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Ube cheesecake is a light, jiggly Japanese-style cheesecake tinted purple with ube extract. This version skips the oven entirely: you fold whipped egg whites into a cream cheese batter built on pancake mix, then cook it in a rice cooker for about 70 minutes. The result is cotton-soft, subtly sweet, and gorgeously purple, with a faint purple-sweet-potato flavor.
The first time I served a Japanese cheesecake to friends who had only ever had the dense New York kind, I watched them do a little double take. It is so much lighter and bouncier, more like an airy sponge cake than a rich, heavy slice, with just a whisper of tang. Turning it purple with ube took it from pretty to unforgettable, and the fact that the whole thing happens in a rice cooker still feels a little bit like a magic trick.
If a denser, portioned cheesecake is more your style, these Ube Oreo Mini Cheesecakes bake up in a muffin tin with an Oreo crust and pack all that purple ube flavor into individual servings.
I leaned on Krusteaz pancake mix for the base, which sounds unexpected but works beautifully because it already has the flour, leavening, and a touch of sugar built in. A couple of teaspoons of ube extract turned the batter solid purple, and it came out SO good.
Featured in: 19 Easy Japanese Desserts
It also made my list of 36 Easy Asian Desserts, alongside a bunch of other favorites.
What Makes This Ube Cheesecake So Good
This is the recipe for anyone who is intimidated by traditional Japanese cheesecake, which usually means a fussy water bath, a springform pan wrapped in foil, and a lot of praying the top doesn’t crack. The rice cooker does the gentle, even, steamy cooking for you, so you get that signature soufflé rise without babysitting an oven. Using pancake mix shortcuts the dry ingredients, and whipped egg whites are what give it that trademark jiggle.
If you’re already an ube person, you know it plays so well in soft, sweet things. It’s the same reason I keep coming back to my ube croissants. And if you love a good hands-off appliance recipe, this shares a lane with my rice cooker coconut curry, which proves the rice cooker is way more than a one-trick pot.
What Makes a Japanese Cheesecake Different?
Whipped egg whites are the whole difference. A Japanese cheesecake (also called cotton or soufflé cheesecake) folds stiff, meringue-like egg whites into the batter, which makes it rise tall and bake up light, airy, and jiggly instead of dense and creamy like a Western-style cheesecake. It also uses far less sugar and cream cheese, so the flavor is subtle and the texture is closer to a soft chiffon cake. If you want to go deeper on the classic method, Just One Cookbook has a thorough soufflé cheesecake guide. If you love working with ube and whipped egg whites, my viral ube cloud bread takes that same meringue idea even further, using just four ingredients for a light, cloud-soft purple treat.
What Does Ube Cheesecake Taste Like?
Ube cheesecake tastes mild, subtly sweet, and gently nutty, with a soft vanilla-like note and a faint earthiness from the purple yam. Ube (a purple sweet potato popular in Filipino desserts) isn’t an in-your-face flavor. It reads a little like a cross between vanilla, white chocolate, and sweet potato, which is exactly why it works in a delicate cheesecake that isn’t very sweet to begin with. If you’ve never cooked with it, The Kitchn has a good explainer on what ube is. For another purple-forward idea, my ube blended baked oats are an easy place to start.
That same flavor profile works beautifully in a summer dessert format, and these King’s Hawaiian Ube Ice Cream Sandwiches use a homemade ube icing drizzle over coconut ice cream and bruleed pineapple tucked into toasted Hawaiian rolls.
Tips for Making Ube Cheesecake in a Rice Cooker
1. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks
This is the make-or-break step. Beat the egg whites until they hold firm, glossy peaks that stand straight up when you lift the beaters, adding the granulated sugar in three parts as you go. Soft or runny whites won’t give you the tall, cottony rise. A clean, dry, grease-free bowl helps them whip up faster.
2. Fold, do not stir
Add the egg whites to the cream cheese batter in three additions and fold gently with a spatula, scooping from the bottom up and over. Folding preserves the air you just whipped in. Vigorous stirring knocks it all out and leaves you with a flat, dense cake.
3. Butter the rice cooker pot well
Melt the butter and use a basting brush to coat the inside of the pot fully, bottom and sides. This is your insurance for a clean flip at the end. A well-greased pot lets the cheesecake release in one smooth piece onto your plate.
