This is going to be a mouth-watering journey into the ten delicious rice desserts that we Pinoys like to cook and eat. Most of these rice cakes are sold along the streets, although they’re also available in established Filipino restaurants and stalls in shopping malls. It is exciting to learn how a simple glutinous rice or even ordinary rice can be made into an assortment of delicious treats when paired with coconut milk and sugar.
Without further ado, here they are . . .
- Budbud (Generic)
Suman or budbud normally refers to any kakanin (rice cake) that’s wrapped in banana or coconut leaves. Budbud in general is usually made of sticky rice (malagkit) boiled with sugar, coconut milk, and ginger until half-cooked. To make individual budbud, a few scoops is rolled and shaped, wrapped in banana leaves, and boiled again to finish off the cooking process.
- Baye-Baye
Baye-baye is made of ground pinipig or rice crispies blended with coconut water, sugar and grated young coconut (buko). The Baye-Baye is often shaped into tubes, individually wrapped in banana leaves or baking paper, and chilled. The grated buko gives this a nice texture, and is ready to eat without any cooking.
- Bibingka
Bibingka is a baked rice cake made of rice flour or galapong. The rice flour is mixed with eggs, coconut milk, sugar, margarine, baking powder, salt, and cream. The mixture is then poured into molds lined with wilted banana leaves, and baked with heat below and above the tray, to create crust both on top and at the bottom of the Bibingka. Bibingka is sometimes topped with cheese or sugar for an ever more special treat.
- Puto Maya
This is a Pinoy breakfast or snack favorite, usually paired with hot chocolate or sikulate, and slices of ripe mangoes. The glutinous rice is rinsed and steamed until half cooked. It is then blended with pure coconut milk with slow, steady stirring (to prevent the coconut milk from dripping down into the steamer). Once fully cooked, a portion is wrapped in wilted banana leaves, shaped in a triangle pocket or envelope.
- Moron
Moron or Suman sa Moron is twisted sticky rice cake made of half sticky rice (milk suman) and half chocolate paste (chocolate suman). The milk suman is made of ordinary rice flour, sticky rice flour, evaporated milk, coconut milk, sugar and vanilla. The chocolate paste has cocoa powder instead of evaporated milk. The two are cooked separately in a non-stick pan with constant stirring. A portion of each mixture is then shaped into small tubes, twisted together, and wrapped in banana leaves with both ends tied with a string. The wrapped twisted suman is then steamed for up to 45 minutes. Sometimes, ube or purple yam is used in lieu of chocolate.
- Puto Bumbong
Puto Bumbong is a popular kakanin during Christmas. It uses glutinous rice soaked in water overnight and then grounded to make galapong. The galapong is then wrapped in cheesecloth to squeeze out excess liquid, and then rubbed against a strainer to make puto bumbong rice flour. A bamboo tube (bumbong) is then filled with the puto bumbong rice flour and steamed for 10 minutes. The cooked puto bumbong is removed from the bamboo tube and served with panutsa (muscovado sugar) and freshly grated coconut. Often, the flour is mixed with purple food coloring to create an ube effect.
- Biko
Biko is another famous rice cake well loved by Filipinos. The sticky rice is pre-boiled until half-cooked. In a wok or large pan, several cups of coconut milk is mixed with muscovado or brown sugar, and stirred constantly to make thick and sticky sauce called latik. The half-cooked sticky rice is then slowly added to the latik and combined well. The pan is covered and the biko is further cooked with very low heat. Often hot coals are placed over the cover to make crust both at the top and bottom of the Biko. Roasted nuts and chopped citrus peels are added to the mixture to make special Biko. It is molded using cupcake or muffin molds to make serving portions.
- Palitaw
Palitaw comes from the word Litaw, which means to surface. This describes the way this delicacy is cooked. Glutinous rice is soaked and grounded (or sometimes glutinous rice flour available in groceries is mixed with water) to make a wet paste. A portion of glutinous rice paste is then shaped into a flat oval or circle, and dropped gently one by one into a pot of boiling water. When it rises up the surface, it means it’s cooked. Each Palitaw is then removed from the pot, covered in freshly grated coconut, cooled down, and then served with roasted sesame seeds and sugar.
- Espasol
Espasol makes use of two kinds of flour – glutinous rice flour and ordinary rice flour. The glutinous rice is pre-boiled. In a saucepan, sugar, anise seed and coconut milk are boiled to make latik. Toasted shredded coconut and the pre-boiled glutinous rice is added until thick. The mixture is removed from heat, blended with toasted rice flour, and passed through a grinder. The mixture is then rolled into logs and sliced into portions.
- Sapin-Sapin
The most colorful and attractive Pinoy rice cake would definitely be Sapin-Sapin. It is made from sticky rice and ordinary rice galapong mixed with sugar, coconut cream, and/or desired food coloring. Each layer is steamed one a time, and once the previous layer is set, another layer is added. This creates a colorful blanket or sapin. Originally, the colors are purple (ube), brown (sugar) and white (milk and sugar), but modern Sapin-Sapin takes on other colors with the use of artificial coloring.
So, which one is your ultimate favorite? Does your family still make rice cakes at home during special occasions? You might have a rice cake recipe you’d like to share with us, feel free to type it in the comments box.
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