Filipino Palitaw

Living in a Filipino household, I’ve always learned the importance of family, and the countless  experiences, traditions, and foods that defined our cultural identity. Every one of my New Year’s Eve consists of buying a variety of twelve fruits, roasting chestnuts, shaking coins in our pockets, and spending time with my family.

These traditions and superstitions are necessary to follow in order for the family to have a life of good luck and prosperity. My grandmother, born and raised in the Cavite province, made it a point to make and eat palitaw, a traditional Filipino delicacy, every New Year’s Eve with the family. Here, my grandmother shares the brief origins of palitaw and its recipe.

Q: What is Palitaw?

A: Palitaw derives from the Tagalog word litaw, meaning to “float” or to “rise”. It is made out of malagkit, “sticky rice”. It’s already understood that sticky rice is sweet, so you have to to ensure that it’s properly purified by soaking it in water for 1-2 hours. Most of the work is treating the rice. 

Q: What is the meaning of Palitaw? 

A: This is our tradition because palitaw is made of sweet rice, and sweet rice is sticky. This means that the family will “stick together”. If the family eats sticky food during New Year’s Eve, then we’d stick together throughout the new year. When the palitaw is cooked, it will rise and float on the boiling water. The meaning of this brings upon good luck to the family. 

Q: What are your past memories on making Palitaw?

A: My mother taught me how to make palitaw. All of my brothers and sisters participated in making them, which allowed us to strengthen our familial bonds.We had a heavy pestle where we’d grind the rice by hand to make the galapong, which is what we call the dough.

GRANDMA’S HELPFUL TIP: Place sticky rice in a moisturized cloth to drain all of the water from the dough