Makassar Ramadan Treat · Green Banana Coconut Ice
Es Pisang Ijo
Photo: Andreanrama / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
According to local legend, it was invented by a royal chef named Ijo who ruined a dish for the king and was sentenced to execution — he saved his life by creating this dessert so delicious the king spared him and named it after him, though no historical record actually confirms the story.
A ripe banana is wrapped in a soft pandan-green rice-flour dough, sliced, and served over shaved ice with sweet coconut milk porridge, a bright red syrup, and condensed milk. Makassar street vendors once sold it almost exclusively during Ramadan, though now it's a year-round treat.
Why it's made this way: The dessert's emerald-green color, dyed with pandan, carries cultural symbolism of purity in Bugis-Makassar tradition, and it remains one of South Sulawesi's most recognizable street desserts.
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