4. Know your rice cooker
Cook times run around 70 minutes on the regular white-rice setting, but every rice cooker is a little different. If yours runs hot or clicks to warm early, you may need to run a second cycle. The cake is done when the top is set and springs back to a light touch and a skewer comes out clean.
5. Let it cool before flipping
Give it a few minutes out of the cooker so it settles, then place a plate over the pot and confidently flip in one motion. Dust with powdered sugar right before serving so it stays pretty and doesn’t dissolve.
Storage and Leftovers
Store leftover ube cheesecake covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. It is lovely cold, when the texture firms up slightly and tastes almost like an ube cheesecake ice cream bar, or you can let a slice come to room temperature for the softest, fluffiest bite. Add the powdered sugar fresh each time you serve, since it melts into the surface over time. This cake also freezes well: wrap individual slices and freeze for up to a month, then thaw in the fridge overnight.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 2 egg yolks (keep the whites)
- 3/4 cup Krusteaz pancake mix
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 to 2 tsp ube extract
- 2 egg whites
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- Powdered sugar, to taste
No Krusteaz on hand? Any complete buttermilk pancake mix works. For a deeper purple and a truer yam flavor, you can swap in ube halaya (purple yam jam) for some of the extract, though the color from a good ube extract is hard to beat. Softening the cream cheese to room temperature first makes for a smoother, lump-free batter.
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg yolks, and pancake mix with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add the heavy cream in two parts, whisking well in between. Then add the ube extract and whisk until the batter is solid purple throughout.
- In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites with the hand mixer until stiff peaks form, adding the granulated sugar in three parts and whisking well between each.
- Gently fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture in three parts, stirring just until fully incorporated. Do not overmix.
- Melt the butter and use a basting brush to coat the inside of your rice cooker pot. Pour in the batter and cook on the regular setting for about 70 minutes.
- Once done, use oven mitts to remove the pot. Place a plate upside down over the pot and, holding both together, quickly flip so the cheesecake lands on the plate.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar to taste, slice, and serve.
If you make this rice cooker ube cheesecake, I would love to know how it turned out. Leave a star rating on the recipe card below and drop a comment if you tried it, especially if you have a rice cooker timing tip to share.
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Rice Cooker Ube Japanese Cheesecake
- Total Time: 85
- Yield: 1 cake (about 6 slices) 1x
Description
A light, jiggly ube cheesecake made entirely in a rice cooker. This cotton-soft Japanese cheesecake uses pancake mix and whipped egg whites for a subtly sweet, gorgeously purple dessert.
Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 2 egg yolks (keep the whites)
- 3/4 cup Krusteaz pancake mix
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 to 2 tsp ube extract
- 2 egg whites
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- Powdered sugar, to taste
Equipment
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
- Make the batter. In a bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg yolks, and pancake mix with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add cream and color. Whisk in the heavy cream in two parts, then add the ube extract and whisk until the batter is solid purple.
- Whip the whites. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites to stiff peaks, adding the granulated sugar in three parts.
- Fold gently. Fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture in three parts, just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Cook. Brush the rice cooker pot with melted butter, pour in the batter, and cook on the regular setting for about 70 minutes.
- Flip. Remove the pot with oven mitts, set a plate over it, and flip so the cheesecake lands on the plate.
- Finish. Dust with powdered sugar, slice, and serve.
Notes
- Whip the egg whites to firm, glossy stiff peaks. This is what gives the cheesecake its tall, cottony rise.
- Fold the whites in gently in three parts. Stirring knocks out the air and flattens the cake.
- Grease the pot well with butter so the cake releases cleanly when you flip it.
- Every rice cooker is different. If yours clicks to warm early, run a second cycle until the top is set and springs back.
- Room-temperature cream cheese blends smoother with fewer lumps.
- Dust with powdered sugar right before serving so it does not dissolve.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 70
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Rice Cooker
- Cuisine: Filipino, Japanese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 235 kcal
- Sugar: 13g
- Sodium: 210mg
- Fat: 16g
- Saturated Fat: 9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 17g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 5g
- Cholesterol: 95mg