I grew up with cassava growing beside the house, outside our fence — so, not our property, but free to use since no one was using the land at the time. My mom tells me they used to plant it just outside their master bedroom, on the other side of the house. Anyway, cassava is “kamoteng-kahoy” in Filipino. I never liked it growing up, my Papa would make it into “nilupak” (without cheese though), which he would pound with this large wooden mortar and pestle at the back of the house, not that different from what I’ve seen Japanese use to make mochi. He would mix it with butter and sugar.
I only grew to like cassava as a grownup, and grew more curious about the various preparations utilizing it. I sent this to a friend on August 14, 2005. I had just interviewed my Papa as to how Quezon’s budin (cassava cake) is made, and this is what he told me (lifted directly from the e-mail I sent, so I won’t bother to translate).
the cassava is grated, tapos nilalagay sa katsa. it’s squeezed to get the “sap” out, kasi “sappy” daw ‘yon. the liquid that’s squeezed out is put in a separate container and allowed to stand hanggang “tumining”. there will be this powdery stuff that will sink to the bottom — they call this “unaw”. ito daw ang ginagamit sa lucban at tayabas that’s why their budin is more “maligat”. sa quezon, quezon where Papa is from ‘yong regular pulp lang ang ginagamit nila most of the time. the pulp is mixed with coconut milk (wala nang distinction ng first pressing, second pressing, etc.) — and sugar. It’s poured into a heart-shaped tin mold (2 inches high, 8 inches in length, 5-6 inches wide. tapos sini-steam (pero hindi n’ya maaalala kung ga’no katagal) in a big kawa. some folks daw add macapuno or buco on top before steaming. when it’s done it’s unmolded and cut into pieces to serve.
ang nagturo daw nito sa kanila is a representative from Sariaya of the “National Coconut Corporation”. she came to their village and was doing demonstrations. ngayon daw sa laguna and other places kung anu-ano nang hinahalo, but that’s how simple it was when they made it back then.
pinapakuwento ko nga ‘yong pansit buko pero hindi daw s’ya marunong although he remembers eating (and loving) the dish.
Recent Comments