Puto Maya with Sikwate: Cebuano Sticky Rice and Hot Chocolate
Recipe Guy
Cebuano breakfast | Sticky rice | Ginger hot chocolate
Ginger-scented coconut rice and a cup of hot sikwate make a satisfying pair without needing to become one dessert. The puto maya stays chewy, the tablea chocolate is whisked until lightly frothy, and ripe mango brings a fresh contrast alongside.
Why make it: This version uses a rice cooker or stovetop pot for the sticky rice and gives tablea and cocoa options for the hot chocolate.
Fresh From the Kitchen
About This Recipe
This puto maya begins with soaked glutinous rice, drained before cooking in coconut milk with ginger, sugar, and salt. A covered rest follows cooking so the rice can settle before serving. The grains should be tender and cohesive, not loose like ordinary steamed rice.
Sikwate is prepared separately by dissolving tablea in hot water or a milk-water blend. Keeping it separate lets the coconut and ginger remain distinct from the chocolate. Mango slices need no further preparation and offer a lighter bite between the rice and the drink.
Cooking Notes
- Drain the soaked rice thoroughly before adding the measured cooking liquids. Water left in the soaking bowl becomes extra liquid and makes the absorption stage less predictable.
- Use a whisk to break up the tablea as it softens, reaching the bottom of the pan. Visible chocolate pieces need more whisking before the drink is ready to pour.
Ingredient Notes
For the rice
Soaking glutinous rice helps it cook evenly and keeps the grains pleasantly chewy.
For sikwate
Weigh 100 g unsweetened tablea for the 4 cups liquid rather than counting tablets. The cocoa option below is a lighter hot-cocoa adaptation, not a gram-for-gram replacement for tablea, which also contains cocoa butter.
Puto Maya with Sikwate Recipe
This version uses a rice cooker or stovetop pot for the sticky rice and gives tablea and cocoa options for the hot chocolate.
Shopping List
- glutinous rice
- full-fat unsweetened coconut milk, 400 ml
- ginger
- sugar
- salt
- unsweetened tablea, 100 g, or unsweetened cocoa powder for the separate cocoa option
- milk: 2 cups for the cocoa option or the optional tablea milk-water blend
- ripe mango
- banana leaves optional
- brown sugar
Ingredients
Puto Maya
- 2 cups glutinous rice, rinsed and soaked
- 400 ml full-fat unsweetened coconut milk (about 1 2/3 U.S. cups), measured from a can
- 1/2 cup water
- 3 slices fresh ginger
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Sikwate
- 4 cups water, or 2 cups water plus 2 cups milk
- 100 g unsweetened 100% cacao tablea, chopped; weigh it because tablet sizes vary
- 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar, to taste
- Pinch of salt
Cocoa Alternative (Instead of the Sikwate Ingredients Above)
- 1/4 cup (about 20 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups milk
- 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar
- Pinch of salt
For Serving
- Ripe mango slices
- Banana leaves, optional
- Extra sugar, optional
Instructions
- Rinse the glutinous rice, soak in ample water for 1 hour, and drain thoroughly for about 5 minutes; discard the soaking water.
- Combine the drained rice, 400 ml coconut milk, 1/2 cup water, ginger, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt in a heavy 3-quart saucepan. This is about 520 ml added liquid for the soaked 2 cups rice. A rice cooker may be used only if its instructions allow coconut-milk mixtures and this quantity.
- For stovetop cooking, bring just to a simmer while stirring, then cover and reduce to the lowest heat. Cook about 20 to 30 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and a grain is tender through its center. If still firm and dry, add 2 tablespoons boiling water at a time and continue covered. For a compatible rice cooker, follow its sticky-rice program and check the same endpoint.
- Remove ginger and fluff the sticky rice, then keep covered for 10 minutes.
- For tablea sikwate, heat the 4 cups water or measured milk-water blend in a separate saucepan until steaming, then stir in the 100 g chopped tablea and pinch of salt. Keep milk-containing mixtures below a hard boil.
- Whisk over low heat for about 3 to 5 minutes until the tablea disperses and the drink becomes lightly frothy. Sweeten with the listed 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar.
- For the cocoa alternative instead of tablea: use 1/4 cup (about 20 g) unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar, a pinch of salt, 2 cups water and 2 cups milk. Whisk cocoa, sugar and salt with 1/2 cup of that water into a smooth paste; stir over medium heat until bubbling for about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the remaining 1 1/2 cups water and the milk and heat until steaming. Do not add the tablea or another 4 cups liquid.
- Serve puto maya with hot sikwate and ripe mango.
Nutrition Estimate
Approximate nutrition for 1 portion rice with one-sixth of the tablea drink. Includes rice and the water-based 100 g unsweetened tablea drink with 2 tablespoons drink sugar. The alternative cocoa-milk drink, extra sugar and mango are excluded. Calculated from published food data, not laboratory tested; brands and portions vary.
Tips For The Best Puto Maya with Sikwate
- Soak the rice: Even one hour improves the texture.
- Keep heat gentle: Coconut milk can scorch on the bottom of a thin pot.
- Whisk the sikwate: A batirol is traditional, but a small whisk works.
- Serve with mango: The fruit makes the rice and chocolate feel complete.
How To Serve And Store
Serve warm for breakfast or merienda. Refrigerate leftover rice and the prepared drink separately in shallow containers within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90 F. Keep at 40 F or below and use within 3 to 4 days. Steam or microwave rice with a splash of water to 165 F; reheat the drink while stirring to 165 F. Do not leave rice or milk-based chocolate at room temperature for later service.
Common Questions
Can I use jasmine rice?
No. Glutinous rice is needed for puto maya.
Can I make sikwate with cocoa powder?
Yes. Use the separate cocoa formula in the card: 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa, 2 cups water, 2 cups milk, 2 to 4 tablespoons sugar and a pinch of salt. Make the cocoa paste first. It replaces the entire tablea drink, not the puto maya ingredients.
Is ginger required?
It is part of the flavor, but you can reduce it for a gentler bowl.
Can I cook puto maya in a rice cooker?
Only if the manufacturer's instructions permit coconut-milk mixtures and this batch size. Use its sticky-rice program and check for tender grains; otherwise use the measured stovetop method in the card.
Can jasmine rice replace the glutinous rice in puto maya?
Keep the glutinous rice for this preparation. The intended texture is sticky and chewy; jasmine rice would produce a different dish and would not necessarily use the same soaking and liquid amounts.
Does the ginger stay in the puto maya when served?
Remove the three ginger slices after the rice finishes cooking, before its covered rest. They season the coconut milk during cooking but do not need to remain as large pieces in each serving.
Would you serve puto maya with mango, sikwate, or both every time? Share your family version or testing notes in the comments.
Recipe inspiration and technique reference: Filipino dessert and bakery source research from Panlasang Pinoy, Kawaling Pinoy, The Dusky Kitchen, and Filipino-American dessert sources in the site roadmap.
Technique and food-safety references: kawalingpinoy.com; malagoschocolate.com; hersheyland.com; fsis.usda.gov.
