Sweet coconut small Asian pancakes (gluten free, vegan)
If you love the flavors of Asia, you’re going to want to make these Asian pancakes. They are super simple and so good!

Asian pancakes
Cooking together is really always more fun than cooking alone. So I cook with friends on a regular basis; sometimes with Charlotte, something in the cooking club and sometimes – like last week – with Esmee.
We’re usually so busy with catching up and talking and chatting and laughing that we forget to cook… Or end up not having enough time to do what we planned to do, but this time we were prepared..well sort of…
Our initial plan was to do Mexican food but while studying the Mexican kitchen both Es and myself realised that maybe that was not the most exciting kitchen to cook from. Don’t get me wrong; I love Mexican and I could eat it any day but it was a bit tortilla, taco, burrito etc overdose in the cookbooks we were going through.

Asian flavors
So out went the Mexican idea and in came the Asian kitchen. If you think about it we cook a lot of Asian. Almost every single time really, but it is such a versatile kitchen so I can never get enough of Asian food.
This time the book of Luke Nguyen was the inspiration for our cooking session. If you’re watching masterchef Australia you might have seen Luke in one or two episodes. His book ‘Greater Mekong’ is beautiful although not all of the dishes are very practical to make at home. Ingredients that you will not be able to find anywhere in Europe! But there are plenty of dishes that are doable and the fun part is that the book is divided by country and that most of the countries we have actually been too. So not only are the dishes delicious but they also bring back fond memories of travels to that region.

This simple recipe with sweet coconut asian pancakes was a hit with both Esmee and myself. They are completely different in taste to normal pancakes but not any less delicious. Best served straight out of the pan. The outside is nice and crispy and the inside is soft and goey. Due to the use of rice flour these Asian pancakes are also naturally gluten free and vegan.
We made them into a Danish aebleskiver pan. This is a little bigger than a regular Dutch pancake pan, but any pan will be good. You can also bake crepes from them if you would like or find it easier.
The recipe is quite a lot to make but trust me… you’ll be happy you made so many! Looking for a recipe for regular small pancakes then check this one with a recipe for Aebleskiver or try Dutch poffertjes. Or check these gluten free buckwheat pancakes.
Sweet coconut small Asian pancakes
Equipment
- Aebleskiver pan
Instructions
- Put the coconut milk, riceflour and sugar into a mixing bowl, Add a pinch of salt and 500 ml of water and mix until you have a smooth batter.
- Heat the Dutch pancake pan on medium heat, brush each hole well with butter or oil.
- Make sure the pan is hot before adding the batter in, otherwise they will stick to the pan. Leave them to bake for about 4-5 minutes until golden and then flip over.
- They should be crispy on the outside and sticky on the inside.
- Continue until all batter is finished
Notes
Nutrition Information
Disclaimer
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
These do look amazing Simone!! I wonder if they would work as a sugar free version? I might have to try it and see how they turn out.
They might work sugarfree. I am not sure how they would react to baking though. Due to the sugar the outside caramelizes while you bake them in the pan giving it a lovely crispy outside. Leaving out the sugar and replacing it with something else will make the texture different I would think
In Indonesia it called “surabi”…. it’s traditional food from java.
Which famous surabi is “surabi notosuman” from Solo, Central Java.
Thanks.
http://www.visualiumm.blogspot.com
Thanks for the additional information Makmur!
loving the look of these pancakes, they are so cute! love how the recipe is only four ingredients as well.. definitely going to try it!
Thanks Thalia. Yes it’s simplicity in full force.. 😉
Such beautiful little pancakes, and the ingredients so stunningly simple, I never would have believed it if not for your recipe! I’ve never seen anything quite like them before.
Thanks so much Hannah! And they’re so tasty too!
This is a great recipe. I had tried another one and they pancakes were flat and chewy. This one was easier and the pancakes came out fluffy and very good. I used 3tsp of baking powder that some of the other reviewers said were in the original recipe to make the pancakes fluffier (I prefer the fluffy pancakes) and I also let the batter sit for 15-20 mins per other reviews. I used almond milk because that’s all I had and it worked fine. I also added vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg for added flavor. They were a hit with everyone. The batter was thicker than normal pancake batter but I found that it helps make the pancakes fluffier too. I made a few and then added some milk to thin the batter and the ones I thinned weren’t as fluffy as the first few. This recipe is going in my permanent recipe file. 
Hi, i wonder… Can i bake it? in a muffin tin??? And how many pancakea comes out from this batter? And is it fluffier with adding baking powder?? I love fluffy… And you said to add 500 ml water, it not on the ingredients list… I add coconut milk+ watter??? Thanks, yaeli.
He Yaeli,
I Don’t think it will work very well in a muffin tin, unless you use just very small portions but my guess is that it won’t be crispy and delicious. It will be fluffier if you add some baking powder. And yes you add water too. I know it is not in the ingredient list as I figured everyone has water in house.. 🙂 So yes coconut milk and water
Can i substitute self raising flour for the rice flour?
He Wendy,
You can try for sure. It will react very differently though but it might work just fine. The only way to know is if you try! Good luck!
Simone
M trying to figure out in terms of cup measurement: about 2 cups of rice flour , mixed with l litre or 4 cups of coconut milk n water. Maybe I will try this recipe using pandan juice .And maybe add in 1 egg?
What’s your response please.?
Thank you.
500 ml of liquid is 2 cups. I have a conversion table for calculating the grams to cups as that varies per ingredient https://insimoneskitchen.com/conversions/
hello. this looks interesting! I am only twelve and I am gonna try this! but can you do this on a normal frying pan?
What coconut milk are you usingÂ
Brand ?Â
Can you specify ingredient brands
I use varying brands. I live in the Netherlands so not sure if you would be able to find the same ones.
Just made them. Had to guess on oven temp. Delicious. I will try baking powder next time. I only had a mini muffins pan. I will be getting the cast iron pancake pan.
Thanks