Eggless steamed chocolate cake recipe (also known as how to make cake without an oven): I was making a layered checkered cake for a good friend’s birthday last weekend using the eggless sponge cake as the base. For the chocolate sponge cake layer, I just added some cocoa powder to the batter and removed some flour to compensate. While going through the steps for the cake, I suddenly had this urge to take some of the chocolate sponge cake batter and steam it since I get a lot of questions from readers if they can make a cake without an oven, or if they can steam cakes instead of baking them. Well, there was only one way to find out.
So I pulled out two pudding moulds, greased them, added the chocolate batter, and steamed them. The resulting steamed eggless chocolate cake was moist, soft, and delicious! I got super excited and wanted to share this eggless steamed chocolate cake recipe with you immediately.
So those of you without an oven, don’t worry about making your own cakes. Steamed cakes are the way to go!
Before you attempt steaming cakes, please read the notes at the bottom of this post, they are from my experience and important to note.
More Chocolate Cake Recipes:
Eggless chocolate sponge cake
Chocolate cake made in pressure cooker
Chocolate cake made in microwave
Chocolate doughnut cakes
Some Useful Links:
How to make curd at home
How to make cupcake moulds at home
Eggless basic sponge cake recipe
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour or plain flour (maida)
- 1 cup plain curd or yogurt, at room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 and ¼ tsp of baking powder
- ½ cup of vegetable or sunflower oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or essence
- 3 tbsp cocoa powder
- Silver foil for covering the cake moulds
- Beat the curd without any lumps and add the sugar to it. Beat again well. I used an electric beater for this but a normal whisk will do just fine.
- Add the soda and baking powder, mix well, and set aside for 5 mins until the mixture starts to bubble on top.
- Then add the vanilla and oil and mix well to combine. Remove 3 tbsp of flour from the measured 1.5 cups and add the cocoa powder to it.
- Sift into the wet ingredients and gently fold until you see no streaks of flour left.
- Grease two muffin cups (or any small container that fits in your steamer) generously with butter. Add batter until it's ⅔ full
- Cover the cake moulds with aluminium foil. This is important because if you don't, water that condenses inside the steamer will fall into your batter and that's not good at all.
- Place covered cake moulds in your steamer stand and close the steamer
- Cook for 30 mins or until the top of the cake springs back on touch and a fork inserted in it comes out with moist crumbs. Use low flame to ensure even cooking
- Let the cakes cool in the mould and once cool, run a knife along the edge of the cakes and gently invert onto serving plates
- Serve with a dusting of sugar, some whipped cream, buttercream, fruits etc
Steamed Eggless Chocolate Cake Recipe Step by Step Pictures:
1. Beat the curd without any lumps and add the sugar to it. Beat again well. I used an electric beater for this but a normal whisk will do just fine. Add the soda and baking powder, mix well, and set aside for 5 mins until the mixture starts to bubble on top. Then add the vanilla and oil and mix well to combine. Remove 3 tbsp of flour from the measured 1.5 cups and add the cocoa powder to it. Sift into the wet ingredients in and gently fold until you see no streaks of flour left.
2. Grease two muffin cups (or any small container that fits in your steamer) generously with butter. Add some batter to it.
3. Cover the cake moulds with aluminium foil. This is important because if you don’t, water that condenses inside the steamer will fall into your matter and that’s not good at all.
4. Place in your steamer and cover.
5. Steam for 30 mins or until the top of the cake springs back on touch and a fork inserted in it comes out with moist crumbs.
6. Let the cakes cool in the mould and once cool, run a knife along the edge of the cakes and gently invert onto serving plates.
Tadaaa! Eggless steamed chocolate cake is now ready. These cakes are best served fresh and when still warm. As I mentioned, I was making a birthday cake for a friend so also had some chocolate buttercream in hand which I piped on the cake. This is purely optional but a bit of chocolate sauce definitely won’t hurt.
