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+ servings
6 banana rolls stacked up like a pyramid on a blue and white dish

Easy Top 9 Allergen Free Banana Rolls Recipe

Course: Dessert, Dim Sum
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: banana cake, banana roll
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 rolls
Author: Sharon Wong @ Nut Free Wok
Cost: $2
Another Chinese bakery favorite are banana rolls (or banana cake), a steamed glutinous rice roll that is flavored with banana extract. This easy dessert also happens to also be free of the top 9 allergens. They are called "herng jiu gao" in Cantonese and "xiang jiao gao" in Mandarin.
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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons glutinous rice flour divided
  • 1/4 cup rice flour
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar (3 tablespoons for a lower sugar option)
  • 3 ounces plus 1 tablespoon water room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons banana extract
  • 1 teaspoon oil plus more to oil a pie plate

Instructions

  • Set up a steamer, bring to a boil on medium heat. Brush some oil on a pie plate and a rounded dough scraper, set aside.
  • In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour, rice flour, granulated sugar, water, banana extract and oil. Stir until smooth.
    1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons glutinous rice flour, 1/4 cup rice flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 3 ounces plus 1 tablespoon water, 2 teaspoons banana extract, 1 teaspoon oil
  • Transfer the batter to the oiled pie plate and steam for 15 minutes on medium heat.
  • In the meantime, heat up a small sauce pan or a small frying pan on medium heat and add two tablespoons of rice flour to the cold pan. Stir occaisionally until the rice flour is toasted, ready in 4 minutes (more or less).
  • Lightly dust a cutting board or work surface with the toasted rice flour. Use the oiled dough scraper to transfer the cooked rice flour onto the floured work surface.
  • Wear food safe gloves (rinse your gloved hands and wipe dry with a paper towel) and sprinkle some rice flour on the gloves and on top of the cooked rice dough. Shape it into a large roll, cut in half and roll each half into a 1-inch thick rope. Cut each rope into 3-inch logs and serve on a dish with some toasted rice flour or on parchment paper. Serve immediately or cover and serve within a day.

Notes

This recipe makes 4 rolls. I've doubled the recipe to make 8 rolls. I can also triple the recipe to make 12 rolls but I steam the batter for 20 minutes to be sure it's cooked though (poke with a fork and it should come out clean).