Sweet Potato Palitaw
Soft, silky and chewy disc-shape glutinous sweet potato rice cake coated with freshly grated coconut, roasted sesame seeds and then finally sprinkled with sugar. A Palitaw recipe made even more delicious and enjoyable for everyone.
Boiling the glutinous rice cake in hot water until it surfaces to the top is the method of cooking Palitaw; the term essentially (and appropriately) means ‘to surface’ in Filipino. It is one of the simplest Filipino snacks you can make with just a few simple ingredients.
Traditionally, the cake is only made of pure ground rice flour and water. The addition of mashed sweet potato makes it smoother, silkier, a little sweeter and colorful too! It is definitely one way of elevating our beloved Palitaw.
This method may already sound familiar to you because I have used it in my Ginataang Bilo-Bilo recipe. The only difference is that in this recipe, it is important to take note of the ratio of sweet potato and glutinous rice flour when making the dough. Too much of the sweet starch may create a fragile, less chewy palitaw. There has to be more rice flour than the sweet potato (see the recipe for exact measurements).
The nutty smell and flavor of roasted sesame seeds are what really identifies Palitaw from all other Filipino rice cake dishes. That is why I highly recommend using freshly roasted sesame seeds when making this snack.
Watch the video on how to make Sweet Potato Palitaw
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato (i used half purple and half orange (jewel))
- 2 cups glutinous rice flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup water (for the dough mixture)
- 3 cups water (for cooking the dough)
- 1/4 cup freshly roasted sesame seeds
- 1 cup freshly grated mature coconut
- white sugar
Instructions
- Steam diced sweet potatoes for 10 minutes until fork-tender. Transfer to a bowl and then mash with a fork or masher.
- Add glutinous rice flour, salt, and water to the mashed potato. Mix with your hands (preferably) or spatula until soft dough forms. The dough should be soft but not dry or sticky. Add 1 tablespoon of water at a time if it is too dry or glutinous rice flour if it is too sticky.
- Divide and shape the dough into balls and then flatten using the back of a spoon (see video). You can make big servings or small servings, entirely up to you! Place onto a plate dusted with rice flour to prevent it from sticking.
- Carefully drop each flattened dough in a pot of boiling water (see video). Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pot. Cook until the dough floats to the surface. Remove from water using a slotted spoon. Transfer to an oiled plate and let it cool.
- Roll the palitaw in grated coconut then sprinkle with freshly roasted sesame seeds and sugar. Serve and enjoy immediately!
Recipe Notes and Tips:
- Divide the glutinous rice flour and water if you're using two types of sweet potato. The ratio should be 1/2 cup of mashed sweet potato to 1 cup of glutinous rice flour. Adding too much sweet potato will create a fragile, less chewy palitaw.
- Toast sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes until lightly browned. Stir continuously to prevent it from burning. Do this even if you are already using pre-roasted seeds. Do you smell it yet? hmmm!
- Palitaw is best eaten fresh as the grated mature coconut has a short shelf life at room temperature. You can store it in the fridge for a maximum of 4 hours for later consumption. Store it coated with the grated coconut and sesame seeds then just sprinkle with sugar just before serving.
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