Notes:
– It’s also possible to make cake in a pressure cooker.
– As mentioned, covering the cake moulds while steaming is important. Also, try to steam this cake in small batches and not in one big cake tray. I feel like the insides may not cook too well otherwise.
– The 30 mins I have mentioned is purely based on my steamer which is quite small and I only had two cakes cooking inside. You may need longer cooking time depending on your steamer and other factors. It’s ok to open the steamer and check in between but make sure you cover the mould again with the foil if the cake needs more cooking time,
– Cook the cake with the steamer on low flame or simmer.
– I found that this eggless steamed chocolate cake is best served on the same day. I have half of one leftover and the next day it was a bit more dense. It was still good and edible but not as good as freshly serving the cake.
– You can try many variations in flavours with this basic cake recipe. Omit the cocoa for a plain vanilla eggless steamed sponge cake. Add chocolate chips, fruit bits, tutti fruity, the options are endless.
– A friend messaged me to ask if this same recipe for eggless steamed chocolate cake can be made in idli moulds. That’s when I remembered the chocolate idlis I used to make when I was in school. The batter recipe was different but I am positive this recipe with work if you steam the cake in idli moulds too. Do leave a comment if you try it.
– The texture of steamed cake is a bit different from the baked one. It will be more moist, a bit heavier, and not springy. It’s still delicious but expect more of a pudding-cake than an airy cake.
– The cake is quite sweet on its own so the frosting or sauce on top is totally optional. The cake on its own is not very pretty though so if you are serving for guests, whip up some buttercream. Or just use chocolate sauce.
– I use Valrhona Cocoa Powder in all my chocolate cakes and desserts. It is Dutch-processed but I use it in all recipes anyway, even the ones that call for non Dutch-processed cocoa powder. It gives a deep mahogany colour to your dessert and the flavour is unmatched (not a paid endorsement but the link is an affiliate one).
So what are you waiting for? Make some eggless steamed chocolate cake now. Eat. Smile.
For eggless steamed chocolate cake recipe in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu, Kannada, Telugu, Malay etc please use the Google translate button in the sidebar.
If you try this steamed cake recipe and like it, do click a picture and share on Twitter or Instagram with #ediblegarden. I’d love to see and feature it!
Hii,it’s just by chance I Googled for No Bake Eggless Cake and happened to scroll through ur AWESOME recipe for the same.
It turned out to be really great and had made it it in 1 day advance to my son’s Birthday.
Initially was afraid about how the cake will turn out,but I’m happy after the final results.It’s really spongy and moist and the texture just resembles to Khaman Dhoklas.
I had baked the whole batter in one shot in a 1/2 kg tin and it came out really nice.It took altogether 30 to 40 minutes.
Kindly pls suggest me some simple creaming or frosting ideas to decorate the same for Birthday.
Surely my son will be impressed and happy on his D day.
Your recipe too is just perfect to follow and no errors at all.
One can blindly search and follow the same.
Thanks again and waiting for ur reply.
i am sure i am too late to give frosting ideas but so glad you liked the cake recipe
Haiii Nags
I love the above recipe and will try it soon.
I love the way you explain everything in detail about your experience in making each dish.
Looking forward to more and more of your recipes.
thank you premaja. happy new year!
A Very Happy New Year to you too Nags
May this year be wonderful too
Hi, nags really amazing cake.pics are tempting.today is my husband’s birthday.i am going to make it today.shall I make it with out baking powder and by using only baking soda.shall I replace maida with wheat flour. if you have any knowledge idea about this pls reply. Thank you for nice and simple recipe.😃
if you omit baking powder, the cake may turn out hard. using wheat flour will also make the cake harder. i recommend using the same ingredients especially if you are trying for the first time
Thanks a lot for suggestions.i tried with the same ingredients. It came awesome….😃thanks for such a nice recipe😃
It was so nice.
it really helped me a lot.
i am an HRM student and we are tasked to bake a cake in steamed base. And this reciepe was perfect. I love this.
i will rate it 10 stars🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟..
thank you!
this cake is superb .it is my first cake thank you very much for the eggless and steamed cake receipe
thanks for trying it!
