Buzz
Puto is a small steamed rice cake from the Philippines made from rice flour (known as galapong). It's commonly eaten for breakfast paired with coffee or hot chocolate. Some people enjoy adding grated coconut on top or serving it with dinugan, a dish made from pork blood stew. If you'd like to try making this delicious treat at home, follow the instructions below.
- Preparation time: 20 minutes
- Cooking time: 20 minutes
- Total time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 cups rice flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 2.5 tablespoons baking powder
- 2 cups coconut milk
- 2.5 cups water
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1 egg
- Cheese to top the cakes
- Food coloring (optional)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)
Steps
Sift the dry ingredients together. Sifting rice flour, sugar, and baking powder will help mix the dry ingredients evenly, preventing clumping and allowing the ingredients to remain airy. Simply pour the ingredients into a bowl through a sifter, and use a fork to gently tap the underside of the sifter while the ingredients fall through to make the sifting process smoother. Stir the ingredients well.
- If you don’t have rice flour, you can substitute it with regular flour, though it won’t give you the same traditional texture of rice flour-based cakes.
- If you want to make a true puto cake, mix rice flour with water in a bowl, cover it, and leave it at room temperature overnight. For this method, you will need about 450g of rice flour and half a cup of water.
Add butter, coconut milk, eggs, and water, then mix the ingredients together. Use a wooden spoon, a whisk, or an electric mixer to combine the ingredients evenly. If you don’t have coconut milk, you can replace it with sweetened condensed milk (doubling the amount) or regular milk, but the traditional flavor of the puto will be lost.
- If you want the puto to be chewier, you can add a tablespoon of cornstarch to the mixture.
- Though food coloring isn’t strictly necessary, it will enhance the appearance of the cakes. Common colors for puto include green, yellow, and purple. If you’d like a colorful batch, divide the mixture into four parts and add 1-2 drops of vibrant color to three parts; leave one part without color for a visually striking contrast with the “white” part.
Pour the batter into the molds and small cupcake trays. If you're not using paper cupcake liners, you can grease the molds with butter to prevent the cake from sticking. Fill the molds either fully or slightly above halfway. The cakes will expand while steaming, so you need to leave enough space for them to rise. Some recommend only filling the molds about three-quarters full to allow room for expansion.
Place cheese on top of the batter. Cut the cheese into small square pieces, about the size of a 0.5-dollar coin, slightly bigger than a 25-cent coin. If you’re using regular cheese, you can place it in the mold before steaming the cake. However, if you're using a melting cheese, it’s best to add it just two minutes before the cake is done steaming. This will give enough time for the cheese to melt without overcooking it.
Prepare the steamer. Ensure there is enough water in the steamer and get it ready for steaming the cakes. You can cover the molds with a thin cloth to protect them and place another cloth over the steamer lid. Alternatively, you can use a regular lid to cover the steamer. Start preparing the steamer while mixing the ingredients to save time.
Place the cake mold into a steaming tray and steam for about 20 minutes. You can check the cake after 10 minutes. When you insert a toothpick into the cake and it comes out clean, the puto cake is ready. Just remember to steam it for an additional 2 minutes if you add a type of cheese that melts easily.
Remove the puto cake from the mold. Let the cake cool for 1 to 2 minutes before taking it out. Once the cake is not too hot, you can arrange it on a plate.
Enjoy. This cake is best enjoyed while still warm, so make sure to eat it right away. You can enjoy the puto cake on its own anytime, but many prefer to eat it with coffee. You can also pair it with dinugan – a dish made with simmered pig’s blood if you like.
What you will need
- Small cupcake molds or trays
- Steamer
