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plated and complete puto

Puto

Filipino steamed rice cake dessert! Not the dirty Spanish word.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings: 18 cakes (approximately)

Ingredients
  

  • 180 grams (1 ½ cup) rice flour
  • 60 grams (½ cup) glutinous rice flour can sub with rice flour
  • 1 ½ tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 can (13.5oz) coconut milk
  • 3-4 American cheese slices or similar salty yellow cheese. (optional)

Method
 

  1. In a large bowl, combine rice flour and glutinous rice flour. Add the baking powder, sugar, and salt and whisk all the dry ingredients thoroughly.
  2. Pour in the coconut milk, and then mix very well until the batter is no longer clumpy.
  3. Begin boiling the water for your steamer.
  4. Now you will need to fill the molds. Fill each mold about ½ full to give the batter space to rise. Use as many molds as you need to use up all the batter.
  5. Place your cupcake molds into the steamer and steam for 35-45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. This will change depending on the size of your puto. The smaller the puto, the shorter you should steam it.
  6. (Optional) Once the puto has finished steaming, tear your cheese slices into squares that fit on your puto and place them. The residual heat will melt the cheese slightly without making it run.
  7. Remove from molds and serve! Enjoy the puto with tea or coffee! Or if you’re feeling very traditional, serve with dinuguan!

Notes

  • In this recipe, I use rice flour and glutinous rice flour to create a moist and bouncier texture. You can use only regular rice flour but it will be drier and crumbly.
  • Some recipes claim it only takes 10 minutes so you will need to find what works best for your size.