It’s like biko but better. Cook the glutinous rice in coconut milk. Spread in a greased baking dish, top with salted caramel, sprinkle with desiccated coconut and bake. It’s so good. But to really do this sweet dish right, it’s best to soak the rice for several hours prior to cooking. And you have to make the caramel using coconut cream instead of the usual dairy cream. That way, the coconut flavor is multiplied by three.
Rice cakes were part of my childhood in more ways than I can count. When my grandmother went to the market, she always brought home a delicacy for snacks. It was either guinataang halo-halo, suman or biko. When my father discovered Dolor’s beside a church in Malabon, most weekends would find us there to get a bilao or two of assorted rice cakes. Much later, after we moved to the suburb, we bought bibingkang malagkit in nearby Cainta.
It’s comfort food for me. Sweet glutinous rice cake is my thing. But I especially like it with the rice grains full and topped with coconut milk cooked to the consistency of jam. And that’s how I like to make it at home. Try it and love it.
Some tips.
For instructions on extracting coconut milk from grated coconuts, click here.
If using canned coconut milk and cream, pay attention to the label. Coconut milk is not the same as coconut cream, and you need both.
If using powdered coconut milk, follow the package instructions on how to reconstitute to make both coconut milk and coconut cream.
This is an updated version of a recipe originally published in 2013.
- 1 cup sticky rice soaked in cold water (in the fridge) for at least 6 hours, then drained
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup caramel remember to substitute coconut cream for the dairy cream, and stir in a generous pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup desiccated coconut
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Put the rice in the rice cooker. Pour in the coconut milk. Stir in the sugar and salt. Cook.
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When the rice is halfway done, preheat the oven to 375F.
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Grease the bottom and sides of a 7"x11" baking dish with coconut oil (substitute softened butter if you don’t have coconut oil).
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Transfer the cooked rice to the baking dish.
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Using the back of a spoon, spread evenly making sure that you pack the rice in.
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Pour the salted caramel over the rice.
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Sprinkle the desiccated coconut over the caramel.
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Bake at 375 for 20 to 25 minutes or until the caramel is bubbly.
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Cool the sticky rice cake completely before cutting.
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Cut into squares or wedges and serve.
