Immaculate Bites

African and Caribbean Recipes Made Easy

Home / Courses

Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes)

Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe
Author: Imma
Pin16kYummlyShares16k

Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes) – An addictive healthy coconut and rice vegan donut or pancake topped with vegan caramel sauce. A melt in your mouth experience!

Vitumbua

Don’t mention anything coconut to me, because chances are I would like to taste or make it. Every time my son sees anything coconut he screams out for me like it is an emergency (He is so dramatic). And everyone turns to look. It’s embarrassing, sometimes, especially when we are out in public. I look the other way and start whistling. He loathes coconut and I am obsessed with all things coconut.

Just a cursory glance on this site and you would definitely agree with me.

I have all forms of coconut in my pantry, powder, flakes, liquid, shredded unsweetened, sweetened- you bet! And more than twenty coconut recipes to try out on my to-do list, they all have a deadline. I don’t want to scare you away so I am going to space them out.

Vitumbua

This right here has been on the list, until now. It is ready to shine.

Guys meet vitumbua (singular: kitumbua). A sweet donut or pancake with a slight exterior crust and a fluffy, melt in your mouth interior. Also known as Masa in West African  Countries like Nigeria and Cameroon.

vitumba

These East African breakfasts are happily eaten and shared in these Swahili countries Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Uganda, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi, Rwanda and Burundi, Somalia. Even throughout India, Indonesia under different aliases.

Can you believe after I made this hubby grabbed a few, then exclaimed! “You just made my favorite childhood snack”, he was so excited that he finished the whole thing and started reminiscing about his childhood. Oh, this would do that to you!

Vitumba

This is my variant on this sweet snack, the spice combination that I like using is cardamom, nutmeg, and almond extract. It is typically made with cardamom; feel free to adjust spices with one or more according to taste preference. 

Most recipes recommend using short rice. I used jasmine rice with good results.

The best way to enjoy this is with a big cup of Chai Tea Latte HERE. Or if you want to transform it into a dessert serve with this vegan coconut milk caramel

Happy cooking!

 

Watch How To Make It

 

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”FC3nSHb0″ upload-date=”2020-01-22T13:59:34.000Z” name=”Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes)” description=”Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes) – An addictive healthy coconut and rice vegan donut or pancake topped with vegan caramel sauce. A melt in your mouth experience!” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]

 

 

Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes)
Print

Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes)

Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes) - An addictive healthy coconut and rice vegan donut or pancake topped with vegan caramel sauce. A melt in your mouth experience!
5 from 15 votes
Prep: 1 hour
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 1 hour 15 minutes
African
Servings 12 -15 balls

Ingredients

Vitumbua

  • 2 cups rice
  • 1 teaspoon yeast
  • 1 cup canned coconut milk slightly warmed
  • 2-3 tablespoon coconut flakes optional
  • ½ -1 teaspoon salt
  • ¾ – 1-cup sugar brown, white or coconut sugar (I used coconut sugar)
  • 1 teaspoon Spice Cardamom, nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon almond extract

Coconut dipping sauce

Instructions

  • Soak 2 cups of rice in a large bowl and let it soften, this might take 4 hours or more, preferably overnight.
  • Drain the water completely and add in a food processor or blender together with coconut milk, flakes, spices, sugar, salt and yeast. Blend until puree, you might have to do this in batches depending on your blender- make sure you pause in between and check for smoothness.
  • Pour in a large bowl, cover and let it rise in a warm area until doubled in size or when you see bubbles forming.
  • Heat a vitumbua, or fry pan on medium heat, add about a ½ or more teaspoon of oil, and brush the holes with the oil.
  • Make sure pan is warm enough before adding batter about ¾ full. Cook for about 2 -3 minutes on each side, then quickly flip using chopstick. Continue cooking on the other side and repeat this process until all the batter is finished.
  • Let it cool slightly and enjoy with chai or caramel dipping sauce.

Coconut Caramel dipping Sauce

  • Bring the coconut milk and brown sugar to a boil together in a heavy-bottomed pot or skillet. Reduce heat to medium low; cook and stir frequently until the mixture is thick and the volume has reduced by about half, about 20 minutes or more.

