Suman Sa Lihiya (also known as Sumang Bulagta or Sumang Yakap) is one of the most popular rice cakes in the Philippines. It is known for its firm yet chewy texture and its versatility when it comes to toppings.
In this recipe article, you’ll learn how to make this yummy rice cake from scratch, paired with my favorite topping, the Coconut Caramel Sauce, also made from scratch.
We will be providing you with lots of cooking tips, techniques, and important notes so make sure you read everything before jumping to the recipe.
What is Suman Sa Lihiya?
Suman Sa Lihiya is a type of Filipino rice cake cooked with a little lye water or lihiya. It is also called Suman Bulagta and in the Southern Tagalog region, it is known as Suman Yakap since they are cooked in pairs.
Like most rice cakes, this one makes use of glutinous rice, locally known as malagkit. This is the same rice used in other Filipino food like champorado and arroz caldo.
What sets it apart from other suman recipes is that this makes use of food grade lye water. It is an alkaline solution used in various culinary processes like baking and curing. The lye water improves the suman’s texture, making it more soft and chewy.
Suman sa lihiya is also cooked wrapped in banana leaves. The banana leaf gives the suman added flavor and aroma, and it gives it a unique greenish color. It has a light taste making it versatile when it comes to topping pairings.
Suman sa lihiya is usually topped with sugar, coconut curd (latik), or coconut caramel sauce. In this recipe, we will share how to make my personal favorite, the coconut caramel sauce.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Rice
In the Philippines, glutinous rice is simply known as ‘malagkit’. But depending on where you are, this rice may be called by different names. Here are some names to look for: sticky rice, waxy rice, botan rice, biroin chal, sweet rice, mochi rice, and pearl rice.
Lye Water
Lye water is a food grade alkaline solution used in various culinary applications. Read more about this ingredient in the section below.
Leaves
In case you’re not in the Philippines or a tropical country, banana leaves may be hard to come by and they may be available in Asian stores. They are usually frozen and should not be prepared in the same ways as fresh ones. Don’t run frozen leaves over fire, but wash them with warm water instead.
Sauce
From the name of our sauce, we will need coconut milk and brown sugar with salt to make this.
If you are filling up your pantry, here’s a handy shopping guide:
Equipment You’ll Need
- Cooking Pot- We will be using a cooking pot to cook the suman by boiling. Make sure to use a pot large enough to cover the suman with water.
- Saucepan- We will also create our sauce from scratch and we need a saucepan to do this.
In need of kitchen tools and equipment? Read this before you buy:
How to Make Suman Sa Lihiya
Making suman sa lihiya involves 3 parts: Preparing the glutinous rice, wrapping, and boiling.
Preparing the glutinous rice involves quite a bit of time so you better plan ahead. After cleaning the rice, we will be soaking it in water for at least 3 hours. We will then mix in the lye water or lihiya afterwards.
Before we wrap the rice mixture, we have to prepare the banana leaves first. You will need to lightly heat the leaves over fire or wash them in warm water, depending if it is fresh or frozen. Then, we will cut them into smaller pieces.
We have recommended sizes below but the shape and size is up to you:
For 1 suman: 1 pc 12×10” and 1 pc 6×4”
We then fold and tie up the suman before we go to the boiling part. Take note that in this recipe, we will be giving instructions for the suman yakap style. There are several options on how to shape and wrap the suman sa lihiya (e.g. square, triangle, pyramid, etc.).
The boiling part is straightforward. We just have to fill up the arranged suman with water then boil them for 1 hour.
How to Make Coconut Caramel Sauce
Making the coconut caramel sauce is quick and easy. I suggest you make it while boiling the suman. You simply mix the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, lower the heat and let it simmer.
You have to continuously stir the mixture until the liquid starts to thicken. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Cooking Tips
- The coconut caramel sauce isn’t the only topping you can pair with suman sa lihiya. You can also use white sugar, latik (coconut curd), grated coconut, or desiccated coconut. You can even mix and match any of these toppings together.
- Some people also brush their banana leaves with oil before placing the rice mixture. This prevents the rice from sticking to the leaves. You can do this also by brushing the leaves with coconut oil or any other neutral-flavored vegetable oil.
How to Serve Suman Sa Lihiya
Suman sa lihiya is best served warm with the topping of your choice. It is great to be paired with a hot drink like coffee or chocolate.
How to Store and Reheat Suman Sa Lihiya
Cooked suman sa lihiya can be refrigerated. It can also be frozen for a longer shelf life. Before eating, simply thaw completely and reheat by steaming or through a microwave oven.
Other Rice Cake Recipes
For a quick reference about this recipe, see the recipe table below:
Suman Sa Lihiya (With Coconut Caramel Sauce) Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking Pot
- Saucepan
Ingredients
Suman Ingredients
- 2 cups Glutinous rice
- 2 cups Water
- 1 tsp Lye water
- Pinch of Salt
Coconut Caramel Sauce Ingredients
- 200 ml (6.7 fl oz) coconut milk
- 100 g (3.5 oz) Brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
Materials Needed
- Banana Leaves
- Kitchen twine
- Water, for boiling
Instructions
Suman Instructions
- Wash the glutinous rice with water for about 2 to 3 times and remove dirt and other unwanted matter.
- Place the rice in a bowl and pour-in the water.
- Soak for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Discard the excess water then add-in the lye water and salt.
- Mix thoroughly until the rice turns yellowish in color then let it sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Prepare the banana leaves by running them quickly over fire. This will make the leaves aromatic and flexible. Take note that if you’re using frozen banana leaves, just wash them with warm water.
- Cut a pair of large leaf (12x10 inches) and small leaf (6x4 inches) for each suman.
- Place the banana leaves with the smaller leaf on top of the larger leaf.
- Scoop 2 spoonfuls of the rice mixture into the center of the smaller leaf.
- Fold the leaf into 2 by turning one side on top of the opposite side. Then fold in thirds starting from where the rice is (the fold should be about 2 inches in width). Fold the top and bottom sides to close the open ends.
- Do this for the rest of the rice and leaves.
- To seal, place 2 suman together with the folded ends facing each other. Then seal by tying them with the kitchen twine of any food-grade string.
- Do this for the rest of the suman.
- Arrange the suman in a cooking pot and pour in enough water to cover.
- Bring to a boil then simmer for 1 hour.
- Remove and allow to cool.
Coconut Caramel Sauce Instructions
- While the rice is boiling, you can prepare the sauce.
- Pour-in the sugar, coconut milk, and salt in a saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil.
- Lower heat and simmer with continuous stirring until a thick caramel sauce forms.
- Remove from heat then allow to cool. Serve with Suman sa Lihiya.
Notes
Nutrition
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