Christmas Recipes from Philippines

Recipe Name: Puto Bumbong

Puto Bumbong is a native delicacy that is especially intended for Christmas. "Puto" means steamed glutinous rice, and "bumbong" means bamboo cannon.

The origin of puto bumbong is not known but evidently dates back to the early Spanish era. It was believed to have been brought over from Mexico by Legazpi and Urdaneta. Some trace it to the pastoral times when fishermen kept vigil and then proceeded to church at dawn to hear Mass. After the dawn Mass, they would relieve their hunger and weariness with puto bumbong and salabat (ginger tea).

Others attribute it to the harvest season when farmers would attend Mass and offer their thanksgiving for abundant grain.

Puto bumbong is a uniquely prepared delicacy. It is a purple-colored dish cooked in standing bamboo or metal tubes attached to a steam-producing tin can or cylinder mounted on a small saucepot of boiling water or steam.

• Five (5) kilograms of glutinous rice

• One (1) cup ordinary rice

• One (1) tablespoon of food coloring (Lilac)

• One (1) kilo of freshly grated matured coconut

• Margarine

• Sugar

Mix glutinous rice, ordinary rice and food coloring. Soak in water for four hours. Slowly grind using a stone grinder or manual grinder. Be sure not to put too much water in while grinding, this will delay drying of milled ingredients. Too much water will cause the mixture to be sticky. Put milled ingredients onto cotton cloth. Tie corners of the cloth. Let it drip. When the mixture is almost dried, press it using a heavy object to remove excess water. Let stand overnight.

Remove the milled ingredients from the cloth. Place it on finely woven cotton cloth. Mix and crush the milled ingredients using your hand until the finest particles pass through the cotton and fall into a container. Collect the particles.

Boil water using the steamer. Cover it with custom-made-cover with nozzles big enough to fit bamboo tubes or metal cylinders. Cover the nozzles with cotton cloth.

Grease cylinders with margarine then half-fill cylinders with milled ingredients. Cover the other end of the cylinder with cotton cloth. Fit the opposite end into the nozzle. Steam will come out of the cylinder when it is cooked. Before removing Puto Bumbong from the cylinder, invert position to ensure proper cooking.

To remove Puto bumbong from the cylinder, hold it in a vertical position and gently tap it out over a plate.

Put sugar and freshly grated coconut as toppings. Best when served hot with ginger tea.

Return to list