to the genus ''Durio''. There are 30 recognized species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. ''Durio zibethinus'', native to Borneo and Sumatra, is the only species ...

cheese Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...

and

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

. Originating from the city of

Medan Medan ( , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of North Sumatra. The nearby Strait of Malacca, Port of Belawan, and Kualanamu International Airport make Medan a regional hub and multi ...

North Sumatra North Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan on the east coast of the island. It borders Aceh to the northwest, Riau to the sou ...

, the cake is usually cooked twelve hours, so that it can last in the best condition and according to what is desired for four days because after that the cake starts to harden. This cake is a further development of ''

kue bingka Kue bingka is an Indonesian traditional cake ( kue basah) that is one of the typical traditional Banjar kue mostly associated with South Kalimantan province, Indonesia. Kue bingka also found in Malay cuisine. It has a sweet taste and a soft text ...

,'' a famous traditional cake in the eastern parts of Indonesia. The cake is notable for its sponge-like holes, which are formed by yeast in the cake dough that creates bubbles. These holes give it a unique spongy texture when it is baked. It is a close analogue of the

Malay sponge cake Malay sponge cake is a popular dessert cake in Guangdong and in Hong Kong. It usually can be seen at a traditional teahouse in Guangdong and Hong Kong. The cake is made of lard or butter, flour, and eggs, using a bamboo steamer to develop puffine ...

, due to similar spongy holes, but the moisture and texture are slightly different.

Etymology

Although the name contains the word "Ambon", the name of an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

and its largest

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, Bika ambon is widely known as the specialty cake of

and is often brought as a gift by those who visited the city. The origins of bika ambon are not known; however, there is some speculation that they came to Medan through Ambonese traders, where the locals took a liking to it. Another popular explanation states that Bika Ambon derives its name from being first sold in Medan in Ambon street. Nowadays, Mojopahit Street, Medan Petisah is the most famous sales region of bika ambon in Medan,

. There are at least 40 stores that sell this kind of cake. Recently, bika ambon has become popular around

Central Java Central Java (, ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogya ...

, thanks to a few retail shops that sell various Indonesian traditional cakes.

References

Kue {{indonesia-dessert-stub

Etymology

See also

References