Nice recipie
have any other option for aluminium foil
you can try greasing the pan very well with butter if you don’t have any foil in hand
I also tried this out.. came out good… jus the shape was a little distorted. But taste was good… thanks for the recipe 🙂
thanks for trying
Hi, thats a wonderful recepie. I have a clarification… For buscuit cake, i add eno in place of baking pwdr.
Whether the same can be implemented for the above type of cake.
If so how much can be the quantity? 1 ENO sachet excatly measures 1 TSP
hi archana, you can definitely try to replace baking powder with equal amounts of eno. i haven’t personally tried this but do let me know if you do
Go team edible garden
A tasty cake
hi there! would a ready to mix cake good to be steamed?
hello sunshine, yes it works! i have tried it with a betty crocker chocolate cake mix in the past and it worked very well. give it a shot 🙂
Hi Nagmi! I really liked this idea and the pic inspires me…but one query can I make this cake without a steamer…and steaming it a normal vessel with a water bath and covering the vessel with a lid? Since I don’t have both ..a baker and a steamer !?!?!?!?!? Please Reply ASAP!
Hello Valencia, yes you can definitely try that. Just make sure the boiling water doesn’t enter the batter. The best thing is to ensure the baking pan has high sides. Good luck and do let me know how it turns out 🙂
Very nice Nags.
hi Nags ur cake s luking so yummyyy.. can u tel me how many cakes u prepared out of this measurement
Interesting recipe…will surely try. Just didn't understand one thing. 1.5 cup maida is not used? Your recipe says measure 3 spn of flour from the 1.5cup. Can you pl elaborate.
i read the recipe again and feel it's quite clear… you need to measure out 1.5 cups of flour and since this is a chocolate cake, remove 3 tbsp of flour from that and add 3 tbsp of cocoa powder. hope that is clear now.
It was an awesome recipe. Hats off 2 u!!!!!!
Hi nags
i love love love ur recipes.This recipe especially is a hit.I followed your recipe to the T.It came out just the way you had described.
Thanks and please do post more such eggless simple recipes.
Oh ok.. I will try it out. but for the same batter consistency in a single tin would consume more time i suppose. Or you tell me will take the same time? This is the first time i would be making a cake at home and im nervous!!!! I hope you understand.
it's ok 🙂 i haven't tried to steam a cake in one go but yes it will surely need more time than what i have mentioned here. i had a reader comment that she steamed it in a big cake and it worked out fine, she didn't mention steaming time though
Hi there. This is lakshmi here. I stumbled at your blog on FB and as i was going through it i came across this wonderful steamed choco cake recipe you posted here and was so fascinated that i wanted to try it at home for my husbands birthday and that being today. i wanted to know how much batter ingredients would i require for steaming for about a 450 gm of the cake and what would be cooking time. Can you please help me in this regard?
it's hard for me to estimate by weight like that lakshmi. i feel if you use this measure, you will end up with a cake about that size.
ambikaclyton
hi, yesterday i steam this cake in an pressure cooker.. the result was just amazing.I got an spongy, moist cake. I hav'nt partition the batter in different moulds, i placed the entire batter in a single vessel and steamed in an pressure cooker for about 1 hr 20 min, the cake was cooked perfectly and tastes excellent.My kid really loved the cake. Thanks for your delicious chocolate cake recipe..
This is indeed a wonderful treat for people who don't have oven at home. Looks very moist and beautiful
Tried this today.. came out ok, though I feel the taste of curd lingers. Maybe my curd was a bit sour. Thanks for the steamed cake recipe. Do post more steamed cake recipe WITH EGGS please!
