Putu Bamboo

Ingredients:

230g rice flour
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp water
1½ cup grated coconut, remove skin


Method:

1. Dissolve salt in water and sprinkle over rice flour. Mix to get a crumbly texture. Add 1 cup coconut and mix well.
2. Put 1 tbsp coconut into funnel. Add 3 heaped tbsp of rice flour-coconut mixture.
3. Repeat steps 2 till rice flour-coconut mixture is used up. Make sure the last layer is of coconut. Fill pot with water and boil. Fit funnel into pot of boiling water and cook till steam appears.
4. When cooked, remove putu from funnel by pushing the disc at the base using the thick round handle of a wooden spoon or any similar object. Serve with bananas and brown sugar.

Note: Aluminium Putu Bamboo steamers are available in Indian General Stores. The steamer is made up of three parts, the pot of water, the funnel with a disc inside and a lid. Wrap a strip of cotton or towel around the base of the funnel so that it fits snugly into the pot and seals the container. Originally, thick bamboos were used as they were easily available. The bamboos were fitted snugly into a mug or kettle of water. Hence the name Putu Bamboo.