Tips & Notes:

  1. Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 168kcal (8%)| Carbohydrates: 26g (9%)| Protein: 3g (6%)| Fat: 5g (8%)| Saturated Fat: 4g (25%)| Sodium: -91mg (-4%)| Potassium: 102mg (3%)| Fiber: 1g (4%)| Vitamin C: 0.6mg (1%)| Calcium: 13mg (1%)| Iron: 0.6mg (3%)
Author: Imma
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: African
Tag Us On Instagram!Did you make this recipe? I love hearing how it turned out! Tag me on Instagram @ImmaculateBites and be sure to leave a rating below!
Follow on Instagram

 

Nutrition Facts
Vitumbua (Coconut Rice Pancakes)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 168 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value*
Fat 5g8%
Saturated Fat 4g25%
Sodium -91mg-4%
Potassium 102mg3%
Carbohydrates 26g9%
Fiber 1g4%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin C 0.6mg1%
Calcium 13mg1%
Iron 0.6mg3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

 

Vitumba IMG_1441

IMG_1454 IMG_1467

IMG_1476 IMG_1475 IMG_1484 IMG_1495

VITUMBUA

Reader Interactions

Leave a Review

I love hearing from you! Submit your question or recipe review here. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Made this? Rate this recipe:




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments & Reviews

  1. Ayman says

    Thanks for the recipe! I have a question though, is it possible to leave the batter overnight in a warm place or maybe even fridge? So that i can make them the next morning? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Immaculate Bites says

      Hi Ayman! Yes, you may leave it overnight in the fridge after proofing or when you see bubbles forming. Make sure to wrap the bowl before storing in the fridge.

      Reply

  2. Kei says

    Thanks for this recipe. I have three questions….For the 1 teaspoon of spice, is that 0.50 teaspoon of cardamom and 0.50 teaspoon of nutmeg? Can only cardamom be used? How long does the mixture generally take to rise?
    Love your site.

    Reply

    • Immaculate Bites says

      Hi Sandel! You can find this at your local store or maybe online if it’s accessible 🙂

      Reply

  6. Fiona says

    Hello: these look amazing!
    Can you tell me how big a can of coconut milk is where you are? In the shops here (Australia) there are two or three different sizes.
    Thanks

    Reply

  7. Tu Nokwe says

    Thank you so much young lady Imma. We can’t have dairy or gluten in my family, so Vitumbua works well for people like us! It’a a favorite breakfast treat I look forward to whenever I visit Tanzania. QUESTIONS: I want to avoid yeast, anything you can suggest that I can use to help with the rise instead of yeast. Thanks a million!!
    mama Tu Nokwe, South Africa

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Hello Mama Tu Nokwe. It is so great to have you here :).
      As for as substituting yeast goes, I would suggest you use 2 teaspoons of baking powder, and then let the dough sit for an hour before you cook. Do let me know how this works out for you!

      Reply

  8. Essie says

    Hi! I have eaten them throughout my childhood in a Kenya and now ready to try making them for iftar.

    Without a vitumbua pan can I use a muffin tin and bake them in the oven instead? Trying to improvise in Iraq!

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Hello,
      Yes you can. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes or more , depending on your muffin pan. Flip half way through baking .

      Reply

  9. Zam says

    Thanks so much for this recipe! Is it possible to use rice flour instead of normal rice and still achieve the same results?

    Reply

  12. Maimuna says

    Thanks so much for this recipe Ima. I made it and they puffed up nicely but unfortunately, were a bit hard; and even harder when they cooled down. Any suggestions?

    Reply

  13. Chitra Puranik Kuve says

    If you like coconut, try Udupi cuisine. That the traditional cuisine from the city of Udupi in west coast of South India. Rice, coconut and jaggery together are used in hundreds of combination for breakfast, lunch, snacks, savouries and most of all for desserts.
    Try it! Vitumba without the sweet is made as breakfast in South India. You might be able to get the pan for it in local Indian Stores

    Reply

  14. Hanna says

    I am excited to make these.

    A few questions….do you put the pan on the stove or on a skillet to cook?

    Is it the same outcome if you use a stove?

    Also, what is the best storage when cooked? How long do they keep?

    Love your site!

    Reply

    • ImmaculateBites says

      Hi Hanna!
      I do put the pan on the stove . Never tried using a skillet .You can freeze, then warm in the oven when ready to eat .

      Reply