Wow! Yummy cake,Nags!! Thanx for sharing!!
Wow…that looks incredible..:) Bookmarked ..
Reva
Nice looks so delicious and easy to make sounds perfect to me.
nice cliks…yummy and tasty.
Love the cake.. looks delicious.. will prepare this weekend 🙂
Loved the cake.. looks delicious… will prepare this weekend for sure.. Thanks for this wonderfull receipe 🙂
I so make a cake in the pressure cooker, but this works well too! it has got such a rich dark colour, very inviting!
nags i love the font face so nice and again wonderful photos !
This is great Nagas..you wouldn't believe I have been thinking of steamed cakes for a few days now. As a kid, friends & I made chocolate cakes in the pressure cooker, of course without the pressure..and they turned out awesome. I have been thinking of recreating the magic..and then I see this..I am surely going to try your recipe now :)..Thanks!!
Thank you Jyoti. I really want to start making cakes in pressure cooker too. Maybe I will try the same batter as the above eggless chocolate cake and give it a shot making it in a pressure cooker 🙂
My aunt who has doesn't have an oven always steams cakes and they turn out awesome! Love the crumb on this one!
Never made steamed cakes ,this looks so good. Must give it a try , i only have a teeny weeny apachambu, so don't know if my cups will fit in it.
wow…looks awesome !! Drooling clicks!!
Hi,
how are you? i have been following your blog for sometime now and i must say u make me smile! i am a punjabi married to a lucknow wala kayastha and both of us are totally nuts about south indian food. thanks for the wonderful blog. since my husband is vegetarian, i had been looking for a eggless no oven recipe for him. this is what i was waiting for. cant wait to try! btw, i have used pressure cooker for making cake. the cakes turn out just fine. u just have to keep checking though!
Neera
Hey Nags… I've been using your recipes for quiet sometime now, and I come back everytime because you always keep them easy and simple. But I noticed you dont have a 'Pin It' plugin? Try to add them.. Pretty please 🙂 I find it interesting to bookmark my recipes using Pinterest !!
And coming back to the recipe, the pic looks uh-mazing !! Gonna try this weekend !!
Cheers,
Sukanya
updated. please ping away! thanks 🙂
awesome nags…must give it a try :). My mom used to make it using sands 🙂
i have never made a steamed cake, but baked cakes in pressure cooker. such. thats one gorgeous piece of cake. i have some few recipes of steamed cakes, that i am surely going to give a try after looking at yours.
Cant believe its a steamed cake, looks extremely moist and fabulous.
I am sure this recipe will soon be the most searched recipe on your blog 🙂
Great job!
Wow Nags. Now this is a cake I can make without thinking about the baking blunders that I have made in the past. 🙂
And as usual amazing pics. 🙂
Its such an easy recipe i want to try this today but hv a question y hv u used oil and not butter? can i use butter? Pls reply soon 🙂
sure, you can add the same quantity of melted butter.
thanku 🙂
Its so easy for ppl who don't hv oven at home & wanted to try choco cake. 🙂 One question, can we cut the ziploc and tie it with rubber band, as a quick solution for aluminium foil. Thank you!
is it necessary to use Curd? I have a weird feeling of using curd in cake. Will curd give a sour taste to the cake? PLease reply soon as I am really eager to try this one if possible today itself
not at all. you shouldn't use sour curd in this cake recipe, just regular curd. you will not taste it in the cake at all.
Crystelle..curd or yogurt gives cakes a very moist texture. Nags is right, you will not taste it at all!! 🙂
Thank you for adding your thoughts Jyoti 🙂
Wonderful looking cake!
Absolutely yummy recipe. Have to try this. 🙂
Wow ! Delicious cake…
I was waiting to see the recipe after I saw the gorgeousness on fb – this seems easy enough. If only I could get the other one you made here…
I have made a steamed cake before and was amazed at the results too.Cant compare the to the oven-baked ones but definitely worth a try.