Ginataang Bilubilo

Ginataang Bilubilo by Angie Pastor. For orders in Manila, 09369815475.

Ginataan refers to any stew that uses gata (coconut milk) as a prominent ingredient. For example, ginataang gulay refers to vegetables cooked in coconut milk.

The most popular ginataan is probably the sweet concoction called ginataang bilo-bilo. The word bilo-bilo (spelled variedly like bilu-bilo) refers to small opaque balls of white glutinous rice… not to be confused with the tiny darker yet translucent balls of sago that often are also part of the mixture.

Aside from bilu-bilo (the plump balls of sticky rice) and sago (boba-like pearls), other usual ingredients included in this ginataan are jackfruit and the fat, starchy saba variety of bananas.