BIKO: boholanos favorite

BIKO

Biko (Rice Cake) is very well-known boholano's home-made dessert or 'kakanin'. Almost every boholano know how to cook this dessert. Biko is composed of pilit (sticky rice) cook and mix with latik (coco jam).

There are a couple of ways to make biko. One method is steaming the sticky rice first until partially cooked and then finishing it off in a coconut milk-sugar syrup. The second method  is cooking the sticky rice straight in the syrup. This method results to a biko that is richer in flavor as it gets to absorb more of the coconut milk during cooking. Try this 2nd method and let me know what methods suite's your taste.

preration time: 10 mins

COOK TIME: 40 mins

TOTAL TIME: 50 mins

Yield: 8 Servings

INGREDIENTS

·         1-1/2 cups glutinous rice

·         2 tablespoons coconut oil (from making latik)

·         2 cups coconut milk

·         1 cup water

·         1 cup dark brown sugar

·         Latik

For the Latik

·         2 cups coconut cream

INSTRUCTIONS

1.   Wash glutinous rice and drain well.

2.   Grease bottom and sides of a baking dish with coconut oil. Set aside.

3.   In a wide pan over medium heat, combine coconut milk, water and rice. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until rice is tender. Add more water in ½ cup increments if rice mixture is drying before rice is cooked.

4.   When rice mixture begins to thicken, add sugar and stir until sugar is dissolved and fully incorporated. Continue to cook, stirring regularly, until mixture is very thick and sticky. Biko is ready when it is already very difficult to stir and it pulls away from pan.

5.   Spoon biko into prepared baking dish and pat down to flatten. Allow to cool and set. Lightly brush top with coconut oil and top with latik. Cut into portions to serve.

For the Latik

1.   In a pan over medium heat, add coconut cream and bring to a boil. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid starts to thicken. Lower heat and simmer. As oil starts to separate and solids begin to form, regularly stir and scrape sides and bottom of pan to prevent from burning. Continue to cook and stir until curds turn golden brown. Drain latik from the oil.