Bingka Kurnia Rasa, Hj Rukayah Tarmidji and the Choice to Stay Manual

At a time when many traditional kitchens are turning to machines and scale, Rukayah Tarmidji has chosen not to change. At Kurnia Rasa in Banjarmasin, bingka is still made the old way, by hand, baked with care, and supervised directly by people, not factories.

Dhough | Worldwide Magazine of Dough and People

From the intensity in her eyes and the way she explains how she makes traditional Banjar cakes, one can feel a quiet, genuine spirit that continues to burn, despite her age now reaching 80 years old.

Since starting her business in 1982, Rukayah has firmly believed that bingka is not merely a cake, but an act of taste and feeling. She has refused to turn it into a mass product, even as demand rose sharply in the early 1990s. 

HJ RUKAYAH TARMIDJI - Who has kept the tradition of Banjar bingka alive for over four decades.

According to her, the recipes she uses for Banjar traditional cakes are inherited recipes, passed down from generation to generation. She has even declined lucrative offers from several culinary entrepreneurs who wanted to buy her recipes.

Machines can indeed make things faster. But speed often sacrifices control. And more than that, it can shake the very philosophy she holds firmly.That philosophy is evident at every stage of production. Ingredients are selected without shortcuts. Coconut milk, flour, eggs, and sugar are not treated as mere measurements, but as the foundation of flavor that must remain in balance. The texture of the batter is felt, aromas are observed, and baking is guided by intuition refined over decades.

These are small things that cannot be replaced by industrial systems. One example lies in her choice of rice flour. She selects, cleans rice and has remained loyal to them until today. “We don’t choose our ingredients carelessly,” she says. “We maintain the same quality and standards we have upheld since the beginning.”

During the month of Ramadan, Kurnia Rasa can produce hundreds of bingka each day. Yet the rhythm of the kitchen never changes. There is no cutting of processes for the sake of quantity. Dozens of workers move in the same pattern, slow, measured, and conscious of taste. They continue to use traditional, time-honored methods.

Bingka Kurnia Rasa is known for its soft yet dense texture, its rich and balanced sweetness, and its distinctive baked aroma, formed in a classic flower-petal shape. Flavor variants have evolved with time, but the core character remains intact. Innovation is never allowed to erase identity.

Without modern marketing strategies, these bingka travel far carried across cities and countries through trust and longing for the taste of home. Rukayah’s bingka has even been sent as far as Singapore, Mecca and Africa.

In Banjar culture, bingka is part of life’s moments: Ramadan, family celebrations, and communal gatherings. Preserving it means preserving collective memory. Rukayah’s cakes have even been tasted by a former President of the Republic of Indonesia, Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Beyond Bingka Kentang, Bingka Pandan, Bingka Nangka, and Bingka Kelapa Muda, Kurnia Rasa also produces a wide range of classic Banjar wadai, such as Lapis Lakat, Lapis Gula Merah, Lapis Coklat, Lapis Pelangi, Puteri Selat, Sari Muka, Sari Pengantin, Karaban, Ketupat Kandangan, Kue Lam or Tar Kelapa, Resusun Hijau, Petah Asia, Puding Nangka, and Srikaia Nangka or Puding Keraton. This list is not merely a menu, but a living archive of Banjar flavors, still made the old way so their meaning does not fade.

To understand the allure of Bingka Kurnia Rasa, we tasted it ourselves. True enough, with the first bite, the bingka melts instantly on the tongue, exceptionally soft, savory, and gently sweet without being cloying. Its fragrance lingers as you eat it.

In the midst of a culinary world that is increasingly fast and uniform, Rukayah Tarmidji stands with a simple yet firm stance: grow, but never lose the taste. In the kitchen of Kurnia Rasa, time may move forward, but philosophy remains.

Yet behind her calm discipline, Rukayah carries a quiet concern. As she grows older, she is aware that time does not pause, even for traditions guarded with devotion. What worries her is not the workload, nor the market, but continuity. Her children, she admits, maybe have not yet fully committed to continuing the cake-making practice she has sustained for more than four decades.

It is not resistance, but hesitation. They understand the business, help when needed, and respect the legacy, but none have stepped in with the same total devotion required by a craft that demands patience, physical presence, and daily attention. For Rukayah, making bingka is not something that can be done halfway. It requires surrender to routine, repetition, and responsibility, qualities that are increasingly difficult to pass on in a world oriented toward speed and convenience.

She does not speak of this with bitterness. Instead, there is acceptance, mixed with quiet hope. Rukayah believes that taste, once truly understood, has a way of calling people back. Whether her children will one day answer that call remains uncertain. But until then, she continues to work as she always has, making bingka carefully, faithfully. Trusting that the hands which must carry the tradition forward will arrive when the time is right.

The history of bingka as part of Banjar culinary heritage is deeply rooted in the traditions of South Kalimantan. In Banjar society, bingka is known as one of the 41 types of wadai (cake) traditionally served during cultural and religious occasions, such as weddings, births, and the holy month of Ramadan.

Although its exact origins are difficult to trace through formal documentation, the practice of making and serving bingka is believed to date back centuries and is often associated with the cultural life of kingdoms that once ruled the Hulu Sungai region, later evolving into what is now known as modern Banjar culture.

Seen as more than just food, bingka carries deep cultural meaning. Its flower-like mold, often called kembang goyang, symbolizes the human journey, never entirely smooth, full of rises, falls, and stories. The presence of bingka in social rituals does more than fill the table; it reinforces values of togetherness, gratitude, and hospitality within the Banjar community. Today, bingka is not only popular in South Kalimantan, but also known in neighboring provinces such as Central and East Kalimantan, and carried abroad by the Banjar diaspora.

The tradition of enjoying bingka has only grown stronger over time. In Banjarmasin, for instance, this cake becomes a star of the Ramadan wadai market. A traditional cake bazaar held every fasting month, where it is favored as a sweet, rich, and comforting choice for breaking the fast. Among the Banjar people, bingka is often considered a must-have; something feels missing when Ramadan arrives without bingka on the family table. 

(Dhough Magazine)

Photo by Kurnia Rasa Cake doc.